Assignment history

Inventors

• Hsin-Tai Wu (Employer: THROUGHTEK TECHNOLOGY (SHENZHEN) Co Ltd and THROUGHTEK CO Ltd at the time of filing)

Original assignee

The patent lists two original assignees: THROUGHTEK TECHNOLOGY (SHENZHEN) Co Ltd and THROUGHTEK CO Ltd.

• THROUGHTEK CO Ltd: This is a publicly held Taiwan-based company. Their primary line of business involves network monitoring device-related software and firmware development services, IoT cloud connection platform software solutions, cloud services, cloud platform licensing, and smart home networking products. They ship products embodying the claims, specifically offering an IoT platform called the "Kalay Platform" which leverages P2P technology for video streaming, real-time data analytics, device management, and smart home solutions like IP cameras, baby monitors, and pet cameras. As of May 2026, THROUGHTEK CO Ltd is an operating and active company.
• THROUGHTEK TECHNOLOGY (SHENZHEN) Co Ltd: While also listed as an original assignee, one source indicates that "ThroughTek is a deadpooled company based in Shenzhen (China), founded in 2008" as of April 2026. Other sources primarily focus on the active Taiwan entity. Given the provided information, it appears the Taiwan entity (THROUGHTEK CO Ltd) is the active operating entity responsible for products embodying the claims.

Assignment timeline

The provided patent text explicitly details one assignment record for US9727655. Due to limitations in performing live web searches, I cannot access the USPTO Assignment Center to check for any further assignments beyond the initial record provided. Therefore, the following timeline is based solely on the information present within the patent document itself.

• 2014-09-29 (executed) / recorded 2015-02-06 — Reel 034917/0196
  • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignors Interest
  • Assignor: WU, HSIN-TAI
  • Assignee: THROUGHTEK CO., LTD., THROUGHTEK TECHNOLOGY (SHENZHEN) CO., LTD.
  • Correspondent: Not specified in the provided text.
  • Context: Transfer from inventor to original assignee companies.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 9727655
    2014 : Executed by Hsin-Tai Wu
    2015 : Assigned to ThroughTek entities
    2017 : Patent Issued
    2024 : US litigation filed
    2025 : PTAB IPR filed

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Not present. The only recorded assignment is from the inventor to the original assignee companies, one of which is a known operating company with products embodying the claims.
2. Known asserter in the chain — Not present. The assignees, THROUGHTEK CO., LTD. and THROUGHTEK TECHNOLOGY (SHENZHEN) CO., LTD., are not identified as known NPEs in public lists based on the provided information. However, it's worth noting that Unified Patents is the petitioner in the IPR case (IPR2025-01327), indicating an interest in challenging the patent.
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Unclear. The correspondent information for the initial assignment (Reel 034917/0196) is not provided in the patent text. Without access to the full USPTO Assignment Center records, it's impossible to determine if a correspondent recurs or is associated with known NPE activity.
4. Cascading transfers — Not present. Only one assignment from the inventor to the initial assignees is recorded.
5. Pre-litigation transfer — Unclear. The patent itself notes a US case filed in Delaware District Court (1:24-cv-01027) and a PTAB case (IPR2025-01327) against the patent. However, no assignment dated within 6 months before these litigation events is available in the provided data. Without full assignment records, this cannot be definitively assessed.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. While there is an indication that THROUGHTEK TECHNOLOGY (SHENZHEN) Co Ltd might be "deadpooled", there's no evidence of a bankruptcy fire-sale of the patent. THROUGHTEK CO Ltd (Taiwan) remains active.
7. Privateering — Not present. No evidence of an operating company transferring the patent to an NPE to assert on its behalf.
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The patent has not been assigned to a defensive aggregator. Unified Patents is challenging the patent via an IPR (IPR2025-01327), which is an anti-NPE action, but they are not an assignee of the patent.

Verdict

Operating-company assertion

The primary assignee, THROUGHTEK CO Ltd (Taiwan), is an active, publicly-held company that develops and markets IoT cloud platform services and products, including those embodying the P2P search technology described in the patent. The only recorded assignment is from the inventor to these operating entities (Reel 034917/0196), and there is no evidence of transfer to a shell entity or known patent asserter. While litigation is ongoing (Delaware District Court case 1:24-cv-01027 and PTAB IPR2025-01327), these challenges are directed at the patent held by an operating company.

To verify assignments, search the USPTO Assignment Center: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/