IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF DELAWARE ROBERT BOSCH LLC, Plaintiff, v.

ALBEREE PRODUCTS, INC., API KOREA CO., LTD., and SAVER AUTOMOTIVE PRODUCTS, INC. Defendants. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )

C.A. No. ________________ JURY TRIAL DEMANDED

COMPLAINT Plaintiff Robert Bosch LLC (Plaintiff), through its attorneys, for its complaint against defendants Alberee Products, Inc. (Alberee), API Korea Co., Ltd. (API), and Saver Automotive Products, Inc. (Saver) (collectively, Defendants), avers as follows: 1. This action arises under the patent laws of the United States, Title 35 of the

United States Code (for example, 271, 281, 283, 284 and 285) as hereinafter more fully set forth. This Court has jurisdiction over the subject matter of the action pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 1331 and 1338(a). DEFENDANTS AND ACCUSED PRODUCTS 2. On information and belief, Alberee is a corporation organized under the laws of

the state of Maryland with a place of business at 4665 Hollins Ferry Road, Halethorpe, Maryland. 3. On information and belief, API is a corporation organized under the laws of

Korea with a place of business at 435-3, Nonhyeon-Dong, NamDong-Gu, Incheon, Korea, 405848.

4.

On information and belief, Saver is a corporation organized under the laws of the

state of Maryland with a place of business at 4665 Hollins Ferry Road, Halethorpe, Maryland. 5. On information and belief, Alberee and Saver have supplied, and continue to

supply, beam-type windshield wiper blades in the United States. 6. On information and belief, Alberee has assembled, made, used, offered for sale

and sold, and assembles, makes, uses, offers for sale, and sells, in the United States beam-type windshield wiper blades accused of infringement, which contain components supplied by API. 7. On information and belief, Saver has made, used, offered for sale and sold, and

makes, uses, offers for sale, and sells in the United States beam-type windshield wiper blades accused of infringement, which are assembled or made by Alberee from components supplied by API. 8. On information and belief, such windshield wiper blades have been and are sold

under several brand names, including at least the Goodyear Assurance, the Saver Arc Flex Ultra, and the Touring Ultra brands (collectively, the Accused Products). 9. On information and belief, Saver has offered for sale and sold, and offers for sale

and sells, the Accused Products to retail stores in the United States, which sell the Accused Products to end customers for use as wiper blades on vehicles. 10. At least the Goodyear Assurance and Saver Arc Flex Ultra beam-type wiper

blades have been, and are, offered for sale in the United States via the internet, including on the Amazon.com website. 11. The Goodyear Assurance wiper blades have been, and are, sold at Costco

Wholesale Corporations retail stores, a retail chain with hundreds of locations nationwide, including the store location at 900 Center Boulevard, Newark, Delaware.

-2-

12.

On information and belief, at least the Goodyear Assurance beam-type wiper

blades have arrived in the state of Delaware through Savers purposeful shipment of these products to Delaware through an established distribution channel, namely through Savers sale of the Goodyear Assurance wiper blades to Costco Wholesale Corporation. 13. On information and belief, Alberee, as a company working with Saver on the

manufacture, assembly, and distribution of the Accused Products, has been and is aware of, and encourages Savers selling of the Accused Products throughout the United States through established distribution channels. 14. On information and belief, API, as a company working with Alberee and Saver on

the design, development, and manufacture of the Accused Products, and the supply of component parts thereof to Alberee and Saver, has knowledge and intends that Alberee and Saver make, offer for sale, and sell the Accused Products throughout the United States. COUNT ONE INFRINGEMENT OF U.S. PATENT NO. 6,292,974 15. The allegations stated in paragraphs 2 through 14 of this Amended Complaint are

incorporated by reference as if set forth herein. 16. On September 25, 2001, United States Patent No. 6,292,974 (the 974 patent,

attached as Exhibit A) was duly and legally issued for an invention in a windshield wiper blade. Plaintiff is the owner of the 974 patent. 17. Alberee has infringed and is infringing the 974 patent directly under 35 U.S.C.

271(a) by making, using, selling, and offering for sale in the United States the Accused Products, and will continue to do so unless enjoined by this Court.

-3-

18.

Saver has infringed and is infringing the 974 patent directly under 35 U.S.C.

