Term ends no later than Apr 24, 2028 · Medium confidence
20-year base term ended Mar 30, 2026
In force on USPTO's status record and by its fee record. A terminal disclaimer on file may shorten this term, possibly to a date already past; its reference document is unresolved, so the date above is an upper bound and no earlier date is guessed.
Mar 30, 2006
Apr 24, 2028
Jun 30, 2015
This patent's term runs 756 days past its 20-year base term on prosecution delay. A terminal disclaimer is on file with no resolved reference, so no cap is applied and none is guessed. 2 of 3 maintenance fees are paid so far. Confidence: Medium. from the record
How we calculated this date
| Step | Input | Date after this step | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base term, 20 years from filing | Clock starts Mar 30, 2006, when application 11/278,080, the earliest non-provisional in its chain, was filed (this one was filed May 22, 2009) | Mar 30, 2026 | High confidence |
| Continuity chain | Every parent in the chain resolved | no change | High confidence |
| Patent term adjustment | +756 days, USPTO patent term adjustment record | Apr 24, 2028 | 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 | In force | High confidence |
| Computed term end | The steps above, in order | no later than Apr 24, 2028 | Medium confidence |
This family
| US 7,538,760 | In force no later than Dec 2026 | no later than Dec 2026 |
| US 7,511,702 | In force no later than Dec 2026 | no later than Dec 2026 |
| US 9,069,404 | this patent no later than Apr 2028 | no later than Apr 2028 |
| Application 14/746,699 | Abandoned not computed | not computed |
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.
What's changing
A terminal disclaimer is on file (approved) and its reference document is not resolved. A disclaimer would cap the term earlier than Apr 24, 2028. We will not guess the cap.