Assignment history

Here is the patent ownership analysis for US 7,557,788.

Inventors

• Richard V. Orlando
• Trevor A. Blyth

Both inventors assigned their interest to Alta Analog, Inc. at the time of the original filing on May 1, 2007. There are no unusual patterns, such as immediate departure from the assignee, evident from the record.

Original assignee

• Alta Analog Inc (California)

Alta Analog was a fabless semiconductor company focused on developing analog and mixed-signal integrated circuits. The patented invention, a programmable gamma reference voltage generator, was central to their product line, including the "AG1818" chip described in the patent's detailed description. The company appears to be defunct; the patent assets were transferred out via a security agreement starting in 2014, suggesting financial distress.

Assignment timeline

Chronological list of every recorded assignment for US patent 7,557,788.

• 2007-04-19 (executed) / recorded 2007-05-01 — Reel 019233/0515

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: Richard V. Orlando, Trevor A. Blyth
  • Assignee: Alta Analog, Inc.
  • Correspondent: Thomas T. Gordon, Esq., The Gordon Law Firm, LLP, Los Altos, CA 94023
  • Context: Standard inventor assignment to employer at time of filing.

• 2010-06-30 (executed) / recorded 2010-07-02 — Reel 024630/0270

  • Conveyance: Security Agreement
  • Assignor: Alta Analog, Inc.
  • Assignee: Comerica Bank
  • Correspondent: Alta Analog, Inc., San Jose, CA 95131
  • Context: Securitization of assets; the patent was pledged as collateral for a loan.

• 2014-06-27 (executed) / recorded 2014-07-18 — Reel 033360/0474

  • Conveyance: Security Interest
  • Assignor: Alta Analog Inc
  • Assignee: AVM Capital LP and Richard Orlando
  • Correspondent: AVM Capital, LP, San Jose, CA 95125
  • Context: A second securitization, suggesting Alta Analog was taking on more debt. Richard Orlando is one of the patent's inventors.

• 2014-11-05 (executed) / recorded 2015-07-13 — Reel 036067/0288

  • Conveyance: Release
  • Assignor: Comerica Bank
  • Assignee: Alta Analog, Inc.
  • Correspondent: Comerica Bank, Detroit, MI 48226
  • Context: Release of the original 2010 security agreement, clearing the title.

• 2014-06-27 (executed) / recorded 2015-07-16 — Reel 036142/0214

  • Conveyance: Assignment ("Delivery and Receipt of Collateral")
  • Assignor: Alta Analog, Inc.
  • Assignee: AVM Capital LP and Richard V. Orlando
  • Correspondent: Phenix, LLC, Sacramento, CA 95814
  • Context: Transfer of the patent from the original assignee to its creditors (including an original inventor) in satisfaction of the 2014 security interest. This suggests a default or dissolution of Alta Analog.

• 2014-06-27 (executed) / recorded 2015-07-16 — Reel 036114/0576

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: AVM Captial LP [sic]
  • Assignee: Maury Domengeaux
  • Correspondent: Phenix, LLC, Sacramento, CA 95814
  • Context: Part of a rapid chain of transfers on the same day. The correspondent is the next assignee in the chain, Phenix LLC.

• 2015-01-08 (executed) / recorded 2015-07-16 — Reel 036114/0930

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: Richard V. Orlando and Maury Domengeaux
  • Assignee: Phenix LLC
  • Correspondent: Phenix, LLC, Sacramento, CA 95814
  • Context: Consolidation of title into a new entity, Phenix LLC.

• 2016-03-11 (executed) / recorded 2016-03-11 — Reel 037960/0875

  • Conveyance: Nunc Pro Tunc Assignment
  • Assignor: Alta Analog, Inc.
  • Assignee: AVM Capital L.P. and Richard V. Orlando
  • Correspondent: Phenix, LLC, Sacramento, CA 95814
  • Context: A "nunc pro tunc" (now for then) assignment is corrective, likely to clean up chain-of-title defects from the previous year's transfers.

• 2016-03-09 (executed) / recorded 2016-03-12 — Reel 037961/0726

  • Conveyance: Nunc Pro Tunc Assignment
  • Assignor: AVM Capital L.P.
  • Assignee: Maury Domengeaux
  • Correspondent: Phenix, LLC, Sacramento, CA 95814
  • Context: Another corrective assignment in the chain.

