I4F, a group of companies providing patents and technologies to the flooring industry, announced that it has filed an invalidity case against Vilox’s US patent (US 11,421,425). The inter partes review (IPR) proceedings were filed before the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Patent Trial and Appeal Board. 

It is i4F’s view that the Vilox patent is invalid and should never have been granted because it is not novel and does not have an inventive step, and, thus, does not cover a licensable technology. At the same time, i4F stated that it will not hesitate to initiate additional legal actions to protect i4F licensees against unfair competition.