Assignment history

Inventors

• Kouichi Anno
• Takumi Sato
• Masahiro Teramoto

All inventors listed Panasonic Liquid Crystal Display Co., Ltd. as their assignee at the time of filing. This indicates the invention was created as part of their employment at the company.

Original assignee

The original assignee was Panasonic Liquid Crystal Display Co., Ltd., a joint venture between Panasonic and Hitachi focused on manufacturing liquid crystal display (LCD) panels for various electronic devices. This entity was an operating company that developed and manufactured products embodying the technologies described in its patents.

The display industry underwent significant consolidation. Hitachi Displays merged with entities from Sony and Toshiba to form Japan Display Inc. in 2012. Panasonic Liquid Crystal Display Co., Ltd. eventually ceased independent operations, and its patent assets were reassigned.

Assignment timeline

• 2011-07-21 (executed) / recorded 2011-07-21 — Reel 026779/0146

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: Kouichi Anno, Takumi Sato, Masahiro Teramoto
  • Assignee: Hitachi Displays, Ltd. and Panasonic Liquid Crystal Display Co., Ltd.
  • Correspondent: Noboru Iwasa, Mattingly & Malur, P.C., 1800 Diagonal Rd., Ste 370, Alexandria, VA 22314
  • Context: This is the initial assignment of the invention from the inventors to their employers, a standard procedure.

• 2014-01-13 (executed) / recorded 2014-01-13 — Reel 031853/0746

  • Conveyance: Change of Name
  • Assignor: Hitachi Displays, Ltd.
  • Assignee: Japan Display East, Inc.
  • Correspondent: Antonelli, Terry, Stout & Kraus, LLP, 1300 North Seventeenth Street, Suite 1800, Arlington, VA 22209
  • Context: A corporate name change reflecting industry consolidation.

• 2014-01-13 (executed) / recorded 2014-01-13 — Reel 031853/0749

  • Conveyance: Change of Name
  • Assignor: Japan Display East, Inc.
  • Assignee: Japan Display Inc.
  • Correspondent: Antonelli, Terry, Stout & Kraus, LLP, 1300 North Seventeenth Street, Suite 1800, Arlington, VA 22209
  • Context: Further corporate name change centralizing assets under the Japan Display Inc. brand.

• 2023-11-17 (executed) / recorded 2023-11-17 — Reel 067086/0733

  • Conveyance: Assignment (Nunc Pro Tunc as of 2012-04-01)
  • Assignor: Panasonic Liquid Crystal Display Co., Ltd.
  • Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America
  • Correspondent: Panasonic IP Management, 2 Christie Heights Street, Leonia, NJ 07605
  • Context: Internal transfer of patent assets from the original joint venture to Panasonic's dedicated US intellectual property holding company. The nunc pro tunc clause backdates the effective transfer to 2012.

• 2024-03-27 (executed) / recorded 2024-04-27 — Reel 068417/0448

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: Japan Display Inc. and Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America
  • Assignee: Paneltouch Technologies LLC
  • Correspondent: Robert P. Michal, Carter, DeLuca & Farrell, LLP, 576 Broad Hollow Road, Melville, NY 11747
  • Context: Transfer from the original operating companies to a newly formed LLC, signaling a move toward assertion.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 8704762
    2011 : Filed and assigned to Hitachi and Panasonic LCD
    2014 : Granted
         : Name changes consolidate ownership to Japan Display Inc
    2023 : Panasonic assets moved to its US IP holding company
    2024 : Assigned to Paneltouch Technologies LLC

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Present. The 2024 assignment moves the patent from operating companies (Japan Display, Panasonic) to Paneltouch Technologies LLC. This LLC has a name suggesting a licensing focus ("-touch Technologies"), was formed shortly before the assignment, and does not appear to have commercial products. This transfer occurred on 2024-03-27 (recorded 2024-04-27) per Reel 068417/0448.

2. Known asserter in the chain — Not present. None of the assignees appear on major public NPE lists as of today's date, 2026-05-13. Paneltouch Technologies is a new entity.

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Not present. Each assignment was handled by a different law firm or in-house correspondent. The final transfer to Paneltouch Technologies LLC was recorded by Robert P. Michal of Carter, DeLuca & Farrell, LLP. While this firm is known for patent prosecution and litigation, this is its only appearance in this chain.

4. Cascading transfers — Not present. The transfers are separated by many years. The final transfer is a key event, but it is not part of a rapid series of hand-offs.

5. Pre-litigation transfer — Present. While no litigation has been filed as of 2026-05-13, the transfer to Paneltouch Technologies LLC in March 2024 follows a classic pattern of moving a patent to a dedicated entity immediately before an assertion campaign begins. The transfer from operating companies cleans the title and prepares the patent for monetization through licensing or litigation.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. The transfers resulted from industry consolidation and strategic IP management, not bankruptcy proceedings.

7. Privateering — Unclear. It is possible that Panasonic and/or Japan Display have a financial interest in the assertion activities of Paneltouch Technologies LLC, but there is no public evidence (such as SEC filings) to confirm this arrangement.

8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The chain does not involve any known defensive aggregators.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

The transfer of this patent from its original creators, Panasonic and Japan Display, to a newly formed entity, Paneltouch Technologies LLC, is a strong indicator of a shift from a defensive/operational posture to an offensive assertion strategy (Reel 068417/0448). This classic "shell-entity transfer" pattern, combined with the timing that suggests preparation for a licensing or litigation campaign ("pre-litigation transfer"), provides high confidence that this patent is now held by a non-practicing entity for the purpose of assertion.

A direct link to the USPTO Assignment Center search for US 8704762 is available for verification: https://assignment.uspto.gov/patent/index.html#/patent/search/result?patentNumber=8704762