• 2016-03-11 (executed) / recorded 2016-03-12 — Reel 037961/0718

  • Conveyance: Nunc Pro Tunc Assignment
  • Assignor: Richard V. Orlando and Maury Domengeaux
  • Assignee: Phenix, LLC
  • Correspondent: Phenix, LLC, Sacramento, CA 95814
  • Context: Final corrective assignment to solidify title in Phenix, LLC.

• 2016-12-22 (executed) / recorded 2017-01-04 — Reel 040834/0069

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: Phenix, LLC
  • Assignee: Phenix Longhorn, LLC
  • Correspondent: Phenix, LLC, Sacramento, CA 95814
  • Context: Transfer to a new LLC, likely for assertion purposes.

• 2023-08-25 (executed) / recorded 2023-11-01 — Reel 065421/0893

  • Conveyance: Security Interest
  • Assignor: Phenix Longhorn LLC
  • Assignee: BR IP Ventures, LP
  • Correspondent: Buether Joe & Counselors, LLC, Dallas, TX 75201
  • Context: The asserting entity is pledging the patent as collateral, likely for litigation financing. This was recorded shortly after the first lawsuits were filed.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 7557788
    2007 : Filed by Alta Analog
    2009 : Issued to Alta Analog
    2010 : Pledged to Comerica Bank
    2014 : Pledged to AVM Capital
    2015 : Transferred to AVM/Orlando
         : Transferred to Domengeaux
         : Transferred to Phenix LLC
    2017 : Transferred to Phenix Longhorn LLC
    2023 : Lawsuits filed vs multiple cos
         : Pledged to BR IP Ventures
    2024 : More lawsuits filed

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Present.
   The patent was transferred from an operating company (Alta Analog Inc.) to a series of non-operating LLCs, culminating in Phenix Longhorn, LLC. The name "Phenix Longhorn, LLC" and the subsequent assertion campaign confirm its status as a licensing/assertion entity. The final transfer is a security interest to "BR IP Ventures, LP," another name indicative of a patent monetization firm.

2. Known asserter in the chain — Present.
   Phenix Longhorn LLC is the plaintiff in multiple lawsuits filed in 2023 and 2024, including case numbers 2:23-cv-00477 and 2:24-cv-01077 in the Eastern District of Texas. Unified Patents also lists litigation involving Phenix Longhorn, LLC.

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Present.
   The entity "Phenix, LLC" of Sacramento, CA is the correspondent of record for a cascade of six separate assignments executed between 2014 and 2016 (Reels 036142/0214, 036114/0576, 036114/0930, 037960/0875, 037961/0726, 037961/0718, and 040834/0069). This demonstrates a single controlling hand behind the series of title transfers.

4. Cascading transfers — Present.
   The patent was transferred three times in rapid succession, with the transfers all being recorded on the same day, July 16, 2015. This was followed by a series of three corrective "nunc pro tunc" assignments in March 2016 to perfect the chain of title, culminating in the transfer to Phenix Longhorn, LLC in early 2017.

5. Pre-litigation transfer — Not present.
   The key transfer to the asserting entity, Phenix Longhorn, LLC, occurred in late 2016 / early 2017. The first infringement suits were filed over six years later, in late 2023.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Unclear.
   While there is no explicit record of a bankruptcy filing for Alta Analog Inc., the transfer of its core patent asset to its creditors (AVM Capital and inventor Richard Orlando) via a "Delivery and Receipt of Collateral" (Reel 036142/0214) strongly indicates a default or dissolution event analogous to a fire-sale.

7. Privateering — Not present.
   The original assignee, Alta Analog Inc., appears to be defunct and is not participating in or benefiting from the current assertion campaign.

8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present.
   The patent is held by an active plaintiff and has not been transferred to any known defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

The ownership history of US 7,557,788 displays multiple strong signals of NPE activity. The patent was transferred from its original operating-company assignee, Alta Analog Inc., through a rapid cascade of assignments (e.g., three transfers recorded on July 16, 2015) orchestrated by a single correspondent ("Phenix, LLC"). The chain terminates at Phenix Longhorn, LLC, a known patent asserter that has filed multiple infringement suits. The entire history is a textbook example of transferring a distressed asset into a special-purpose vehicle for litigation.

Verification link: USPTO Patent Assignment Search for US 7557788