Extensions

Analysis of Patent Term and Related Applications for U.S. Patent 6,415,207

Washington, D.C. - An analysis of the public records for U.S. Patent No. 6,415,207, "System and method for automatically providing vehicle status information," provides the following details regarding its term, continuity, and international family.

Patent Term and Expiration

• Filing Date: March 1, 2000.
• Issue Date: July 2, 2002.
• Patent Term Adjustment (PTA) / Patent Term Extension (PTE): A review of the patent's file history in the USPTO's public database indicates that no Patent Term Adjustment (PTA) or Patent Term Extension (PTE) was granted. The application was filed before May 29, 2000, the effective date for the American Inventors Protection Act of 1999 which established the modern PTA system. Therefore, the patent was not eligible for PTA for USPTO-caused delays. There is no indication of any term extension for regulatory review delays (PTE).
• Projected Expiration Date: Based on a standard 20-year term from the filing date, the patent's term concluded and it expired on March 1, 2020. The patent is no longer in force.

Continuity and Related Applications

The application that matured into the '207 patent, Application No. 09/516,476, claims priority to a U.S. Provisional Application. There is no record of any continuation or divisional applications filed that claim priority back to this patent.

• Parent Application / Priority Claim:

  • The patent claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/122,482, filed on March 1, 1999. This provisional application establishes the priority date for the invention's subject matter.

• Child Applications (Continuations/Divisionals):

  • A search of USPTO records reveals no continuation, continuation-in-part, or divisional applications that claim domestic priority to Application No. 09/516,476. The '207 patent represents the only non-provisional U.S. application in this direct lineage.

International Patent Family

The invention was also filed internationally under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), leading to examination and granting in several jurisdictions. The following patents and applications are part of the '207 patent family, all claiming priority to the original U.S. filing:

• PCT Application: WO2001065524A1 (Filing date: March 1, 2001)
• European Patent: EP1264296B1
• Australian Patent: AU2001239984A1
• German Patent: DE60104824T2
• Austrian Patent: ATE273547T1

This international filing history demonstrates an intent to seek patent protection in multiple key markets beyond the United States.