As recently reported by RPX in its Q3 in Review, NPE litigation targeting the Automotive sector increased during the third quarter by over 180%. Several familiar faces in the patent monetization space launched or expanded automotive campaigns in Q3, including multiple NPEs tied by public records to third-party litigation funders. While the number of defendants sued in automotive campaigns remains relatively low as compared to other busy sectors, the litigation activity of several established plaintiffs in this space reflects sustained NPE interest.

Typhoon IP LLC has added a District of Delaware case against Robert Bosch (1:21-cv-01375) to the navigation systems campaign that it began in January of this year. Asserted are two of the three patents-in-campaign, generally related to determining alternate routes and the cost of a route, respectively, with infringement allegations targeting the provision of the Bosch eBike and Nyon Navigation System, a clip-on GPS navigation device for use with Bosch eBikes. The plaintiff is one of roughly a dozen apparent IP Edge LLC entities to litigate patents from among about 175 assets that the Texas monetization firm picked up from Empire Technology Development LLC between December 2020 and May of this year.

In late August, IP Edge LLC plaintiff Typhoon IP LLC fired off a third round in its sole litigation campaign, suing JVCKenwood (3:21-cv-01993) in the Northern District of Texas, followed by Alpine Electronics (2:21-cv-04286) and Clarion (2:21-cv-04285) in the Southern District of Ohio just one week later. The three patents-in-suit, with only two at issue against JVCKenwood, are broadly directed to vehicle navigation technology. The defendants are accused of infringement through the provision of automobile infotainment systems, with certain GPS navigation features at issue.

The fifth new litigation campaign that Texas monetization firm IP Edge LLC began at the end of last month targets the provision of automotive GPS navigation systems and mobile apps that support the determination of alternate routes, the calculation of a particular route’s cost, and the consideration of traffic conditions. Typhoon IP LLC sued iGo (1:21-cv-00083), Mitsubishi (Mitsubishi Motors America) (1:21-cv-00084), Pioneer (Pioneer Electronics (USA)) (1:21-cv-00085), and Voxx (1:21-cv-00086) in the District of Delaware and Namsung (6:21-cv-00190) in the Middle District of Florida, asserting in each complaint three more patents that IP Edge acquired from NPE Empire Technology Development LLC.