Assignment history

Inventors

The named inventors for US7721282B1 are Pradip Kulkarni, Mukul Kumar, Adhir Potdar, Richard Au, James M. Mott, and Tung M. Nguyen. All inventors were employed by Panta Systems Inc. at the time of the patent's filing.

Original assignee

The original assignee on the issued patent was Panta Systems Inc. Panta Systems Inc. was founded in 2002 and manufactured and sold Data Warehouse Appliances until 2007. These appliances utilized the Oracle 10g database engine on servers and storage manufactured by Panta, clustered with an InfiniBand fabric. Panta Systems Inc. is listed as defunct as of 2007. It is important to distinguish Panta Systems Inc. from other currently operating entities that share the "Panta" name, such as Panta OS for AI-powered business process engines, Panta for financial index management software, or Panta gym management software.

Assignment timeline

• 2006-03-30 (executed) / recorded 2006-03-30 — Reel 017751/0719

  • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignors Interest
  • Assignor: POTDAR, ADHIR; KULKARNI, PRADIP; KUMAR, MUKUL; AU, RICHARD (and others, referring to the remaining inventors)
  • Assignee: PANTA SYSTEMS, INC., CALIFORNIA
  • Correspondent: Not specified in provided data.
  • Context: Original assignment from the inventors to the founding company.

• 2012-05-17 (executed) / recorded 2012-06-05 — Reel 028324/0627

  • Conveyance: Affidavit of Foreclosure and Assignment
  • Assignor: PANTA SYSTEMS, INC.
  • Assignee: VENTURE LENDING & LEASING IV, INC., CALIFORNIA
  • Correspondent: Not specified in provided data.
  • Context: Transfer from the original assignee, Panta Systems Inc., likely as part of a financial distress or dissolution event given its "defunct" status.

• 2012-05-18 (executed) / recorded 2012-06-05 — Reel 028321/0563

  • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignors Interest
  • Assignor: VENTURE LENDING & LEASING IV, INC.
  • Assignee: EMENDABLE ASSETS LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY, DELAWARE
  • Correspondent: Not specified in provided data.
  • Context: Transfer from a lending or asset recovery entity to a new holding LLC.

• 2015-08-26 (executed) / recorded 2016-01-22 — Reel 037563/0790

  • Conveyance: Merger
  • Assignor: EMENDABLE ASSETS LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY
  • Assignee: XENOGENIC DEVELOPMENT LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY, DELAWARE
  • Correspondent: Not specified in provided data.
  • Context: Transfer between two LLCs, indicated as a merger, suggesting an internal reorganization or further sale within an IP holding structure.

• 2007-10-23 (executed) / recorded 2020-07-15 — Reel 053234/0530

  • Conveyance: Affidavit Under MPEP Section 323.01(B)
  • Assignor: MOTT, JAMES M.
  • Assignee: PANTA SYSTEMS, INC., CALIFORNIA
  • Correspondent: Not specified in provided data.
  • Context: Corrective or confirmatory assignment from an inventor, recorded significantly later than its effective date.

• 2006-09-18 (executed) / recorded 2020-07-15 — Reel 053234/0696

  • Conveyance: Affidavit Under MPEP Section 323.01(B)
  • Assignor: NGUYEN, TUNG M.
  • Assignee: PANTA SYSTEMS, INC., CALIFORNIA
  • Correspondent: Not specified in provided data.
  • Context: Corrective or confirmatory assignment from an inventor, recorded significantly later than its effective date.

• 2023-11-02 (executed) / recorded 2023-11-06 — Reel 065470/0127

  • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignors Interest
  • Assignor: XENOGENIC DEVELOPMENT LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY
  • Assignee: INTELLECTUAL VENTURES II LLC, DELAWARE
  • Correspondent: Not specified in provided data.
  • Context: Transfer to a known patent monetization entity.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 7721282
    2006 : Filed & assigned to Panta Systems Inc
    2010 : Patent issued
    2012 : Transferred to Venture Lending & Leasing IV
         : Assigned to Emendable Assets LLC
    2015 : Merged to Xenogenic Development LLC
    2020 : Inventor assignments to Panta Systems Inc
    2023 : Assigned to Intellectual Ventures II LLC

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Present. The transfers from Panta Systems Inc. (an operating company now defunct) to Venture Lending & Leasing IV, Inc., then to Emendable Assets Limited Liability Company, and subsequently to Xenogenic Development Limited Liability Company, strongly suggest a chain of shell entities. The names "Venture Lending & Leasing IV, Inc.", "Emendable Assets Limited Liability Company", and "Xenogenic Development Limited Liability Company" are generic and typically associated with patent holding or monetization rather than product development. This culminates in the transfer to Intellectual Ventures II LLC, a known licensing-only entity. These transfers occurred between 2012 (Reel 028324/0627) and 2023 (Reel 065470/0127).
2. Known asserter in the chain — Present. The current assignee is Intellectual Ventures II LLC (Reel 065470/0127, recorded 2023-11-06). Intellectual Ventures is widely recognized as a major patent monetization firm and is frequently described as a patent troll. Unified Patents lists Intellectual Ventures II LLC as a patent owner and plaintiff in numerous litigation cases.
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Unclear. The provided patent data from Google Patents does not explicitly list the correspondent attorney or firm for each assignment record. Therefore, it's not possible to determine if the same correspondent recurs.
4. Cascading transfers — Present. There are three distinct transfers between 2012-05-17 and 2016-01-22 (a period of less than 4 years): from Panta Systems Inc. to Venture Lending & Leasing IV, Inc. (2012-05-17/06-05, Reel 028324/0627), then to Emendable Assets Limited Liability Company (2012-05-18/06-05, Reel 028321/0563), and then to Xenogenic Development Limited Liability Company (2015-08-26/2016-01-22, Reel 037563/0790). These rapid transfers between similarly generic-named LLCs indicate a cascading pattern.
5. Pre-litigation transfer — Present. The patent was assigned to Intellectual Ventures II LLC on 2023-11-02 (recorded 2023-11-06, Reel 065470/0127). The first reported litigation case (7:24-cv-00277 in Texas Western District Court) was filed in 2024, which falls within six months after the assignment to the current NPE assignee. Other cases such as 3:25-cv-00632 and 1:25-cv-01147 were filed in 2025. This timing strongly suggests the assignment was in preparation for assertion.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Present. Panta Systems Inc., the original assignee, was "defunct" by 2007. The initial transfer out of Panta Systems Inc. in 2012 was a "Foreclosure and Assignment" to Venture Lending & Leasing IV, Inc. (2012-05-17/06-05, Reel 028324/0627), which is a strong indicator of a distress sale or liquidation of assets following the company becoming defunct.
7. Privateering — Unclear. While the patent ended up with a known NPE (Intellectual Ventures II LLC), there's no explicit information in the provided data or search results to confirm that this specific transfer was done on behalf of an operating company competitor (i.e., privateering).
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The chain terminates with Intellectual Ventures II LLC, which is an asserting entity, not a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

The combination of the original assignee, Panta Systems Inc., becoming defunct and the subsequent "foreclosure and assignment" in 2012 (Reel 028324/0627), the cascading transfers through multiple shell-like entities, and the ultimate assignment to Intellectual Ventures II LLC (Reel 065470/0127), a well-known patent monetization firm, coupled with the fact that litigation cases started shortly after the transfer to Intellectual Ventures II LLC, strongly indicates a high-confidence NPE pattern.

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