Collateral for a security interest recorded Jul 29, 2025 (Wells Fargo Bank, National Association).
Term ended Sep 14, 2026 · High confidence
20-year base term ended Sep 14, 2026
Held by Microprobe, Inc.
Filed Sep 14, 2006 as application 11/521,944 · Granted Feb 9, 2010
Base term, 20 years from filing
Today
Term ended Sep 14, 2026
2006
2026
Clock starts
Sep 14, 2006
Sep 14, 2006
Term ended
Sep 14, 2026
Sep 14, 2026
Granted
Feb 9, 2010
Feb 9, 2010
base term
after the term ends
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
None
Term adjustment
No prosecution delay on this record.
None
Terminal disclaimer
No disclaimer on this record.
3 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.
33
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 is its 20-year base term, with no adjustment for prosecution delay. All three maintenance fees were paid, so no fee lapse ended it. Confidence: High. 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 Sep 14, 2006, when this application, 11/521,944, was filed | Sep 14, 2026 | High confidence |
| Continuity chain | Every parent in the chain resolved | no change | High confidence |
| Patent term adjustment | None on file | no change | High confidence |
| Terminal disclaimer cap | None on record | no cap applied | High confidence |
| Patent term extension | None on file | no change | High confidence |
| Fee events | 3 of 3 maintenance fees paid | term ended | High confidence |
| Computed term end | The steps above, in order | Sep 14, 2026 | High confidence |
This family
| US 7,148,709 | Term ended Jul 2024 | Jul 2024 |
| US 7,091,729 | Lapsed on the fee record Aug 2018 | Aug 2018 |
| US 7,312,617 | Surrendered on reissue Aug 2013 | Aug 2013 |
| US 7,733,101 | Term ended Dec 2024 | Dec 2024 |
| US 7,759,949 | Term ended Jan 2025 | Jan 2025 |
| US 7,659,739 | this patent Sep 2026 | Sep 2026 |
| US 7,786,740 | In force Feb 2027 | Feb 2027 |
| US 7,649,367 | In force Dec 2027 | Dec 2027 |
8 of 33 applications in this family shown, earliest filings first. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 14, 2006 Reel 18312, frame 111 | Kister, January | Microprobe, Inc. | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
| Jul 29, 2025 Reel 72263, frame 272 | FormFactor, Inc. | Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as Administrative Agent | Security 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.
Citations
23
later US patents cite this one
That is above the median of utility patents granted in 2010 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.