The title and the determination

The Federal Register published the notice on September 29, 2026, at 91 Fed. Reg. 61436 (FR Doc. 2026-19847). The Commission vote took place on September 23, 2026, and the Secretary issued the notice the same day. The printed title is Notice of a Commission Determination Finding a Violation of Section 337; Issuance of a Limited Exclusion Order and Cease and Desist Orders; Termination of the Investigation. The summary does not use those words for the exclusion order. It says the Commission has determined to issue a general exclusion order prohibiting the importation of certain ink cartridges and components thereof that infringe certain claims of U.S. Patent Nos. 8,540,347, 9,061,508, 11,535,037, 11,820,150, and 12,246,539, and cease and desist orders against respondents Mountain Peak, Inc. and Straightouttaink, LP. The later determination paragraph says the appropriate remedy is a general exclusion order and cease and desist orders directed to Mountain Peak and Straightouttaink. This page follows the body. It does not treat the title's "limited exclusion order" as the remedy the notice describes.

The notice says the Commission has determined to affirm, with supplemental findings and modified reasoning, the initial determination (Order No. 16) granting a motion for summary determination of a violation of section 337. It says the public interest factors in 19 U.S.C. 1337(d)(1), (f)(1), and (g)(1) do not preclude the orders. It says the Commission has determined to impose a bond of 100 percent of the entered value of the covered products during Presidential review, citing 19 U.S.C. 1337(j). It says the investigation is terminated. The notice says an opinion issued with the determination. This page did not review that opinion.

The notice says the Commission instituted the investigation on June 17, 2025, based on a complaint filed on behalf of Epson Portland Inc. of Hillsboro, Oregon, Epson America, Inc. of Los Alamitos, California, and Seiko Epson Corporation of Nagano, Japan. It cites 90 Fed. Reg. 25643-44. The Office of Unfair Import Investigations is a party.

Respondents, as the notice names them

The notice of investigation, as this notice recites it, named these respondents. Short names in parentheses are the notice's.

  • Dongguan Ocbestjet Digital Technology Co., Ltd. d/b/a Ocbestjet of Guangdong, China (Dongguan Ocbestjet).
  • Ocbestjet Printer Consumables (HK) Co., Ltd., d/b/a Ocbestjet of Hong Kong (Ocbestjet HK).
  • Tatrix International China Co., Ltd. of Guangdong, China (Tatrix).
  • Luozhi Trading Co., Ltd. of Guangdong, China (Luozhi Trading).
  • Shenzhen Hongxinyuan E-Commerce Co., Ltd., d/b/a Jianjai, d/b/a Vi-US of Guangdong, China.
  • Shenzhen Kaizhen Technology Co., Ltd., d/b/a PayForLess of Guangdong, China (Kaizhen Tech.).
  • Zhuhai Zhenyang Electronics Co., Ltd., d/b/a Oinkwere of Guangdong, China (Zhenyang Elec.).
  • Shangrao Shixuan E-Commerce Co., Ltd., d/b/a Inkgo of Jiangxi, China.
  • Zhuhai Hengyunda Electronics Co., Ltd., d/b/a Upriin of Guangdong, China (Hengyunda Elec.).
  • Zhuhai Rongtaida Electronics Co., Ltd., d/b/a Hookink of Guangdong, China (Rongtaida Elec.).
  • Zhuhai Shi Wei Tai Electronics Co., Ltd., d/b/a Ondula-A of Guangdong, China (Shi Wei Tai Elec.).
  • Zhuhai Yixing Electronics Co., Ltd., d/b/a Greenjob USSOP of Guangdong, China (Yixing Elec.).
  • Mei Jin Technology HK Co., Ltd., d/b/a YBFeir, d/b/a MJing of Hong Kong (Mei Jin Tech.).
  • ZhuHai MeiJiAn Trading Co., Ltd., d/b/a HaloFox of Guangdong, China (MeiJiAn Trading).
  • Qiong Wang, d/b/a 7-magic of Guangdong, China.
  • Shen Zhen Sailing Technology Limited, d/b/a Triple-Color of Shenzhen, China.
  • Zhuhai Shuofeng E-commerce Co., Ltd., d/b/a super-ink-club of Guangdong, China (Shuofeng E-commerce).
  • Zhuhai Bowang Technology Co., Ltd., d/b/a office-print-club of Guangdong, China (Bowang Tech.).
  • Mountain Peak, Inc., d/b/a/Billiontree Technology USA, Inc. (Mountain Peak), d/b/a TonerKingdom of City of Industry, California.
  • Straightouttaink, LP, d/b/a discountinkllc, d/b/a einkshop2014 of San Jose, California (Straightouttaink).

