Zircon Files Patent Infringement Lawsuit Against The Stanley Works

CAMPBELL, Calif., January 7, 2009 — Zircon Corporation, the company that introduced the world’s first electronic stud finder almost 30 years ago and established the electronic hand-held tool category, has filed suit against The Stanley Works (NYSE: SWK) for patent infringement.

The complaint is related to U.S. Patent No. 7,116,091, which covers Zircon’s CenterVision® technology that detects both the edges and the center of a stud with just one pass. Until introduction of Zircon’s ground-breaking technology, all stud finders located only stud edges and users had to determine the center for themselves. Definitively identifying the center of a stud is critical since that is the most secure place to attach anything.

“Zircon has always taken great care to respect the proprietary rights of others and expects its competitors to do the same,” stated Zircon President John Stauss. “We have also vigorously defended our intellectual property in the field of stud finders for over 25 years.”

Consistent with Zircon’s code of conduct, the company filed suit on January 7, 2009, in the United States District Court, Northern District of California, San Jose, California against The Stanley Works for patent infringement, seeking preliminary and permanent injunctions and damages.

About Zircon Corporation
Silicon Valley-based Zircon, in business for more than 30 years, remains a privately-owned enterprise. Zircon is dedicated to delivering innovative, easy-to-use technology to the world’s toolboxes. Since 1975, the company has used patented technology to design, develop, manufacture, and market one-of-a-kind hand tools that perform critical, everyday jobs, saving users time and money. Zircon’s products include the StudSensor™ family, the original and best-selling line of stud and joist finders and the OneStep® line of scanners with patented CenterVision® technology, as well as measuring and leveling tools for almost every job. For more information about Zircon’s family of products, call 1-800-245-9265 or visit the web site at www.zircon.com.

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Note: CENTERVISION, DEEPSCAN, DIMENSION PRO, EXTREME PRECISION, iLINE, iSENSOR, LASERVISION, METALLISCANNER, MULTISCANNER,ONESTEP, RADAR VISION, REPEATER, SPOTLITE, TRISCANNER, TRUCAL, ULTRALEVEL 6, VIDEOLEVEL, VIDEOSCANNER, WIREWARNING and ZIRCON are registered trademarks of Zircon Corporation. AUTOCAL, DIMENSIONATOR, EASYMARK, HYPERTAPE, LEAK ALERT, MAKE NO MISTAKE, PLUMB PYRAMID, QUBE, STUDSENSOR, STUDVISON and WINDOW-IN-THE-WALL are trademarks of Zircon Corporation. (050407). All other trademarks are the properties of their respective owners.

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