Also listed on Mindframe LLC, an earlier holder on the record. The recorded assignments below show how it moved.
Term ends May 19, 2028 · Medium confidence
20-year base term ends May 19, 2028
Why Medium: A parent in the chain could not be resolved.
Held by Covidien LP
Filed Dec 30, 2011 as application 13/341,186 · Granted Feb 3, 2015
Base term, 20 years from filing
Today
2008
2028
Clock starts
May 19, 2008
May 19, 2008
Term ends
May 19, 2028
May 19, 2028
Granted
Feb 3, 2015
Feb 3, 2015
base term
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.
34
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 is its 20-year base term, with no adjustment for prosecution delay. 2 of 3 maintenance fees are paid so far. 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.
| Step | Input | Date after this step | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base term, 20 years from filing | Clock starts May 19, 2008, when application 12/123,390, the earliest non-provisional in its chain, was filed (this one was filed Dec 30, 2011); a parent in its chain could not be resolved (the next row) | May 19, 2028 | High confidence |
| Continuity chain | A parent in the chain could not be resolved | dated from this application's own claim | Medium confidence |
| Patent term adjustment | None on file | no change | 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 | 2 of 3 maintenance fees paid | In force | High confidence |
| Computed term end | The steps above, in order | May 19, 2028 | Medium confidence |
This family
| US 9,198,687 | In force May 2028 | May 2028 |
| US 8,926,680 | In force Jul 2028 | Jul 2028 |
| US 9,220,522 | In force Feb 2029 | Feb 2029 |
| US 8,545,514 | In force Apr 2030 | Apr 2030 |
| Application 12/469,462 | Abandoned not computed | not computed |
| US 8,088,140 | In force Dec 2028 | Dec 2028 |
| Application 12/651,353 | Abandoned not computed | not computed |
| Application 12/711,100 | Abandoned not computed | not computed |
8 of 34 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 28, 2012 Reel 29048, frame 967 | Ferrera, David A.; Cragg, Andrew; Fulkerson, John | Mindframe, Inc. | Assignment of Assignor's Interest |
| Oct 8, 2012 Reel 29093, frame 835 | Mindframe, Inc. | Mindframe LLC | Change of Name |
| Oct 19, 2012 Reel 29160, frame 235 | Mindframe LLC | Covidien LP | 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 2028
Term ends May 19, 2028.
Citations
285
later US patents cite this one
That is top 1% 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.