Back in February of 2014, German sportswear giant Adidas filed a patent infringement suit against competitor Under Armour, Inc. in United States District Court for the District of Delaware.

Adidas accused Under Armour and its newly acquired fitness tracker subsidiary, MapMyFitness, Inc., of infringing ten of its patents. These patents cover technology used in Adidas’ line of fitness tracker devices, known as miCoach, that coaches users in real time during their workouts. Adidas alleges that Under Armour and MapMyFitness utilize similar technology in their line of fitness tracker products, Armour39, which includes a module, chest strap, watch, supporting software and mobile app.

While the case is still ongoing, Under Armour recently filed several petitions for Inter Partes Review (IPR) with the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB), challenging the validity of multiple claims in three of the ten Adidas patents they are accused of infringing— U.S. Patent No. 8,725,276, U.S. Patent No. 8,721,502 , and U.S. Patent No. 8,652,009.

These IPR petitions challenge claims concerning GPS, athletic performance tracking, route recommendation and more, on the grounds of anticipation and obviousness. Under Armour cites numerous prior art references in each IPR petition supporting their contention that much of the technology relied upon by Adidas in securing patent protection was already well known in the prior art.

Of Under Armour’s nine petitions, two have instituted, two have been denied, and four are currently pending a decision from the PTAB. To be notified of the PTAB’s decision on whether to institute Under Armour’s IPR petitions, click the “Track Docket” on each IPR docket (IPR2015-01528, IPR2015-01531, IPR2015-01532, IPR2015-00688). The email alert includes a summary of the update and a PDF attachment of the filing. To set up email alerts for Adidas’ pending federal suit, click the “Track Docket” button on this page.