Term ends Dec 3, 2026 · High confidence
20-year base term ends Dec 18, 2026
Filed Jun 12, 2008 as application 12/097,190 · Granted Jun 15, 2010
Base term, 20 years from filing · capped by a resolved terminal disclaimer
Today
2006
2026
Clock starts
Dec 18, 2006
Dec 18, 2006
Term ends
Dec 3, 2026
Dec 3, 2026
Granted
Jun 15, 2010
Jun 15, 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.
Capped
Terminal disclaimer
Resolved from the filed document, referencing US 7,626,471.
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.
2
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. A terminal disclaimer resolved from the filed document caps it earlier. 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 Dec 18, 2006, when application PCT/JP2006/325206, the earliest non-provisional in its chain, was filed (this one was filed Jun 12, 2008) | Dec 18, 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 | Disclaimer resolved from the filed document (refs US 7,626,471) | capped to Dec 3, 2026 | 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 | Dec 3, 2026 | High confidence |
This family
| US 7,737,801 | this patent Dec 2026 | Dec 2026 |
1 of 2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 12, 2008 Reel 21088, frame 759 | Kishimoto, Yasushi | Hitachi Metals, Ltd. | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
| Aug 25, 2026 Reel 75771, frame 821 | Alpha 1 Biologics LLC | Institute for Human Genetics and Biochemistry | 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.
Free plan: 3 watched companies. Pro: unlimited.
Alerts on its grants, lapses and transfers.
What's changing
Dec 2026
Term ends Dec 3, 2026. No further fees fall due before then
Disclaimer cap
This term is capped by a terminal disclaimer resolved from the filed document, referencing US 7,626,471.
Citations
3
later US patents cite this one
That is below 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.
In force means the term is running and no lapse is on record. It is not a finding that the patent is valid.