According to AppleInsider reports, Apple has recently been sued by the plaintiff SpaceTime3D, claiming that the application multitasking and Safari tab features on the iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch infringe on one of its 3D user interface patents.
SpaceTime3D, a software company that “provides consumers with a seamless digital experience,” filed a complaint Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas against some of Apple’s graphical user interface features.
At the heart of the controversy are three U.S. patents related to mechanisms for displaying user interfaces in three dimensions, one of which SpaceTime3D first filed a patent application in 2007.
According to the lawsuit, Apple’s App Switcher and Safari Tab View feature infringe the patents because they cover a way to improve the user experience on small devices by displaying content in three-dimensional space.
These features allow users to easily view multiple tabs or open apps and switch between devices such as the iPad or Apple Watch. SpaceTime3D maintains an application that allows users to browse the web in an “interactive, intuitive and fun” way, displaying pages in a three-dimensional stack of tabs.
SpaceTime3D’s technology was also demonstrated at CES 2008 and was covered by news organizations such as the San Jose Mercury News, TechCrunch, and more.
Apple discovered the technology through news reports, the lawsuit said. SpaceTime3D founder Ezra Bakhash demonstrated the technology to an unnamed Apple executive who said he had forwarded the information to “various groups within Apple.”
Another Apple representative also allegedly said he was “stunned” by SpaceTime3D’s technology and said the platform was a “significant time saver.”
Because Apple is alleged to have prior knowledge of the patented technology, the lawsuit alleges that Apple intentionally and deliberately infringed intellectual property rights. SpaceTime3D also accused Apple of trying to patent the technology itself.
The lawsuit also said the attempts were rejected because SpaceTime3D had applied for a patent. The lawsuit seeks a jury trial, seeks to declare Apple infringed a patent, and seeks damages and attorney’s fees.