Toyota finally seems to be out of options now that the U.S. Supreme Court has allowed a lower court's ruling to stand which will award Paice LLC roughly $4.3 million in an hybrid technology lawsuit. That amount works out to $25 for every vehicle that Toyota has sold which uses the Hybrid Synergy Drive. According to the lawsuit, Toyota made use of a microprocessor which accepts torque information from the electric motor and internal combustion engine. Fortunately for Toyota, though, the ruling does not preclude the Japanese auto-giant from continuing production and sales of their super-popular hybrid vehicles, which would, of course, include the Prius. There were three patents in question, though only one of Paice's patents was ruled to be infringed upon. For the record, there are two other possible hurdles for Toyota and their hybrid technology, one from Solomon Technologies and the other from a seventy-five year old engineer in Seattle named Conrad Gardner.

[Source: The Detroit News]

Click above for a high-resolution gallery of the 2007 Toyota Prius Touring.

All the way back in September of 2005, Solomon Technologies sued Toyota for allegedly infringing on a patent related to hybrid powertrains. Shortly thereafter, Solomon attempted to get the importation of the Prius and Highlander hybrid vehicles to the U.S. halted. The International Trade Commission ruled in Toyota's favor, leading to an appeal by Solomon. Their first lawsuit has been stayed awaiting the resolution of the ITC case. The latest page of this saga has Solomon completing their arguments to a three-judge panel in Washington appeals court. Of course, we have no idea how all of this will pan out, but we don't imagine that it's anywhere near over if the past is any indication.

Toyota has made it clear that they aren't interested in building anything like the range-extended EV system used in the Chevy Volt. Instead they are continuing to refine the design of their existing hybrid synergy drive system. Toyota Executive Vice President Kazuo Okamoto spoke to reporters in Tokyo for the big Motor Show their and said the next-generation Prius will have a hybrid system that is half the size and cost of the current version. Although no time-line was given for when it be available, Okamoto did confirm it would use an upgraded nickel metal hydride battery rather than lithium ion.

Okamoto also acknowledged that diesels offer superior efficiency to hybrids in highway cruising conditions while the gas-electric systems offer an advantage in urban driving. He did say that future hybrids would close this gap. While Nissan and Honda are both working on new diesel engines that they will promote in the Japanese market, Toyota has no plans to follow suit.

[Source: Reuters]