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Patent infringement complaint filed against Nintendo for Wiimote
10:10 AM on 12.08.2006, Ishaan 38 comments

Patent infringement complaint filed against Nintendo for Wiimote photo
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It has finally happened. Ever since Nintendo announced their remote-like controller for the "Revolution" (before they decided to honor it with the glorious mantle of the Wii), companies everywhere have been keeping a very close eye on the Wiimote and Nintendo's plans for it. Now, less than a month after the launch of their new console, Nintendo is already faced with a lawsuit coming from a company by the name of Interlink Electronics.

Admittedly, I have never once in my entire life heard of Interlink. However, the "About" page on their Web site claims they are "one of the world's leading innovators of intuitive interface design." To their credit, at the very least, the company knows how to use alliteration reasonably well.

Interlink Electronics is one of the world’s leading innovators of intuitive interface design.  From our corporate headquarters in Camarillo, California and offices in Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and China, we design, develop and manufacture human interface products and solutions for consumers and consumer electronics companies around the world.  With more than 80 patents and a rich 15-year history, Interlink has established itself as a clear business and technology leader in a wide range of markets.

The company has filed a complaint against Nintendo for patent infringement and jury demand. Here's the bit that counts:

6. On February 1, 2005, U.S. Patent No. 6,850,221 ("the '221 patent"), entitled "Trigger Operated electronic Device," was duly and legally issued. (See Exhibit A, U.S. Patent No. 6,850,221.)

7. Defendant has made, used, offered for sale and sold in the United States, and continues to make, use, offer for sale and sell in the United States one or more controllers, which activities infringe, induce others to infringe, and/or contributorily inringe the '221 patent. 

8. Plaintiff has suffered damages, including but not limited to, loss of reasonable royalties, reduced sales and/or lost profits as a result of the infringing activities of the defendant, and will continue to suffer such damage as long as those infringing activities continue.

Hit the jump for more, and to view images of the patent. 

 

Figure 2

Of course, every problem -- no matter how great -- has a solution, and this one is no different. Just like any other company that files lawsuits, Interlink has some demands for relief that they request be met:

A. Preliminary and permanently enjoining and restraining defendant, its officers, directors, employees, agents, servants, successors, and assigns, and any and all persons acting in privity and in concert with the defendants, from further infringement of the '221 patent.;

B. Awarding Plaintiff its damages, together with prejudgement interest and costs, and increasing those damages to three times the amount found or assessed as provided by 35 U.S.C. § 284;

C. Declaring this an exceptional case of 35 U.S.C. § 284, and awarding Plaintiff its reasonable attorney's fees and costs and disbursements in this action; and

D. Granting to plaintiff such other and further relief as this Court deems reasonable.

In other words, they want money. Lots of it. What will you do, Nintendo? Will you fight back, as Sony did against Immersion, or will you pay them off and avoid getting your hands dirty? We're a gaming news blog, so it should be pretty obvious who we're going to be siding with on this one. Go get 'em, tiger.

Figure 3

Figures 4, 5 & 6

 


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World Famous's Avatar
World Famous at 12/08/2006 10:18
U.S. patent laws suck. Nintendo better get ready to pay up. As they say, Sux 2 b u.
Niero's Avatar
Niero at 12/08/2006 10:20
I have an interlink keyboard and a competitor's gyroscope mouse and neither work via Bluetooth. That might be a big enough difference.
dukerayburn's Avatar
dukerayburn at 12/08/2006 10:20
Trigger operated electronic device? Look out, laser tag! You're next!

This has nothing to stand on. The patent drawing is of what amounts to a glorified remote control. Nintendo's controller uses infrared signals to triangulate itself in 3D space and then transmit that info via Bluetooth. Basically, this company has a patent on handheld devices with..I don't know, buttons on the bottom. Weak.
DeusPayne's Avatar
DeusPayne at 12/08/2006 10:24
What exactly are they claiming patent on? Other than the fact that they look alike, they aren't the same mechanism at all.

1) The wii-remote has the IR camera, and the 'sensor' sends out the IR. Their patent works the opposite direction, with the remote sending out IR, and the sensor picking it up.

2) The rest of the patent looks like they have a patent on a remote control. Of which I don't understand how they could have it.

My 2 cents, Nintendo doesn't pay them a dime.
Cruds's Avatar
Cruds at 12/08/2006 10:30
"Trigger Operated electronic Device" best name ever!
World Famous's Avatar
World Famous at 12/08/2006 10:31
I wonder if whoever invented the remote control will sue Interlink? It's a vicious cycle.
Cruds's Avatar
Cruds at 12/08/2006 10:41
After reading that link, I don't think that the Wii-remote is the issue here, but the trigger thats on the Wii-remote.

