Intuitive Wins Appeal in Challenge to J&J Robotic Tool Patent

A patent review board was correct to rule some elements of a patent owned by J&J’s Ethicon were invalid, and should have ruled other aspects were invalid, too, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled in a victory for Intuitive Surgical.

• Ethicon patent 8,616,431 is for a tool-mounting device used in robotic surgery
• Intuitive, maker of the daVinci robotic surgical system, petitioned the Patent Trial and Appeal Board to invalidate the patent after it was sued by Ethicon
• The Federal Circuit ruled that Intuitive was correct that scientists would have been motivated to combine prior know-how ...