Assignment history

Inventors

• Martin Kelly Jones: The sole inventor listed on the patent. His affiliation at the time of filing was with the original assignee, Global Research Systems, Inc. There are no unusual patterns, such as a departure from the company, indicated in the public record.

Original assignee

• Global Research Systems Inc.: The entity named on the issued patent. Information about this company's operations or products is scarce. It appears to have been a small entity or holding company for the inventor's work rather than an operating company that shipped a product embodying the claims. The company assigned the patent to ArrivalStar, Inc. shortly after issuance, and its current status is unclear, though it is likely dissolved.

Assignment timeline

• 2000-08-10 (executed) / recorded 2000-08-14 — Reel 010898/0231

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: Martin Kelly Jones
  • Assignee: Global Research Systems, Inc.
  • Correspondent: Gregory J. Lunn, Woodcock Washburn Kurtz, Philadelphia, PA
  • Context: The inventor's initial assignment of his invention to the company.

• 2002-09-27 (executed) / recorded 2002-09-30 — Reel 013149/0979

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: Global Research Systems, Inc.
  • Assignee: ArrivalStar, Inc.
  • Correspondent: J. David Luten, Luten & Dobbs, LLP, Germantown, TN. This correspondent is a strong signal, as J. David Luten is a widely recognized attorney representing prolific patent assertion entities.
  • Context: Transfer from the original small entity to a known, large-scale patent assertion entity.

• 2006-03-31 (executed) / recorded 2006-04-07 — Reel 017435/0105

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: ArrivalStar, Inc.
  • Assignee: Melvino Technologies, Inc.
  • Correspondent: J. David Luten, Luten & Dobbs, LLP, Germantown, TN. The recurrence of this correspondent across different assignee names is a classic NPE-pattern signal.
  • Context: Internal transfer between related assertion entities, likely for strategic or financial reasons.

• 2010-05-12 (executed) / recorded 2010-05-14 — Reel 024467/0345

  • Conveyance: Nunc Pro Tunc Assignment (Correction)
  • Assignor: ArrivalStar, Inc.
  • Assignee: Melvino Technologies, Limited
  • Correspondent: J. David Luten, Luten Law Firm, Germantown, TN
  • Context: A corrective assignment to fix the legal name of the assignee from the 2006 transfer, changing it from a US corporation to a foreign limited entity.

• 2015-03-24 (executed) / recorded 2015-03-25 — Reel 035249/0885

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: Melvino Technologies, Limited
  • Assignee: Shipping and Transit, LLP
  • Correspondent: J. David Luten, The Luten Law Firm, Germantown, TN
  • Context: Transfer to a new assertion-focused LLC, which would become the primary plaintiff in the subsequent litigation campaign.

• 2015-07-24 (executed) / recorded 2015-07-27 — Reel 036136/0200

  • Conveyance: Corrective Assignment
  • Assignor: Melvino Technologies, Limited
  • Assignee: Shipping and Transit, LLC
  • Correspondent: J. David Luten, The Luten Law Firm, PLLC, Germantown, TN
  • Context: Another corrective assignment, clarifying the assignee's name from an LLP to an LLC, likely to perfect the chain of title ahead of litigation.

• 2018-11-15 (executed) / recorded 2018-11-16 — Reel 048037/0867

  • Conveyance: Security Agreement
  • Assignor: Comtech Telecommunications Corp., et al.
  • Assignee: Citibank, N.A.
  • Correspondent: David L. Hayes, DLA Piper LLP, East Palo Alto, CA
  • Context: This is a security interest filing by Comtech Telecommunications and does not represent a transfer of ownership of this specific patent. It is likely included in the Google Patents list due to a database error or a bulk filing that incidentally referenced this patent number among thousands of others. It is not part of the core ownership chain for assertion purposes.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 6415207
    2000 : Filed and assigned to Global Research
    2002 : Issued
         : Assigned to ArrivalStar Inc
    2006 : Assigned to Melvino Technologies
    2015 : Assigned to Shipping and Transit LLP
         : Corrected to Shipping and Transit LLC
    2016 : Widespread litigation campaign begins

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Present. The patent was moved from its original assignee to a series of LLCs and Limited entities (ArrivalStar, Inc., Melvino Technologies, Limited, Shipping and Transit, LLC) that exist for licensing and assertion, not for producing goods. This is evident in the assignment chain starting with Reel 013149/0979.

2. Known asserter in the chain — Present. ArrivalStar and its successor, Shipping & Transit, LLC, are well-documented as prolific, high-volume patent plaintiffs by multiple sources, including Unified Patents and RPX. The litigation summary for this patent confirms this directly.

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Present. Attorney J. David Luten of Germantown, TN, appears as the correspondent of record for the transfers to ArrivalStar (Reel 013149/0979), Melvino Technologies (Reel 017435/0105), and Shipping and Transit (Reel 035249/0885 and 036136/0200), as well as the corrective assignments. This consistent representation across differently named entities is a hallmark of a centrally managed NPE portfolio.

4. Cascading transfers — Present. The patent was transferred through a chain of at least three distinct holding companies (ArrivalStar -> Melvino -> Shipping and Transit) over a period of years, all managed by the same legal representative.

5. Pre-litigation transfer — Present. The final corrective assignment to Shipping and Transit, LLC was recorded on July 27, 2015 (Reel 036136/0200). The extensive litigation campaign, as noted in the provided summary, began in 2016, well within the pattern of transferring a patent to a new entity to organize for an assertion campaign.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. The assignment chain shows a series of deliberate, strategic transfers, not a sale out of bankruptcy proceedings.

7. Privateering — Not present. There is no evidence that an operating company transferred this patent to an NPE to assert on its behalf. The chain originates with the inventor.

8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The patent was heavily asserted and was not acquired by a defensive entity like RPX or LOT Network.

Verdict

• NPE — high confidence

This verdict is based on the presence of at least five strong, unambiguous signals. The patent was transferred through a cascading series of shell entities (Reel 013149/0979, 017435/0105, 035249/0885), all of which are part of the well-known ArrivalStar / Shipping & Transit assertion campaign. Most notably, the entire chain of transfers into the assertion entities was handled by the same correspondent attorney, J. David Luten, a classic indicator of a centrally managed NPE operation.

Verify at: USPTO Patent Assignment Search (Search by Patent Number 6415207)