271(a) by making, using, selling, and offering for sale in the United States the Accused Products, and will continue to do so unless enjoined by this Court. 19. Retailers, including Costco Wholesale, have infringed and are infringing the 974

patent directly under 35 U.S.C. 271(a) by selling and offering for sale in the United States the Accused Products. 20. On information and belief, end users have infringed and are infringing the 974

patent directly under 35 U.S.C. 271(a) by using in the United States the Accused Products, including as windshield wiper blades on vehicles. 21. On information and belief, API manufactures and imports into the United States

components of the Accused Products, including components identified as frames in importation records. 22. The components manufactured and imported by API are material components of

the invention of the 974 patent, at least because, on information and belief, the components provided by API constitute a significant part of the final assembly of each Accused Product. 23. The components manufactured and imported by API are not staple articles or

commodities of commerce and have no substantial non-infringing uses, at least because, on information and belief, the components are designed specifically for use in the Accused Products and have no other intended uses. 24. API has had knowledge that the Accused Products, for which the components API

manufactures and imports are especially made or adapted, infringe the 974 patent since at least November 15, 2013, from a letter sent from Plaintiffs counsel to APIs counsel, describing such infringement.

-4-

25.

API is a contributory infringer of the 974 patent under 35 U.S.C. 271(c) with

respect to Alberees and Savers direct infringement of the 974 patent, and will continue to infringe unless enjoined by this Court. API also is a contributory infringer of the 974 patent under 35 U.S.C. 271(c) with respect to the direct infringement of the 974 patent by retailers who sell and offer for sale the Accused Products, and the direct infringement of the 974 patent by end users who use the Accused Products, and will continue to infringe unless enjoined by this Court. 26. On information and belief, API has purposefully caused, encouraged, and urged

Alberee and Saver to make, sell, and offer for sale the Accused Products in the United States with the knowledge and intent that such activities would directly infringe the 974 patent, and intended Alberee and Saver to carry out such activities. API has had such knowledge and intent at least since receiving through its counsel, on November 15, 2013, a letter from Plaintiffs counsel describing its infringement. 27. API therefore induces, under 35 U.S.C. 271(b), Alberees direct infringement

and Savers direct infringement of the 974 patent, and will continue to do so unless enjoined by this Court. 28. On information and belief, API has purposefully caused, encouraged, and urged

retailers to offer for sale and sell, and end users to use, the Accused Products in the United States with the knowledge and intent that such activities would directly infringe the 974 patent, and intended retailers and end users to carry out such activities. API has had such knowledge and intent at least since receiving through its counsel, on November 15, 2013, a letter from Plaintiffs counsel providing notice of APIs infringement. API has such intent because, on information and belief, it intends Alberee and Saver to sell the Accused Products made with components

-5-

supplied by API to retailers, it intends that retailers sell in the United States the Accused Products to end users, and it intends that end users in the United Sates use the Accused Products as wiper blades on vehicles. 29. API therefore induces under 35 U.S.C. 271(b) the direct infringement of the

974 patent by retailers, and the direct infringement of the 974 patent by end users, and will continue to do so unless enjoined by this Court. 30. Alberee and Saver each has had knowledge that the Accused Products infringe the

974 patent since at least November 15, 2013, when Alberees and Savers counsel received from Plaintiffs counsel a letter describing such infringement. 31. On information and belief, Alberee has purposefully caused, encouraged, and

urged Saver to sell and offer for sale the Accused Products in the United States with the knowledge and intent that such activities would directly infringe the 974 patent, and intended Saver to carry out such activities. Alberee has had such knowledge and intent at least since receiving through its counsel a letter from Plaintiffs counsel describing Alberees infringement on November 15, 2013. Alberee further has such knowledge and intent because, on information and belief, Alberee and Saver work together in distributing the Accused Products and because Alberee intends that the Accused Products it sells to Saver are offered for sale and sold to third parties. 32. Alberee therefore induces under 35 U.S.C. 271(b) Savers direct infringement of

the 974 patent, and will continue to do so unless enjoined by this Court. 33. On information and belief, Alberee and Saver each has knowledge that retailers

directly infringe the 974 patent by selling and offering for sale in the United States the Accused Products, and that end users directly infringe the 974 patent by using in the United States the

