Extensions

To provide a comprehensive analysis for US Patent 8271315, I will gather information on its patent term adjustments (PTA), patent term extensions (PTE), continuation/divisional applications, related family members, and projected expiration date.

Patent Term Adjustments (PTA)

Patent Term Adjustment (PTA) can extend the term of a patent to compensate for certain delays by the USPTO during the prosecution of the patent application. These delays can include the USPTO failing to:

• Issue a first Official Action or notice of allowance within 14 months of filing.
• Issue an action within four months of an applicant's response.
• Issue the patent within four months of payment of the issue fee.
• Issue a patent within three years of the actual filing date (with some exceptions).

Applicant delays can reduce any awarded PTA.

To determine the specific PTA for US8271315, one would typically consult the patent's issue certificate or its file wrapper in USPTO's Patent Center. Without direct access to these specific documents for US8271315, I cannot provide the exact PTA amount. However, since the patent was filed on November 5, 2002, and issued on September 18, 2012, it was subject to PTA provisions.

Patent Term Extensions (PTE)

Patent Term Extensions (PTE) are distinct from PTAs and are primarily available for patents covering certain human drug products, medical devices, food or color additives, animal drugs, and veterinary biological products. PTE compensates for time lost during mandatory pre-market regulatory review by agencies like the FDA.

Based on the title and subject matter of US8271315, "Personal information utilization system and personal information utilization program for commodity based identification," it is highly unlikely to be eligible for a Patent Term Extension under 35 U.S.C. § 156, as it does not appear to cover a product subject to regulatory approval in the fields mentioned. Therefore, I can confidently state that there are no Patent Term Extensions for US8271315.

Continuation Applications, Divisional Applications, and Related Family Members

• Continuation Applications: A continuation application is a new application for an invention disclosed in a prior, co-pending non-provisional application, where the disclosure does not introduce new subject matter. It allows the applicant to pursue additional claims to the same invention.
• Divisional Applications: A divisional application arises from a restriction requirement by the USPTO, where the examiner determines that an application contains more than one distinct invention. The applicant can then pursue the non-elected invention(s) in a divisional application, benefiting from the filing date of the original application.

The patent document itself lists "Other versions" and "Applications Claiming Priority" which can indicate related family members:

• US20060155646A1: This is listed as "Other versions" and is the publication of the application for US8271315, published on July 13, 2006. It is not a separate continuation or divisional application, but an earlier publication stage of the same patent.
• PCT/JP2002/011502 (WO2004042610A1): This is listed as an "Applications Claiming Priority" with a priority date of 2001-05-07. This is an international (PCT) application that serves as the basis for the US patent and is a related family member. The US application (US10/533,859) claims priority from this PCT application.
• JP2002329058A: This Japanese patent application is also listed in the "Citations" and has the same priority date (2001-05-07) and inventor. This indicates it is a parallel foreign filing or a closely related family member to US8271315.

Based on the provided information, there are no explicit continuation or divisional applications listed directly under the US8271315 patent information. The primary related family members are the international PCT application PCT/JP2002/011502 (WO2004042610A1) and the Japanese application JP2002329058A.

Projected Expiration Date

The standard patent term for utility patents filed on or after June 8, 1995, is 20 years from the earliest claimed non-provisional filing date. The filing date for US8271315 (US10/533,859) is November 5, 2002. [cite: https://patents.google.com/patent/[US8271315](/patent/US8271315)/en]

Therefore, the nominal expiration date (20 years from the filing date) would be November 5, 2022.

However, the legal status explicitly states "Expired - Fee Related , expires 2024-02-26" and also "2024-10-21 Lapse for failure to pay maintenance fees". [cite: https://patents.google.com/patent/[US8271315](/patent/US8271315)/en] This indicates that despite the nominal term extending to 2022 (or later with PTA), the patent's enforceability ceased earlier due to failure to pay maintenance fees. The "Adjusted expiration" date listed as 2024-02-26 implies there may have been some PTA that extended the nominal 20-year term. The "Lapse for failure to pay maintenance fees" on 2024-10-21 confirms that the patent is no longer in force.

Therefore, the patent US8271315 is expired due to failure to pay maintenance fees, with the last recorded expiration related event being October 21, 2024.