Companies like Somaltus, LLC are one of the biggest problem the tech industry faces – patent trolls that leech on successful businesses by demanding a ransom for something they themselves have never actually created. Texas, a state that’s more than happy to house an alarming rate of these patent trolls is the scene of yet another lawsuit (over battery technologies) that includes Sony and others like Apple.

Joe Rossignol writing for MacRumors:

 Somaltus, LLC has filed a complaint against Apple today in an Eastern Texas district court, accusing the iPhone maker of infringing upon its 2010 patent related to complex battery technologies. The small Frisco, Texas-based firm also filed lawsuits against Asus, Lenovo, Samsung, Sony, and Toshiba over the same patent. 

The patent in question:

 On information and belief, the processor executes the control codes to continually adjust a charge level to the battery. The Product has a charging system according to which the system operates in fast-charge mode until the battery reaches 80% capacity and then adjusts to trickle-charge mode when the capacity exceeds 80%. When the capacity drops below 80%, the system gain adjusts to fast-charge operation. The purpose of the system is to reduce the charging level applied to the battery at high capacity in order to extend the battery lifespan. Thus, the system adjusts the charging level applied to the battery and does so continuously as the battery charge capacity repeatedly exceeds and drops below 80%. 

I personally don’t have a problem with patents, per se. If you created something and are putting it to use, you have every right to defend your creation. However, the problem with the legal system in the US is that many individuals and small companies that likely employ less than a handful of employees simply patent whatever comes to their mind in order to hold others hostage in the future.

Case in point, just last week:

 Florida resident Thomas S. Ross has filed a lawsuit against Apple this week, claiming that the iPhone, iPad, and iPod infringe upon his 1992 invention of a hand-drawn “Electronic Reading Device” (ERD). The court filing claims the plaintiff was “first to file a device so designed and aggregated,” nearly 15 years before the first iPhone. 

And of course he wants $10+ billion. Yeah, okay buddy.

Discuss:

Do you think the US patent system has some major issues that need addressing or are lawsuits like the above fair game?