Term ends Nov 7, 2028 · High confidence
20-year base term ended Jul 5, 2026
Held by RTX Corporation
Filed Jul 5, 2006 as application 11/481,112 · Granted Apr 27, 2010
Base term plus 856 days of patent term adjustment (USPTO delay)
Today
2006
2028
Clock starts
Jul 5, 2006
Jul 5, 2006
Term ends
Nov 7, 2028
Nov 7, 2028
Granted
Apr 27, 2010
Apr 27, 2010
base term
patent term adjustment
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
856
Days of term adjustment
Read from the USPTO patent term adjustment record, not recalculated here.
None
Terminal disclaimer
No disclaimer on this record.
3 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.
27
Family applications on record here
Applications sharing this one's continuity chain whose file history this site holds. The family may have others.
This patent's term runs 856 days past its 20-year base term on prosecution delay. All three maintenance fees are recorded paid; no more fees are due. 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 Jul 5, 2006, when this application, 11/481,112, was filed | Jul 5, 2026 | High confidence |
| Continuity chain | Every parent in the chain resolved | no change | High confidence |
| Patent term adjustment | +856 days, USPTO patent term adjustment record | Nov 7, 2028 | High confidence |
| Terminal disclaimer cap | None on record | no cap applied | High confidence |
| Patent term extension | None on file | no change | High confidence |
| Fee events | 3 of 3 maintenance fees paid | In force | High confidence |
| Computed term end | The steps above, in order | Nov 7, 2028 | High confidence |
This family
| US 7,704,178 | this patent Nov 2028 | Nov 2028 |
| US 8,585,538 | In force Mar 2029 | Mar 2029 |
| US 7,926,260 | Term ended Jul 2026 | Jul 2026 |
| US 8,276,275 | In force Jun 2027 | Jun 2027 |
| US 7,883,439 | Term ended Jul 2026 | Jul 2026 |
| US 8,640,336 | Term ended Jul 2026 | Jul 2026 |
| US 8,585,539 | Term ended Sep 2026 | Sep 2026 |
| US 8,667,688 | Term ended Jul 2026 | Jul 2026 |
8 of 27 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 5, 2006 Reel 18080, frame 993 | Sheridan, William G.; McCune, Michael E. | United Technologies Corporation | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
| Sep 4, 2020 Reel 54062, frame 1 | United Technologies Corporation | Raytheon Technologies Corporation | Change of Name |
| Mar 4, 2021 Reel 55659, frame 1 | United Technologies Corporation | Raytheon Technologies Corporation | Corrective Assignment to Correct the and Remove Patent Application Number 11886281 and Add Patent Application Number 14846874. to Correct the Receiving Party Address Previously Recorded at Reel: 054062 Frame: 0001. Assignor(S) Hereby Confirms the Change of Address. |
| Jul 27, 2023 Reel 64714, frame 1 | Raytheon Technologies Corporation | RTX Corporation | 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
Nov 2028
Term ends Nov 7, 2028. No further fees fall due before then
Note
The 856 days of patent term adjustment (USPTO delay) are read from the USPTO record, not recalculated by us
Citations
249
later US patents cite this one
That is top 5% of utility patents granted in 2010 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.