Inventor of Intermittent Wipers

[Keny]

Robert Kearns, 77, Inventor of Intermittent Wipers, Dies

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published: February 26, 2005

Robert W. Kearns received patents in 1967 for his wiper design.

 

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ETROIT, Feb. 25 (AP) - Robert W. Kearns, the inventor of intermittent windshield wipers, who won multimillion-dollar judgments against Ford Motor and Chrysler for using his idea, died on Feb. 9 at his home in suburban Baltimore. He was 77.

The cause was cancer, his family said.

Mr. Kearns, a onetime Wayne State University professor, received numerous patents in 1967 for his design for wipers that pause between swipes for use in very light rain or mist. The invention permits the driver to set the interval at which the wiper sweeps the window.

He tried to interest various automakers in his invention but did not reach a licensing deal with any of them.

But carmakers eventually began offering intermittent wipers.

Mr. Kearns sued the Ford Motor Company in 1978 and Chrysler in 1982, accusing them of patent infringement.

In 1990, a jury decided that Ford had infringed on Mr. Kearns's patent, though it concluded that the infringement had not been deliberate. Ford contended that the patent was invalid because the windshield system contained no new concepts.

But Mr. Kearns said a new combination of parts made his invention unique.

That jury failed to agree on how much he should be awarded, and another jury later ordered Ford to pay Mr. Kearns $6.3 million, which a judge cut to $5.2 million.

To settle the case, Ford later agreed to pay $10.2 million and to drop all appeals.

Chrysler was ordered to pay Mr. Kearns $18.7 million and interest. The Supreme Court of the United States rejected Chrysler's bid to overturn the award in 1995.

"I don't think the goal was the magnitude of the money," Mr. Kearns said when the Ford case ended. He said his role "was to defend the patent system."

Later, his lawsuit against General Motors was dismissed, as were his lawsuits against foreign carmakers. Much of the money he was awarded went to legal expenses.

Mr. Kearns, who acted as his own lawyer during parts of the battle, was disappointed because the courts did not bar the companies from continuing to use the wipers. He had hoped not just to collect royalties but make the devices himself.

Judge Avern Cohn of Federal District Court in Michigan, who presided over five of the trials, said Mr. Kearns was frustrated because he wanted to be a major manufacturer.

"He was feisty, determined and he established the fact that he made a contribution to the auto industry that was unique," Judge Cohn said. "His zeal got ahead of his judgment."

A daughter, Maureen Kearns, said her father's home was filled with legal files. After a point, she said, "his life was simply this battle."

Mr. Kearns was born in Gary, Ind., and grew up in suburban Detroit.

He was a member of the Office of Strategic Services, the forerunner of the Central Intelligence Agency, during World War II. After the war, he earned engineering degrees from the University of Detroit and Wayne State University and a doctorate from Case Western Reserve University.

In addition to his daughter Maureen, Mr. Kearns is survived by another daughter; four sons; a brother; and seven grandchildren.