Chief Judge James Ware, presiding over the San Francisco Division of the Northern District of California opined that “[U]pon review, the Court finds that the right to sue to enforce the ’557 Patent was effectively transferred to [Bluestone Innovations] from Xerox, and that Plaintiff alone has standing to enforce the patent.”

Bluestone Innovations selected NanoSpective, Inc. to conduct reverse-engineering of several sample devices at their labs near the University of Central Florida in Orlando.  In late May, NanoSpective completed their analysis using a variety of instruments and techniques necessary to illustrate potential infringement of patents held by Bluestone.  These techniques include the use of a FIB (Focused Ion Beam) to cut away specimens for further study; and a TEM (Transmission Electron Microscope) which uses an electron beam to produce profile images of the sample, crystallographic diffraction patterns, or spectroscopic data; among other tools.

In a case originally filed by Bluestone Innovations in the Eastern District of Texas against OSRAM on August 5, 2010, alleging infringement of U.S. Patent No. 6,448,102 related to certain technology for laser lift-off techniques used in LED manufacturing processes, much has changed.  The case was transferred to the Northern District of California, now before District Judge Yvonne Gonzales Rogers, who on May 21, 2012 granted a joint stipulation allowing Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. of Korea to substitute as Plaintiff in place of Bluestone Innovations.  This change in the lineup replaces the relatively small non-practicing entity from Reston, Virginia with a global conglomerate, on par with OSRAM Sylvania, Inc.  In addition, this case now joins a larger patent war brewing since between OSRAM and Samsung since OSRAM sued both Samsung and LG in June, 2011.  Samsung hit back first in July, 2011 and now adds the Xerox-PARC technology asserted by Bluestone to its own arsenal.