Patent Office Board Rules Against Interface Patent

New York, NY, Dec. 11, 2014 -- The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Patent Trial and Appeal Board has essentially voided an Interface carpet tile installation patent in a dispute with Tandus Flooring, according to Law360.

A three-judge panel ruled that Tandus had shown that a majority of the 58 claims in Interface’s patent were either anticipated or obvious, Law 360 reported.

In addition, the board granted Interface’s request to cancel 12 of the patent’s claims, but turned down the company’s request to substitute two new claims.

Consequently, the decision either cancelled or found invalid all of the patent’s claims.

Tandus filed for review of the patent in June 2013, shortly after Interface filed suit against Tandus in Georgia federal court for allegedly infringing on the patent by selling connectors, including TandusTape.

According to a company spokesperson, Interface is analyzing the ruling in anticipation of an appeal. The ruling does not affect Interface's ability to market, sell or use TacTiles connectors.