-6-

Accused Products as wiper blades for their vehicles, at least since receiving through their counsel a letter sent by Plaintiffs counsel describing Alberees and Savers infringement on November 15, 2013. 34. On information and belief, by advertising the infringing use in their promotional

materials, by providing an application guide on their website and in stores that sell the Accused Products showing the infringing use, and by including installation instructions with the Accused Products that show the end users of the Accused Products how to install the same on the wiper arms on their vehicles, Alberee and Saver each has purposefully caused, encouraged, and urged end users to use the Accused Products, with the knowledge and intent that such activities would directly infringe the 974 patent, and intend end users to carry out such activities. Alberee and Saver each know or should know that end users use in the United States the Accused Products because Alberee and Saver distribute the products to retailers for resale to end users for this purpose. 35. Alberee and Saver therefore each induce under 35 U.S.C. 271(b) the direct

infringement of end users of the Accused Products of the 974 patent, and will continue to do so unless enjoined by this Court. 36. On information and belief, Alberee and Saver each has purposefully caused,

encouraged, and urged retailers to offer for sale and sell the Accused Products, with the knowledge and intent that such activities would directly infringe the 974 patent, and intend retailers to carry out such activities. Alberee and Saver know or should know that retailers offer for sale and sell in the United States the Accused Products because Alberee and Saver distribute the products to retailers for resale to end users.

-7-

37.

Alberee and Saver therefore each induce under 35 U.S.C. 271(b) retailers direct

infringement of the 974 patent, and will continue to do so unless enjoined by this Court. 38. Plaintiff has no adequate remedy at law against Defendants infringement of the

974 patent and, unless Defendants are enjoined from their infringement, Plaintiff will suffer irreparable harm. 39. Defendants have had knowledge of the 974 patent and yet have continued to

infringe despite an objectively high likelihood that their actions constituted infringement of the 974 patent. The risk of infringement was either known to Defendants, or so obvious it should have been known to them. Therefore, Defendants infringement has been and continues to be willful and deliberate. 40. As a result of Defendants infringement, Plaintiff has suffered and will continue

to suffer damages in an amount to be proven at trial. WILLFULNESS 41. The acts of infringement set forth above have occurred with full knowledge of the

974 patent. The infringement has occurred despite an objectively high likelihood that the acts constituted infringement. The risk of infringement was either known to Defendants, or so obvious it should have been known to them. Thus, the acts of infringement have been willful and deliberate, making this case exceptional within the meaning of the United States patent laws. PRAYER FOR RELIEF WHEREFORE, Plaintiff demands following relief: A. A judgment in favor of Plaintiff that Defendants have infringed, directly

and indirectly, by way of inducement and/or contributory infringement, the 974 patent;

-8-

B.

A permanent injunction, enjoining Defendants and their officers, directors,

agents, servants, employees, affiliates, divisions, branches, subsidiaries, parents, and all others acting in concert or privity with them from infringing, inducing the infringement of, or contributing to the infringement of the aforementioned patents; C. An award to Plaintiff of the damages to which it is entitled under at least

35 U.S.C. 284 for Defendants past infringement and any continuing or future infringement, including both compensatory damages and treble damages for willful infringement; D. A judgment and order requiring Defendants to pay the costs of this action

(including all disbursements), as well as attorneys fees as provided by 35 U.S.C. 285; E. damages; and F. entitled. JURY DEMAND Plaintiff demands a trial by jury. Such other further relief in law or equity to which Plaintiff may be justly An award to Plaintiff of pre-judgment and post-judgment interest on its

-9-

Respectfully submitted, POTTER ANDERSON & CORROON LLP OF COUNSEL: Jeffrey S. Ginsberg Mark A. Hannemann Rose Cordero Prey Ksenia Takhistova KENYON & KENYON LLP One Broadway New York, NY 10004 Tel.: (212) 425-7200 Dated: February 5, 2014
1138435 / 39026

By:

/s/ Richard L. Horwitz Richard L. Horwitz (#2246) David E. Moore (#3983) Bindu A. Palapura (#5370) Hercules Plaza, 6th Floor 1313 N. Market Street Wilmington, DE 19801 Tel: (302) 984-6000 rhorwitz@potteranderson.com dmoore@potteranderson.com bpalapura@potteranderson.com

Attorneys for Plaintiff Robert Bosch LLC

- 10 -