Carpet Tufting Patent Claims Not Invalid Under 35 U.S.C. § 101​

The court granted plaintiff's motion for summary judgment that the asserted claims of its carpet tufting patents were not invalid for claiming unpatentable subject matter because the claims were not directed toward an abstract idea. "[T]he Severed Claims are not directed toward the abstract idea of high-stitch-rate tufting. They do not claim the production of all carpets with relatively high stitch rates. Instead, they claim a specific way of achieving a high stitch rate -- a manner of stitching far more yarns per longitudinal inch than in conventional tufting systems, then pulling yarns not wanted in the face of the pattern out of the backing or so low they cannot be seen. . . . Even if [defendant] correctly asserts that the Claims use conventional tufting machines, it has presented no evidence to suggest that these tufting machines perform purely conventional steps."

Card-Monroe Corp. v. Tuftco Corp., 1-14-cv-00292 (TNED September 1, 2017, Order) (McDonough, USDJ)