ITC Issues Section 337 Import Ban on Wet Vacs
The International Trade Commission is issuing a limited exclusion order banning imports of wet dry vacuums from Tineco that it found to be infringing on patents held by Bissell, the ITC said in a notice released Dec. 21 that also ends its Section 337 investigation (ITC Inv. No. 337-TA-1304).
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The ITC had begun the proceeding in March 2022 (see 2203080040), based on Bissell's allegations that Tineco and its affiliates are importing wet dry surface cleaning devices, specifically the iFloor and Floor One models, that contain items infringing on five of Bissel's patents. The ITC found they violated two of the five patents.
The limited exclusion order applies to Tineco Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd., TEK (Hong Kong) Science & Technology Ltd. and Tineco Intelligent, Inc. The ITC also issued cease and desist orders against those three companies.
The commission set bond at $99.01 per covered iFloor 3 product, $99.01 per covered Floor One S3 product, and $0 per any other covered product imported during the 60-day presidential review period.