Hexagon sues over tool infringement

BOSTON – Hexagon Metrology, which since 2001 has owned and operated North Kingstown’s Brown & Sharpe, announced today that it has filed a patent infringement suit in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts.
The suit alleges that two manufacturers are importing into the United States and selling portable arms that infringe on a patent owned by Hexagon Metrology, according to the company.
Hexagon’s suit alleges that Metris N.V. and its American subsidiary, Metris U.S.A. Inc., and Mitutoyo Corp. and its American subsidiary, Mitutoyo America Corp., have infringed on U.S. Patent No. 5,829,148.
“Hexagon Metrology welcomes fair competition,” Hexagon Metrology President William Gruber said in a statement today, “but we will not stand by if competitors use our protected technology, which our customers recognize and rely upon and which has given us a leading position in the metrology industry.”
A branch of the publicly traded Hexagon AB Group, a Sweden-based company, Hexagon Metrology has manufactured the Brown & Sharpe tool brand in North Kingstown since 2001.
Hexagon Metrology is part of Hexagon AB Group, which includes metrology brands such as Brown & Sharpe, CE Johnson, CimCore, CogniTens, Leitz and others. For additional information, visit www.hexagonmetrology.com.