Assignment history

Inventors

• Isaac Lichtenstein: His employer at the time of filing (June 3, 2011) is not explicitly stated in the patent text or assignment records, but the initial assignment of his inventor's interest to WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES, LLC on the filing date suggests he was either a founder or employee of that entity.

Original assignee

The original assignee named on the issued patent is WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES LLC.

This entity, or its corporate successor WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES CORP., does not appear to ship a product embodying the claims. Both Unified Patents and RPX identify Wound Healing Technologies Corp. as a Non-Practicing Entity (NPE). Therefore, its primary line of business is patent monetization and assertion. Its current status is operating as a patent asserting entity.

Assignment timeline

• 2011-06-03 (executed) / recorded 2011-06-06 — Reel 026857/0107

  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT
  • Assignor: LICHTENSTEIN, ISAAC
  • Assignee: WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
  • Correspondent: KENNETH A. DEIBEL, KENNETH A. DEIBEL, ATTORNEY AT LAW, 501 WEST BROADWAY, SUITE A-328, SAN DIEGO, CA 92101
  • Context: Initial assignment from inventor to the founding entity.

• 2019-12-19 (executed) / recorded 2020-01-08 — Reel 052449/0569

  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT
  • Assignor: WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES LLC
  • Assignee: WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES CORP.
  • Correspondent: ANNE T. CHEN, STRIBLING & CHEN, PC, 1400 BROADWAY, SUITE 425, OAKLAND, CA 94612
  • Context: Transfer between related entities, likely a corporate restructuring (LLC to Corporation).

• 2021-02-17 (executed) / recorded 2021-03-02 — Reel 058334/0970

  • Conveyance: SECURITY INTEREST
  • Assignor: WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES CORP.
  • Assignee: NEWPORT CAPITAL LLC
  • Correspondent: MICHAEL D. O'NEIL, CASEY & O'NEIL, APC, 1205 FIRST AVE, SUITE 200, SAN DIEGO, CA 92101. This correspondent recurs in subsequent related entries in this chain.
  • Context: Patent pledged as collateral in a financing transaction.

• 2021-02-17 (executed) / recorded 2021-03-02 — Reel 058334/0974

  • Conveyance: RELEASE
  • Assignor: NEWPORT CAPITAL LLC
  • Assignee: WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES CORP.
  • Correspondent: MICHAEL D. O'NEIL, CASEY & O'NEIL, APC, 1205 FIRST AVE, SUITE 200, SAN DIEGO, CA 92101. This correspondent recurs in subsequent related entries in this chain.
  • Context: Release of the security interest, returning rights to the assignor.

• 2021-02-17 (executed) / recorded 2021-03-02 — Reel 058334/0979

  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT
  • Assignor: WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES CORP.
  • Assignee: NEWPORT CAPITAL LLC
  • Correspondent: MICHAEL D. O'NEIL, CASEY & O'NEIL, APC, 1205 FIRST AVE, SUITE 200, SAN DIEGO, CA 92101. This correspondent recurs in subsequent related entries in this chain.
  • Context: Second assignment to Newport Capital LLC, likely part of the same complex financing transaction.

• 2021-02-17 (executed) / recorded 2021-03-02 — Reel 058334/0984

  • Conveyance: RELEASE
  • Assignor: NEWPORT CAPITAL LLC
  • Assignee: WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES CORP.
  • Correspondent: MICHAEL D. O'NEIL, CASEY & O'NEIL, APC, 1205 FIRST AVE, SUITE 200, SAN DIEGO, CA 92101. This correspondent recurs in subsequent related entries in this chain.
  • Context: Release of the assignment, indicating rights reverted to Wound Healing Technologies Corp.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 10639404
    2011 : Filed and assigned to WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES LLC
    2019 : Assigned to WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES CORP
    2020 : Patent issued
    2021 : Security interest to Newport Capital LLC
         : Security interest released to WHT Corp
         : Assigned to Newport Capital LLC
         : Assignment released to WHT Corp
    2024 : Infringement suit filed by WHT Corp
    2025 : PTAB IPR filed against WHT LLC

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Present. The transfer from WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES LLC to WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES CORP. (Reel 052449/0569, executed 2019-12-19 / recorded 2020-01-08) is a transfer to an entity (the "Corp" version) that is identified as a Non-Practicing Entity by Unified Patents and RPX. While not strictly a shell with a generic name, it functions as a licensing-only entity that does not produce goods.
2. Known asserter in the chain — Present. WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES CORP. is the current assignee and is identified as an NPE by Unified Patents and RPX. This entity is also the plaintiff in the district court litigation (6:24-cv-00589, filed 2024-11-15).
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Present. Michael D. O'Neil of CASEY & O'NEIL, APC, is the correspondent for all four entries related to the 2021 financing transactions (Reel 058334/0970, 0974, 0979, 0984, all executed 2021-02-17 / recorded 2021-03-02). While these are part of a single complex event rather than distinct assignments between different parties, the recurrence of the same attorney for multiple related filings is notable.
4. Cascading transfers — Not present. The transfers involve a change from LLC to Corp, followed by a series of complex security/release/assignment/release transactions with Newport Capital LLC on the same day. These are not multiple consecutive assignments through distinct chained LLCs in a short period but rather a financing event.
5. Pre-litigation transfer — Not present. The last ownership changes (the complex 2021 transactions) concluded with WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES CORP. retaining ownership. The infringement suit was filed on November 15, 2024, more than 6 months after the 2021 transactions.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. No evidence of the original assignee or any subsequent assignor filing for bankruptcy.
7. Privateering — Unclear. There is no direct evidence from the provided records or search results to suggest an operating company transferred the patent to an NPE to assert on its behalf against competitors.
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The chain does not terminate at a known defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

This verdict is driven by several strong signals. WOUND HEALING TECHNOLOGIES CORP., the current assignee, is publicly recognized as a Non-Practicing Entity by Unified Patents and RPX. Furthermore, the entity is actively asserting the patent in a district court litigation case (6:24-cv-00589, filed 2024-11-15). The assignment chain also shows a conversion from an LLC to a Corporation (Reel 052449/0569, executed 2019-12-19) that then engages in assertion, and a recurring correspondent attorney for complex financing transactions involving the patent.

USPTO Assignment Center search page: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/