In an omnibus decision issued March 15, 2019, Judge Jon S. Tigar ruled on Plaintiff/Counter-Defendant Asia Vital Component Co., Ltd.’s (“AVC’s”) motion for partial summary judgment of non-infringement and Defendant/Counter-Claimant Asetek Danmark A/S’s (“Asetek’s”) motion for partial summary judgment of invalidity and motions to strike expert reports and declarations. AVC is a Taiwan-based manufacturer of fan coolers and heat sinks for CPUs, laptops, and personal computers.[1] Defendant Asetek is a Danish company credited with popularizing widely used liquid cooling systems.
At issue in the case are two patents that describe a liquid cooling system for the central processing unit of a computer: U.S. Patent Nos. 8,240,362 (“’362 Patent”) and 8,245,764 (“’764 Patent”). Mere weeks after the patents issued in August 2012, Asetek successfully asserted them in a lawsuit against CoolIT Systems Inc.[2] Asetek also asserted these patents against Cooler Master Co., Ltd., winning a permanent injunction in addition to monetary damages.[3] Asetek initiated licensing negotiations with AVC in April 2014. After those failed, AVC filed suit for declaratory judgment of non-infringement and invalidity in September 2014.