Publicly traded Quarterhill Inc., through subsidiary Auriga Innovations, Inc., has filed its first infringement lawsuit of 2020, asserting seven semiconductor patents originating with IBM and acquired from GlobalFoundries in a Western District of Texas complaint naming HP, HP Enterprise (HPE), and Intel ( 6:20-cv-00779) as defendants. Intel is accused of infringement through the provision of certain processors incorporating FinFET technology and fabricated using the company's 14++ nm and 10 nm processes, while HP and HPE are targeted over the manufacture of various devices (consumer laptops/desktops and servers, respectively) incorporating those Intel chips.
In December 2016, GlobalFoundries assigned roughly 75 assets, including the asserted patents ( 7,763,932; 7,888,736; 8,234,594; 8,901,738; 8,957,479; 9,000,537; 9,362,229), to Auriga. According to Quarterhill ( Wi-LAN Inc. at the time), the transacted portfolio originated with IBM and "covers semiconductor process technologies used in the manufacture of semiconductor devices". In its complaint, Auriga lays out "Moore's Law" (predicting "that the number of transistors in a dense integrated circuit will double about every two years") and pleads that four of the patents facilitate shrinking transistor sizes to improve density, while the '594 patent generally relates to "a redundant micro-loop structure for use in an integrated circuit physical design process and method of forming the same"; and the '738 and '229 patents, to improving reliability of an integrated circuit by reducing "electromigration issues" through the use of a "staple structure".
Quarterhill released its second-quarter earnings on August 6, reporting a dip well below $1M in licensing revenue as well as delays in its deal-making process due to COVID-19. For a run-through of its recent reported performance, see " Quarterhill Reports Lower Revenue, Slower Deals, in Q2" (August 2020).
Auriga pleads that Intel has actual knowledge of each of the patents-in-suit "since at least the service upon Intel" of the complaint. The NPE does not plead a claim for willful infringement. 8/25, Western District of Texas.
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