RAVI RAJ GUPTA Vs. ACME GLASS MOSAIC INDUSTRIES

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This order disposes of the plaintiff's prayer for the grant of ad-interim injunction.

(2.) The plaintiff has filed a suit complaining of infringment by the defendant of the plaintiff's patents No. 154388 dated 4.6.80 and No. 157991 dated 8.6.82.

(3.) The plaintiff is engaged in the manufacture and sale of glass tiles through a partnership firm M/s.Mridul Enterprises wherein he .is a partner besides his father and brother. According to the plaintiff he is actively engaged in research and development work relating particularly to glass tiles. The glass tiles made in India had a few disadvantages such as the edges of such tiles were sharp which could cause injury; surface of the tiles was not smooth and was devoid of aesthetic value and it had a tendency to get displaced when applied to ,a wall surface. Such tiles were produced from molten glass. The plaintiff's research invovling considerable expenditure and effort resulted into a solution forming subject matter of patent No. 154388 effective from 4.6.80 It related to a glass tile having a front face thereon the distance between two opposite side walls of the front face was smaller than the distance between the side walls in any other plane of the tiles besides the front face. Further efforts, research and developmental work of the plaintiff resulted into a process for the manufacture of glass tiles from crushed glass in departure from the previously known method of producing glass tiles from molten glass. This process of producing glass tiles from crushed glass resulted into the grant of patent No. 157991 effective from 8th June, 1982. The claim No. I of this patent reads as under :-