Collateral for a security interest recorded Mar 12, 2021 (HSBC Bank USA, National Association).
Term ends Apr 26, 2029 · High confidence
20-year base term ends Feb 16, 2029
Held by Tronox LLC
Filed May 19, 2009 as application 12/468,461 · Granted Apr 3, 2012
Base term plus 69 days of patent term adjustment (USPTO delay)
Today
2009
2029
Clock starts
Feb 16, 2009
Feb 16, 2009
Term ends
Apr 26, 2029
Apr 26, 2029
Granted
Apr 3, 2012
Apr 3, 2012
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
69
Days of term adjustment
Read from the USPTO patent term adjustment record, not recalculated here.
No effect
Terminal disclaimer
Resolved from the filed document, referencing US 7,879,759, to Apr 26, 2029. 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.
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 69 days past its 20-year base term on 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 Feb 16, 2009, when application 12/371,760, the earliest non-provisional in its chain, was filed (this one was filed May 19, 2009) | Feb 16, 2029 | High confidence |
| Continuity chain | Every parent in the chain resolved | no change | High confidence |
| Patent term adjustment | +69 days, USPTO patent term adjustment record | Apr 26, 2029 | High confidence |
| Terminal disclaimer cap | Disclaimer resolved from the filed document (refs US 7,879,759) | resolves to Apr 26, 2029, 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 | Apr 26, 2029 | High confidence |
This family
| US 7,879,759 | In force Aug 2029 | Aug 2029 |
| US 8,148,295 | this patent Apr 2029 | Apr 2029 |
| US 8,465,714 | In force Feb 2029 | Feb 2029 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 4, 2010 Reel 24332, frame 303 | Augustine, Steven M. | Millennium Inorganic Chemicals, Inc. | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
| Aug 9, 2013 Reel 30982, frame 732 | Millennium Inorganic Chemicals, Inc. | Cristal USA Inc. | Change of Name |
| May 10, 2019 Reel 49148, frame 729 | Cristal USA Inc. | Tronox LLC | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
| May 1, 2020 Reel 52554, frame 529 | Tronox LLC | Wilmington Trust, National Association, as Collateral Agent | Security Interest |
| Mar 12, 2021 Reel 55579, frame 619 | Tronox LLC | HSBC Bank USA, National Association, as Collateral Agent | Security Interest |
| Apr 7, 2022 Reel 59629, frame 581 | Wilmington Trust, National Association | Tronox LLC | Release of Security Interest |
| Sep 26, 2025 Reel 72942, frame 255 | Tronox LLC | Wilmington Trust, National Association, as Collateral 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.
Free plan: 3 watched companies. Pro: unlimited.
Alerts on its grants, lapses and transfers.
What's changing
Apr 2029
Term ends Apr 26, 2029. No further fees fall due before then
Note
The 69 days of patent term adjustment (USPTO delay) are read from the USPTO record, not recalculated by us
Terminal disclaimer
A terminal disclaimer resolved from the filed document, referencing US 7,879,759, ends no earlier than this term, so it caps nothing.
Citations
25
later US patents cite this one
That is top 25% of utility patents granted in 2012 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.