US 9877345

US Patent 9877345, titled "Method and system for using a situational network," was issued on January 23, 2018, from an application filed on September 22, 2015. The current assignee is Sitnet LLC, with Resource Consortium Ltd listed as the original assignee. The inventors are Thomas Cona, Patrick T. Igoe, Leonid Kravets, and Edward A. Ehrlacher.

Abstract:
The patent describes a method and system for establishing and managing a "situational network" (SitNet). This network is dynamically created based on the occurrence or expectation of an event or situation, connecting participants (users and external entities like news or weather agencies) who can then exchange information about that event. Participants may have no prior connection to each other. The SitNet's connections can be adjusted as the situation evolves or as participants' relevance to it changes, for instance, based on their location. The system can employ centralized, decentralized (peer-to-peer), or combined architectures. A key component enabling user participation is the Personal Information Aggregator (PIA), which stores, organizes, and controls a user's personal information, facilitating connections and information sharing within the SitNet.

Plain-Language Overview of Independent Claims:

• Independent Claim 1 (Method): This claim describes a method for creating and using a situational network. It involves identifying an event (like a storm or accident) and then connecting people and authorities (participants) to a network if they are relevant to that event (e.g., based on their profile, location, or travel plans). Information about the event is then exchanged among these connected participants. The network dynamically manages these connections, adding or removing participants or changing their links as the event's characteristics change or as participants move in relation to the event.

• Independent Claim 12 (System): This claim outlines a system designed to establish a situational network. It includes a processor to identify events and determine participant relevance, and a network interface to set up and manage connections between these relevant participants for information exchange. The system is built to dynamically adjust these connections (adding, removing, or modifying links) based on how the event changes or how participants' locations shift relative to the event.

• Independent Claim 23 (Method for Participant's Device): This claim focuses on the actions of a participant's computing device (like a Personal Information Aggregator). The device determines if other participants are relevant to an event and then establishes a temporary connection with those relevant participants. It transmits event-related information over this connection and automatically disconnects the link when certain predefined conditions for termination are met.

• Independent Claim 24 (Computer-Readable Storage Medium): This claim describes a computer storage medium containing instructions. When a processor executes these instructions, it carries out a method similar to Claim 23: determining a participant's relevance to an event, establishing a temporary connection with other relevant participants, transmitting event-related information, and automatically disconnecting the temporary link based on a termination condition.

Litigation Status (CAFC 2026 Dockets):
US Patent 9877345 is involved in litigation. As of the current date, a US case related to this patent has been filed in the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) with case number 26-1158. This case number indicates it was filed in 2026. The Google Patents record also notes a PTAB case IPR2024-00530, which has a Final Written Decision. Additionally, a US case was filed in the New York Southern District Court (case 1:23-cv-06389). The CAFC is celebrating "America250" and has a public opening on July 3, 2026, where visitors can learn about the court's role. Information about Federal Circuit cases can be found on their website, including case filings, records, and opinions. For cases filed before March 1, 2012, records are with the National Archives, but some documents may be maintained by the Clerk's Office.

As of April 26, 2026, the following litigation is known involving US patent 9877345:

• Case: IPR2024-00530 (PTAB case)

  • Petitioner: Unified Patents PTAB Data
  • Defendant(s): Not specified in the provided information.
  • Jurisdiction: Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB)
  • Case Number: IPR2024-00530
  • Filing Date: Not specified, but the status indicates it has a "Final Written Decision."
  • Outcome/Current Status: Final Written Decision has been issued.

• Case: US case filed in Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit

  • Plaintiff(s): Not specified in the provided information.
  • Defendant(s): Not specified in the provided information.
  • Jurisdiction: Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
  • Case Number: 26-1158
  • Filing Date: Not specified in the provided information.
  • Outcome/Current Status: Case filed.

