Tridonic: Subsidiary Sues German Distributor for Infringement, Launches New Linear Lighting Products

Tridonic Jennersdorf GmbH, the Jennersdorf-based subsidiary of Tridonic GmbH & Co KG, Dornbirn (hereinafter referred to as "Tridonic") and a member of the Zumtobel Group Lighting Group, recently announced that it has filed a lawsuit against German distributor Ingram Micro Distribution GmbH at the Munich District Court I.

The lawsuit focuses on LED patent rights (IP) held by the B.O.S.E. alliance, to which Tridonic belongs, accusing HTC smartphones equipped with LEDs sold by Ingram Micro Distribution GmbH of infringing the aforementioned patents.

According to the introduction, the B.O.S.E. alliance, composed of Tridonic Jennersdorf GmbH, Japan's Toyoda Gosei, Ltd., Germany's Leuchtstoffwerk Breitungen GmbH, and Litec GbR, holds the foundational patents for "LED technology that converts the combination of blue LED chips and yellow silicate phosphors into white light."

Silicate-based white LED technology enables the production of high-precision, high-brightness white LEDs. The main application areas of this white LED include smartphones, laptops, GPS, and other displays, meaning this technology accounts for a considerable share of today's LED market.

It is worth mentioning that the patent lawsuit filed by Tridonic this time is the second such legal action recently taken by the company under B.O.S.E. IP. In April 2017, Tridonic filed a patent infringement lawsuit against telecommunications retailer S-KON eKontor24, accusing it of infringing the aforementioned patent by selling HTC smartphones with LEDs. Tridonic stated that the Munich District Court upheld Tridonic's claims, but the parties reached a settlement for legal certainty and rapid resolution of the dispute.

It is reported that in order to apply this white LED technology to the LED industry, the B.O.S.E alliance offers two different licensing models: an application license for using the white LED technology and a material license for producing and selling orthosilicate luminescent materials. As of March this year, the B.O.S.E. alliance has granted application licenses for its white LED technology to more than 40 LED manufacturers worldwide.

Turning to product news.

Flexible LED strip lights are increasingly popular among lighting designers and professionals. Solid-state lighting (SSL) products can be hidden in coves, under cabinets, and many other places both indoors and outdoors.

Tridonic has added a new linear LED light engine (module) to its product range that can withstand humid environments both indoors and outdoors.

The product has an IP67 waterproof rating. The 6 is the highest level of solid protection, meaning even dust cannot penetrate the strip. The second is the liquid protection level — 7 being the second-highest — meaning the product can withstand 30 minutes of submersion.

Tridonic uses a manufacturing technology called airgap to produce LED modules. The company says this technology can both achieve a high IP rating and ensure that LEDs do not experience chromatic shift over time.

Depending on length, the module can deliver a luminous flux of 600, 1200 or 1800 lm, with different color temperatures of 2700K, 3000K or 4000K available to meet the needs of different usage scenarios. In addition, the new module also supports dimming and offers a service life of 50,000 hours.