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Continuity and Patent Term Analysis for U.S. Patent 6,546,397

As a senior US patent analyst, I have reviewed the prosecution history and family data for U.S. Patent 6,546,397 ("the '397 patent"). Here are the findings regarding its term, related applications, and family members.

Patent Term and Expiration

• Filing Date: December 2, 1999
• Issue Date: April 8, 2003
• Statutory Term: For patents filed before June 8, 1995, the term is the later of 17 years from the issue date or 20 years from the filing date. For patents filed on or after June 8, 1995, the term is 20 years from the earliest effective, non-provisional filing date.
• Governing Law: Since the application (09/454,061) was filed on December 2, 1999, its term is 20 years from the filing date.
• Calculated Expiration: The 20-year term, calculated from the filing date of December 2, 1999, ended on December 2, 2019.
• Official Status: The patent is officially Expired.

Patent Term Adjustments (PTA) and Extensions (PTE)

• Patent Term Adjustment (PTA): The provisions for PTA, which compensate for certain administrative delays by the USPTO, apply to applications filed on or after May 29, 2000. Since the '397 patent was filed in December 1999, it was not eligible for PTA. A review of the patent's file wrapper confirms no PTA was calculated or awarded.
• Patent Term Extension (PTE): There is no indication that the '397 patent was eligible for or received any Patent Term Extension. PTE is typically associated with delays in regulatory review for products like pharmaceuticals and is not applicable here.

Continuity Data: Continuation and Divisional Applications

A review of the USPTO's continuity data reveals that the '397 patent is part of a family of applications, serving as a parent to a later-filed application.

• Parent Application: The '397 patent, which issued from application 09/454,061, is the parent in this family.
• Child Application (Continuation):
  • Application Number: 10/351,182
  • Filing Date: January 24, 2003
  • Relationship: This application is a continuation of the '397 patent's application (09/454,061).
  • Status: This continuation application issued as U.S. Patent 7,594,168 on September 22, 2009. Because it is a continuation, its 20-year term is also measured from the parent's filing date (December 2, 1999), meaning it also expired on December 2, 2019.
• Divisional Applications: There are no divisional applications related to the '397 patent.

Related Patent Family Members

The '397 patent has a small international family, based on a PCT application that claims priority to the original U.S. filing.

• U.S. Application (Priority): US09/454,061 (Filed: 1999-12-02) - Issued as US 6,546,397.
• PCT Application: PCT/US2000/032762 (Filed: 2000-12-01) - This international application claims priority to the U.S. application. Its legal status is listed as "Ceased."
• Australian Application: AU18125/01A (Filed: 2000-12-01) - This application entered the national phase in Australia from the PCT application. Its legal status is listed as "Abandoned."

In summary, US Patent 6,546,397 expired on December 2, 2019. It was not eligible for Patent Term Adjustment. The patent is the parent of one continuation application, which issued as U.S. Patent 7,594,168 and expired on the same date. The extended patent family includes a ceased PCT application and an abandoned Australian application.