Eastman Kodak has filed a lawsuit against Agfa-Gevaert, claiming that the Mortsel, Belgium-based vendor is infringing Kodak patents covering certain x-ray film technologies. The suit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York in Rochester, NY, alleges that Agfa is selling a range of films that employ features covered in Kodak patents for T-Grain emulsion technology and a crossover-reduction layer used in chest x-ray films.
Kodak said its T-Grain technology improves x-ray film image quality and significantly reduces processing time. The crossover-reduction layer, which is sandwiched between the outer layers of chest x-ray films, prevents light crossover to the outer layers. This improves the sharpness of x-ray images captured on film, according to the Rochester, NY-based vendor.
Kodak received the series of patents for these technologies from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office between 1984 and 1992. Kodak Health Imaging president Dan Kerpelman said that discussions with Agfa to resolve the issue didn't lead to a satisfactory agreement, resulting in the need for legal action.
Kodak is asking for undisclosed compensation for damages from the infringement, and an injunction that would prohibit Agfa from further sales of products cited in the suit.
Agfa HealthCare spokesperson Jayne Seebach told AuntMinnie.com that Agfa regularly engages in patent infringement discussions with various parties, which can take a long time and often result in settlements.
"With respect to the recent suit publicized by Kodak, (Agfa and Kodak) have had several discussions on the matter and we, technically, have a solid argument and are discussing how to resolve this to (Agfa and Kodak's) mutual satisfaction," she said.
By AuntMinnie.com staff writersNovember 5, 2002
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