PTAB

IPR2026-00068

Voltage LLC v. Shoals Technologies Group LLC

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Petition
petition

1. Case Identification

2. Patent Overview

  • Title: Lead Assembly for Solar Panel Wiring
  • Brief Description: The ’376 patent discloses lead assemblies for connecting solar panel arrays to an inverter. The technology centers on a feeder cable joined to one or more drop lines within a sealed, molded structure, which aims to eliminate the need for a conventional combiner box in solar installations.

3. Grounds for Unpatentability

Ground 1: Claims 1-6, 8-10, and 12-13 are obvious over [Machida](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/case/ptab/IPR2026-00068/doc/1006) in view of [Solon](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/case/ptab/IPR2026-00068/doc/1007) and [Sakatani](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/case/ptab/IPR2026-00068/doc/1015).

  • Prior Art Relied Upon: Machida (Japanese Application # JPH10-135499A), Solon (Application # 2011/0011642), and Sakatani (Japanese Application # JPS52-135081A).
  • Core Argument for this Ground:
    • Prior Art Mapping: Petitioner argued that Machida, a reference not considered during prosecution, teaches the core elements of the challenged claims, including a lead assembly with a feeder cable ("base wire"), a first drop line, a drop line connector, and an injection-molded T-shaped body for wiring solar modules. However, Machida discloses only a single drop line. Petitioner asserted that Solon remedies this deficiency by expressly teaching low-leakage wire harnesses for solar utilities that incorporate multiple drop lines branching from a single trunk wire. To meet the limitation of a wire harness having a "plurality of branches," Petitioner relied on Sakatani, which discloses prefabricated cable units with multiple branch lines suitable for outdoor use.
    • Motivation to Combine: A Person of Ordinary Skill in the Art (POSA) would combine Solon’s dual drop line configuration with Machida’s connector assembly as a simple and predictable modification. The motivation would be to improve Machida’s design by allowing more solar panels to be connected through a single, sealed joint, thereby simplifying the electrical infrastructure as taught by Solon. A POSA would further incorporate Sakatani’s teaching of prefabricated, multi-branch harnesses to leverage a well-known, economical, and durable design for creating the wiring connections to the solar panels.
    • Expectation of Success: Petitioner contended a POSA would have a high expectation of success because all three references are from the analogous field of solar power connectors and prefabricated wiring. They share the common goal of creating safer, more reliable, and less time-consuming wiring installations, making the proposed combination a predictable convergence of known technologies.

Ground 2: Claims 1-6, 8-10, and 12-13 are obvious over Machida in view of [Kim](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/case/ptab/IPR2026-00068/doc/1013) and Sakatani.

  • Prior Art Relied Upon: Machida (Japanese Application # JPH10-135499A), Kim (Korean Patent # 10-1428689), and Sakatani (Japanese Application # JPS52-135081A).
  • Core Argument for this Ground:
    • Prior Art Mapping: This ground presented an alternative to Ground 1, substituting Kim for Solon to teach the motivation for a second drop line. Petitioner argued that Machida again provided the foundational T-shaped connector and single drop line assembly. Kim, which relates to cable connecting apparatus for power from photovoltaic modules, was relied upon to teach the use of two drop lines branching from a central feeder cable within a sealed joint. Kim explicitly discloses connecting cables in X-shape, Y-shape, or T-shape configurations. The reliance on Sakatani to teach a wire harness with a plurality of branches remained the same as in Ground 1.
    • Motivation to Combine: Petitioner asserted that a POSA would combine Kim’s teaching of multi-drop line connectors with Machida’s base assembly for the same reasons as with Solon: to improve functionality and simplify wiring. The motivation would be particularly strong because both Machida and Kim address the need for environmentally sealed and robust connectors in outdoor solar applications. A POSA would see Kim’s disclosure as a direct and advantageous modification to Machida’s T-connector to accommodate additional solar strings.
    • Expectation of Success: Success would be expected because the combination involves applying a known connector configuration (dual drop lines from Kim) to a similar base system (the T-connector from Machida) within the same technical field to achieve a predictable improvement in functionality.

4. Key Claim Construction Positions

  • Petitioner proposed that the Board adopt claim constructions from a Claim Construction Order issued in a parallel proceeding at the International Trade Commission (ITC). Key proposed constructions include:
    • "lead assembly": an assembly for electrically coupling a solar panel array or a plurality of solar panel arrays.
    • "feeder cable": plain and ordinary meaning, which is "a cable that feeds electrical current."
    • "drop line": a "line that electrically couples a solar array to a feeder cable."
    • "opposite direction(s)": plain and ordinary meaning, which does not require precise 180-degree separation.

5. Relief Requested

  • Petitioner requests the institution of an inter partes review and the cancellation of claims 1-6, 8-10, and 12-13 of Patent 12,015,376 as unpatentable under 35 U.S.C. §103.