Assignment history

Inventors

The named inventors for US Patent 11037094 are:

• Peter A. Mehring
• Thomas C. Reese
• Dean M. Kawaguchi
• Sameer Dekate
• Russell Shikami

These inventors assigned their interest in the invention to Intelleflex Corporation on March 30, 2015, which is the priority date of the patent. It is highly probable that they were employed by Intelleflex Corporation at that time.

Original assignee

The entity named as the original assignee on the issued patent US11037094 is Zest Labs Inc. Zest Labs Inc. was an AgTech company that provided a freshness management solution called "Zest Fresh" for the produce industry. Their platform utilized IoT sensors and analytics to monitor and manage the freshness of perishable goods from harvest to retail. This business directly aligns with and embodies the claims of the patent, which describe actively managed food delivery using sensor-derived conditions and product profiles.

Zest Labs, Inc. was acquired by Post Harvest Technologies, Inc. in 2020 and currently operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Post Harvest Technologies, Inc.. Post Harvest Technologies, Inc. continues to operate and promote the Zest Fresh solution.

Assignment timeline

• 2015-03-30 (executed) / recorded 2019-04-01 — Reel 049520/0734

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: MEHRING, PETER A; REESE, THOMAS C; KAWAGUCHI, DEAN M; DEKATE, SAMEER; SHIKAMI, RUSSELL
  • Assignee: INTELLEFLEX CORPORATION
  • Correspondent: BEYER LAW GROUP LLP, 1731 TECHNOLOGY DRIVE SUITE 480, SAN JOSE, CA 95110. This correspondent also appears on a later recording for this patent.
  • Context: Initial assignment from inventors to an operating company.

• 2019-04-01 (executed) / recorded 2019-04-01 — Reel 049520/0738

  • Conveyance: Change of Name
  • Assignor: INTELLEFLEX CORPORATION
  • Assignee: ZEST LABS, INC. (FORMERLY INTELLEFLEX CORPORATION)
  • Correspondent: BEYER LAW GROUP LLP, 1731 TECHNOLOGY DRIVE SUITE 480, SAN JOSE, CA 95110. This correspondent also appears on an earlier recording for this patent.
  • Context: Internal corporate reorganization and name change.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 11037094
    2015 : Inventors assigned to Intelleflex Corp
    2019 : Intelleflex changed name to Zest Labs Inc
         : Patent application filed by Zest Labs Inc
    2020 : Zest Labs acquired by Post Harvest Technologies
    2021 : Patent issued to Zest Labs Inc

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — not present. The assignees, Intelleflex Corporation and Zest Labs, Inc., are identified as operating companies that developed and marketed products in the AgTech and supply chain management sectors. The transfers represent an initial assignment from inventors and a corporate name change, not a transfer to a licensing-only shell entity.
2. Known asserter in the chain — not present. Neither Intelleflex Corporation nor Zest Labs, Inc. are recognized as known patent assertion entities (NPEs) or frequently listed on public NPE databases.
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — present. BEYER LAW GROUP LLP is listed as the correspondent on both recorded assignments (Reel 049520/0734 and Reel 049520/0738). While this indicates a consistent legal representative for the chain of ownership, it is for initial assignment and a name change, which is typical for an operating company's legal counsel.
4. Cascading transfers — not present. The records show only two transfers related to the same underlying entity, representing an initial assignment and a corporate name change, not multiple consecutive transfers through chained LLCs within a short period.
5. Pre-litigation transfer — unclear. There is no information provided or readily available about litigation involving this specific patent. The assignments occurred in 2015 and 2019, before the patent issued in 2021.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — not present. The assignment records do not indicate any transfers related to bankruptcy proceedings. Zest Labs, Inc. was acquired by Post Harvest Technologies, Inc. in 2020, which is an acquisition rather than a bankruptcy sale.
7. Privateering — not present. No evidence suggests a transfer to an NPE to assert on an operating company's behalf against competitors.
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — not present. The patent is held by Zest Labs, Inc. (a subsidiary of Post Harvest Technologies, Inc.), which is an operating company, and there is no indication of transfer to a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

Operating-company assertion. The patent originated from inventors to Intelleflex Corporation (Reel 049520/0734), which then underwent a name change to Zest Labs, Inc. (Reel 049520/0738) and was subsequently acquired by Post Harvest Technologies, Inc. in 2020. Zest Labs, Inc. is an operating company that developed and commercialized products directly embodying the patent's claims. There are no strong signals of NPE activity in the ownership chain.

For verification, see the USPTO Patent Assignment Search: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/patent/11037094