A device particularly for use with a computer comprises a housing for location at least partly between two fingers of a user's hand and an electronic circuit mounted on a board within the housing. The circuit includes a switch responsive to pressure selectively to open and close an electronic circuit, and conductive elements arranged on the board mounting the electronic circuit.
Iceblueslushy's Avatar
Iceblueslushy at 12/08/2006 10:43
Judging by Nintendo’s legal past I’d say that they’ll go to court rather than pay, and that they’ll win. I mean they beat Universal Studios, who the hell is interlink electronics? Granted it ended up that Universal didn’t have a leg to stand on anyway, but a company that large is able to flew some legal muscle, I would think, Just like I think Nintendo will be able to do over these guys. Probably approaching 10 years ago now I had a device very similar to the Wiimote for my computer that acted as the mouse. It had everything: directional pad, trigger button, and a sensor bar that had more than a little resemblance to Nintendo’s (thing worked like shit though.) My point being that we’ve all heard plenty of times by now from our Nintendo-hating friends that this technology has existed for some time. I don’t know much about patent laws but it seems like by now this would be one of those things where everyone can use the technology, just like how Sony is supposedly trying to use a form of it. Too bad these guys didn’t try to go after Sony first, they have a lot less to lose, hah.
cronotrigger913's Avatar
cronotrigger913 at 12/08/2006 10:47
I'm so tired of hearing about companies suing over patent infringement. The system becomes a problem when there's no breathing room for innovation. Can't people make proprietary stuff without getting hassled by "the man"?

And isn't it impossible to patent something that's already patented? Why would the patent office patent the wii-mote if it's infringing on another thing? Or is that there's so many patents that even the patent office can't know them all?
BahamutZero's Avatar
BahamutZero at 12/08/2006 11:06
He's totally just pissed his name is "Jimmy Tickle"
BahamutZero's Avatar
BahamutZero at 12/08/2006 11:08
Also, this lawsuit will fail, it's not like the sony rumble disaster. The two devices are nothing alike. they should be suing toshiba too, because they use IR remotes on their TVs...
Cruds's Avatar
Cruds at 12/08/2006 11:10
Check what these Interlink dudes made for Sony.


Slick design wonder whats it for.
Blaine's Avatar
Blaine at 12/08/2006 11:11
As a Nintendo stockholder (all 11 shares of it) I'm personally not worried. Nintendo has fought and won a lot more dicey cases than this - King Kong vs. Donkey Kong for instance. They managed to prove that King Kong wasn't properly trademarked, won the case and then counter sued.

If Interlink was smart they would have asked for $3 Mil in licencing and be done with it. Suing Nintendo and asking a judge to suspend sales of the Wii is basically just going to make Nintendo rip them to shreds.

All this "Nintendo is kiddie" thinking makes people forget the legal iron fist the entity wields. From the contracts of the NES era which were practically immoral to the numerous lawsuits over games (including Tetris), Nintendo has a very bad attitude when you try and fuck with thier money.

And Interlink is fucking with thier money.
Cruds's Avatar
Cruds at 12/08/2006 11:17
these guys work for everybody they also did the Xbox controller.
deanhatescoffee's Avatar
deanhatescoffee at 12/08/2006 11:17
The Wiimote design is much nicer. The only thing this company has on Nintendo is that they came up with a button on the bottom of the remote and the intention of the remote is the same. Does GM sue Toyota every time they make a car? No? Then STFU n00b Interlink.
JoshuaTR's Avatar
JoshuaTR at 12/08/2006 11:19
Nintendo has yet to lose a lawsuit and I seriously doubt this company is going to take anything from Nintendo other than a good thrashing.
Ishaan's Avatar
Ishaan at 12/08/2006 11:46
Ahh. All these nasty comments directed at Interlink are highly pleasing to my eyes. And yea, I agree with Blaine; you don't fuck with Nintendo's income. They might target kids with a lot of their franchises, but that doesn't mean they're full of love and sunshine when it comes to fighting legal battles.

I would love nothing more than to see them put these upstarts in their place.
Mxyzptlk's Avatar
Mxyzptlk at 12/08/2006 12:04
This is it, this is the end. Nintendo should get out of the console race altogether and develop for Sony, they're doomed! :P
ceark's Avatar
ceark at 12/08/2006 12:11
this is the funny part:

"Plaintiff has suffered damages, including but not limited to, loss of reasonable royalties, reduced sales and/or lost profits as a result of the infringing activities of the defendant, and will continue to suffer such damage as long as those infringing activities continue."

plaintiff has suffered damages my ass. The Wiimote, when not used with some hacked up bluetooth software for windows, only works for the wii. I don't see how that in anyway "infring[es]" activities of a tiny company that probably isn't making huge sales to begin with.
nmaster64's Avatar
nmaster64 at 12/08/2006 12:19
Oh no they didn't...

Apparently these guys don't know who they're screwing with. They need to take a look at Nintendo's legal history. Hint: it's a history of pwning people in court...
TheBrain's Avatar
TheBrain at 12/08/2006 12:52
Is Howard Lincoln still around? He'd kick Interlinks ass.
donkeykong's Avatar
donkeykong at 12/08/2006 12:57
to: deanhatescoffee
automakers don't sue each other over silly things like that, but they patent all sorts of processes and other more specific things. Mazda has a patent on the wankel engine, for example.

to everyone else: Patent laws are different in every country though. I'd say for the most part they hinder innovation worldwide, preventing people from building off the ideas of others. Everybody wants the credit though and everybody wants the money so people are always looking for ways to make their design just different enough. Some positive news is that patents do expire after 20 or 25 years.