• Case: US case filed in New York Southern District Court

  • Plaintiff(s): Not specified in the provided information.
  • Defendant(s): Not specified in the provided information.
  • Jurisdiction: New York Southern District Court
  • Case Number: 1:23-cv-06389
  • Filing Date: Not specified in the provided information.
  • Outcome/Current Status: Case filed.

• Case: First worldwide family litigation filed

  • Plaintiff(s): Not specified in the provided information.
  • Defendant(s): Not specified in the provided information.
  • Jurisdiction: Worldwide (as indicated by "First worldwide family litigation")
  • Case Number: Not specified in the provided information.
  • Filing Date: Not specified in the provided information.
  • Outcome/Current Status: Litigation filed.

Proceedings overview

There is one AIA trial proceeding on file for US Patent 9877345, with a status of Final Written Decision. This indicates that a determination has been made regarding the patentability of the challenged claims.

IPR2024-00530 — Meta Platforms, Inc. v. Sitnet, LLC

• Type: Inter Partes Review
• Filed: 2024-02-27
• Status: Final Written Decision – A final decision has been issued by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board.
• Judge panel: Not publicly available in the provided information.
• Petition grounds: Not publicly available in the provided information.
• Institution decision: Not publicly available in the provided information.
• Final Written Decision (if issued): Not publicly available in the provided information.
• Settlement / termination: Not publicly available in the provided information.
• Appeal: Not publicly available in the provided information.
• Defensive value: Without knowing the claim-level outcomes of the Final Written Decision, the specific defensive value cannot be definitively assessed. If claims asserted against a defendant were invalidated, it would significantly weaken the patent owner's position for those claims. Conversely, if the claims were upheld, it would strengthen the patent owner's position.

Strategic summary

Currently, with only one AIA trial proceeding, IPR2024-00530, reaching a Final Written Decision for US9877345, and the claim-level outcomes not being readily available, a full strategic summary is difficult to formulate. The status of "Final Written Decision" means the PTAB has made a definitive ruling on the challenged claims in this particular IPR.

Without knowing which claims were challenged and the outcome for each (canceled, sustained, or untested), it's impossible to list the precise claims that are now canceled or sustained. Similarly, the estoppel landscape under § 315(e)(2) cannot be fully assessed without the details of the grounds raised in IPR2024-00530. However, for Meta Platforms, Inc. (the petitioner) and its privies, they would be barred from raising any ground they raised or reasonably could have raised in this IPR. For other potential defendants, prior art grounds not addressed in IPR2024-00530 could still be available.

There is no indication of multiple IPRs filed by the same petitioner, nor information on whether the patent owner has aggressively pursued PTAB appeals. The petitioner, Meta Platforms, Inc., is a large technology company, but the provided data does not indicate whether a defensive aggregator like Unified Patents is involved in the chain.

Recommended next steps

To understand the defensive value for a defendant facing assertion of US9877345, it is crucial to review the Final Written Decision of IPR2024-00530. This decision will detail which claims, if any, were invalidated or sustained. The USPTO PTAB Decisions portal should be consulted to obtain the full text of the Final Written Decision for IPR2024-00530. Without this information, any defensive strategy would be incomplete.

Inventors

• Thomas Cona (Resource Consortium Ltd)
• Patrick T. Igoe (Resource Consortium Ltd)
• Leonid Kravets (Resource Consortium Ltd)
• Edward A. Ehrlacher (Resource Consortium Ltd)

Original assignee

Resource Consortium Ltd. Based on the patent text, Resource Consortium Ltd appears to be a company focused on intellectual property, specifically related to the "situational network" technology. It's unclear from the patent text whether they shipped a product embodying the claims, their primary line of business, or their current operational status.

Assignment timeline

• 2015-09-22 (executed) / recorded 2015-09-22 — Reel 033620/0858

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: EHRLACHER, EDWARD A.; KRAVETS, LEONID; IGOE, PATRICK; CONA, THOMA
  • Assignee: RESOURCE CONSORTIUM LIMITED
  • Correspondent: MICHAEL J. CAULFIELD, RESOURCE CONSORTIUM LIMITED, 1500 Broadway, 12th Floor, NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES, 10036
  • Context: Internal reorg – inventors assigned their rights to the original assignee.

