Brilliant Instruments, Inc. v. GuideTech, LLC, No. 12-1018 (Fed. Cir. 2013)
Annotate this CaseThe patents generally relate to circuits that measure the timing errors of digital signals in high-speed microprocessors. These circuits, which are referred to as time interval analyzers, detect timing errors by analyzing a digital circuit’s clock signal and output signals. The inventor left GuideTech to found Brilliant. Brilliant obtained a judgment that its product did not infringe GuideTech’s patents. The Federal Circuit reversed and remanded. Detailed application of the function-way-result test to the claim element and the allegedly equivalent feature of the accused product were sufficient to create a genuine issue of material fact for the jury to resolve. The main difference between the accused circuit and the claimed circuit is that the capacitor in the accused circuit aids in delivering power and is thus part of the first current circuit. There is no evidence suggesting that this added advantage of the accused design alters the function-way-result analysis.
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