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Litigation
9 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2011
Loss Contingencies [Line Items]  
Contingencies Disclosure [Text Block]
Litigation


The Company was a defendant in a patent infringement suit commenced by Lectrolarm Custom Systems, Inc. ("Lectrolarm") in May 2003 in the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee.  The alleged infringement by the Company related to its dome camera and system controller product lines, among other products that collectively represent significant sales to the Company.  Among other things, the suit sought past damages, enhanced damages and attorney’s fees. In January 2006, the Company received the plaintiff’s claim for past damages through December 31, 2005 that approximated $11.7 million plus pre-judgment interest.  Such damages claim was based upon $233 million of alleged infringing product sales for the period at a royalty rate of 5%.


On July 13, 2011, the Company entered into a settlement and release agreement with Lectrolarm to settle the patent infringement suit. Under the settlement, the Company made a one-time payment of $5 million to Lectrolarm in exchange for the release of all current and future claims against the Company and the dismissal of Lectrolarm's suit pending in the U.S. District Court. Such settlement amount was recognized as patent litigation settlement expense in the accompanying financial statements along with $125,000 and $375,000 of associated legal expense for the three and nine month periods ended June 30, 2011, respectively. Although the Company and its outside patent counsel believed that the suit was without merit and had vigorously defended itself for over eight years, it decided to settle the matter to end years of management distraction and financial uncertainty since the suit was brought in 2003.


In the normal course of business, the Company is a party to certain other claims and litigation.  Management believes that the settlement of such claims and litigation, considered in the aggregate, will not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position and results of operation