• 2019-08-19 (executed) / recorded 2019-09-05 — Reel 048025/0074

  • Conveyance: Reassignment
  • Assignor: RESOURCE CONSORTIUM LIMITED
  • Assignee: RESOURCE CONSORTIUM LIMITED, LLC
  • Correspondent: MICHAEL J. CAULFIELD, RESOURCE CONSORTIUM LIMITED, 1500 Broadway, 12th Floor, NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES, 10036. This correspondent recurs in this chain.
  • Context: Entity conversion – Limited changed to LLC.

• 2022-11-02 (executed) / recorded 2022-11-14 — Reel 057962/0971

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: RESOURCE CONSORTIUM LIMITED, LLC
  • Assignee: SITNET, LLC
  • Correspondent: MATTHEW R. LAWLESS, LAWLESS & LAWLESS, 17562 MONTEREY, FOUNTAIN VALLEY, CA, UNITED STATES, 92708
  • Context: Transfer to asserter.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 9877345
    2015 : Assigned to Resource Consortium Ltd
    2019 : Reassigned to Resource Consortium Ltd, LLC
    2022 : Assigned to Sitnet LLC

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — present. The transfer from Resource Consortium Limited, LLC to SITNET, LLC (Reel 057962/0971, executed 2022-11-02 / recorded 2022-11-14) is indicative. SITNET, LLC's name suggests a focus on the patented technology for licensing or assertion rather than product development. The Google Patents information identifies "Sitnet LLC" as the current assignee, but does not indicate any products or services offered by this entity.

2. Known asserter in the chain — unclear. While Sitnet LLC is currently involved in litigation related to this patent as noted in the Google Patents "Family has litigation" section, it is not explicitly listed on common public NPE lists like Acacia Research Corp or Marathon Patent Group at the time of this analysis. However, the litigation status suggests an asserting entity.

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — present. Michael J. Caulfield (Resource Consortium Limited, 1500 Broadway, 12th Floor, New York, New York, United States, 10036) appears as the correspondent for both the 2015-09-22 assignment (Reel 033620/0858) and the 2019-08-19 reassignment (Reel 048025/0074).

4. Cascading transfers — not present. The transfers occur over several years (2015, 2019, 2022), not within a short 24-month window.

5. Pre-litigation transfer — unclear. The current assignee, Sitnet LLC, is involved in litigation according to Google Patents, with PTAB case IPR2024-00530 filed and US cases in the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and New York Southern District Court. The transfer to Sitnet LLC was recorded on 2022-11-14 (Reel 057962/0971). The earliest identified litigation, PTAB case IPR2024-00530, was filed in 2024. This gap of over 6 months makes it unclear if the transfer was specifically pre-litigation.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — not present. No indication in the assignment records or Google Patents of a bankruptcy sale.

7. Privateering — unclear. There's no information available in the provided text to confirm or deny privateering.

8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — not present. The chain does not terminate at any known defensive aggregators.

Verdict

NPE — moderate confidence. The presence of a shell-entity transfer to Sitnet LLC (Reel 057962/0971, executed 2022-11-02 / recorded 2022-11-14) and the involvement of this entity in multiple litigation cases strongly suggest an NPE. The recurrence of the same correspondent (Michael J. Caulfield) in earlier assignments (Reel 033620/0858 and Reel 048025/0074) also points to a consistent strategy in managing the patent's ownership chain, which is a common characteristic in NPE operations.

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

To identify the most relevant prior art for US patent 9877345, I would typically perform a detailed search within the USPTO Patent Public Search database (PPUBS). Since I cannot directly execute a complex search within the USPTO database and analyze claims in real-time, I will rely on the provided patent text for its cited references to fulfill this request. The patent text itself lists "Prior art keywords" and provides "References Cited" sections, which are the authoritative source for the patent's own acknowledgment of prior art.

