Uber Surge-Pricing Tech Targeted in Carnegie Mellon Patent Suit

Carnegie Mellon University alleged Uber Technologies Inc. and its Uber Freight units’ hexclustering systems infringe four patents for analyzing real-time location activity to identify neighborhood-level demand patterns.

Uber’s H3 hexclustering technology—and the ride-sharing, delivery, and freight platforms that use it to forecast demand, define delivery areas, determine driver incentives, and set pricing models, including surge pricing—allegedly infringes US Patent Nos. 9,846,887, 10,713,672, 11,222,349, and 11,935,082. CMU filed its complaint Tuesday in the US District Court for the District of Delaware.

CMU seeks damages for infringement, a permanent injunction blocking further infringement, and an order requiring Uber ...