Airbag wars: Dainese wins against Alpinestars
In their search for better protection for motorcyclists, various manufacturers have been working on applications with airbag technology for some time. A protective vest that is only inflated when necessary in the event of a serious crash has been common in MotoGP for some time now. Work is also continuing on applications for off-road riders.
Both Dainese and Alpinestars have also been offering products for sale equipped with this airbag technology for several years. Due to the enormous investments and complexity of these products, both brands are in short supply of confidential technical information. However, yesterday we received a remarkable press release from Dainese. After all, the Italian brand is waging a tough legal battle with their rival colleagues from Asolo. In Germany, the Munich Court of Appeal has ruled against Alpinestars over an infringement of Dainese's D-air patent.
This technology is crucial for the development of new protection for all action sports. It will be interesting to see how this story continues!
Below you will find the full press release:
Munich, Germany, February 7, 2019 – After a long legal battle, the Munich Court of Appeal (following the first instance decision in Munich in August 2017) reached a final judgment. The Tech-Air™ Street airbag Vest (for road use) and Tech-Air™ Racing airbag vest (for track and road use), manufactured and marketed by Alpinestars, infringe European patent EP 2 412 257 B1 from Dainese.
This ruling comes after the German Federal Patent Center ruled earlier in 2017 that Alpinestars infringed Dainese's D-air technology. This was a decision that Alpinestars had appealed. The current decision of the Munich Court of Appeal in this lawsuit can only be challenged before the German Federal Supreme Court.
The Munich Court of Appeal ruled in Dainese's favor on the core issues of the dispute, and issued the following injunction:
1) The ban on Alpinestars from commercializing the Tech-Air™ Street Airbag vests and Tech-Air™ airbag vests in Germany;
2) Alpinestars is ordered to recall such vests that Alpinestars has supplied since July 1, 2015 and that are still in the possession of commercial customers in Germany.
3) Compensation to Dainese for all damages suffered as a result of the sale of the vests that infringed the patent in Germany since July 1, 2015.
This decision is a major victory for Dainese in an intensive legal battle against Alpinestars in Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom and France.
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