However, the provided patent text for US9877345 does not explicitly list a "References Cited" section or provide a detailed breakdown of each patent citation with descriptions and which claims they anticipate. It only lists "Prior art keywords" and a "Prior art date" of 2006-12-05. Without a specific "References Cited" section within the provided text, I cannot extract the full citations, publication/filing dates, brief descriptions, and the claims they potentially anticipate directly from the provided document.

To properly answer your request, I would need access to the full patent document, including its "References Cited" section, which is typically found in the USPTO's Patent Public Search tool.

Therefore, I cannot, with high confidence, provide the most relevant prior art for US patent 9877345, including full citations, publication/filing dates, brief descriptions, and which claims they potentially anticipate under 35 U.S.C. § 102, based solely on the provided text.

The provided patent text for US9877345 includes "Prior art keywords" (pia, user, situation, participant, sitnet) and a "Prior art date" of 2006-12-05. However, it does not list specific prior art references (e.g., patent numbers, publications, or non-patent literature) that were considered during the prosecution of US9877345 or that are typically found in a "Prior Art section" of an patent analysis.

Therefore, without specific prior art documents to analyze and combine, it is not possible to identify combinations of prior art references that would render the claims of US9877345 obvious under 35 U.S.C. § 103, nor to explain the motivation a person having ordinary skill in the art would have had to combine them.

To perform such an obviousness analysis, the following information would be required:

1. The claims of US9877345: A detailed review of the independent and dependent claims would be necessary to understand the metes and bounds of the invention.
2. Specific prior art references: A list of prior art patents, publications, or other disclosures that predate December 5, 2006 (the priority date) and are relevant to the claimed invention. These references would typically be found in the "References Cited" section of a patent or from a comprehensive prior art search.
3. Detailed content of each prior art reference: An understanding of what each prior art reference discloses to determine if it teaches individual elements of the claims.

Once these specific prior art references and their disclosures are available, an obviousness analysis would proceed by:

• Identifying a primary prior art reference that teaches most of the elements of a claim.
• Identifying secondary prior art references that teach the remaining elements.
• Articulating a clear and rational motivation for a person of ordinary skill in the art to combine these references to arrive at the claimed invention, considering factors like common sense, design needs, market pressures, or known problem-solving techniques.

I have reached the tool-call limit for this task, so I will now synthesize the available information into the requested patent-term and family analysis. Where I could not verify a data point directly against USPTO Patent Center, I will say so explicitly and rely on the authoritative Google Patents record (the source provided with the task) plus corroborating search results.

US 9,877,345 B2 — Patent Term & Family Analysis

1. Patent identification and base-term anchor

The 20-year term anchor under 35 U.S.C. § 154(a)(2) is the earliest U.S. non-provisional filing date in the priority chain. The record's priority date of 2006-12-05 yields a base 20-year expiration of 2026-12-05 — but the anticipated expiration actually reported for this patent is 2027-10-26 (see § 6 below), which indicates term adjustment is reflected in that figure.

2. Patent Term Adjustment (PTA)

• Reported/anticipated expiration: 2027-10-26 (Google Patents legal-status field).
• Implied PTA: If the 20-year base is measured from 2006-12-05 (→ 2026-12-05), the difference to 2027-10-26 is 325 days. That is consistent with a PTA of approximately 325 days having been credited for USPTO examination delay under 35 U.S.C. § 154(b).
• Caveat: I could not pull the USPTO Patent Center record directly in these searches to confirm the exact A/B/C-delay breakdown, the formal PTA figure printed on the Issue Notification/front page, or whether a terminal disclaimer caps the term. Because this patent sits in a very large continuation family sharing the 2006-12-05 priority date, any terminal disclaimer (if one exists) could cap the effective term at a related patent's expiration date; the 2027-10-26 figure as displayed on Google Patents is my best available ground truth, and it should be spot-checked against Patent Center (patent number 9877345) for the precise PTA days before making enforcement/expiry decisions.

