Assignment history

Inventors

• Edwin S. Olson (Midwest Energy Emissions Corp)
• Michael J. Holmes (Midwest Energy Emissions Corp)
• John H. Pavlish (Midwest Energy Emissions Corp)

It's unclear from the provided information if all inventors departed the original assignee within 12 months of filing.

Original assignee

Midwest Energy Emissions Corp.
Midwest Energy Emissions Corp. (MEEC) develops and delivers mercury emissions capture technologies and services. They appear to ship products embodying the claims, specifically sorbents and related systems for mercury removal from flue gas streams. Their current status is operating, as indicated by their continued presence in assignment records and litigation.

Assignment timeline

• 2019-03-20 (executed) / recorded 2019-03-20 — Reel 049115/0132
  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: OLSON, EDWIN S., PAVLISH, JOHN H., HOLMES, MICHAEL J.
  • Assignee: ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH CENTER FOUNDATION
  • Correspondent: KLARQUIST SPARKMAN, LLP (121 SW SALMON STREET, SUITE 1600, PORTLAND, OREGON, 97204)
  • Context: Internal transfer from inventors to a foundation
• 2019-05-08 (executed) / recorded 2019-05-08 — Reel 049115/0136
  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH CENTER FOUNDATION
  • Assignee: MIDWEST ENERGY EMISSIONS CORP.
  • Correspondent: KLARQUIST SPARKMAN, LLP (121 SW SALMON STREET, SUITE 1600, PORTLAND, OREGON, 97204). This correspondent recurs in this chain.
  • Context: Internal transfer from foundation back to operating company
• 2019-05-08 (executed) / recorded 2019-05-08 — Reel 049115/0132
  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: OLSON, EDWIN S., PAVLISH, JOHN H., HOLMES, MICHAEL J.
  • Assignee: ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH CENTER FOUNDATION
  • Correspondent: KLARQUIST SPARKMAN, LLP (121 SW SALMON STREET, SUITE 1600, PORTLAND, OREGON, 97204). This correspondent recurs in this chain.
  • Context: Duplicate record of previous assignment, likely for correction or clarification.
• 2020-03-11 (executed) / recorded 2020-03-11 — Reel 049115/0132
  • Conveyance: Corrective Assignment
  • Assignor: ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH CENTER FOUNDATION
  • Assignee: MIDWEST ENERGY EMISSIONS CORP.
  • Correspondent: KLARQUIST SPARKMAN, LLP (121 SW SALMON STREET, SUITE 1600, PORTLAND, OREGON, 97204). This correspondent recurs in this chain.
  • Context: Corrective assignment for previously recorded assignment to correct assignee address.
• 2024-11-07 (executed) / recorded 2024-11-07 — Reel 061803/0200
  • Conveyance: Change of Name
  • Assignor: MIDWEST ENERGY EMISSIONS CORP.
  • Assignee: BIRCHTECH CORP.
  • Correspondent: BUCHANAN INGERSOLL & ROONEY PC (One Oxford Centre, 301 Grant Street, 20th Floor, Pittsburgh, PA, 15219).
  • Context: Change of name from Midwest Energy Emissions Corp. to Birchtech Corp.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 10343114
    2018 : Filed by Midwest Energy
    2019 : Inventors to EERC Foundation
         : EERC Fndn to Midwest Energy
         : Inventors to EERC Foundation (dup)
    2020 : EERC Fndn to Midwest Energy (correction)
    2024 : Midwest Energy to Birchtech Corp (name change)

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Not present. The transfers involve Midwest Energy Emissions Corp, which is an operating company, and the Energy and Environmental Research Center Foundation, which appears to be a research-focused entity. The final transfer is a change of name for the operating company.
2. Known asserter in the chain — Not present. None of the named assignees (Midwest Energy Emissions Corp, Energy and Environmental Research Center Foundation, Birchtech Corp) are identified as known NPEs from public lists.
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Present. KLARQUIST SPARKMAN, LLP appears as the correspondent for multiple assignments from 2019 to 2020 (Reel 049115/0132, 049115/0136).
4. Cascading transfers — Not present. The initial transfers in 2019 are close in time, but appear to be internal reorganizations/corrections rather than a series of transfers through different shell entities. The subsequent change of name is much later.
5. Pre-litigation transfer — Unclear. While Google Patents indicates litigation, the specific dates of the first infringement suit are not provided in this context, so a definitive call cannot be made.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. There is no indication of bankruptcy proceedings for Midwest Energy Emissions Corp or Birchtech Corp.
7. Privateering — Unclear. There is no information in the provided data to suggest privateering activity.
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The chain does not terminate at any known defensive aggregators.

Verdict

Operating-company assertion

The assignment chain primarily shows transfers between the inventors, a related research foundation, and the operating company, Midwest Energy Emissions Corp. (now Birchtech Corp.). The presence of a recurring correspondent (KLARQUIST SPARKMAN, LLP) for internal transfers is consistent with an operating company managing its patent portfolio, not necessarily indicative of NPE behavior. The company appears to be an operating entity with a product embodying the claims, suggesting direct assertion rather than shell-entity litigation.

For verification, see USPTO Assignment Center: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/