Anyway you guys have already pointed out Nintendo has all their patents so there shouldn't be a problem here.
NameOf_A_VGChar's Avatar
NameOf_A_VGChar at 12/08/2006 14:03
Anything I needed to say has basically already been said, so I'll just say this:

Kick Interlink's ass Reggie, kick their ass.
Topher Cantler's Avatar
Topher Cantler at 12/08/2006 16:02
Didn't I see that same remote at Batman's house?
Holyetheline's Avatar
Holyetheline at 12/08/2006 16:05
Dude Nintendo invented the trigger when they gave N64 controllers the Z button.
Iceciro's Avatar
Iceciro at 12/08/2006 16:25
Wow, ninty's legal department heard about this, and they looked at thier clock like so...

zaqu's Avatar
zaqu at 12/08/2006 17:50
too bad johnny Cochran is dead he could easily help nintendo
Ballistic90's Avatar
Ballistic90 at 12/08/2006 20:11
"I can prove that Interlink's hardware was patented to destroy children. Ours as you can see, has only destroyed TVs"

I say that they get Phoenix Wright to defend them, lol.

Yes, patents are being abused constantly. In fact, it's partially responsible for the slow progress in the medical field. People are trying to patent portions of human DNA, forcing pharmaceutical companies to pay them if they want to work on cures using those portions of the human genome. As a result, pharmaceutical companies will forgo working on DNA and moving to other types of cures.
Cruds's Avatar
Cruds at 12/08/2006 22:15
"Dude Nintendo invented the trigger when they gave N64 controllers the Z button."

Don't get me wrong here, I think it's pathetic that Nintendo is getting sued over this and hope that in some way this will backfire at Interlink. But they're talking about a device that's hold in one hand, not two like N64 controller.

What I'm saying is that is Interlink isn't the small company that it first appeared to be. They got clients like big consumer brands Sony, Microsoft, HP, Bose and even the US military, those fancy computers you see in the cockpits of jet fighters are made by them. When a company like that starts to sue it worries me, they got the money to take this all the way to the end and there is no telling what will. happen.

Patents do more wrong than right and companies try to patent the weirdest stuff. Like Pepsi who'd tried to patent the color blue. Someone really gotta stop this nonsense.
NameOf_A_VGChar's Avatar
NameOf_A_VGChar at 12/08/2006 22:27
Pffft, Interlink doesn't even have a page on Wikipedia. They can't POSSIBLY exist.
NameOf_A_VGChar's Avatar
NameOf_A_VGChar at 12/08/2006 22:28
scratch that, I'm just an idiot =D
jkgohan's Avatar
jkgohan at 12/09/2006 02:55
That sucks for Nintendo, when something good happens everyone trys and gets something out of your gain.
reddye_5's Avatar
reddye_5 at 12/09/2006 11:37
Any resonable judge will throw this out. Because the Wii-mote and Interlink's... whatever the crap it is, are not competing in the SAME MARKET. So, there is no way that Interlink could be losing ANY MONEY AT ALL.
MrWonderful's Avatar
MrWonderful at 12/09/2006 12:24
I gotta agree with the comments listed.
design has a similarity, I guess, but the use is almost entirely unrelated.
I did some cursory examination, in fact, and I have no goddamn idea what interlink's remote is for.
And yea, I gotta second Blaine. Nintendo is a very friendly company, but if you fuck with their money, they will kill you.
The fact that a relatively unknown japanese company was able to hand Universal Studios their ass is still impressive to me.
They do have a lot of big name contracts, but I'd be curious to know exactly often they've worked with those some of those companies, and what came out of it. If they designed one prototype computer for a failed test model in the air force, they can still boast on their website that they had an air force contract. The only thing I'm familiar with them putting out recently are PC controllers. And methinks that one doesn't go from military contracts to making mouses by one's own volition.
Dexter345's Avatar
Dexter345 at 12/09/2006 13:00
I don't claim to know much about patent law (I have a friend who does, and I'm forwarding this to him), but I would imagine that when Nintendo got their patents, that meant nobody else had already patented something like it. Naturally, I'm biased against this company because they're trying to screw over my favorite video game developers.
Effekt's Avatar
Effekt at 12/14/2006 09:54
all this interlink has to do is file this case in the right state (a little place in Texas for instance)and they stand a chance, but it would be complete bullshit if they win because the trigger is specified as stated... "Interlink Electronics' patented ClickTrigger remote control case design places the mouse left-click function in the trigger position underneath thumb-operated pointing devices"

now the wii devices trigger is not used for this reason, that is what the "A" button is used for.

all i ca say is good luck Nintendo...you rock
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