Skip to main content

Kapsch triumphs in Neology patent dispute

Kapsch TrafficCom is celebrating after a landmark patent decision went in its favour. The US Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) has agreed with the company that Neology cannot patent technologies in its 6C switchable tolling tag. The tag uses radio frequency identification (RFID) technology at highway toll zones, and is manually activated and deactivated using a switch device. The PTAB agreed with Kapsch’s arguments that Neology’s claims for its product were “unpatentable and invalid”. The decision reinf
May 9, 2018 Read time: 2 mins

4984 Kapsch TrafficCom is celebrating after a landmark patent decision went in its favour. The US Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) has agreed with the company that Neology cannot patent technologies in its 6C switchable tolling tag.

The tag uses radio frequency identification (RFID) technology at highway toll zones, and is manually activated and deactivated using a switch device.

The PTAB agreed with Kapsch’s arguments that Neology’s claims for its product were “unpatentable and invalid”.

The decision reinforces a ruling last October by the International Trade Commission, which found Kapsch did not violate any other Neology patent assertions on several of its other RFID patents related to the 6C RFID protocol (the ‘6C Standard’).

“The 6C Standard is and should remain an open communications protocol,” said Chris Murray, president of Kapsch TrafficCom North America. “We applaud the PTAB’s recent decision, and will continue to support open protocol standards, which will facilitate national interoperability requirements by providing access to those who wish to implement various toll technology specifications.”

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • IntelliDrive and HOT lanes - the next generation?
    January 30, 2012
    Janet Banner, Metropolitan Transportation Commission, and Christopher Hill, Mixon Hill, Inc., outline efforts to explore the use of IntelliDrive technologies in HOT lane applications. On 21 October last year more than 100 transportation professionals came together for a workshop, either in person or via a webinar, to discuss the potential role of IntelliDriveSM technologies in enhancing the operations of High-Occupancy Toll (HOT) lanes. The discussions focused on a White Paper, commissioned by the Metropoli
  • European tunnel safety steps up a gear
    September 19, 2017
    David Crawford reviews the latest safety systems installed in European tunnels. Blueprints for the safer road tunnels of the future are emerging fast as European operators invest in technologies to enhance travellers’ prospects of surviving an accident. Central to modern emergency planning is the principle that, following an incident, drivers should be enabled to rescue themselves and their passengers with the aid of prompt and correct identification and communication of the hazard. Roles for cooperativ
  • Mott MacDonald to continue managing Highways England's CAB
    June 8, 2018
    Mott MacDonald will continue managing Highways England’s change advisory board (CAB) which the government-owned company relies on to control its daily traffic operations. Mott MacDonald will also handle the forum’s websites and technical specifications over the two-year contract. The CAB brings together system professionals to document Highways England’s business needs so they can be implemented into safe and cost-effective solutions. The board manages the technical specifications used by Highways
  • Is road user charging the first stop for congestion management?
    July 23, 2012
    David Hytch, Information Systems Director at the Greater Manchester Public Transport Executive, considers just where congestion pricing schemes should sit in transport planners' hierarchy of options for managing demand. On the face of it, Greater Manchester in England's proposed congestion charging scheme hit just about every sweet spot possible when it came to convincing the general public of the need for and benefits of such a venture. There was the promise from national government of almost £3bn-worth of