ArvinMeritor and ZF announced that the order issued April 7, 2005, by the International Trade Commission (ITC), based on a complaint by Eaton Corp, is limited to automated mechanical transmissions that infringe upon Claim 15 of the 279 patent. “Claim 15 pertains to a non-critical aspect of the transmission, which is not integral to its operation,” said Tom Gosnell, president of Commercial Vehicle Systems for ArvinMeritor. “In anticipation of this expected order-based on the January decision — ZF redesigned the transmission software to comply with the ruling.”
According to Wolfgang Vogel, executive vice-president of Commercial Vehicle and Special Driveline Technology for ZF Friedrichshafen AG, “This minor redesign, which has no effect on the functionality of the ZF-FreedomLine transmission, is in accordance with the ruling.”