Robert Triggs / Android Authority
TL; DR
- A patent licensing firm is suing Samsung over a commonly used battery algorithm.
- The algorithm helps to accurately predict the remaining battery life.
- Other companies use similar algorithms and may be the firm’s next target.
A patent licensing firm has sued Samsung for basic battery technology in a case that could have far-reaching implications for the entire industry.
Who is Mizra? A firm that licenses “high-value, high-quality patents with global reach” of choice from IBM, Sharp and various research institutes and then sues a company that it thinks infringes those patents. Samsung’s latest target, K Mizra Filed a lawsuit On May 20, 2022, the South Korean company claimed a patent infringement of its portfolio, claiming battery life forecasting algorithms (h / t). Android Central)
K. Mizra claims that the patent in question was created by the Dutch organization Naturewetenshapeljic Wonderjo (TNO), a Dutch research organization. The algorithm analyzes user behavior and more accurately predicts how long the battery of their device will last. The firm says that manufacturers benefit from using the algorithm because it saves them the laborious time to run in a myriad of situations to predict the battery life of their particular device.
Read more: A definite guide to everything that affects the battery life of a smartphone
Interestingly, while Google, Xiaomi, and others use similar algorithms, K.Mizra – at least initially – only targets Samsung. The company specifically states that the “battery runtime prediction, as applied to Samsung mobile devices using smaller versions of the Android OS”, violates the patent in question. By referring to “smaller versions of the Android OS”, K.Mizra may indicate that the more recent versions use a different algorithm that is not patented. Of course, it is also possible that the firm is only testing the water with Samsung, and if this initial lawsuit is successful, there are plans to sue more companies.
Whatever K Mizra’s last game, this lawsuit represents a cool threat to the Android ecosystem.
