Collateral for a security interest recorded Jul 29, 2025 (Wells Fargo Bank, National Association).
Term ends Dec 6, 2026 · High confidence
20-year base term ends Dec 6, 2026
Held by Microprobe, Inc.
Filed Jan 8, 2010 as application 12/684,272 · Granted May 17, 2011
Base term, 20 years from filing
Today
2006
2026
Clock starts
Dec 6, 2006
Dec 6, 2006
Term ends
Dec 6, 2026
Dec 6, 2026
Granted
May 17, 2011
May 17, 2011
base term
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.
No effect
Terminal disclaimer
Resolved from the filed document, referencing US 7,649,367, to Dec 6, 2026. The term already ends on or before that date, so the cap shortened nothing.
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. A terminal disclaimer is resolved from the filed document, and it ends no earlier than this term, so it shortens nothing. 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 6, 2006, when application 11/635,809, the earliest non-provisional in its chain, was filed (this one was filed Jan 8, 2010) | Dec 6, 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 7,649,367) | resolves to Dec 6, 2026, no earlier than this term, so no change | 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 6, 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 | Term ended 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 18, 2010 Reel 24559, frame 709 | Kister, January | Microprobe, Inc. | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
| Jul 12, 2016 Reel 39184, frame 280 | FormFactor, Inc.; Astria Semiconductor Holdings, Inc.; Cascade Microtech, Inc.; Micro-Probe Incorporated | HSBC Bank USA, National Association | Security Interest in United States Patents and Trademarks |
| Jul 29, 2025 Reel 72263, frame 272 | FormFactor, Inc. | Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as Administrative Agent | Security Interest |
| Aug 7, 2025 Reel 72853, frame 1 | HSBC Bank USA, National Association | FormFactor, Inc. | Release of 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.
What's changing
Dec 2026
Term ends Dec 6, 2026. No further fees fall due before then
Terminal disclaimer
A terminal disclaimer resolved from the filed document, referencing US 7,649,367, ends no earlier than this term, so it caps nothing.
Citations
21
later US patents cite this one
That is above the median of utility patents granted in 2011 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.