WILMINGTON, Del. (Legal Newsline) - This week, a Florida-based company sued American Honda Motor Co. Inc. in federal court, claiming the automaker is illegally using its technology as part of the popular HondaLink and AcuraLink systems.
Rothschild Location Technologies LLC, with its principal business in Bay Harbor Islands, Florida, filed its lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware Tuesday.
In its five-page complaint, Rothschild states it is the owner of U.S. Patent No. 7,917,285, entitled “Device, system and method for remotely entering, storing and sharing addresses for a positional information device.”
The ‘285 patent, the company states, was issued in April 2006. Leigh M. Rothschild is listed as the inventor.
Rothschild -- for which a website could not be found -- contends Honda is infringing on the ‘285 patent by making, using and selling the HondaLink and AcuraLink systems without a license from the company.
According to Honda’s website, the systems give drivers “in-car access to a world of Internet content, including music, podcasts, navigation, traffic, local weather and points of interest.”
Rothschild takes issue with how the HondaLink and AcuraLink systems remotely enter location information into a positional information device.
“The HondaLink and AcuraLink servers are configured to receive a request of at least one location, determine the address of at least one location and transmit the determined address to the positional information device, and transmit the one address to the first positional device,” the company wrote in its complaint.
“For example, the HondaLink and AcuraLink both allow users to ‘search for destinations from a point of interest… then send the information to your vehicle’s navigation system.’”
Rothschild contends that, as a result of Honda’s infringement on the ‘285 patent, it has suffered monetary damages and will continue to do so unless Honda’s infringing activities are enjoined by the federal court.
“Plaintiff will be irreparably harmed,” wrote Stephen B. Brauerman of Wilmington law firm Bayard P.A. The firm is representing Rothschild in the action.
In addition to a permanent injunction, Rothschild is seeking an order from the court requiring Honda to pay its damages, costs, expenses, prejudgment and post-judgment interest and an accounting of ongoing post-judgment infringement.
It also requested a jury trial.
Honda could not be reached for comment on the lawsuit.
Rothschild has filed similar lawsuits against Volkswagen, Volvo, Nissan and Hyandai, among others, since May. They, too, have been filed in the Delaware federal court.
From Legal Newsline: Reach Jessica Karmasek by email at patents@legalnewsline.com.