Term ends Nov 30, 2026 · High confidence
20-year base term ended Oct 15, 2023
Held by Apple Inc.
Filed Oct 15, 2003 as application 10/686,990 · Granted May 25, 2010
Base term plus 1142 days of patent term adjustment (USPTO delay)
Today
2003
2026
Clock starts
Oct 15, 2003
Oct 15, 2003
Term ends
Nov 30, 2026
Nov 30, 2026
Granted
May 25, 2010
May 25, 2010
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
1,142
Days of term adjustment
Read from the USPTO patent term adjustment record, not recalculated here.
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.
3
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 1142 days past its 20-year base term on prosecution delay. All three maintenance fees are recorded paid; no more fees are due. 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 Oct 15, 2003, when this application, 10/686,990, was filed | Oct 15, 2023 | High confidence |
| Continuity chain | Every parent in the chain resolved | no change | High confidence |
| Patent term adjustment | +1142 days, USPTO patent term adjustment record | Nov 30, 2026 | 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 | In force | High confidence |
| Computed term end | The steps above, in order | Nov 30, 2026 | High confidence |
This family
| US 7,725,828 | this patent Nov 2026 | Nov 2026 |
| US 8,209,612 | Term ended May 2024 | May 2024 |
| Application 13/488,423 | Abandoned 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 15, 2003 Reel 14617, frame 147 | Johnson, Gary | Apple Computer, Inc. | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
| Jan 29, 2009 Reel 22178, frame 140 | Apple Computer, Inc. | Apple Inc. | Change of Name |
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.
Free plan: 3 watched companies. Pro: unlimited.
Alerts on its grants, lapses and transfers.
What's changing
Nov 2026
Term ends Nov 30, 2026. No further fees fall due before then
Note
The 1142 days of patent term adjustment (USPTO delay) are read from the USPTO record, not recalculated by us
Citations
38
later US patents cite this one
That is top 25% 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.
In force means the term is running and no lapse is on record. It is not a finding that the patent is valid.