Florida-base ParkerVision filed suit in the Western District of Texas Saturday against South Korean tech giant LG, asserting that wireless connectivity modules in LG televisions infringed upon ten ParkerVision patents.
The plaintiff explained that it developed radio frequency (RF) down-conversion technology that is responsible for cost-effective wireless communications today. They explained that they developed such technology because, during the mid-1990s, the power requirements – and resulting battery requirements – for RF communications was costly and physically unsuitable to consumer electronics. The plaintiff claimed that their innovations “led to improved RF receiver performance, lower power consumption, reduced size and integration benefits.”
“ParkerVision’s technology helped make today’s wireless devices, such as televisions, a reality by enabling RF chips used in these devices to be smaller, cheaper, and more efficient, and with higher performance,” the plaintiff explained.
The plaintiff enumerated a number of chips used in LG televisions for wireless connectivity, and also listed the ten patents that it holds relevant to these inventions. These patents cover a variety of titles, but most pertain to frequency translation and electromagnetic signal conversion. Each of the ten counts in the lawsuits – one for each patent – details why the plaintiff believes LG’s chips infringe upon that particular patent. For example, the first count claims that “Each LG Chip includes a frequency translator, comprising a down-convert and delay module to under-sample an input signal (e.g., high frequency RF signal) to produce an input sample of a down-converted image of said input signal, and to delay said input sample.”
The plaintiff is seeking a judgment of infringement and damages. They are represented by The Mort Law Firm. ParkerVision, according to Docket Alarm records, has filed at least six cases in federal court in the last calendar year, including against other TV manufacturers like Hisense and TCL.
