Also listed on Hitachi Cable Fine-Tech, Ltd., an earlier holder on the record. The recorded assignments below show how it moved.

Term ends May 3, 2031 · High confidence

Computed 20-year base term

Held by Hitachi Metals, Ltd.

Filed Dec 11, 2012 as application 13/711,021 · Granted Jan 6, 2015

Base term, 20 years from filing · capped by a resolved terminal disclaimer

Today

20 years from filing

Term ends May 3, 2031

2012 2032

Clock starts
Dec 11, 2012

Term ends
May 3, 2031

Granted
Jan 6, 2015

base term after the term ends 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.

Capped

Terminal disclaimer

Resolved from the filed document, referencing US 8,338,709, US 8,859,904.

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.

This patent's term is its 20-year base term, with no adjustment for prosecution delay. A terminal disclaimer resolved from the filed document caps it earlier. 2 of 3 maintenance fees are paid so far. 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 11, 2012, when this application, 13/711,021, was filed	Dec 11, 2032	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 8,338,709, US 8,859,904)	capped to May 3, 2031	High confidence
Patent term extension	None on file	no change	High confidence
Fee events	2 of 3 maintenance fees paid	In force	High confidence
Computed term end	The steps above, in order	May 3, 2031	High confidence

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 11, 2012 Reel 29446, frame 933	Konya, Masamitsu; Akutsu, Nobuhito; Kobayashi, Hidenori	Hitachi Cable Fine-Tech, Ltd.	Assignment of Assignor's Interest
Feb 4, 2014 Reel 32140, frame 326	Hitachi Cable Fine-Tech, Ltd.	Hitachi Metals, Ltd.	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

May 2031

Term ends May 3, 2031.

Disclaimer cap

This term is capped by a terminal disclaimer resolved from the filed document, referencing US 8,338,709, US 8,859,904.

Citations

later US patents cite this one

That is below the median of utility patents granted in 2015 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.

Flexible Flat Cable