Term ends Feb 4, 2033 · Medium confidence
20-year base term ends Jan 2, 2033
Why Medium: The disclaimer's references carry disclaimers of their own not yet read (US 9,274,243), so the cap could be lower.
Held by Merlin Technology, Inc.
Filed Jan 26, 2016 as application 15/006,504 · Granted Dec 24, 2019
Base term plus 33 days of patent term adjustment (USPTO delay)
Today
2013
2033
Clock starts
Jan 2, 2013
Jan 2, 2013
Term ends
Feb 4, 2033
Feb 4, 2033
Granted
Dec 24, 2019
Dec 24, 2019
base term
patent term adjustment
fee events
Updated Nov 14, 2026 · includes USPTO assignment & status data published Nov 14, 2026 and grant & fee data published Nov 10, 2026 (weekly) · how we know
33
Days of term adjustment
Read from the USPTO patent term adjustment record, not recalculated here.
No effect
Terminal disclaimer
Resolved from the filed document, referencing US 9,274,243, to Feb 4, 2033. The term already ends on or before that date, so the cap shortened nothing.
1 of 3
Maintenance fees paid
Three maintenance fees fall due, at 3.5, 7.5 and 11.5 years from grant. This counts the ones the record shows paid.
7
Family applications on record here
Applications sharing this one's continuity chain whose file history this site holds. The family may have others.
This patent's term runs 33 days past its 20-year base term on prosecution delay. A terminal disclaimer is resolved from the filed document, and it ends no earlier than this term, so it shortens nothing. 1 of 3 maintenance fees is paid so far. Confidence: Medium. from the record
How we calculated this date
One row per rule, each showing its own input and what it did to the date. A step we could not verify says so instead of resolving itself.
| Step | Input | Date after this step | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base term, 20 years from filing | Clock starts Jan 2, 2013, when application 13/733,097, the earliest non-provisional in its chain, was filed (this one was filed Jan 26, 2016) | Jan 2, 2033 | High confidence |
| Continuity chain | Every parent in the chain resolved | no change | High confidence |
| Patent term adjustment | +33 days, USPTO patent term adjustment record | Feb 4, 2033 | High confidence |
| Terminal disclaimer cap | Disclaimer resolved from the filed document (refs US 9,274,243) | resolves to Feb 4, 2033, no earlier than this term, so no change | Medium confidence |
| Patent term extension | None on file | no change | High confidence |
| Fee events | 1 of 3 maintenance fees paid | In force | High confidence |
| Computed term end | The steps above, in order | Feb 4, 2033 | Medium confidence |
This family
| US 9,274,243 | In force no later than Mar 2034 | no later than Mar 2034 |
| Application PCT/US2013/020359 | PCT application no patent term | no patent term |
| US 10,513,919 | this patent Feb 2033 | Feb 2033 |
| US 11,255,185 | In force Jan 2033 | Jan 2033 |
| US 12,012,849 | In force no later than Jan 2033 | no later than Jan 2033 |
| US 12,553,336 | In force no later than Jan 2042 | no later than Jan 2042 |
| Application 19/536,601 | Pending not computed | not computed |
The applications whose file history this site holds. The family may have others.
Assignments
Assignment documents as recorded at the USPTO, oldest first, with the reel and frame each was recorded at. A recorded assignment is a filed document, not a statement of current ownership, and the absence of a later one is not evidence that the last one still stands.
| Recorded | Assignor | Assignee | Conveyance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 26, 2016 Reel 37584, frame 996 | Chau, Albert W.; Lam, Loc Viet | Merlin Technology, Inc. | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
Sources
Google Patents · The patent document at USPTO · Assignment records at USPTO
USPTO account required: This application in Patent Center · USPTO's maintenance fee lookup
Maintenance fee events come from USPTO's own fee records. Its fee lookup asks for the patent number and the application number.
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Alerts on its grants, lapses and transfers.
What's changing
Feb 2033
Term ends Feb 4, 2033. Maintenance fees still fall due before then
Note
The 33 days of patent term adjustment (USPTO delay) are read from the USPTO record, not recalculated by us
Terminal disclaimer
A terminal disclaimer resolved from the filed document, referencing US 9,274,243, ends no earlier than this term, so it caps nothing.
Citations
6
later US patents cite this one
That is above the median of utility patents granted in 2019 in our data, the only group it is compared against.
How we rank
Every date shows its work: the base term, any term adjustment or extension, any disclaimer cap, and the maintenance fee record, each with a confidence tier. How this record was built
Computed patent terms end on the dates shown. Related patents and pending applications may cover overlapping subject matter.
In force means the term is running and no lapse is on record. It is not a finding that the patent is valid.