Lapsed Apr 8, 2026 on the fee record · Medium confidence
20-year base term ends Mar 28, 2027
Why Medium: A terminal disclaimer is on file (approved) with no resolved reference, so the term may end earlier.
Third maintenance fee unpaid; grace period ended.
Held by Esco Group LLC
Filed Dec 5, 2012 as application 13/705,691 · Granted Apr 8, 2014
Base term, 20 years from filing
Today
Lapsed Apr 8, 2026
2007
2027
Clock starts
Mar 28, 2007
Mar 28, 2007
No longer in force
Apr 8, 2026
Apr 8, 2026
Granted
Apr 8, 2014
Apr 8, 2014
Term would have run to
Mar 28, 2027
Mar 28, 2027
base term
after the term ends
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
None
Term adjustment
No prosecution delay on this record.
Unresolved
Terminal disclaimer
On file, reference document not resolved, so the date above is an upper bound. We do not guess the cap.
2 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.
13
Family applications on record here
Applications sharing this one's continuity chain whose file history this site holds. The family may have others.
Its term would have run to Mar 28, 2027: its 20-year base term, with no adjustment for prosecution delay. A terminal disclaimer is on file with no resolved reference, so no cap is applied and none is guessed. Confidence: Medium. 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 Mar 28, 2007, when application 11/729,502, the earliest non-provisional in its chain, was filed (this one was filed Dec 5, 2012) | Mar 28, 2027 | 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 on file (approved), reference document not resolved | no cap applied, and none guessed | Medium confidence |
| Patent term extension | None on file | no change | High confidence |
| Fee events | 2 of 3 maintenance fees paid | lapsed Apr 8, 2026 | High confidence |
| Computed term end | The steps above, in order | Apr 8, 2026 | Medium confidence |
This family
| US 7,882,649 | In force Sep 2028 | Sep 2028 |
| US 8,122,621 | In force Mar 2027 | Mar 2027 |
| Application 13/369,699 | Abandoned not computed | not computed |
| US 8,689,472 | this patent Apr 2026 | Apr 2026 |
| Application 13/705,562 | Abandoned not computed | not computed |
| US 8,839,535 | Lapsed on the fee record Sep 2026 | Sep 2026 |
| US 9,493,930 | In force Mar 2027 | Mar 2027 |
| US 9,816,254 | Lapsed on the fee record Nov 2025 | Nov 2025 |
8 of 13 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 31, 2013 Reel 29730, frame 860 | Carpenter, Christopher M; Conklin, Donald M; Morris, Ray J; Bearden, James E; Durand, Severn D | Esco Corporation | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
| May 9, 2013 Reel 30388, frame 273 | Radzius, Dziugas | Esco Corporation | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
| Jul 6, 2016 Reel 39267, frame 771 | Esco Corporation | Bank of America, N.A., as Administrative Agent | Notice of Grant of Security Interest in Patents |
| Jul 16, 2018 Reel 46356, frame 64 | Bank Of America, N.a. | Esco Corporation | Release of Security Interest |
| Aug 17, 2018 Reel 46848, frame 493 | Esco Corporation; Esco Group LLC | Esco Group LLC | Merger and Change of Name |
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
Note
A terminal disclaimer is on file and its reference is not resolved. No cap is applied and none is guessed
Open question
A terminal disclaimer is on file (approved) and its reference document is not resolved. A disclaimer would cap the term earlier than Apr 8, 2026. We will not guess the cap.
Citations
23
later US patents cite this one
That is top 25% of utility patents granted in 2014 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.