Patent 8842454

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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Ownership chain (6)

Asserters network →

Structured records extracted from the assignment-history narrative below. Each entity links to its full ownership-network profile.

  1. 2011-03-25 · reel 026135/0508 · Assignment

    KREIN, PHILIP; CHAPMAN, PATRICK L.; GRAY, ALEXANDER; JOHNSON, BRIANSOLARBRIDGE TECHNOLOGIES, INC.

    Correspondent: Jeffrey C. Handley · Patent Law Group

    Transfer of inventors' interest to original assignee

  2. 2014-09-02 · reel 032227/0268 · Security Interest

    SOLARBRIDGE TECHNOLOGIES, INC.SILICON VALLEY BANK

    Correspondent: Gregory P. Brown · Baker & McKenzie

    Securitization of assets by a bank

  3. 2014-12-19 · reel 032646/0001 · Assignment of Assignor's Interest

    SOLARBRIDGE TECHNOLOGIES, INC.SUNPOWER CORPORATION

    Correspondent: Scott B. MacDonald · Law Office of Scott B. MacDonald

    Acquisition

  4. 2014-12-19 · reel 032646/0010 · Release by Secured Party

    SILICON VALLEY BANKSOLARBRIDGE TECHNOLOGIES, INC.

    Correspondent: Jeffrey P. Kushan · Sidley Austin

    Release of security interest due to acquisition

  5. 2018-09-10 · reel 044031/0950 · Assignment of Assignors Interest

    SUNPOWER CORPORATIONENPHASE ENERGY, INC.

    Correspondent: Matthew N. Bernstein · Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton

    Transfer of assets from SunPower to Enphase Energy

  6. 2026-04-21 · reel 060595/0306 · Assignment of Assignor's Interest

    POWERBRIDGE NETWORKS, LLCGRIDSCALE SOLUTIONS, LLC

    Correspondent: Jason B. Komorsky · Carstens & Cahoon

    shell-entity transfer

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.

✓ Generated

Inventors

  • Brian Johnson: Employer at time of filing unknown.
  • Philip Krein: Employer at time of filing unknown.
  • Alexander Gray: Employer at time of filing unknown.
  • Patrick L. Chapman: Employer at time of filing unknown.

It is difficult to determine the inventors' employers at the time of filing from the provided patent text. The original assignee is Solarbridge Technologies Inc.

Original assignee

Solarbridge Technologies Inc. was the original assignee named on the issued patent.

Based on available information, Solarbridge Technologies Inc. developed microinverters for solar panels. They did ship products embodying the claims, specifically microinverters designed for photovoltaic applications. Solarbridge Technologies Inc. was acquired by SunPower Corporation in 2014.

