Apex Medical Corporation reports that the US International Trade Commission (USITC) has issued a final advisory opinion, determining that Apex’s newly designed XT series continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) water tank and Wizard 220 mask are free from the patent claims asserted by ResMed, one of Apex’s major competitors. Apex further declares its plan of introducing an upgraded iCH water tank to the market in October 2014.

In September 2013 Apex requested the USITC to declare that Apex’s newly designed sleep-disorder breathing treatment products are not covered by the claims of seven ResMed patents that were raised in an earlier Section 337 investigation. On July 18, 2014, the USITC issued the final opinion in response to the parties’ appeals on the initial opinion of the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) issued one month earlier.

In the final and non-appealable opinion, the USITC upheld the ALJ’s ruling on the new mask design, confirming that the mask design is clear of ResMed’s asserted claims. Significantly, the USITC overruled the ALJ’s negative finding regarding the newly designed XT series water tank; the USITC determined that the new XT series CPAP water tank is free from ResMed’s patent assertions. The USITC affirmed ALJ’s finding that the petitioned water tank design for iCH series CPAP is covered by a single claim of one ResMed patent.