Assignment history

Inventors

The named inventors are Yehuda Binder and Benjamin Maytal. Their employer at the time of filing is not explicitly stated on the patent. The initial assignment record indicates they assigned their rights to May Patents Ltd. on May 23, 2018, prior to the patent's filing date of May 30, 2018, suggesting May Patents Ltd. was the intended assignee from the outset.

Original assignee

May Patents Ltd.
Based on its name ("Patents Ltd.") and the absence of any publicly available product information, May Patents Ltd. appears to be a patent holding company focused on intellectual property licensing rather than manufacturing or shipping products. Its primary line of business seems to be the management and monetization of patent assets. Its current status, while not explicitly dissolved, is that it no longer owns the patent, having assigned it to Smart Speaker LLC.

Assignment timeline

• 2018-05-23 (executed) / recorded 2018-05-30 — Reel 045956/0545

  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT
  • Assignor: BINDER, YEHUDA; MAYTAL, BENJAMIN
  • Assignee: MAY PATENTS LTD.
  • Correspondent: BINDER, YEHUDA; MAY PATENTS LTD.; P.O. BOX 50036; TEL AVIV 61500; ISRAEL
  • Context: Transfer of invention rights from inventors to a newly formed patent holding company.

• 2025-05-29 (executed) / recorded 2025-05-29 — Reel 071256/0346

  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST
  • Assignor: MAY PATENTS LTD.
  • Assignee: SMART SPEAKER LLC
  • Correspondent: MAYTAL, BENJAMIN; 6220 NORTHWEST HWY; DALLAS, TX 75225. This correspondent recurs in this chain.
  • Context: Transfer of patent rights from an existing holding company to a new entity.

• 2025-05-29 (executed) / recorded 2025-05-29 — Reel 071256/0348

  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST
  • Assignor: MAY PATENTS LTD.
  • Assignee: SMART SPEAKER LLC
  • Correspondent: MAYTAL, BENJAMIN; 6220 NORTHWEST HWY; DALLAS, TX 75225. This correspondent recurs in this chain.
  • Context: A seemingly redundant recording of the transfer of patent rights.

• 2025-06-02 (executed) / recorded 2025-06-02 — Reel 071268/0468

  • Conveyance: CORRECTIVE ASSIGNMENT
  • Assignor: MAY PATENTS LTD.
  • Assignee: SMART SPEAKER LLC
  • Correspondent: MAYTAL, BENJAMIN; 6220 NORTHWEST HWY; DALLAS, TX 75225. This correspondent recurs in this chain.
  • Context: Correction of property number listed as an application number rather than a patent in a previously recorded assignment (Reel 71256 Frame 346).

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 11190590
    2018 : Inventors assign to May Patents Ltd
    2021 : Patent Issued
    2025 : May Patents assigns to Smart Speaker LLC
         : Corrective assignment filed
    2025 : Litigation filed EDTX, IPR filed

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — present.

   • The patent was initially assigned from the inventors to "May Patents Ltd." (Reel 045956/0545, executed 2018-05-23 / recorded 2018-05-30), a name indicative of a patent holding company. Subsequently, it was transferred to "Smart Speaker LLC" (Reel 071256/0346, executed 2025-05-29 / recorded 2025-05-29). Smart Speaker LLC is publicly identified as a Non-Practicing Entity (NPE) by Unified Patents. The correspondent for this transfer, Benjamin Maytal, uses an address (6220 Northwest Hwy, Dallas, TX 75225) that is a known registered agent service address in Texas, commonly used by shell entities, rather than an operating business location. There is no evidence suggesting Smart Speaker LLC manufactures or sells products.

2. Known asserter in the chain — present.

   • Smart Speaker LLC, the current assignee, is listed as a known NPE by Unified Patents. Furthermore, Google Patents indicates that litigation involving this patent, including a PTAB IPR (IPR2026-00148) and a US District Court case in the Eastern District of Texas (2:25-cv-00707), has been filed.

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — present.

   • Benjamin Maytal of 6220 NORTHWEST HWY, DALLAS, TX 75225, is listed as the correspondent for all assignment records from May Patents Ltd. to Smart Speaker LLC (Reel 071256/0346, Reel 071256/0348, and Reel 071268/0468). His recurring role as correspondent for transfers to an identified NPE, and the use of a registered agent address, is a strong indicator of an NPE pattern.

4. Cascading transfers — not present.

   • There is a direct transfer from the inventors to May Patents Ltd., and then a singular (though corrected) transfer from May Patents Ltd. to Smart Speaker LLC. This does not constitute multiple consecutive transfers through chained LLCs within a short timeframe.

5. Pre-litigation transfer — present.

   • The assignments of interest to Smart Speaker LLC were executed on May 29, 2025 (Reel 071256/0346 and 071256/0348), with a corrective assignment executed June 2, 2025 (Reel 071268/0468). Litigation concerning this patent, specifically a US case in the Texas Eastern District Court (2:25-cv-00707) and a PTAB IPR (IPR2026-00148), was filed in 2025 and 2026 respectively. The timing of the assignment immediately preceding or coinciding with the initiation of legal proceedings in a known patent litigation venue (Eastern District of Texas) is a clear pre-litigation transfer signal.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — not present.

   • There is no indication in the patent records or public information that May Patents Ltd. or Smart Speaker LLC have undergone bankruptcy proceedings.

7. Privateering — unclear.

   • While Smart Speaker LLC is an NPE that is asserting the patent, there is no explicit public record (e.g., SEC filings) to confirm whether this assertion is being conducted on behalf of an operating company against its competitors.

8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — not present.

   • The patent is currently owned by Smart Speaker LLC, an entity actively engaged in patent assertion, not a defensive aggregator like RPX or AST.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

This patent exhibits multiple strong NPE signals. The current assignee, Smart Speaker LLC, is publicly listed as an NPE by Unified Patents and has initiated litigation concerning this patent in a known patent assertion venue (Eastern District of Texas). The transfer to Smart Speaker LLC (executed 2025-05-29, recorded 2025-05-29/2025-06-02 via Reel 071256/0346 and 071268/0468) occurred directly before the filing of lawsuits, indicating a pre-litigation transfer. Additionally, the use of a registered agent service address by the correspondent (Benjamin Maytal) for these transfers further reinforces the shell-entity pattern.

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