Aloys Wobben, founder of Germany’s Enercon GmBH, one of the largest players in the wind-turbine market, has lost ownership of one more patent, the latest in a series of patent battles with its estranged joint venture partner Enercon India.
The Intellectual Property Apellate Board (IPAB) in its June-12 order revoked the patent for the invention ? a method for monitoring a sensor relating to wind turbine technology. Prior to that on, on May 31, the IPAB had revoked another patent titled ‘wind power installation’, involving the same warring companies.
The running patent battle was kickstarted when Enercon India, following fissures in joint venture, challenged 23 patents belonging to Aloys Wobbens in 2009 by filing revocation petitions before IPAB.
Subsequently, the IPAB in 2010, revoked 12 patents registered by Enercon in India. The remaining pleas had been postponed. All the Enercon GmBh patents are held in the name of Alloys Wobbens, the founder and CEO of Enercon GmBH.
After taking up the case again, the IPAB bench of Justice Prabha Sridevan, chairman, and DPS Parmar, technical member, said: ?This case and several others form a batch of revocation petitions filed by the same applicant against the same respondent. In all the matters, the question was whether the applicant has locus standi and was a person aggrieved. In addition, in all the matters, amendment were filed to the claims belated and this was challenged by the applicant. We hold the applicant has the locus standi to file the revocation application.?
