Los Angeles – September 28, 2026 -- A Board of Appeal at the European Patent Office has rejected a competitor's challenge to Carbon's European Patent No. 3158400, upholding the broadest claim covering its dual-cure 3D printing technology.
EPO appeals board affirms earlier ruling maintaining patent claim 1
The decision confirms an earlier EPO Opposition Division ruling that kept claim 1 intact and additionally restores dependent claims that had been stripped during the original opposition proceeding. The patent covers Carbon's dual-cure chemistry, which pairs light-based 3D printing with a secondary thermal curing step to produce parts with engineering-grade strength, elasticity, durability and temperature resistance.
Ruling protects technology used across automotive, dental, medical and consumer sectors
Carbon's dual-cure process, marketed as Digital Light Synthesis, holds worldwide patent protection and is deployed by manufacturers producing end-use production parts in those four sectors. Philip DeSimone, CEO of Carbon, said the ruling confirms the breadth of innovation underpinning the company's platform, enabling production of high-performance end-use products that were previously difficult to manufacture with alternative 3D printing methods.
Carbon deployed a multi-firm legal team to defend the patent
Carbon was represented in the EPO proceedings by Mairi Rudkin and Donald McNab of Marks & Clerk. The company's global patent prosecution work is handled by Myers Bigel, while Kathi Vidal and Dustin Edwards of Winston Taylor manage its patent litigation matters.