When you see this title, you may think that the plot seems a bit familiar, because as early as 2016, Jaguar Land Rover Automobile Group filed a lawsuit against Volkswagen Group in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia over the Bentley Bentayga model. Jaguar Land Rover emphasized that the off-road driving mode provided by the All-Terrain all-terrain option used in the Bentayga model is very similar to the Land Rover brand's all-terrain feedback adaptation system All Terrain Response System.
Subsequently, Bentley immediately filed an application to dismiss the complaint, and the court also rejected it. Although the case seemed to have come to an end for the time being, the Jaguar Land Rover Group and the Volkswagen Group had already formed a rift.
Recently, the Jaguar Land Rover Group filed a second complaint against the Volkswagen Group on the same issue. That is, it was found that its "vehicle control system" on Audi, Lamborghini, Porsche and Volkswagen brand models was inconsistent with Jaguar's The Land Rover Group's Terrain Response adaptive system is similar. According to a document filed by Jaguar Land Rover Group with the U.S. International Trade Commission ITC, "The complaint alleges that Volkswagen Group violated Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930."
"The complainant requests that the Commission issue a limited Injunction, cease and desist order, and impose restrictions on the respondent’s alleged infringing articles. “You read that right, Jaguar Land Rover, a British automaker, is trying to ask the US National Trade Commission to ban the import of the Audi Q7 in the US market. , Porsche Cayenne, Lamborghini Urus and Bentley Bentayga, even the lower-level Tiguan (domestic Tiguan) is equipped with similar driving modes.
But this time, Jaguar Land Rover is more aggressive than the lawsuit it filed four years ago. If the German Volkswagen manufacturer does infringe on this technology, it will be in big trouble. After all, the U.S. SUV market has a relatively large impact on the Volkswagen Group.
According to the Jaguar Land Rover Group's patent registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office as USRE46828E1, the Terrain Response System patent is described as a "vehicle control system" with multiple subsystem controllers and connections to the vehicle. The subsystem mode of the mode controller. "Each mode corresponds to a specific driving situation or series of conditions"
Faced with this dispute involving the two major British and German automobile manufacturing groups, the U.S. International Trade Commission will certainly not take matters lightly. It is expected it could take more than a year for the committee to complete its investigation. Although the Commission has the power to ban the import of the above-mentioned Volkswagen Group models involved in the case, the final result needs to wait for the final judgment of the Federal Court before it can make a conclusion on whether the Volkswagen Group models are infringing, and thus determine damages and ban sales orders.
Regarding this point, I would like to be fair. In fact, not only the Volkswagen Group has adopted the All-Terrain all-terrain off-road mode, but other brands such as Haval, Jeep, Ford, Toyota, etc., all have off-road series. The product will also have traffic mode options. It is true that we should pay attention to patents and respect the results of other parties' labor research and development, but is it a bit exaggerated for Jaguar Land Rover to adopt this abstract, one-size-fits-all approach? After all, competition will lead to progress.
If Tesla, which is making all the difference in the field of new energy vehicles, had not opened a series of patents a few years ago, there would not be a hundred schools of thought contending for new energy vehicles. Although most of the new forces have become stepping stones for Tesla's development in the Chinese market, there will still be outstanding car companies such as Weilai and Xpeng that have settled down.
Finally, do you support Jaguar Land Rover in using legal means to protect its brand interests?
This article comes from the author of Autohome Chejiahao and does not represent the views and positions of Autohome.