German Company to Settle Flex Patent Suit

Flex Products Inc. said BASF AG, one of Germany’s largest chemical makers, agreed to settle a year-old patent suit by paying royalties to Flex if it uses two forms of the company’s film pigments. Flex, a unit of Optical Coating Laboratory Inc., accused BASF of violating its patents in marketing an automotive-paint pigment in the U.S. Flex asked in the suit filed in U.S. District Court in Detroit that BASF be barred from importing, making or selling the pigment in the U.S. The suit also sought unspecified damages. Flex Products manufactures thin-film coatings for use in anti-counterfeiting applications, paint pigments and other uses. Santa Rosa-based OCLI is the world’s largest independent maker of optical thin-film coated components, which are use in computer monitors, photocopiers and fax machines.