Vivitar, 2 Other Camera Firms Settle Patent Suits

Vivitar Corp. in Chatsworth and two other camera makers have agreed to pay a total of $11.4 million to settle patent-infringement lawsuits filed against them by Honeywell Inc., Honeywell said Monday.

The out-of-court settlements were negotiated separately with Vivitar, Ricoh and Chinon, but Minneapolis-based Honeywell declined to disclose the amounts paid by each company.

Honeywell filed the suits early this year in federal court in Newark, N.J., alleging that a total of 15 camera companies infringed on its patented technology for automatic-focus cameras. Eleven of the companies previously had settled, paying a combined $303.1 million to Honeywell.

The only defendant left is Fuji Photo Film, Honeywell said.

Officials of Vivitar, which makes a variety of cameras and accessories, were not immediately available for comment.