On The Case Of Gree Company Against Aux Company For Infringement Of Utility Model Patent Dispute

Gree Company v.Aux Company infringement of utility model patent dispute as one of the ten typical cases of intellectual property rights in Guangdong Province in2019,the in-depth analysis of this case can help clarify the common problems in patent infringement litigation and understand the application of the relevant system in patent law.First,the scope of protection of patent rights should be determined by the content of the claims.The correct interpretation of the claims and the additional description of the specification and its accompanying drawings help to better determine the scope of protection of the rights.In addition,the claims declared partially invalid do not mean that the patent in question is ipso facto invalid,but the final boundary of rights should be determined by the claims that remain valid.Second,prior art defense is an important defense in patent infringement litigation.The prior art shall be determined by the patent law in force at the time of application of the patent in question.Although the Patent Law and its judicial interpretation do not clarify the legal status of the defense of conflicting application,the criteria for determining the defense of prior art in judicial practice can be inferred by analogy.At the same time,the criteria for establishing the prior art defense of "no material difference" can be interpreted in an expanded manner on a case-by-case basis.Finally,in the patent infringement damages procedure,the criteria for the establishment of an obstacle to proof by the parties should be clarified and required to be strictly applied.When calculating damages on the basis of the infringer’s infringement profits,three elements should be considered: sales volume of infringing products,reasonable profits,and technical apportionment ratio.The standard of proof for a right holder’s benefit from infringement may be appropriately adjusted downward,and the court should also be allowed to make reasonable presumptions within the limits of the law.The selection of reasonable profit does not require the scope of profit in the accounting sense,and its content can be simplified in practice.Although the technology sharing ratio is used as a discretionary reference factor,a reasonable range can be obtained through data analysis such as economic analysis reports to address the current situation of ambiguous patent sharing ratio.