 |
| (Source: Kyungdong Navien) |
Kyungdong Navien has secured amendments reviving portions of two heat exchanger patents previously struck down at the request of rival Kiturami, a move that could reshape the ongoing boiler patent battle between the companies.
On Sept. 4 and 5, the Korean Intellectual Property Trial and Appeal Board granted Kyungdong Navien's requests to amend claims in patents KR2399606 and KR2405498, both titled "Heat Exchanger Unit."
In August 2024, the board had fully invalidated the '606 patent, siding entirely with Kiturami, and partially invalidated the '498 patent by canceling claims 1, 2, and 4 through 20 while leaving claim 3 intact. Kyungdong Navien appealed the '606 decision to the Korean Patent Court, while both parties appealed the partial invalidation of the '498 patent.
Kyungdong Navien's successful amendments now inject new uncertainty into the litigation, as the revised claims could influence the trajectory of both appeals.
Kiturami, meanwhile, has pursued additional challenges. The board in August 2024 upheld the validity of another Kyungdong Navien heat exchanger patent, KR2405497, but Kiturami has since brought that case to the Patent Court. Separately, the board in September 2024 invalidated Kyungdong Navien's KR2372926 patent, which covered a combustion room and integrated boiler.
The three heat exchanger patents—KR2399606, KR2405497, and KR2405498—stem from a divisional application of Kyungdong Navien's original patent KR2240319, filed in 2018. That parent patent itself survived a 2021 cancellation bid, which the board dismissed in July 2022. Notably, the same law firm that handled that earlier failed challenge is now representing Kiturami in the current disputes.
By PatenTrip
Comments
Post a Comment