Trent West, owner of nine patents related to the concept and manufacture of Tungsten Carbide rings in the United States, has come to a settlement agreement with Stuller Inc. and Quality Gold.

As part of the settlement agreement, Stuller has obtained a license to sell Tungsten Carbide rings to its customer base of independent retailers throughout the United States. With this license, Stuller joins Frederick Goldman Inc., Benchmark, Jewelry Innovations and Fable Jewelry Company as the only legally authorized sellers of Tungsten Carbide rings protected by West’s nine patents. Quality Gold of Fairfield, Ohio, has agreed to exit this business and will not sell Tungsten Carbide rings after March 7, 2013.

“We are pleased to have settled this case with Stuller and Quality Gold. We believe the final agreement was fair to all parties involved,” stated Edward King, the attorney representing Trent West. “This agreement is yet another major development in recognizing the validity of Trent West’s patents and his ability to enforce the rights protected by his patents.”

A number of settlements have been reached with both manufacturers and retailers of Tungsten Carbide rings. West will continue to enforce his patents and exercise his rights against other manufacturers and retailers infringing on patent numbers: 6,062,045, 6,553,667, 6,990,736, 6,928,734, 6,993,842, 7,032,314, 7,076,972, 7,761,996 and 8,061,033.

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Since 1970 American National Carbide (ANC) has been a leading manufacturer of quality tungsten carbide products, delivering carbide value to the metalworking, oil and gas, and wood processing industries. Always committed to innovation, ANC delivers again with its new Synergy™ line of indexable carbide turning inserts. Synergy’s state of the art carbide substrate, enhanced by the latest nano coating technology, is engineered to perform at the elevated temperatures that are common when machining superalloys. Synergy’s innovative design and proprietary post-coating treatment ensure optimal chip control while reducing cutting forces. From roughing to finishing, Synergy™ offers a total high temperature solution:

Functional 100° roughing corner for enhanced productivity

Coolant flow channel for efficient temperature regulation

Positive ground land to reduce cutting forces

Multiple obstructions for optimal chip control

Helical land angle to resist DOC notching

Mechanical post-treatment to reduce friction

Post-coating surface grind for maximum stability

Wide chip breaking range

SG style for General Purpose

SF Style for Finishing

SR Style for Roughing

“High-temperature alloys have finally met their match. Merging the latest technology in engineering, metallurgy, coating, and post-treatment, we’ve created Synergy™ - a line of advanced indexable carbide inserts for the toughest challenges...”

ANC prides itself in its flexibility to work closely with customers to design and manufacture carbide products for virtually any application. The current launch of Synergy™ carbide inserts attests to the level of innovation that can occur when a synergetic relationship exists between a manufacturer and its customers. As a vertically integrated manufacturer, ANC produces its raw materials and press tooling in house. In addition to its 50 standard carbide grades, ANC can formulate new grades to exact specifications. ANC’s tooling design and production capabilities allow the manufacturer to create complex geometries without issue. ANC utilizes ISO-compliant metallurgical testing on all of its raw materials, grade powders and sintered products in order to ensure conformity with critical specifications.

ANC has serviced the metalworking industry worldwide for more than forty years through the manufacture of tungsten carbide indexable inserts for turning, boring, milling, parting, threading, and grooving applications. ANC has a network of sales representatives strategically positioned to provide service globally, and its highly-trained in house sales and technical support teams assist customers with any questions they may have regarding Synergy™ or any other product or service. ANC has a proud history of excellent customer service and support, and this dedication to customers’ needs continues to be a company trademark, as ANC invites new challenges to innovate the quality of its products and services.

Tungsten Manufacturer & Supplier: Chinatungsten Online - http://www.chinatungsten.com
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This patent, granted on 21 April 1959, is for the tungsten halogen lamp. The lamp in figure 1 (at top) shows what has become the typical configuration for these lamps. Figure 2, however, shows a low-voltage configuration that is less familiar. The low-voltage design played a role in a little known project in the early 1970s. 

LSI and Agere are merged business partners who jointly own a patent on tungsten-metallised semiconductor circuits. They allege that the named respondents have participated in the importation of copied tungsten-metallised semiconductors into the US, which violates section 337 of the 1930 Tariff Act.

Among those named are Taiwanese firms ProMOS Technologies and Powerchip Semiconductor Corporation, plus Japan's Elpida Memory, Inc. The patent in question – US 5,227,335 – relates to a method of treating semiconductors common to miniature electronic devices, in order to improve their efficiency. In their complaint, LSI and Agere have requested the ITC to serve cease-and-desist notices to the 18 firms, prohibiting the 'importation, sale, offer for sale, advertising, or the soliciting of sale' of the relevant circuits.

LSI and Agere's case highlights the growing importance of the ITC to the US patent landscape. An independent, quasi-judicial body set up to target trade injury to the US, the commission has established itself as a powerful, alternative means of tackling infringement.

While it is incumbent on Federal District Courts to satisfy higher statutory requirements – based on their personal jurisdictions over alleged infringers – the ITC has national, in rem jurisdiction over all products imported to the US. This jurisdiction over objects means that the ITC's statutory requirements are satisfied by the very presence of infringing products on US soil. If the ITC determines the presence of such products, it is authorised to block them.

Neither LSI, Agere nor their respondents have commented on the case so far.

Tungsten Manufacturer & Supplier: Chinatungsten Online - http://www.chinatungsten.com
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