Also listed on Sony Electronics Inc., an earlier holder on the record. The recorded assignments below show how it moved.
Term ends Dec 14, 2028 · High confidence
20-year base term ended Jun 13, 2026
Held by Sony Corporation and Sony Electronics Inc.
Filed Jun 13, 2006 as application 11/452,846 · Granted Apr 16, 2013
Base term plus 915 days of patent term adjustment (USPTO delay)
Today
2006
2028
Clock starts
Jun 13, 2006
Jun 13, 2006
Term ends
Dec 14, 2028
Dec 14, 2028
Granted
Apr 16, 2013
Apr 16, 2013
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
915
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 915 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 13, 2006, when this application, 11/452,846, was filed | Jun 13, 2026 | High confidence |
| Continuity chain | Every parent in the chain resolved | no change | High confidence |
| Patent term adjustment | +915 days, USPTO patent term adjustment record | Dec 14, 2028 | 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 | Dec 14, 2028 | High confidence |
This family
| US 8,424,041 | this patent Dec 2028 | Dec 2028 |
| US 8,863,194 | Lapsed on the fee record Oct 2018 | Oct 2018 |
| US 9,100,712 | Term ended no later than Jun 2026 | no later than Jun 2026 |
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 13, 2006 reel/frame not recorded | Candelore, Brant; Pedlow, Lee | Sony Corporation | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
| Jun 13, 2006 reel/frame not recorded | Candelore, Brant; Pedlow, Lee | Sony Electronics Inc. | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
| Jun 13, 2006 Reel 17999, frame 43 | Candelore, Brant; Pedlow, Lee | Sony Corporation; Sony Electronics Inc. | 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 2028
Term ends Dec 14, 2028. No further fees fall due before then
Note
The 915 days of patent term adjustment (USPTO delay) are read from the USPTO record, not recalculated by us
Citations
46
later US patents cite this one
That is top 25% of utility patents granted in 2013 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.