Hughes Collects From U.S. in Patent Case

Hughes Electronics Corp. said it has collected $154 million in damages from the U.S. government, ending a 26-year legal battle over patented technology used to help orient communications satellites. The payment resolves claims by Hughes that from 1963 to 1982 the government used the company’s proprietary technology without permission. El Segundo-based Hughes said in a news release that it received payment Tuesday, less than a month after the Supreme Court rejected a last-ditch appeal by the government. The dispute centered on a 1959 invention by Hughes scientist Donald Williams to ensure that the antennas on communications satellites would point toward the Earth, allowing ground stations to track them throughout their orbit. In its lawsuit, Hughes claimed other companies used its invention in more than 80 satellites made for the U.S. military and National Aeronautics and Space Administration. In its Supreme Court appeal, the government argued unsuccessfully that its satellites used an orientation system that was different from the Hughes patent in crucial respects.