Monroe Truck Equipment, Inc., announced that a federal court in Madison, Wisconsin, has found in favor of Monroe in a patent lawsuit filed against Universal Truck Equipment, Inc. The Honorable James Peterson found that Monroe’s patent on a specialized wing plow post is both valid and infringed by one of Universal Truck Equipment’s “Uni-Glide” products.
On January 28, 2014, Monroe Truck Equipment filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin asserting that Universal Truck Equipment infringed U.S. Patent No. 8,596,376, entitled “Support Apparatus for Securing a Wing Plow.” Wing plows are supported by posts that allow the plow blade to move up and down while in use.
Prior to Monroe Truck Equipment’s invention, when the inboard end of a wing plow encountered an unusual resistance, such as a mass of heavy snow, the inboard end of the wing plow had a tendency to dive down while the outboard end popped up, risking damage to the vehicle and endangering the safety of the driver.
Monroe Truck Equipment’s patented support apparatus solved this problem of diving by mounting the plow using a set of parallel “trailing links.” This trailing link configuration allows the plow to smoothly rise and ride over unusual resistance, thus avoiding the diving problem characteristic of earlier versions of wing plow posts.
Dismissing the arguments asserted by Universal Truck Equipment seeking to limit the term “trailing links” to those that point straight back from the forward motion of the truck, the Court held that Universal Truck Equipment’s “Uni-Glide 45” wing plow posts infringe Monroe Truck Equipment’s patent, stating that “[n]o other conclusion is possible.” The Court also found that Monroe Truck Equipment’s patent is valid as a matter of law.
With all issues of liability resolved in Monroe Truck Equipment’s favor, the only issues that remained for trial involved the computation of damages owed by Universal Truck Equipment to Monroe Truck Equipment. Before trial, the parties reached a confidential settlement agreement.