Director Grants Institution on Three Beatbot Petitions Against Zodiac's Camera-Based Pool Cleaner Patents.

The notice

In a Notice of Decisions on Institution dated November 3, 2026, USPTO Director John A. Squires stated that, after review of the merits, the petitioner had shown a reasonable likelihood of prevailing on at least one challenged claim, that no other non-discretionary considerations warranted denial, and that institution of inter partes review was granted in IPR2026-00393, IPR2026-00394, IPR2026-00395, and one other proceeding, IPR2026-00391. The notice lists outcomes by proceeding number. The grant is Paper 13 in each of the three proceedings.

The three proceedings

Beatbot Technology (USA) Co. Ltd. is the petitioner in each proceeding and Zodiac Pool Systems LLC is the patent owner. Each petition was filed on June 5, 2026 together with a motion for joinder to an earlier instituted inter partes review of the same patent that was brought by a different petitioner:

• IPR2026-00393 challenges claims 1-5 of U.S. Patent 11,262,766 and seeks joinder to instituted IPR2026-00159.
• IPR2026-00394 challenges claims 1-8, 11-14, and 19 of U.S. Patent 11,880,207 and seeks joinder to instituted IPR2026-00160.
• IPR2026-00395 challenges claims 1-3 of U.S. Patent 11,003,191 and seeks joinder to instituted IPR2026-00158.

The three patents carry the same title, Pool Cleaning System and Method to Automatically Clean Surfaces of a Pool Using Images from a Camera, and list Zodiac Pool Systems LLC as assignee. U.S. Patent 11,003,191 issued May 11, 2021, U.S. Patent 11,262,766 issued March 1, 2022, and U.S. Patent 11,880,207 issued January 23, 2024. The '766 patent is a continuation of the application that issued as the '191 patent, and the '207 patent is a continuation of the application that issued as the '766 patent.

In the declaratory judgment action, Beatbot Technology (USA) Co. Ltd. v. Zodiac Pool Systems LLC, No. 3:25-cv-01946 (S.D. Cal.), the plaintiffs are Beatbot Technology (USA) Co. Ltd., Deepwater Innovation Technology (Hong Kong) Limited, and Xingmai Innovation Technology (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. The court's March 30, 2026 order recites Zodiac's July 17, 2025 letter, the July 31, 2025 complaint seeking a declaration that the plaintiffs' products do not infringe the '191, '766, and '207 patents, three inter partes review petitions the plaintiffs filed on January 26, 2026, and Sotera-plus stipulations filed February 27, 2026. That order granted the plaintiffs' motion to stay the case pending inter partes review, and the docket shows a further order staying the case on October 19, 2026.

What to watch next

Watch for rulings on the motions for joinder filed with each petition and for scheduling orders in the three proceedings.