Magnetar Technologies Corp. announced today that a three judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld Magnetar’s victory over amusement ride manufacturer Intamin, Ltd in their patent infringement suit. The appeal court affirmed all aspects of a 2009 ruling by the trial court that Magnetar was not liable for damages because it did not infringe Intamin’s patent on magnetic amusement ride brakes, and because Intamin engaged in misconduct during the litigation.
The Federal Circuit affirmed that Intamin is prevented from recovering against Magnetar due to Intamin’s “unclean hands” in falsifying documents that allegedly assigned rights to Intamin in U.S. Patent No. 6,062,350, entitled “Braking System For An Amusement Device.” The Federal Circuit also affirmed that Magnetar does not infringe the patent asserted by Intamin.
“This ruling confirms that Intamin Ltd. lacks viable patent rights that cover Magnetar’s products, and that Intamin Ltd. has improperly used a questionable patent in an attempt to suppress Magnetar and others in the amusement industry,” said Edward Pribonic, President of Magnetar Technologies. “We are pleased with the result, and intend to continue with our antitrust case against Intamin in order to be made whole.”
John B. Sganga of Knobbe, Martens, Olson & Bear, LLP, litigation counsel for Magnetar, added, “Magnetar has been exposed to years of contentious and meritless litigation. We are very pleased to have the Federal Circuit affirm the district court ruling.”
About Magnetar Technologies
Magnetar Technologies Corp. was founded in 1997 to develop and promote advanced safety technology for amusement rides. Magnetar focuses on magnetic brake systems, and its Soft Stop® Magnetic Brakes define the state of the art in safety and reliability. Magnetic brakes are very effective and require no power or control system to operate. They also have no contact with any moving parts. Thus they are more reliable and durable than conventional friction brakes, and the cost of operating and maintaining them is practically zero.
About Knobbe, Martens, Olson & Bear, LLP
Knobbe, Martens, Olson & Bear, LLP has over 260 lawyers that handle only intellectual property law matters. The Orange County, California-based firm serves a diverse group of clients from multinational corporations to emerging businesses. The firm also has offices in Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Washington, D.C., Seattle, and Riverside, and enjoys an international reputation for excellence in the intellectual property field.
Blecher & Collins, P.C., based in Los Angeles, is handling the antitrust case on behalf of Magnetar.