Assignment history

Inventors

• Simon Burgess: Employer at time of filing is not explicitly stated in the provided patent text, but the initial assignment of interest on the filing date indicates the invention was assigned to Ironburg Inventions Ltd.. It is therefore highly probable he was an employee or founder of Ironburg Inventions Ltd.
• Duncan Ironmonger: Employer at time of filing is not explicitly stated in the provided patent text, but the initial assignment of interest on the filing date indicates the invention was assigned to Ironburg Inventions Ltd.. It is therefore highly probable he was an employee or founder of Ironburg Inventions Ltd.

There is no indication of all inventors departing the original assignee within 12 months of filing.

Original assignee

The entity named on the issued patent is Ironburg Inventions Ltd.

The provided text does not explicitly state that Ironburg Inventions Ltd. ships a product embodying the claims. However, the patent is for a "Controller for video game console," suggesting a business related to gaming peripherals. Their primary line of business, based on the patent's subject matter and their extensive litigation activity detailed in the "Litigation summary," appears to be the development, ownership, and assertion of intellectual property related to video game controllers. The company's current status is "Active" as per the Google Patents legal status, and they are actively asserting their patents through litigation.

Assignment timeline

The correspondent information for these assignments is not explicitly recorded in the provided patent text or its "Legal Events" section. To obtain this information, a live search on the USPTO Assignment Center would be required. Therefore, the "Correspondent" field for each entry below will state "Not recorded in provided data."

• 2011-06-17 (executed) / recorded 2011-09-16 — Reel 026920/0844
  • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignors Interest
  • Assignor: Simon Burgess, Duncan Ironmonger
  • Assignee: Ironburg Innovations Ltd.
  • Correspondent: Not recorded in provided data.
  • Context: Initial transfer of patent rights from the inventors to a corporate entity, likely the original assignee.
• 2011-06-17 (executed) / recorded 2011-09-19 — Reel 026924/0632
  • Conveyance: Corrective Assignment
  • Assignor: Simon Burgess, Duncan Ironmonger
  • Assignee: Ironburg Inventions Ltd.
  • Correspondent: Not recorded in provided data.
  • Context: Correction of a previous assignment to accurately reflect the assignee's legal name.
• 2014-07-31 (executed) / recorded 2014-08-15 — Reel 033546/0714
  • Conveyance: Security Interest
  • Assignor: Ironburg Inventions Limited
  • Assignee: Chatham Capital Management IV, LLC
  • Correspondent: Not recorded in provided data.
  • Context: Establishment of a security interest, typically when the patent is used as collateral for a loan or financing.
• 2016-12-07 (executed) / recorded 2016-12-09 — Reel 040702/0714
  • Conveyance: Release by Secured Party
  • Assignor: Chatham Capital Management IV, LLC
  • Assignee: Ironburg Inventions Limited
  • Correspondent: Not recorded in provided data.
  • Context: Release of the security interest, indicating that the financial obligation to Chatham Capital Management IV, LLC was satisfied.
• 2016-12-07 (executed) / recorded 2016-12-09 — Reel 040878/0527
  • Conveyance: Security Interest
  • Assignor: Ironburg Inventions Limited
  • Assignee: Triangle Capital Corporation
  • Correspondent: Not recorded in provided data.
  • Context: Establishment of a new security interest with Triangle Capital Corporation, again likely for financing.
• 2016-12-07 (executed) / recorded 2016-12-12 — Reel 040884/0057
  • Conveyance: Security Interest
  • Assignor: Ironburg Inventions Limited
  • Assignee: Triangle Capital Corporation, As Agent
  • Correspondent: Not recorded in provided data.
  • Context: A subsequent recording related to the security interest with Triangle Capital Corporation, potentially clarifying the agent role.
• 2019-12-19 (executed) / recorded 2020-01-13 — Reel 051569/0397
  • Conveyance: Release by Secured Party
  • Assignor: BSP Agency LLC
  • Assignee: Ironburg Inventions Limited
  • Correspondent: Not recorded in provided data.
  • Context: Release of a security interest, indicating the associated financial obligation was fulfilled.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 8641525
    2011 : Filed & Assigned to Ironburg Innovations
         : Corrective Assignment to Ironburg Inventions
    2014 : Security Interest to Chatham Capital
    2015 : First infringement suit filed
    2016 : Chatham Security Interest released
         : Security Interest to Triangle Capital
         : Security Interest to Triangle Capital Agent
    2020 : BSP Agency Security Interest released

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer: Not present. The ownership of the patent primarily remains with Ironburg Inventions Ltd. throughout the observed chain, with other entities only holding security interests. There is no evidence of direct ownership transfer to a shell entity for licensing purposes.
2. Known asserter in the chain: Present. Ironburg Inventions Ltd. is the current and primary owner of the patent. The "Litigation summary" explicitly details that Ironburg Inventions Ltd. has initiated and pursued extensive litigation against multiple defendants, including Valve Corporation and Collective Minds Gaming Co. Ltd., for infringement of US Patent 8,641,525. [cite: previously generated "Litigation summary"] This demonstrates a clear pattern of patent assertion.
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain: Unclear. Correspondent information is not available from the provided text, which is necessary to identify this pattern.
4. Cascading transfers: Not present. The timeline shows transfers related to security interests, but not a series of consecutive ownership transfers through multiple chained LLCs, particularly for monetization purposes.
5. Pre-litigation transfer: Not present. The first infringement suit was filed on December 3, 2015 [cite: previously generated "Litigation summary"]. The last ownership transfer (the corrective assignment to Ironburg Inventions Ltd.) occurred on September 19, 2011, well over six months before the litigation commenced.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale: Not present. There is no indication in the provided information that Ironburg Inventions Ltd. has filed for bankruptcy, nor that the patent was sold as part of bankruptcy proceedings.
7. Privateering: Unclear. While Ironburg Inventions Ltd. is asserting the patent, the provided information does not contain details about whether an operating company transferred the patent to Ironburg to assert on its behalf against competitors.
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE): Not present. The patent remains with an active asserting entity (Ironburg Inventions Ltd.), and there is no transfer to a known defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

The verdict is high confidence because Ironburg Inventions Ltd., the consistent assignee and patent owner throughout the chain, is explicitly identified in the "Litigation summary" as a plaintiff in multiple, extensive patent infringement lawsuits involving US Patent 8,641,525 against companies like Valve Corporation and Collective Minds Gaming Co. Ltd. [cite: previously generated "Litigation summary"]. This aggressive and sustained assertion activity is a definitive characteristic of a patent assertion entity (NPE). Additionally, the repeated engagement in security interest agreements further suggests a monetization strategy for their patent portfolio.

For verification, refer to the USPTO Assignment Center search for US Patent 8,641,525: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/