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Process Cartridge, Electrophotographic Image Forming Apparatus, and Electrophotographic Photosensitive Drum Unit

US 9,836,021 Lapsed on the fee record
OverviewFamilySources & methods

Lapsed Dec 5, 2025 on the fee record · Medium confidence

Why Medium: A parent in the chain could not be resolved.

Second maintenance fee unpaid; grace period ended.

Filed Dec 13, 2016 as application 15/377,183 · Granted Dec 5, 2017
Base term, 20 years from filing
Today
Lapsed Dec 5, 2025
2007 2027
Clock starts
Dec 26, 2007
No longer in force
Dec 5, 2025
Granted
Dec 5, 2017
Term would have run to
Dec 26, 2027
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.
None
Terminal disclaimer
No disclaimer on this record.
1 of 2
Maintenance fees paid
Two maintenance fees can end this term early, the ones due 3.5 and 7.5 years from grant; the third one's grace period runs past the term end. This counts the ones the record shows paid.
28
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 Dec 26, 2027: its 20-year base term, with no adjustment for prosecution delay. 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.
StepInputDate after this stepConfidence
Base term, 20 years from filingClock starts Dec 26, 2007, when application 11/964,518, the earliest non-provisional in its chain, was filed (this one was filed Dec 13, 2016); a parent in its chain could not be resolved (the next row)Dec 26, 2027High confidence
Continuity chainA parent in the chain could not be resolveddated from this application's own claimMedium confidence
Patent term adjustmentNone on fileno changeHigh confidence
Terminal disclaimer capNone on recordno cap appliedHigh confidence
Patent term extensionNone on fileno changeHigh confidence
Fee events1 of 2 maintenance fees paidlapsed Dec 5, 2025High confidence
Computed term endThe steps above, in orderDec 5, 2025Medium confidence

This family

US 8,280,278In force
Nov 2028
Nov 2028
US 8,630,564In force
Dec 2027
Dec 2027
US 9,678,471In force
Dec 2027
Dec 2027
US 8,682,215In force
Dec 2027
Dec 2027
US 10,551,793In force
Dec 2027
Dec 2027
US 9,864,333Lapsed on the fee record
Jan 2026
Jan 2026
US 9,841,729Lapsed on the fee record
Dec 2025
Dec 2025
US 9,836,021this patent
Dec 2025
Dec 2025
8 of 28 applications in this family shown, earliest filings first. The applications whose file history this site holds. The family may have others.

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.

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