Lidar tech company Ouster sues Hesai Group over patents

Hesai

12/04/2023 21:45

By Blake Brittain
       April 12 (Reuters) - Ouster Inc  OUST.N , a San
Francisco-based provider of lidar light sensors used in fields
like autonomous vehicles, defense and robotics, sued Chinese
rival Hesai Group  HSAI.O  on Tuesday for patent infringement in
Delaware federal court and at the U.S. International Trade
Commission.
    Lidar technology is used for 3D mapping, navigation and
object detection in various high-tech industries. Ouster's
complaints said Hesai incorporated its digital lidar technology
into the Shanghai-based company's sensors.
    Hesai did not immediately respond to a request for comment
on the complaints. 
    "As companies attempt to copy our digital approach, we will
continue to vigorously enforce our intellectual property until
the infringing products are barred," Ouster CEO Angus Pacala
said in a statement Wednesday.
    Ouster said in the complaints that it pioneered technology
transforming lidar from "an analog device with thousands of
components" into a simple digital device.
    Ouster accused Hesai's sensors of infringing five patents
covering core aspects of its digital lidar technology. It asked
the Delaware court for an unspecified amount of money damages
and the ITC to bar imports of infringing Hesai products.
    Hesai settled a patent dispute with San Jose,
California-based Velodyne Lidar Inc  808.H  in 2020.
    Ouster and Velodyne merged in February. Hesai also went
public in the United States in February.
    The cases are Ouster Inc v. Hesai Group, U.S. District Court
for the District of Delaware, No. 1:23-cv-00406 and In the
Matter of Certain Lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) Systems
and Components Thereof, U.S. International Trade Commission, No.
337-TA-3675.

 (Reporting by Blake Brittain in Washington)