BorgWarner Inc., a maker of automatic-transmission vehicle components, filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against Cummins Inc., a service engine company, claiming Cummins infringed on three of BorgWarner’s patents.
Cummins allegedly imported, used and sold BorgWarner’s compressor wheel patents without the proper copyright protection, BorgWarner explained in its court filing.
Turbochargers maximize the efficiency and energy use in smaller engine vehicles, and governments have been encouraging automakers to increase the production of technologies such as these to improve the fuel economy in vehicles.
BorgWarner has been doing just that, and said in its court filing in Asheville, N.C., that it “made considerable investments in improving turbocharger technologies,” and Cummins has been recklessly disregarding BorgWarner’s patents in its use of the company’s invention.
Cummins would not comment on pending litigation.
Since increasing its sales of turbochargers in July, BorgWarner nearly doubled its second-quarter profits and projected an increase in revenue and profit for the upcoming year.
Cummins’ profits have similarly increased as a result of importing and selling turbochargers, and have subsequently demonstrated a 32 percent increase of sales in its component unit.
