3M and 3M Innovative Properties Co. have filed a patent infringement suit in the U.S. District Court in Minneapolis against ITW/DeVilbiss, an automotive refinishing company based in Maumee, Ohio.
The suit alleges that ITW/DeVilbiss' activity relating to the making, using, selling, and/or offering for sale in the United States of its paint spray products, including its "DeKUPS" paint system products, infringes a 3M patent (U.S. Patent No. 6,820,824) covering its innovative 3M PPS Paint Preparation System used for mixing and preparing refinish material prior to spraying.
The suit is in accordance with 3M's corporate intellectual property policy for the protection of its substantial investment in research and development by obtaining, maintaining and enforcing patent, copyright, trade secret and similar rights in inventions or works of authorship resulting from research and development.