The notice says Shenzhen Hongxinyuan E-Commerce Co., Ltd., Shangrao Shixuan E-Commerce Co., Ltd., Shen Zhen Sailing Technology Limited, and Qiong Wang were terminated by withdrawal of the complaint. Order No. 12 (December 16, 2025) was unreviewed by Commission notice (January 7, 2026).

The notice says these respondents were found in default: Tatrix, Zhenyang Elec., Hengyunda Elec., Rongtaida Elec., Shi Wei Tai Elec., Yixing Elec., Mei Jin Tech., Mountain Peak, Straightouttaink, Dongguan Ocbestjet, Ocbestjet HK, Luozhi Trading, Kaizhen Tech., MeiJiAn Trading, Shuofeng E-commerce, and Bowang Tech. It cites Order No. 10 (September 30, 2025), unreviewed by Commission notice (December 5, 2025), and Order No. 13 (December 16, 2025), unreviewed by Commission notice (January 8, 2026).

Patent numbers, titles, and the claim numbers in the notice

This page does not restate claim text. The descriptions below are the patent number, the title and issue date on the Google Patents record, and the claim numbers this notice lists. They are not a finding about what any claim covers beyond those numbers.

  • U.S. Patent 8,540,347, Recording material delivery system for recording material-consuming apparatus; circuit board; structural body; and ink cartridge, issued September 24, 2013.
  • U.S. Patent 9,061,508, same title, issued June 23, 2015.
  • U.S. Patent 11,535,037, Device, board, liquid accommodation container, and printing system, issued December 27, 2022.
  • U.S. Patent 11,820,150, same title as the '037 patent, issued November 21, 2023.
  • U.S. Patent 12,246,539, same title as the '037 patent, issued March 11, 2025.

The notice says the complainants withdrew allegations as to claims 1, 4, 14, 16-17, and 23 of the '347 patent, claims 1, 3, 9, 12, 14, and 19 of the '508 patent, claims 9 and 10 of the '037 patent, claims 9-11 and 19-20 of the '150 patent, and claims 2, 9, 11, 18, 20, and 27 of the '539 patent, and that those claims were terminated. Order No. 14 (December 18, 2025) was unreviewed by Commission notice (January 8, 2026).

The notice says that on February 3, 2026, the complainants moved for summary determination of a violation by the defaulting respondents by reason of infringement of claims 8, 11, and 20 of the '037 patent, claims 7 and 17 of the '508 patent, claim 1 of the '037 patent, claim 1 of the '150 patent, and claims 1, 10, and 19 of the '539 patent. That sentence names the '037 patent twice and does not list claim numbers of the '347 patent. This page leaves it that way. The Office of Unfair Import Investigations filed a response in support on February 13, 2026. On May 15, 2026, the administrative law judge issued Order No. 16 granting the motion, with a recommended determination on remedy and bonding. The notice says no petitions for review were filed. The general-exclusion-order sentence still covers certain claims of all five patents, including the '347 patent. The notice does not, in that sentence, list the claim numbers the order covers.

The notice also says the Commission requested public-interest submissions on May 18, 2026, at 91 Fed. Reg. 29982-83 (May 21, 2026), and received statements from the complainants and from non-party Obelisk Tech Systems, Inc. It says that on July 1, 2026, the Commission determined to review the initial determination on indirect infringement and the domestic industry requirement, at 91 Fed. Reg. 41659-60 (July 7, 2026), with opening submissions on July 15, 2026, and replies on July 22 and July 23, 2026. Those earlier notices were not separately reviewed for this page. The September 29 notice is the source for those dates.

Recorded assignments

Assignment Center, reviewed September 29, 2026, shows one recorded assignment of the '347 patent, from the inventors to Seiko Epson Corporation, recorded May 13, 2010, at reel/frame 24382/0161, and one of the '037 patent, from the inventors to Seiko Epson Corporation, recorded April 11, 2022, at reel/frame 59562/0789. It shows no separately recorded assignment of the '508, '150, or '539 patent. Google Patents lists Seiko Epson Corporation, one of the complainants, as the assignee of all five.

Other proceedings on the listings reviewed

The Google Patents litigation index lists Investigation No. 337-TA-1451 for each of the five patents, and also an entry numbered 337-TA-3827. That number is the Commission's docket number for this same complaint: the May 19, 2025 notice of receipt of the complaint is captioned Certain Ink Cartridges and Components Thereof I, DN 3827. The listings do not show an inter partes review, a reexamination, or a district-court case.

What to read next

Read the Commission opinion issued with this determination. The orders are subject to the 60-day Presidential review period under 19 U.S.C. 1337(j), during which covered products may enter under the 100 percent bond.