Value Delivered
The identified prior art helped the client avoid approximately $6 million in injunction and product redesign costs. It strengthened client’s negotiation leverage, reducing potential licensing exposure by $2–3 million. This ensured uninterrupted product sales and established a strong defensive record to protect future product iterations.
Problem Solved
The disputed patent centered on the structural configuration of a robot vacuum chassis with a top-mounted LIDAR unit. The claimed arrangement included an upper chassis body with a dedicated LIDAR chamber, along with a protective cover. It featured circumferential slits to enable sensor operation while shielding the unit.
The team struggled in locating prior art that disclosed not just the presence of LIDAR, but the exact structural placement of the LIDAR assembly. Specifically, the top-mounted sensor enclosed within a protective, slit-designed cover for hard the find.
Conventional searches mainly found prior art related to navigation software and sensor integration, but they offered little insight into the underlying mechanical design. This created a critical gap in the client’s defense.
Solutions Offered
GreyB expanded the search beyond conventional patent databases into system art and teardown analysis. First, commercial products sold in the U.S. were reviewed to find models with similar sensor placement. After identifying relevant products, the analysis moved to older product versions from the same companies. This included models launched earlier in Europe before the patent’s priority date.
A key breakthrough came from reviewing teardown materials, such as repair guides and replacement videos released by the parent company. These materials revealed internal chassis details that were not publicly documented, including LIDAR placement, protective housings, and the slit-based cover design.
By combining cross-market product analysis with teardown evidence, a fully enabling prior art reference was identified that directly matched the disputed independent claim features.
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