A lawsuit has been filed ahead of the United States Grand Prix over a patented fuel flow technology used by Formula 1.
The US District Court for the Western District of Texas is set to hear a dispute raised by a former F1 tenderer over an alleged patent infringement.
Sentronics Holdings Ltd, a company incorporated and registered in the UK, has sued German-based Allengra GmbH for unauthorised use of its patented fuel flow meters.
Sentronics had applied for a patent in 2017, and the US Patent Office officially granted the same in 2022 as Patent No. 609.
Sentronics alleges that Allengra misused its patented phase-modulation technology in their own fuel flow meters and eventually beat Sentrotics to the tender to supply every F1 team on the grid.
A full jury trial has been requested by Sentronics, who allege a loss of profit and market standing owing to Allengra’s “continued infringement of the ‘609 Patent in the United States”, as per RacingNews365.
Sentronics has not yet filed for any injunctive relief against Allengra; however, it has sued the German company for a loss of profit from the time the patent was issued in July 2022.
This means the use of the fuel flow meters at this weekend’s US GP at the Circuit of the Americas is per se not restricted.
One of the arguments advanced, it is understood, is that Allengra’s enhanced portfolio and market standing after securing the F1 deal was based on a patent infringement and is therefore prejudicial to Sentronics.
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