Hand Held Products files legal action against Lemelson Foundation and REFAC International

NOVEMBER 6--Hand Held Products (HHP; Skaneateles Falls, NY; www.handheld.com), a Welch Allyn affiliate, has filed legal action against the Lemelson Medical, Educational & Research Foundation and REFAC International Ltd. asserting that Lemelson has breached the 1989 License Agreement that HHP entered into with Lemelson to settle a 1988 patent-infringement lawsuit. The action (which is pending in the District Court for the Northern District of New York) was filed in response to a series of lawsuits brought by Lemelson, in which over 130 different defendants, some of which are customers of HHP, were accused of infringing seven patents owned by Lemelson.

Hand Held Products asserts that all of its barcode systems and components are licensed under the 1989 License Agreement. The 1989 License Agreement also provides that HHP and its customers are immune from suit with respect to any and every patent ever owned by Lemelson with respect to barcodes, barcode systems, and components. According to George S. Smith II, Hand Held Products General Counsel, "By initiating legal action against HHP customers on account of their purchase of HHP barcode products, Lemelson has failed to honor the terms of the 1989 License Agreement. HHP is very confident in the outcome of this action against Lemelson."

Among other things, HHP is seeking a judgment that would require Lemelson to drop its lawsuits against HHP customers for use of HHP products in their barcode systems.

Hand Held Products offers a complete and affordable line of image-based data-collection identification devices for field service, retail-POS, logistics, distribution, and manufacturing to the global market. www.handheld.com