US 7173177

US Patent 7173177, titled "User interface for simultaneous management of owned and unowned inventory," was filed on October 29, 2003, and issued on February 6, 2007. The original assignee was Blue Dolphin Solutions LLC, and the current assignee is Cedar Lane Technologies Inc. The inventors are Eric J. Gould, Nick West, Donald McCaskill, Alice Cark, and Paulus Trisnadi.

Abstract:
The patent describes a user-configurable computer interface for managing inventory. This interface presents a list of items, organized according to the user's preferences, which includes both items the user owns and those they do not. It provides a way to sample and purchase the un-owned items directly from the list. The invention can be applied to managing entertainment playlists (like music or video), vehicle maintenance, and various goods such as groceries, toys, or books.

Independent Claim Overview:

There is one independent claim in US Patent 7173177:

• Claim 1 (Plain-language overview): This claim covers a computer-readable medium (like a hard drive or flash drive) that stores instructions. When a computer executes these instructions, it performs the following steps:
  1. Receives and stores a playlist that has been sent over a network, where this playlist contains one or more items.
  2. Creates a user interface (a visual display for the user).
  3. Shows the items from the received playlist on this user interface.
  4. Determines for each item in the playlist whether the user currently owns it or not.
  5. Displays an indication on the user interface showing whether each item is owned or un-owned by the user.

USPTO and CAFC 2026 Dockets:
As of April 26, 2026, a search for US Patent 7173177 reveals it has an "Expired - Lifetime" legal status, with an adjusted expiration date of November 18, 2020.

The patent family has been involved in multiple litigation cases across various US District Courts (Texas Eastern, Texas Northern, Texas Western, Delaware, New York Southern, Illinois Northern, Colorado), and also a PTAB case (IPR2020-00006). These cases date from 2019 and 2020. Given the patent's expiration in 2020, there are no ongoing CAFC 2026 dockets for this specific patent that would impact its enforceability.

It is important to note that while the patent has expired, past litigation records are still relevant for historical analysis. No active CAFC dockets for 2026 directly concerning the validity or infringement of the now-expired US7173177 were found.US Patent 7173177, titled "User interface for simultaneous management of owned and unowned inventory," was filed on October 29, 2003, and issued on February 6, 2007. The original assignee was Blue Dolphin Solutions LLC, and the current assignee is Cedar Lane Technologies Inc. The inventors are Eric J. Gould, Nick West, Donald McCaskill, Alice Cark, and Paulus Trisnadi.

Abstract:
The patent describes a user-configurable computer interface for managing inventory. The interface presents a list of items, organized according to the user's preferences, which includes both items the user owns and those they do not. It provides a way to sample and purchase the un-owned items directly from the list. The invention can be applied to managing entertainment playlists (like music or video), vehicle maintenance, and various goods such as groceries, toys, or books.

Independent Claim Overview:

There is one independent claim in US Patent 7173177:

• Claim 1 (Plain-language overview): This claim covers a computer-readable medium (like a hard drive or flash drive) that stores instructions. When a computer executes these instructions, it performs the following steps:
  1. Receives and stores a playlist that has been sent over a network, where this playlist contains one or more items.
  2. Creates a user interface (a visual display for the user).
  3. Shows the items from the received playlist on this user interface.
  4. Determines for each item in the playlist whether the user currently owns it or not.
  5. Displays an indication on the user interface showing whether each item is owned or un-owned by the user.

USPTO and CAFC 2026 Dockets:
As of April 26, 2026, US Patent 7173177 has an "Expired - Lifetime" legal status, with an adjusted expiration date of November 18, 2020.

The patent family has been involved in several litigation cases in various US District Courts (Texas Eastern, Texas Northern, Texas Western, Delaware, New York Southern, Illinois Northern, Colorado) and a PTAB case (IPR2020-00006). These cases were filed between 2019 and 2020. Given that the patent expired in November 2020, there are no active CAFC 2026 dockets directly concerning the validity or infringement of this specific patent.