Lawsuit claims Apple`s dual-camera setup in recent iPhones infringes on 2003 patent
(Digital Photography Review)

A lawsuit filed with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California on Tuesday claims the cameras in Apple`s iPhone 7 Plus and newer dual-camera models infringe on a patent that was granted in 2003 and is based on an invention from 1999. Plaintiffs Yanbin Yu and Zhongxuan Zhang allege Apple`s dual-cameras are in infringement of U.S. Patent No. 6,611,289 for `Digital cameras using multiple sensors with multiple lenses`. The patent describes methods for capturing multiple images using multiple lens and sensor arrays. The patent focuses on a four-camera setup that captures images on monochrome sensors and merges them into a single color image. According to the lawsuit Apple was aware of the existing patent as early as 2011. The complaint also alleges that Apple`s own multi-sensor camera patent No. 8,115,825, `Electronic device with two image sensors.` which was filed for in 2008 and granted in 2012, claimed `many of the same features` as the patent from Yu and Zhang. The plaintiffs note that Apple made significant investments into its dual-camera technology, acquiring 3D sensor specialist PrimeSense in 2013 and camera technology company LinX Imaging in 2015 but did not seek to license Yu and Zhang`s patent, launching several iPhone models knowing they were infringing on somebody else`s patent. This is not the first time Apple has camera-related legal problems. Earlier this year Israel-based company CorePhotonics also files a lawsuit against the US company. We`ll continue to keep an eye on both cases.