Patent 8332844

Assignment history

Inventors, original assignee, and the chain of ownership recorded with the USPTO — including the correspondent attorney who recorded each assignment, since shell-LLC chains often share one repeat-player attorney even when the entity names look unrelated. Surfaces NPE / patent-troll patterns: shell-entity transfers, known asserters in the chain, repeat correspondent fingerprints, pre-litigation assignments, and bankruptcy fire-sales.

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Assignment history

Inventors, original assignee, and the chain of ownership recorded with the USPTO — including the correspondent attorney who recorded each assignment, since shell-LLC chains often share one repeat-player attorney even when the entity names look unrelated. Surfaces NPE / patent-troll patterns: shell-entity transfers, known asserters in the chain, repeat correspondent fingerprints, pre-litigation assignments, and bankruptcy fire-sales.

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Inventors

The named inventors are Pradip Kulkarni, Mukul Kumar, Adhir Potdar, Richard Au, and Tung Nguyen. At the time of the patent application's filing (February 21, 2007), these inventors appear to have been associated with Panta Systems, Inc., as evidenced by their assignment of interest to Panta Systems, Inc. on the same date. There is no information to suggest an unusual pattern of inventors departing the original assignee within 12 months of filing.

Original assignee

The entity named as the Original Assignee on the issued patent US8332844B1 is Emendable Assets LLC. Emendable Assets LLC appears to primarily function as a patent holding and licensing entity, rather than an operating company that ships products embodying the claims. The technology itself, focusing on block-level storage virtualization and distributed application management, aligns with the work of Panta Systems, Inc., to whom the inventors initially assigned their interest. Emendable Assets LLC's current status is likely dissolved or acquired, as it later merged into Xenogenic Development Limited Liability Company in 2016.

Assignment timeline

The full assignment record for US8332844 is as follows:

  • 2007-02-21 (executed) / recorded 2007-02-22 — Reel 019280/0948

    • Conveyance: Assignment
    • Assignor: KULKARNI, PRADIP; KUMAR, MUKUL; POTDAR, ADHIR; AU, RICHARD; NGUYEN, TUNG (Inventors)
    • Assignee: PANTA SYSTEMS, INC.
    • Correspondent: CHARLES C. H. WU, FREMONT, CA.
    • Context: Transfer of inventor's rights to their likely employer, Panta Systems, Inc.

  • 2012-06-05 (executed) / recorded 2012-06-08 — Reel 028247/0827

    • Conveyance: Affidavit of Foreclosure and Assignment
    • Assignor: PANTA SYSTEMS, INC.
    • Assignee: VENTURE LENDING & LEASING IV, INC.
    • Correspondent: REID AND PRIEST LLP, NEW YORK, NY. This correspondent recurs in this chain.
    • Context: Transfer of assets due to foreclosure, indicating financial distress of Panta Systems, Inc.

  • 2012-06-05 (executed) / recorded 2012-06-08 — Reel 028247/0833

    • Conveyance: Assignment
    • Assignor: VENTURE LENDING & LEASING IV, INC.
    • Assignee: EMENDABLE ASSETS LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY
    • Correspondent: REID AND PRIEST LLP, NEW YORK, NY. This correspondent recurs in this chain.
    • Context: Immediate transfer from the foreclosing entity to a patent holding company, Emendable Assets LLC.

  • 2016-01-22 (executed) / recorded 2016-01-22 — Reel 036814/0993

    • Conveyance: Merger
    • Assignor: EMENDABLE ASSETS LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY
    • Assignee: XENOGENIC DEVELOPMENT LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY
    • Correspondent: PRISM LEGAL, PLLC, ATTN: ASSIGNMENT DEPT., WASHINGTON, DC.
    • Context: Internal reorganization or asset transfer between related patent holding entities.

  • 2023-11-06 (executed) / recorded 2023-11-08 — Reel 065586/0929

    • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignors Interest
    • Assignor: XENOGENIC DEVELOPMENT LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY
    • Assignee: INTELLECTUAL VENTURES II LLC
    • Correspondent: ROBERT E. NAIL, DALLAS, TX.
    • Context: Transfer of patent rights to a known patent assertion entity.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 8332844
    2007 : Assigned to Panta Systems
         : Application filed by Emendable Assets
    2012 : Panta Systems to Venture Lending IV via foreclosure
         : Venture Lending IV to Emendable Assets
    2012 : Patent Issued
    2016 : Emendable Assets merged to Xenogenic Development
    2023 : Assigned to Intellectual Ventures II

NPE / troll-pattern signals

  1. Shell-entity transfer — Present. The patent has been transferred to multiple entities that appear to be licensing-only LLCs, including Emendable Assets LLC, Xenogenic Development Limited Liability Company, and Intellectual Ventures II LLC. The transfer from Venture Lending & Leasing IV, Inc. to Emendable Assets Limited Liability Company on 2012-06-05 (Reel 028247/0833) and the subsequent merger into Xenogenic Development Limited Liability Company on 2016-01-22 (Reel 036814/0993) are examples of such transfers.
  2. Known asserter in the chain — Present. Intellectual Ventures II LLC, the current assignee, is a well-known patent assertion entity. This transfer was executed on 2023-11-06 (Reel 065586/0929).
  3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Present. REID AND PRIEST LLP, NEW YORK, NY, served as the correspondent for two consecutive assignments on the same execution date (2012-06-05) and recording date (2012-06-08): Panta Systems, Inc. to Venture Lending & Leasing IV, Inc. (Reel 028247/0827) and Venture Lending & Leasing IV, Inc. to Emendable Assets Limited Liability Company (Reel 028247/0833).
  4. Cascading transfers — Present. There were two consecutive assignments executed on the same day (2012-06-05) and recorded on the same day (2012-06-08): Panta Systems, Inc. to Venture Lending & Leasing IV, Inc., and then immediately to Emendable Assets Limited Liability Company (Reel 028247/0827, 028247/0833). These transfers also shared the same correspondent, REID AND PRIEST LLP.
  5. Pre-litigation transfer — Not present. The earliest reported litigation involving this patent, case 2:23-cv-00523, was filed on October 18, 2023. The assignment to Intellectual Ventures II LLC was executed on November 6, 2023 (Reel 065586/0929), meaning this specific transfer occurred after the first reported infringement suit.
  6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Present. The assignment from Panta Systems, Inc. to Venture Lending & Leasing IV, Inc., executed on 2012-06-05 (Reel 028247/0827), is explicitly documented as an "Affidavit of Foreclosure and Assignment," indicating the patent was transferred as part of a distressed asset sale.
  7. Privateering — Unclear. While Panta Systems, Inc. was an operating company that developed related technology, there is no direct evidence to suggest they specifically transferred the patent to an NPE to assert on their behalf against competitors.
  8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The current assignee is Intellectual Ventures II LLC, a known NPE, not a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

This verdict is supported by several strong signals. The patent chain includes multiple transfers to shell entities (Emendable Assets LLC, Xenogenic Development Limited Liability Company) and ultimately to a known patent assertion entity, Intellectual Ventures II LLC (Reel 065586/0929, 2023-11-06). The presence of cascading transfers with the same correspondent (Reel 028247/0827 and 028247/0833, 2012-06-05) and a bankruptcy fire-sale of the originating operating company (Reel 028247/0827, 2012-06-05) further indicate a trajectory consistent with patent assertion.

For verification, refer to the USPTO Assignment Center search page for US8332844.

Generated 5/31/2026, 12:47:59 PM