Assignment history

Inventors

• Yoshirou Satou (Employer at time of filing: NEC Corp)

Original assignee

The original assignee on the issued patent US10404366 was NEC Corp. NEC Corp is a multinational information technology and electronics corporation, primarily engaged in providing IT services and products, including optical communication systems. Based on the patent's content, NEC Corp likely shipped products embodying the claims, as the patent relates to a core component of optical transmission systems. NEC Corp is currently operating.

Assignment timeline

• 2024-03-13 (executed) / recorded 2024-03-21 — Reel 066867/0886

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: NEC CORPORATION
  • Assignee: NEC Asia Pacific Pte Ltd.
  • Correspondent: Not available from provided text.
  • Context: Internal corporate restructuring or transfer within the NEC group.

• 2024-09-30 (executed) / recorded 2024-10-03 — Reel 068783/0632

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: NEC Asia Pacific Pte Ltd.
  • Assignee: IP WAVE PTE. LTD.
  • Correspondent: Not available from provided text.
  • Context: Transfer of patent ownership to an external entity.

• 2025-02-17 (executed) / recorded 2025-03-20 — Reel 070575/0077

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: IP WAVE PTE. LTD.
  • Assignee: PLS XLIV LLC
  • Correspondent: Not available from provided text.
  • Context: Further transfer of patent ownership to a new entity.

• 2025-02-17 (executed) / recorded 2025-11-13 — Reel 073349/0966

  • Conveyance: Corrective Assignment
  • Assignor: IP WAVE PTE. LTD.
  • Assignee: PLS XLIV LLC
  • Correspondent: Not available from provided text.
  • Context: Correction of application and patent numbers for a previous assignment, confirming the transfer to PLS XLIV LLC.

• 2025-04-29 (executed) / recorded 2025-10-01 — Reel 072987/0619

  • Conveyance: Change of Name
  • Assignor: PLS XLIV LLC
  • Assignee: RADIANT PATENTS LLC
  • Correspondent: Not available from provided text.
  • Context: The owning entity, PLS XLIV LLC, changed its legal name to RADIANT PATENTS LLC.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 10404366
    2018 : Filed by NEC Corp
    2019 : Issued to NEC Corp
    2024 : Assigned to NEC Asia Pacific Pte Ltd
         : Assigned to IP WAVE PTE LTD
    2025 : Assigned to PLS XLIV LLC
         : PLS XLIV LLC changes name to Radiant Patents LLC
         : Corrective assignment to PLS XLIV LLC

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Present.

   • 2024-10-03 (Reel 068783/0632): Transfer from NEC Asia Pacific Pte Ltd. to IP WAVE PTE. LTD. The "PTE. LTD." suffix is often used by shell entities.
   • 2025-03-20 (Reel 070575/0077): Transfer from IP WAVE PTE. LTD. to PLS XLIV LLC. The "LLC" suffix, especially with a numeric/roman numeral designation, is common for shell entities.
   • 2025-10-01 (Reel 072987/0619): Name change from PLS XLIV LLC to RADIANT PATENTS LLC. The "Patents LLC" suffix strongly indicates a licensing-only entity.

2. Known asserter in the chain — Present. The current assignee, Radiant Patents LLC, is explicitly named as the plaintiff in the litigation summary (Case Number: 2:26-cv-00074, Filing Date: February 14, 2026). Radiant Patents LLC is a known NPE.

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Unclear. Correspondent information is not provided in the patent text. Therefore, it's not possible to determine if the same correspondent recurs.

4. Cascading transfers — Present.

   • 2024-09-30 (executed) to IP WAVE PTE. LTD.
   • 2025-02-17 (executed) to PLS XLIV LLC (confirmed by 2025-11-13 corrective assignment)
   • This shows a rapid sequence of transfers (within ~5 months) from NEC Asia Pacific to IP WAVE and then to PLS XLIV LLC, followed by a name change to Radiant Patents LLC. This rapid succession between newly formed entities is a strong indicator.

5. Pre-litigation transfer — Present.

   • The patent was assigned to PLS XLIV LLC (which then became Radiant Patents LLC) with an effective date of 2025-02-17 (confirmed 2025-11-13) and the name change to Radiant Patents LLC was effective 2025-04-29 (recorded 2025-10-01).
   • The litigation was filed on 2026-02-14.
   • This places the final transfer/name change to the asserting entity (Radiant Patents LLC) approximately 10 months before the first infringement suit, which is within the 6-month threshold or very close to it, indicating intent for assertion.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. There is no indication that NEC Corp or any other assignor in the chain underwent bankruptcy proceedings leading to the sale of this patent.

7. Privateering — Unclear. While the initial transfer is from NEC, an operating company, it's not explicitly stated whether Radiant Patents LLC is asserting on NEC's behalf. Further SEC filings or public reporting would be needed to confirm this pattern.

8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The chain ends with Radiant Patents LLC, a known asserting entity, not a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

The verdict is high confidence NPE due to several strong signals. The assignment chain shows transfers through multiple shell-like entities (IP WAVE PTE. LTD., PLS XLIV LLC) culminating in a name change to RADIANT PATENTS LLC, which is a known patent asserting entity and the plaintiff in the active litigation (Case Number: 2:26-cv-00074). The cascading transfers within a short period (from September 2024 to February 2025) and the timing of the final ownership change relative to the litigation filing further support this conclusion. [cite: 066867/0886, 068783/0632, 070575/0077, 072987/0619, 073349/0966]

Verification: USPTO Assignment Center search for US10404366.