U.S. investigates whether Volkswagen vehicles infringe JLR patents

The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) said on Monday it is starting an investigation into whether German automaker Volkswagen AG infringed on patents held by British automaker Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), a unit of Tata Motors, for a system used for off-road driving.

In November, JLR filed a complaint with the ITC seeking to avoid the import of some Porsche, Lamborghini, and Audi models with “certain vehicle control systems” that reportedly infringe on its patents.

The models consist of the Lamborghini Urus, Porsche Cayenne and Audi’s Q8, Q7, Q5, A6 Allroad, and e-tron vehicles and the Volkswagen Tiguan. The ITC said it has taken no decision on the merits.

Volkswagen said in a statement it was examining the action and figuring out its next steps.

“We will of course cooperate with investigating authorities. While we cannot comment on any details of the proceedings, we strongly believe that the claims have no merit and will robustly defend our position,” Volkswagen said.

JLR said the automobiles have used JLR’s patented inventions without payment or permission notably a patent for an enhanced system for driving a vehicle on different driving surfaces, in particular off-road.

JLR says its Terrain Response technology makes use of the patented technology to maximize performance on off-road driving surfaces, including grass, snow, mud, sand, and rocks.