Assignment history

Inventors

The sole named inventor for US Patent 10,080,394 is Shane Michael Johnston. His employer at the time of filing is listed as "Individual" on the patent, suggesting he was self-employed or directly held the patent, rather than being employed by a specific company for this invention.

Original assignee

The original assignee listed on US Patent 10,080,394 is "Individual," referring to the inventor, Shane Michael Johnston.

• Shipped a product embodying the claims: Unclear. Searches for products directly linked to Shane Michael Johnston embodying the claims of this patent did not yield definitive results. While "Halos® Headbands" are mentioned as a protective sports headband, there is no direct evidence linking this product to the inventor of US10080394.
• Primary line of business: Unclear. No specific business or company associated with the patent's subject matter is explicitly stated for the individual assignee.
• Current status: Individual. There is no information to suggest that Shane Michael Johnston, as the individual assignee, has undergone dissolution, acquisition, or bankruptcy related to a business entity for this patent. The patent itself remains active.

Assignment timeline

Upon searching the USPTO Patent Assignment Search (https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/) for patent number 10080394, no assignment records were found. This indicates that no changes in ownership have been recorded with the USPTO since the patent's issuance.

Timeline diagram

Cannot be rendered as there are no recorded assignments for this patent in the USPTO Assignment Center to form an ownership timeline.

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer: Not present. No assignment records exist, so there is no evidence of a transfer to a shell entity.
2. Known asserter in the chain: Not present. The absence of assignment records means no known NPE appears as an assignee.
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain: Not present. With no recorded assignments, there are no correspondent records to analyze for recurrence.
4. Cascading transfers: Not present. No assignment records indicate cascading transfers.
5. Pre-litigation transfer: Not present. There are no recorded assignments to assess for timing relative to litigation. Although the patent is involved in litigation in the Georgia Northern District Court (case 1:26-cv-02211), no preceding assignment is recorded.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale: Not present. No evidence suggests the original individual assignee underwent bankruptcy proceedings leading to a patent sale.
7. Privateering: Unclear. Without assignment records or explicit business disclosures, it is not possible to determine if the patent is being asserted on behalf of an operating company by another entity.
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE): Not present. No records indicate acquisition by a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

Insufficient data.
No assignment records were found for US10080394 in the USPTO Assignment Center. This prevents a comprehensive analysis of ownership changes and related NPE patterns. While litigation is noted (case 1:26-cv-02211 in the Georgia Northern District Court), the absence of assignment records makes it impossible to determine the nature of the asserting entity (whether it remains the individual inventor or an unrecorded transfer to an NPE).

USPTO Assignment Center search for US10080394: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/patents/10080394