A LEGAL fight over who owns the patent rights to 'single pass' seed drills has ended with the company that started the action having its patent revoked.

Seed drill manufacturer, Claydon Yield-o-Meter Limited, had gone to court against its competitor, Mzuri, arguing that the Mzuri Pro-Til and Pro-Til Select single pass drills infringed its UK patent no. 2,400,296 and their European patent no. 2,051,576 – which related to the configuration of inline tines for cultivating and seeding in one pass.

Mzuri maintained that there was no infringement of the patents, and further, argued at trial that the Claydon patents were invalid due to 'lack of inventiveness' over existing prior art and prior use of the invention, saying that one pass seeding was a concept dating to the earliest seed drills in history.

After a three-day hearing, the presiding Judge handed down a decision that the Claydon patents were to be revoked.

Speaking for Mzuri, Martin Lole describes the three-year long court case as 'entirely avoidable' and detrimental to agricultural innovation in the UK.

“We have been disappointed to have been the target of a court case brought about by another British manufacturer, which sought to claim damages and prevent us from selling our flagship product into the market," said Mr Lole.

“Single pass technology such as one tine in front of another has been around for many years, even documented by early innovators such as Jethro Tull and has been popular (particularly in the US) for some time prior to the patent priority date. We have always maintained that we do not infringe the Claydon patents, and it is very sad that this whole thing which has been entirely unnecessary could have been easily avoided.

“Despite our best efforts to discuss the disagreement openly and honestly, Claydon were determined to draw it out into a lengthy and costly legal battle which served no one," he added.