Jury rules against Universal on TAWS

A jury ordered Universal Avionics to pay Honeywell $5.5 million in damages for violating a patent related to Honeywell’s original (pre-“enhanced”) GPWS. The same jury last month ruled in favor of co-defendant Sandel Avionics. All three firms build terrain awareness and warning systems (TAWS) and have been locked in a lawsuits over TAWS patents since 2002.

The patent at issue in this case was separate from that in a previous lawsuit, in which Honeywell unsuccessfully sued Universal and Sandel for alleged infringement of five other patents concerning EGPWS. Universal is likely to appeal the latest verdict.