The Patent Finder
US

Packaging for fragile articles within container

US RE37,253 Term ended
OverviewSources & methods

Term ended May 12, 2018 · From the USPTO record

Named at grant Plastofilm Industries, Inc. · find this owner
Filed May 12, 1998 as application 09/076,688 · Granted Jul 3, 2001
Base term, 20 years from filing
Today
20 years from filing
Term ended May 12, 2018
1998 2026
Clock starts
May 12, 1998
Term ended
May 12, 2018
Granted
Jul 3, 2001
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.
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.

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 filingClock starts May 12, 1998, when this application, 09/076,688, was filedMay 12, 2018High confidence
Continuity chainEvery parent in the chain resolvedno changeHigh confidence
Patent term adjustmentNone on fileno changeHigh confidence
Terminal disclaimer capNone on recordno cap appliedHigh confidence
Patent term extensionNone on fileno changeHigh confidence
Fee eventsNo fee event states this; the fee state is read from the payments the fee record holdsterm endedMedium confidence
Computed term endThe steps above, in orderMay 12, 2018From the USPTO record

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.

Not on this page: the patent's family, its recorded assignments and its citation count. USPTO's assignment records, linked above, list every recorded assignment.

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.

The Patent Finder CompaniesExpirationsCalculatorWatchlistPricing MethodologyCorrectionsLegalPrivacysupport@thepatentfinder.com Updated Nov 14, 2026 · includes USPTO assignment & status data published Nov 14, 2026 and grant & fee data published Nov 10, 2026 (weekly) Part of 137 Finder · © 2026 137 Finder LLC · Sources cited