Here’s what happened in the Michelin v. Atturo suit

A lawsuit filed by Michelin over the tread pattern of one Atturo’s SUV and crossover tires has reached a favorable settlement.

On May 13 Michelin North America filed a patent infringement suit against Atturo and Thai-based tire manufacturer Svizz-One Corporation over its patent, U.S. D483,322 — which covers the tread patterns and shape of the Michelin Latitude Tour.

What exactly was the suit over?

The suit alleged that two tire models—the Atturo AZ600 and the Thunderer Ranger 007—infringe one of Michelin’s tread patents. Atturo brand tires are dedicated to the light-truck segment that includes SUVS, pickups and crossovers. The tires in question are manufactured in Thailand for Atturo by Svizz-One.

At the time the suit was lodged in the U.S. District Court of South Carolina, Michelin vice-president of research and development Paul Grosskopf said: “This lawsuit demonstrates Michelin’s legal strategy to protect the intellectual property created by its 6,000 research and development employees and an annual research and development investment of about $700 million dollars.”

Here are the two tires side by side

Michelin Atturo

Settlement agreement reached this week

This week the parties agreed to a settlement, the details of which are confidential.

However, Michelin chief operating officer Scott Clark said the company was pleased with the settlement.

“In addition to recognizing the hard work of our employees, Michelin’s patents represent our company’s commitment to providing quality products to our customers.”

Atturo president Michael Mathis was also pleased a favorable settlement had been reached. In a statement to Traction News this week, he said: “The confidential settlement resulted in the dismissal of the case shortly after it was filed, without any admission of infringement by Atturo.

“Atturo is pleased to bring this dispute to a close in a timely manner without the need for prolonged litigation.”

Mathis said the AZ600 was sourced by Atturo from a manufacturing partner.

More information

Here’s the spec sheet on the Atturo AZ600. There’s also more information about the tire on the Atturo website and from Traction News’ coverage of the tire’s launch at the SEMA Show last year.

Here’s the product page for the Michelin Latitude Tour.