Term ends Sep 17, 2027 · High confidence
20-year base term ended Jun 2, 2026
Held by World Wide Packets, Inc.
Filed Dec 19, 2006 as application 11/612,914 · Granted Sep 13, 2011
Base term plus 472 days of patent term adjustment (USPTO delay)
Today
2006
2027
Clock starts
Jun 2, 2006
Jun 2, 2006
Term ends
Sep 17, 2027
Sep 17, 2027
Granted
Sep 13, 2011
Sep 13, 2011
base term
patent term adjustment
fee events
Updated Nov 15, 2026 · includes USPTO assignment & status data published Nov 15, 2026 and grant & fee data published Nov 10, 2026 (weekly) · how we know
472
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 472 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 Jun 2, 2006, when application 11/421,766, the earliest non-provisional in its chain, was filed (this one was filed Dec 19, 2006) | Jun 2, 2026 | High confidence |
| Continuity chain | Every parent in the chain resolved | no change | High confidence |
| Patent term adjustment | +472 days, USPTO patent term adjustment record | Sep 17, 2027 | 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 | Sep 17, 2027 | High confidence |
This family
| US 7,653,056 | In force Jan 2028 | Jan 2028 |
| US 8,018,938 | this patent Sep 2027 | Sep 2027 |
| US 7,961,728 | Lapsed on the fee record Jun 2023 | Jun 2023 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 19, 2006 Reel 18655, frame 975 | Fromm, Kelly Donald; Bly, Keith Michael | World Wide Packets, Inc. | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
| Jul 15, 2014 Reel 33329, frame 417 | Ciena Corporation | Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch | Security Interest |
| Jul 16, 2014 Reel 33347, frame 260 | Ciena Corporation | Bank of America, N.A., as Administrative Agent | Patent Security Agreement |
| Oct 30, 2019 Reel 50938, frame 389 | Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch | Ciena Corporation | Release of Security Interest |
| Nov 8, 2019 Reel 50969, frame 1 | Ciena Corporation | Bank of America, N.A., as Collateral Agent | Patent Security Agreement |
| Nov 20, 2023 Reel 65630, frame 232 | Bank Of America, N.a. | Ciena Corporation | 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.
Free plan: 3 watched companies. Pro: unlimited.
Alerts on its grants, lapses and transfers.
What's changing
Sep 2027
Term ends Sep 17, 2027. No further fees fall due before then
Note
The 472 days of patent term adjustment (USPTO delay) are read from the USPTO record, not recalculated by us
Citations
140
later US patents cite this one
That is top 5% 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.