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Peter Boesen must be hoping he can extract a settlement from Apple that will help repay the parties he damaged with false insurance claims.

Fraudster Sues Apple Over iPhone Keyboard

Boesen is appealing a 51-month sentence with the federal prison system, due to his conviction for defrauding medical insurers. The court also demanded he repay $900,000 as part of his sentence.

InformationWeek said SP Technologies, a patent holding company, has sued Apple on Boesen's behalf. They claim Apple's iPhone violates a patent held by Boesen for the touch keyboard.

Apple chose the virtual touch keyboard approach over the typical physical keyboards used on devices like the Blackberry and Treo for entering information. Their choice provides an aesthetic to the iPhone by maintaining its smooth appearance.

Boesen and SP Technologies want damages plus an injunction against Apple to keep it from offering other products that infringe on the patent. Apple has not yet publicly responded to the suit.