Extensions

The USPTO Patent Public Search tool can be used to search for patents and patent application publications. To search for a specific patent number like 9615204, the "Basic search" option can be used. When searching for patent numbers with six digits or less, leading zeros should be added to make a total of seven digits (e.g., 0123456). For patent 9615204, this would be entered as 09615204.

Based on a search of the USPTO database and related patent information, here's a detailed breakdown for US Patent 9615204:

Patent Term Adjustments (PTA)

Patent Term Adjustment (PTA) can add time to a patent's term to compensate for certain delays caused by the USPTO during the patent application prosecution process. These delays generally fall into categories such as:

• Issuing a first Office Action or notice of allowance more than 14 months after filing.
• Failing to act on an application within four months after an applicant's response.
• Failing to issue a patent within four months after payment of the issue fee.
• Failing to issue a patent within three years of the actual filing date of the application.

The "Application Filing Date" refers to the original filing date of the application. The USPTO calculates PTA at the time the patent issues and includes it in the Issue Notification Letter.

To determine the specific PTA for US9615204, direct access to the patent's file history in USPTO Patent Center would be required. However, the Google Patents information for US9615204B1 indicates an "Adjusted expiration" date of August 14, 2025. This "adjusted expiration" implies that some form of Patent Term Adjustment was applied, as the base 20-year term from the earliest priority date (April 4, 2005) would typically be April 4, 2025. The difference between these dates (August 14, 2025, vs. April 4, 2025) suggests approximately 4 months and 10 days of PTA were granted.

Patent Term Extensions (PTE)

Patent Term Extensions (PTE) are distinct from PTA and are typically granted for delays due to regulatory review processes, primarily for pharmaceutical products, medical devices, food additives, animal drugs, and veterinary biological products awaiting premarket government approval from agencies like the FDA.

The subject matter of US9615204B1, "Techniques for communication within closed groups of mobile devices," is not related to pharmaceutical products, medical devices, or other regulated products that would be eligible for PTE under 35 U.S.C. § 156. Therefore, it is highly unlikely that US9615204B1 would have received any Patent Term Extension.

Continuation Applications

A continuation application allows an applicant to pursue additional claims for an invention disclosed in an earlier "parent" patent application, while retaining the benefit of the earlier priority date. Such applications must be filed before the parent application issues or becomes abandoned.

US9615204B1 lists its application number as US14/805,472 and its filing date as July 22, 2015. It also indicates a priority to US14/805,472 (the same application) and US15/270,280. The reference to US15/270,280 [cite: patent/US9654921B1/en] suggests that US9615204B1 is part of a patent family and that US15/270,280 may be a related application (e.g., a continuation, divisional, or continuation-in-part) of an earlier application, or that US9615204B1 itself is a continuation. The provided Google Patents data also shows that US9615204B1 has a priority date of April 4, 2005. This means that the application US14/805,472, filed in 2015, claims priority back to an earlier application filed in 2005, making it a continuing application.

Divisional Applications

Divisional applications are a specific type of continuing application filed when an earlier application (the "parent") contains claims to more than one independent and distinct invention. The USPTO may require the applicant to elect one invention for prosecution, and the other non-elected inventions can be pursued in one or more divisional applications. No specific divisional applications directly referencing US9615204B1 are explicitly mentioned as "divisional" in the provided patent text. However, as part of a patent family, the existence of US15/270,280 (which led to US9654921B1) suggests potential divisional or continuation relationships within the family.

Related Family Members

The patent family for US9615204B1 includes at least US15/270,280, which led to US9654921B1. A patent family is a collection of patent documents that cover the same invention and have at least one common inventor. Patent families link patent iterations back to a priority date.

The provided Google Patents information explicitly lists:

• US14/805,472: This is the application number for US9615204B1 itself.
• US201514805472A: This appears to be the publication number for the application corresponding to US14/805,472.
• US15/270,280: Listed as a priority to US9654921B1 [cite: patent/US9654921B1/en]. This confirms at least one other patent family member, US9654921B1, which shares priority with or is a continuation/divisional of a related application to US9615204B1.

To get a comprehensive list of all related family members (continuations, divisionals, continuation-in-parts, and international equivalents), a detailed patent family search using tools like Patent Public Search's Global Dossier would be necessary.

Projected Expiration Date

For US utility patents filed on or after June 8, 1995, the term generally expires 20 years from the earliest filing date of the patent application, with any applicable Patent Term Adjustments (PTA) added to this period.

• Earliest Priority Date: April 4, 2005
• Base 20-year Term Expiration (without adjustments): April 4, 2025
• Adjusted Expiration Date (from Google Patents): August 14, 2025

Therefore, the projected expiration date for US9615204B1, taking into account the adjusted expiration date noted on Google Patents, is August 14, 2025. [cite: patent/US9615204B1/en] It is important to note that Google Patents currently lists the legal status as "Expired - Lifetime" with this adjusted expiration date. [cite: patent/US9615204B1/en]