SRI International v. Matsushita Electric Corp. of America

MEMORANDUM OF OPINION AND ORDER

Plaintiff SRI International (“SRI”) brings this action against defendants Matsushita Electric Co., Ltd., and its subsidiary, Matsushita Corporation of America, (collectively “MEI”) for infringement of its U.S. Patent No. 3,379,633 (“the ’633 patent”), originally issued to Albert Macovski in 1968, for a single tube color television camera. Plaintiff claims that since 1978 MEI has been engaged in the manufacture and sale in the United States of single tube color television cameras which infringe Claims 1, 2, 7, 8, 9, and 10 of its ’633 patent, and it seeks treble damages. Defendants answer that the camera they sell does not infringe the asserted claims and that the ’633 patent is invalid under 35 U.S.C. § 103 because its allegedly novel feature would have been obvious at the time of issuance to those of ordinary skill in the art. At the pre-trial conference held before the Court on April 13, 1984, defendants moved for summary judgment, claiming that plaintiff’s submissions failed to raise a genuine issue of material fact as to infringement or obviousness. Having considered both parties’ memoranda with regard to the summary judgment motion as well as…