QuantifiCare sues Canfield Scientific at UPC over 3D medical imaging systems

In the dispute with Canfield Scientific over 3D medical imaging systems, the French company QuantifiCare now has the upper hand again. Initially, the German Federal Patent Court had declared the important EP 3 156 843 invalid. However, QuantifiCare appealed with the help of its German lawyers and managed to turn things around for the German part of the patent.

EP 843 protects a device and method for three-dimensional reconstruction of the head and body. In 2015, QuantifiCare filed a French patent application to protect essential aspects of its product LifeViz Infinity, a portable, all-in-one 3D imaging system for the face, breast, and body. The camera is mainly used in plastic surgery.

QuantifiCare extended the regional scope of the patent to cover Europe and the US. The European Patent Office granted EP 843 in 2018. However, when the company from the Côte d’Azur filed a patent infringement claim against its US competitor Canfield Scientific at the Regional Court Düsseldorf, the latter responded by contesting the validity of EP 843 in Germany.

EP 843 upheld

In July 2024, the 10th Civil Senate at the Federal Court of Justice under presiding judge Klaus Bacher upheld the patent as granted (case ID: X ZR 88/22). The court is the final instance in nullity proceedings in Germany. Unlike the lower court, the Federal Court of Justice came to the conclusion that QuantifiCare’s technology is new and constitutes an inventive step.

The judgment paved the way for the parallel infringement proceedings to continue at the Regional Court Düsseldorf (case ID: 4a O 78/20). Here, QuantifiCare is demanding that Canfield Scientific stop selling similar products in Germany. The proceedings will likely continue in September 2025.

QuantifiCare has also sued Canfield Scientific in US.

Latest UPC claim

As QuantifiCare has now confirmed to JUVE Patent, the company recently filed an infringement claim with the UPC local division Düsseldorf under presiding judge Ronny Thomas (case ID: ACT_53557/2024). The complaint is currently being served on Canfield Scientific.

This claim also accuses the US competitor of infringing EP 843. QuantifiCare is not seeking injunctive relief in Germany but rather in France, Belgium, Italy, and the Netherlands. Nevertheless, QuantifiCare was able to file suit with the local division in Düsseldorf because it is also suing the German subsidiary Canfield Scientific GmbH, based in Bielefeld. It therefore did not need to go to one of the local divisions in Paris, Brussels, Milan, or The Hague.

As in the German proceedings, lawyer Felix Klopmeier from the Düsseldorf law firm Lang & Rahmann is representing QuantifiCare in the UPC action. Patent attorney Dirk Schulz from the Düsseldorf IP law firm Michalski Hüttermann & Partner is also a representative.

In the national proceedings, Canfield Scientific relied on a mixed team from Grünecker with patent attorney Udo Weigelt and lawyer Sebastian Ochs. Both are partners of the firm. Patent attorney André Crusius is also part of the team. In the proceedings before the Federal Court of Justice, the US company also consulted Christian Rohnke. He is an admitted representative at the Federal Court of Justice (BGH lawyer). JUVE Patent is not aware of whether Grünecker is also representing the US company at the UPC.