Assignment history

Inventors

• Michael Halverson: No employer at the time of filing is determinable from the provided patent text.
• Richard E. Knecht: No employer at the time of filing is determinable from the provided patent text, though the original assignee, RICHARD E KNECHT A PROFESSIONAL Corp, shares his name, suggesting he was the principal or closely associated with that entity.

Original Assignee

The original assignee on the issued patent is RICHARD E KNECHT A PROFESSIONAL Corp.

Based on its name, this entity appears to be a professional corporation, likely a law firm or a professional service entity associated with Richard E. Knecht. It is highly improbable that they shipped a product embodying the claims of an "interactive wireless life safety communications system" as their primary line of business would be legal or professional services. Their current operating status is not determinable from the provided information, as the patent's ownership has subsequently transferred.

Assignment Timeline

The following assignment records are extracted from the "Legal status" section of the Google Patents page, which draws information from USPTO data. Correspondent information was not explicitly recorded in the provided patent text for any of these entries.

• 2015-07-02 (executed) / recorded 2015-07-02
  • Conveyance: NUNC PRO TUNC ASSIGNMENT
  • Assignor: RICHARD E. KNECHT A PROFESSIONAL CORPORATION
  • Assignee: HALVERSON, MICHAEL, RICHARD E. KNECHT A PROFESSIONAL CORPORATION
  • Correspondent: Not recorded in the provided patent text.
  • Context: Internal transfer to clarify ownership, adding Michael Halverson as an individual owner alongside the original corporate entity.
• 2016-07-21 (executed) / recorded 2016-07-21
  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST
  • Assignor: RICHARD E. KNECHT A PROFESSIONAL CORPORATION
  • Assignee: KNECHT, RICHARD E.
  • Correspondent: Not recorded in the provided patent text.
  • Context: Transfer of interest from the original corporate assignee to Richard E. Knecht as an individual owner.
• 2018-02-16 (executed) / recorded 2018-02-16
  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST
  • Assignor: HALVERSON, MICHAEL, KNECHT, RICHARD E, RICHARD E KNECHT APC
  • Assignee: MAZURA LAW FIRM
  • Correspondent: Not recorded in the provided patent text.
  • Context: Transfer of interest from the inventors and the original corporate entity to a law firm.
• 2018-07-06 (executed) / recorded 2018-07-06 — Reel 044952/0864
  • Conveyance: CORRECTIVE ASSIGNMENT (to correct receiving party data)
  • Assignor: HALVERSON, MICHAEL, KNECHT, RICHARD E, RICHARD E KNECHT APC
  • Assignee: RICMIC LLC
  • Correspondent: Not recorded in the provided patent text.
  • Context: Corrective transfer from the inventors and the original corporate entity to Ricmic LLC.
• 2024-05-08 (executed) / recorded 2024-05-08
  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST
  • Assignor: HALVERSON, MICHAEL P, MR., KNECHT, RICHARD E, RICHARD E. KNECHT A PROF. CORP.
  • Assignee: RICMIC LLC
  • Correspondent: Not recorded in the provided patent text.
  • Context: Further transfer of interest from the inventors and original corporate entity to Ricmic LLC, potentially confirming previous assignments.
• 2024-05-08 (executed) / recorded 2024-05-08
  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST
  • Assignor: RICMIC LLC
  • Assignee: RICMIC LLC
  • Correspondent: Not recorded in the provided patent text.
  • Context: Internal transfer within Ricmic LLC, likely a reorganization or clarification of internal ownership.

Timeline Diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 9305450
    2014 : Filed by R E Knecht A Professional Corp
    2015 : Assigned to Halverson & Knecht entities
    2016 : Issued
         : Assigned to Richard E Knecht
    2018 : Assigned to Mazura Law Firm
         : Assigned to Ricmic LLC (Corrective)
    2024 : Assigned to Ricmic LLC
         : Assigned within Ricmic LLC

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Present. The patent was transferred to MAZURA LAW FIRM on 2018-02-16, a law firm not known to produce products embodying the claims. Subsequently, it was transferred to RICMIC LLC on 2018-07-06, a limited liability company whose name and associated litigation activity (detailed below) are consistent with a licensing or assertion-focused entity rather than an operating company.
2. Known asserter in the chain — Present. While RICMIC LLC is not explicitly named on the provided list of "known asserters," the Google Patents page for US9305450 lists multiple infringement lawsuits associated with the patent family, including cases filed in 2017, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2024, and 2025 across various US District Courts. This extensive litigation history confirms that the current assignee, Ricmic LLC, is actively asserting the patent.
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Unclear. The provided patent text from Google Patents does not include correspondent information for any of the recorded assignments.
4. Cascading transfers — Present. The patent was assigned to MAZURA LAW FIRM on 2018-02-16, followed by a transfer to RICMIC LLC on 2018-07-06, both occurring within a five-month period. Additionally, two assignments to RICMIC LLC were recorded on the same day, 2024-05-08, further indicating a rapid series of transfers or internal restructuring.
5. Pre-litigation transfer — Not present. The earliest listed litigation for the patent family is an "US case filed in California Central District Court/case/8:17-cv-02011", suggesting a filing date in 2017. The first post-issuance assignments (to MAZURA LAW FIRM on 2018-02-16 and to RICMIC LLC on 2018-07-06) occurred after this initial litigation was filed. While later assignments in 2024 occur before future cases in 2025, the signal specifically refers to the first infringement suit.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. There is no indication from the provided patent text that any assignor declared bankruptcy.
7. Privateering — Unclear. No information is available to suggest that an operating company transferred the patent to an NPE to assert on its behalf.
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The current assignee, RICMIC LLC, is actively asserting the patent, which is contrary to the function of a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

This verdict is justified by several strong signals. The patent was transferred to MAZURA LAW FIRM (a law firm) on 2018-02-16, an unusual move suggesting an intent for assertion rather than product development. This was followed by a cascading transfer to RICMIC LLC on 2018-07-06. RICMIC LLC's role as an asserter is strongly indicated by the extensive litigation history associated with US9305450, with cases filed in various federal district courts from 2017 through 2025.

For verification, see the Google Patents page for US9305450: https://patents.google.com/patent/US9305450/en and the USPTO Patent Assignment Search: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/.