Assignment history

Inventors

• Yorito NAGASAKA (NEC Corp)

Original assignee

The original assignee of US patent 9629265 is NEC Corporation. NEC Corporation is a major Japanese multinational information technology corporation that produces telecommunications equipment and related software and services, including IT and network services, cloud computing, AI, IoT platforms, and servers, supercomputers, and software. They have historically been involved in system integration, network construction, operation, and maintenance. NEC Corporation is currently operating. The patent describes a cooling structure for an electronic device such as a server, host computer, or industrial computer which aligns with NEC's product offerings.

Assignment timeline

• 2013-06-04 (executed) / recorded 2013-06-04 — Reel 030542/0800

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: NAGASAKA, YORITO
  • Assignee: NEC CORPORATION
  • Correspondent: Not specified in the provided text.
  • Context: Inventor assigned rights to their employer.

• 2023-04-14 (executed) / recorded 2023-04-17 — Reel 063349/0459

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: NEC CORPORATION
  • Assignee: NEC ASIA PACIFIC PTE LTD., SINGAPORE
  • Correspondent: Not specified in the provided text.
  • Context: Internal reorg, transfer to a regional subsidiary.

• 2024-01-18 (executed) / recorded 2024-01-27 — Reel 066376/0276

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: NEC ASIA PACIFIC PTE LTD.
  • Assignee: IP WAVE PTE LTD., SINGAPORE
  • Correspondent: Not specified in the provided text.
  • Context: Transfer of patent.

• 2024-03-05 (executed) / recorded 2024-06-27 — Reel 067944/0332

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: IP WAVE PTE LTD.
  • Assignee: CLOUD BYTE LLC., DELAWARE
  • Correspondent: Not specified in the provided text.
  • Context: Transfer of patent.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 9629265
    2013 : Assigned by inventor to NEC Corp
    2023 : Assigned to NEC Asia Pacific
    2024 : Assigned to IP WAVE PTE LTD
         : Assigned to Cloud Byte LLC

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — present.

   • IP WAVE PTE LTD.: This entity is registered in Singapore and its principal activity is listed as "brokerage and consultancy services of intellectual property assets". Its address is 3 Phillip Street, #17-01, Royal Group Building, Singapore 048693. This suggests a focus on IP monetization rather than product development.
   • CLOUD BYTE LLC: Cloud Byte LLC is a Delaware-formed entity that "acquires, manages and licenses patents in the field of information and communications technology". Its address is 488 Madison Avenue, Suite 1120, New York, New York 10022, which is a common location for shell entities and patent licensing firms. Another CloudByte Grid LLC, with a very similar name and patent-related activities, is registered at 212 N. 2nd Street, STE 100, Richmond, KY 40475.
   • Reel 066376/0276 (2024-01-18) and Reel 067944/0332 (2024-03-05).

2. Known asserter in the chain — present.

   • Cloud Byte LLC has been identified as a new Delaware plaintiff by RPX, reporting its acquisition of nearly 200 patent assets and subsequent litigation against Dell. Unified Patents also lists the IPR against US9629265 as being petitioned by "Dell Technologies, Inc., and Dell, Inc.", in a case with Cloud Byte LLC. RPX also reports Cloud Byte LLC suing Dell for infringing seven patents, including this one, over a broad array of products. Cloud Byte LLC also filed suit against Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company.
   • Reel 067944/0332 (2024-03-05).

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — unclear. Correspondent information was not provided in the given text for any of the assignments.

4. Cascading transfers — present. The patent was transferred from NEC Asia Pacific Pte Ltd. to IP WAVE PTE LTD. in January 2024 (Reel 066376/0276), and then from IP WAVE PTE LTD. to Cloud Byte LLC in March 2024 (Reel 067944/0332). These transfers occurred within a period of less than 24 months, specifically two months apart.

5. Pre-litigation transfer — present. The assignment to Cloud Byte LLC was executed on March 5, 2024 (Reel 067944/0332). Cloud Byte LLC filed a district court case against Dell (2:24-cv-00637) on August 5, 2024. This is within 6 months of the transfer.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — not present. NEC Corporation is an active, large multinational corporation. There is no indication of bankruptcy in the assignment chain.

7. Privateering — unclear. While the patent was transferred from an operating company (NEC) to entities with characteristics of NPEs, there is no direct evidence in the provided text (such as SEC filings or specific reporting) confirming that NEC is funding or directing Cloud Byte LLC's assertion activities.

8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — not present. The chain ends with Cloud Byte LLC, which is asserting the patent.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

The assignment chain for US9629265 exhibits strong signals of patent assertion entity (NPE) behavior. The patent moved from an operating company (NEC Corporation) to two entities, IP WAVE PTE LTD. and Cloud Byte LLC, that both demonstrate characteristics of shell entities with a focus on intellectual property monetization. Specifically, the rapid cascading transfers within months (January and March 2024) directly precede infringement litigation filed by Cloud Byte LLC against Dell in August 2024.

USPTO Assignment Center search page for verification: https://assignment.uspto.gov/patent/index.html (Search by patent number US9629265).