Assignment timeline

  • 2011-03-25 (executed) / recorded 2011-03-25 — Reel 026135/0508
    • Conveyance: Assignment
    • Assignor: KREIN, PHILIP; CHAPMAN, PATRICK L.; GRAY, ALEXANDER; JOHNSON, BRIAN
    • Assignee: SolarBridge Technologies
    • Correspondent: Jeffrey C. Handley, Patent Law Group LLP, 2800 Bridgepark Dr, Suite 100, Redwood City, CA, 94065-1133
    • Context: Transfer of inventors' interest to original assignee
  • 2014-09-02 (executed) / recorded 2014-09-02 — Reel 032227/0268
    • Conveyance: Security Interest
    • Assignor: SOLARBRIDGE TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
    • Assignee: SILICON VALLEY BANK
    • Correspondent: Gregory P. Brown, Baker & McKenzie LLP, 2 Embarcadero Center, 24th Floor, San Francisco, CA, 94111
    • Context: Securitization of assets by a bank
  • 2014-12-19 (executed) / recorded 2014-12-19 — Reel 032646/0001
    • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignor's Interest
    • Assignor: SOLARBRIDGE TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
    • Assignee: SUNPOWER CORPORATION
    • Correspondent: Scott B. MacDonald, Law Office of Scott B. MacDonald, 1500 Hamilton Ave., Suite 201, San Jose, CA, 95125
    • Context: Acquisition of Solarbridge Technologies, Inc. by SunPower Corporation
  • 2014-12-19 (executed) / recorded 2014-12-19 — Reel 032646/0010
    • Conveyance: Release by Secured Party
    • Assignor: SILICON VALLEY BANK
    • Assignee: SOLARBRIDGE TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
    • Correspondent: Jeffrey P. Kushan, Sidley Austin LLP, 1501 K Street N.W., Washington, DC, 20005
    • Context: Release of security interest due to acquisition
  • 2018-09-10 (executed) / recorded 2018-09-10 — Reel 044031/0950
    • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignors Interest
    • Assignor: SUNPOWER CORPORATION
    • Assignee: ENPHASE ENERGY, INC.
    • Correspondent: Matthew N. Bernstein, Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP, 379 Lytton Ave., Palo Alto, CA, 94301
    • Context: Transfer of assets from SunPower to Enphase Energy
  • 2026-04-21 (executed) / recorded 2026-04-21 — Reel 060595/0306
    • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignor's Interest
    • Assignor: POWERBRIDGE NETWORKS, LLC
    • Assignee: GRIDSCALE SOLUTIONS, LLC
    • Correspondent: Jason B. Komorsky, Carstens & Cahoon, LLP, P.O. Box 741639, Dallas, TX, 75374-1639. This correspondent has appeared on other tracked patents on this site.
    • Context: Transfer of patent ownership.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 8842454
    2011 : Inventors to SolarBridge Tech
    2014 : Security interest to SVB
         : SolarBridge to SunPower
         : SVB releases interest
    2018 : SunPower to Enphase Energy
    2026 : PowerBridge Networks to Gridscale Solutions

NPE / troll-pattern signals

  1. Shell-entity transfer — Present. The transfer from POWERBRIDGE NETWORKS, LLC to GRIDSCALE SOLUTIONS, LLC in 2026 (Reel 060595/0306) suggests a shell entity transfer. PowerBridge Networks, LLC, and Gridscale Solutions, LLC do not appear to be operating companies producing products embodying the claims, and the recurring correspondent further supports this.
  2. Known asserter in the chain — Unclear. While Enphase Energy Inc. and Sunpower Corporation are operating companies, the most recent assignee, GRIDSCALE SOLUTIONS, LLC, is not a publicly known operating company or a listed NPE at present. Further research would be needed to definitively confirm its status.
  3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Present. Jason B. Komorsky of Carstens & Cahoon, LLP is listed as the correspondent for the 2026-04-21 assignment to GRIDSCALE SOLUTIONS, LLC (Reel 060595/0306). This correspondent has been flagged as appearing on other tracked patents on this site.
  4. Cascading transfers — Not present. There are no multiple consecutive assignments through chained LLCs in a short period (<24 months) with shared correspondent addresses or attorneys. The transfers are spaced out over several years.
  5. Pre-litigation transfer — Unclear. Without litigation data, it's impossible to determine if the 2026 transfer to Gridscale Solutions, LLC is pre-litigation.
  6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. Solarbridge Technologies Inc. was acquired by SunPower Corporation, not sold in bankruptcy proceedings.
  7. Privateering — Unclear. There is no available information to suggest privateering.
  8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The chain does not terminate at a known defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — moderate confidence. The transfer to GRIDSCALE SOLUTIONS, LLC in 2026 (Reel 060595/0306), coupled with the presence of a known repeat correspondent (Jason B. Komorsky of Carstens & Cahoon, LLP) for this transfer, suggests an NPE pattern. However, without confirmed litigation data or more explicit information about Gridscale Solutions, LLC's business model, it remains at moderate confidence.

USPTO Assignment Center search: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/

Generated 5/24/2026, 6:45:36 PM