Assignment history

Inventors

• Takeshi Harada, employed by Panasonic Corp at the time of filing.

Original assignee

The original assignee was Panasonic Corp. As a major multinational electronics corporation, Panasonic Corp likely shipped products embodying the claims of US7632751, which relates to semiconductor device interconnection structures. Panasonic Corp is currently an operating company.

Assignment timeline

• 2020-05-20 (executed) / recorded 2020-05-27 — Reel 049511/0816
  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST
  • Assignor: PANASONIC CORPORATION
  • Assignee: PANASONIC SEMICONDUCTOR SOLUTIONS CO., LTD.
  • Correspondent: Panasonic Corporation of North America, C/O Patent Department, Two Riverfront Plaza, 10th Floor, Newark, NJ 07102-5490.
  • Context: Internal corporate reorganization/transfer.
• 2024-05-09 (executed) / recorded 2024-06-12 — Reel 059437/0401
  • Conveyance: CHANGE OF NAME
  • Assignor: PANASONIC SEMICONDUCTOR SOLUTIONS CO., LTD.
  • Assignee: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
  • Correspondent: Nuvoton Technology Corporation, 100 Nuvoton Blvd., Hsinchu Science Park, Hsinchu, 30078 Taiwan.
  • Context: Corporate change of name, likely due to acquisition or divestment of Panasonic's semiconductor division to Nuvoton.
• 2024-07-19 (executed) / recorded 2024-07-30 — Reel 059630/0858
  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST
  • Assignor: NUVOTON TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION JAPAN
  • Assignee: ADVANCED INTEGRATED CIRCUIT PROCESS LLC
  • Correspondent: Joseph E. Maenner, 1616 Longfellow Place, Annapolis, MD 21401. This correspondent also appears on other patent assertion-related filings.
  • Context: Transfer to a patent assertion entity.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 7632751
    2008 : Filed by Panasonic Corp
    2009 : Issued
    2020 : Transferred to Panasonic Semiconductor Solutions
    2024 : Name change to Nuvoton Tech Japan
         : Assigned to Advanced Integrated Circuit Process LLC
         : First litigation filed

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Present. The patent was assigned to Advanced Integrated Circuit Process LLC (AICP) on 2024-07-30 (Reel 059630/0858). AICP was formed in Texas on June 12, 2024, and its managing member, AMTL LLC, was created in Delaware on April 1, 2024, with both entities sharing the same Allen, Texas address as another patent assertion entity, Advanced Memory Technologies LLC. This structure, recent formation, and lack of product manufacturing activities strongly indicate a shell entity for patent assertion.
2. Known asserter in the chain — Present. Advanced Integrated Circuit Process LLC (AICP) is identified by RPX Insight as an entity that filed its first lawsuit in August 2024, shortly after receiving patents from Nuvoton Technology Corporation Japan (Winbond Electronics) in late July 2024. AICP has subsequently filed multiple patent infringement lawsuits in the Eastern District of Texas, including against TSMC and United Microelectronics.
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Present. Joseph E. Maenner of 1616 Longfellow Place, Annapolis, MD 21401, acted as the correspondent for the assignment to Advanced Integrated Circuit Process LLC (Reel 059630/0858). While he is not repeated within this specific chain for other transfers, his name and firm (Maenner & Associates, LLC) are associated with intellectual property law, and his role in this transfer to a newly formed, asserting entity is a strong indicator of NPE activity.
4. Cascading transfers — Present. There were two rapid transfers leading up to assertion. The change of name to Nuvoton Technology Corporation Japan was recorded on 2024-06-12 (Reel 059437/0401), and then the assignment to Advanced Integrated Circuit Process LLC was recorded just over a month later on 2024-07-30 (Reel 059630/0858).
5. Pre-litigation transfer — Present. The assignment to Advanced Integrated Circuit Process LLC was recorded on 2024-07-30 (Reel 059630/0858). Advanced Integrated Circuit Process LLC filed its first lawsuit, accusing TSMC of infringement, in August 2024. This proximity (within 6 months) to the first litigation filing is a strong signal.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. The transfers originated from Panasonic Corp, a major operating company, and its semiconductor subsidiary, eventually passing through Nuvoton, another operating company. There is no indication of bankruptcy in the chain.
7. Privateering — Present. The patent was transferred from Nuvoton Technology Corporation Japan (an operating company and subsidiary of Winbond Electronics) to Advanced Integrated Circuit Process LLC, which then initiated infringement lawsuits against major semiconductor manufacturers like TSMC and United Microelectronics, who could be considered competitors or customers of Nuvoton's market.
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The current assignee is an asserting entity, not a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

This verdict is based on multiple strong signals: the transfer to a newly formed shell entity (Advanced Integrated Circuit Process LLC, recorded 2024-07-30, Reel 059630/0858) that is known to be an asserter by RPX, the pre-litigation transfer occurring just before the first lawsuit in August 2024, and the pattern of privateering where an operating company (Nuvoton) transferred patents to an NPE that subsequently sued industry players.

USPTO Assignment Center search for US7632751: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/