FoMoCo has been sued by a small technology company in Washington that claims that it developed the technology behind the Ford Sync system. A federal lawsuit by Eagle Harbor Holdings alleges that Ford infringed on seven of its patents for the technology behind the Sync connectivity system and other safety technologies in Ford vehicles by Active Park Assist, Blind-Spot Identification System with Cross Traffic Alert, Integrated Control System for Stability Control, and MyKey.

General counsel for Eagle Harbor, Jeffery Harmes, said in a statement that representatives of the company began working with Ford in 2002 to develop and use the technology in vehicles. He said that the Dearborn automaker broke off talks with the company in 2008.

“Unfortunately, despite our many efforts to communicate with Ford and resolve these issues, Ford continues to refuse to license its use of our patented technology,” Harmes said. “Ford is ignoring our patent rights and continues to use, without permission or license, Eagle Harbor’s technology.”

A Ford spokeswoman said that the company won’t comment on the suit until it has reviewed it in full.

- By: Omar Rana

Source: Automotive News