Kwikset is suing Schlage for patent infringement.
An open-and-shut case?
Kwikset Corporation is taking Schlage Lock Company, LLC to court, having filed suit in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware.
Along with patent infringement, Kwikset, which makes the Kwikset SmartKey, contends that Schlage is making false and misleading advertising claims by calling its SecureKey "10 times more secure" than other lock products. Schlage has filed a response denying any wrongdoing.
"Kwikset will be as vigilant about protecting our rights to intellectual property as we are about protecting the public," said Brent Flaharty, vice president of marketing for Kwikset, in a March 2 press release.
John Evans, vice president of marketing and product management for Schlage, defended the SecureKey in a March 4 press release, saying the "product includes neither of the claimed features covered by the two Kwikset patents, and we are confident that the statements used in the sale and advertisements of our products, in their entirety, are correct."
At issue are rekeyable door locks. Kwikset and Schlage each sell a door lock you can rekey for temporary access to guests and contractors and then rekey again when they no longer need access to your home—without having to change the lock. The Kwikset SmartKey hit the market before the Schlage SecureKey.
We covered the SmartKey, which uses a "learn tool" to reset the lock mechanism, a couple of years ago in International Builders' Show Product Preview: Kwikset SmartKey. And this year we reported on the Schlage SecureKey in 2010 International Builders' Show Product Preview: Schlage SecureKey. The SecureKey uses a separate key to rekey the lock.Regardless of the outcome of this case, you have two options that are designed to allow you to lend visitors a key without compromising your security.
—Daniel DiClerico
Essential information: Check out our buyer's guide to door locks, learn more about entry doors, and make your home less susceptible to burglary.
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