Judge Stark’s opinion criticized the district court’s claim construction, which he argued excluded an embodiment from Figure 13 of the patent’s specification. He stressed that such a construction was inconsistent with the principle of avoiding interpretations that exclude disclosed embodiments.
In dissent, U.S. Circuit Judge Raymond Chen disagreed with the majority’s reasoning. Judge Chen argued that regardless of how the claim limitation was construed, Tomy’s infringement allegations were flawed and that the district court had correctly construed the claim.
The patent in question is U.S. Patent No. 6,578,209, which covers the design of a toddler bath tub with an integrated seating surface.
Representatives for the parties involved did not immediately comment on the ruling.
The case, Kids2 LLC v. Tomy International Inc., case number 23-1524, was heard by U.S. Circuit Judges Raymond Chen, Tiffany Cunningham, and Leonard Stark.
