Bridgestone wins tire patent infringement lawsuit in China

Tokyo – Bridgestone Corp. has won a patent infringement lawsuit, involving a truck tire tread, against Chinese tire manufacturer Shandong Vheal Group Co., Ltd, the Japanese group has announced.

The lawsuit involved patent rights protecting Bridgestone's R118 truck tire tread pattern, which was developed by the group for China and other Asian markets, the tire maker said in a 7 Dec statement.

The case dates back to September 2017, when Bridgestone filed a lawsuit with the Beijing Intellectual Property Court claiming that Vheal manufactured and sold tires utilising a truck tire tread pattern that was covered under a Bridgestone patent.

In June 2020, the Beijing Intellectual Property Court upheld Bridgestone's claim and ordered Vheal to cease activities that are in violation of the group’s patent rights, the Japanese tire & rubber group said.

Vheal has also been ordered to pay Yuan500,000 (€63,000) in damages to Bridgestone. The court issued its decision in October 2020.

According to Bridgestone, this is the second time the group has successfully enforced its patent covering the R118 tread pattern.

The group won an infringement suit against major Chinese tire manufacture Fangxing Rubber Co., Ltd. in Shanghai High People's Court earlier this year. 

In that case, the Shanghai Intellectual Property Court ordered Fangxing in Februrary to cease any patent-infringing activities and pay Bridgestone Yuan620,000 in damages.

Bridgestone said it takes any unauthorised use or infringement of its patents, design rights, trademarks, or any other intellectual property seriously and would take “all necessary legal steps to enforce its rights.”