Stroke of Genius makes Ford a little sensitive about the past.

A new film called Stoke of Genius tells the tale of Bob Kearns who invented the intermittent wiper and his struggles with Ford. According to the film Mr Kearns approached Ford with the intermittent wiper idea and they stole a prototype from him and put the feature in their vehicles. The film then chronicles his long legal battle with Ford to get credit and paid. So Ford sees things differently and has posted the following press release. 

PRESS RELEASE
The film "Flash of Genius" chronicles the life story of Bob Kearns, who asserted that he invented the intermittent windshield wiper and sued Ford, Chrysler and other automakers for patent infringement. While films like "Flash of Genius" are made for entertainment purposes, the facts are often less dramatic.

Bob Kearns as well as hundreds of engineers from many companies, including Ford, helped develop the intermittent wiper as part of an evolution of existing automotive and electronic components.

While there are inaccuracies in the film, Ford sees no value in re-hashing the history of a legal case that was resolved in court almost 20 years ago, when a jury ruled that Ford did not willfully violate Mr. Kearns' patent.

Today, Ford continues to make engineering and design breakthroughs in areas such as fuel efficiency, safety and smart technology, and is proud of its 100-year legacy of innovation in automotive technology.