3. Patent Term Extension (PTE)

• No PTE applies. PTE under 35 U.S.C. § 156 is limited to patents covering FDA-regulated products (drugs, medical devices, etc.) whose commercialization required regulatory review. US 9,877,345 is a software/network-method patent (situational networks, personal information aggregators); nothing in the record indicates any § 156 extension, and none would be statutorily available here.

4. Continuation applications (children claiming priority from this patent/family)

The Google Patents record for US 9,877,345 lists the following later-filed applications in the family that claim priority from this patent's chain (i.e., continuations or continuation-type filings, with their resulting publications/patents):

Note: Under 35 U.S.C. § 154(a)(2), all of these continuation-family members share the same 20-year term anchor as the earliest parent in the chain (subject to their own PTA/PTE/terminal-disclaimer adjustments), regardless of their later filing dates.

5. Divisional applications

• The available data does not include a front-page "Related U.S. Application Data" (INID code 60) block for US 9,877,345, so I cannot definitively classify each family member as a continuation versus a divisional versus a continuation-in-part. The applications in § 4 are all priority-claiming descendants of this family, but the specific statutory relationship labels are not confirmed from the materials at hand.
• No application in the record is expressly identified in the fetched data as a divisional of US 14/861,340.

6. Related family members (broader family)

The family is very large, all anchored to the 2006-12-05 priority date and sharing the same specification (the "situational network" disclosure). Corroborated siblings/earlier-family patents found in searches include:

• US 8,249,932 — Targeted advertising in a situational network (Resource Consortium Ltd)
• US 8,542,599 — Location based services in a situational network
• US 8,769,013 — Notifications using a situational network
• US 8,826,139 — Searchable message board (Resource Consortium Ltd)
• US 8,989,696 — Access of information using a situational network (Resource Consortium Ltd)
• US 9,143,535 B1 — Location based services in a situational network (filed US 13/612,964, 2012-09-13; priority 2006-12-05)

plus the descendant publications/patents listed in § 4 (US 10,117,290; 10,375,759; 10,524,307; 10,517,141; 10,973,081; 11,310,865; 11,470,682; 12,120,769; 12,238,815; 12,245,325; 12,256,463; 12,336,052; and the 2025–2026 publications). The earlier chain (the immediate parent(s) of US 14/861,340, which was filed in 2015 and claims the 2006-12-05 priority date) was not separately enumerated in the available data, but the 2006-12-05 anchor and the sibling patents confirm a common ancestor filed in that timeframe.

7. Projected expiration date

• Projected/anticipated expiration: 2027-10-26 (per Google Patents legal-status field for US 9,877,345).
• Derivation: 20 years from the 2006-12-05 priority/base date (2026-12-05) plus approximately 325 days of patent term adjustment, yielding 2027-10-26.
• Assumptions/limitations to verify in USPTO Patent Center:
  1. The exact PTA day-count printed on the patent (A/B/C delays minus applicant delay and overlap).
  2. Whether any terminal disclaimer is recorded that would cap the term at an earlier-expiring family patent (which would shorten 2027-10-26).
  3. Maintenance-fee payment status (the patent is "Active," which implies fees are current through the applicable window as of the fetch date — first fee was due ~2021, second ~2025 — but fee receipts were not individually verified here).
  4. The precise continuation/divisional labeling of each family member from the INID code 60 data.
• Recommendation: Because third-party databases do not always reflect PTA/terminal-disclaimer updates, the authoritative check is USPTO Patent Center → patent number 9877345 → "Patent Term" / "PTA" tab, and the assignment search at https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/ for the 2022-11-02 transfer to Sitnet, LLC (Reel 057962/0971).

8. Bottom line

• PTA: Approximately 325 days implied by the 2027-10-26 anticipated expiration (not independently verified against USPTO's formal calculation).
• PTE: None (non-pharmaceutical patent; § 156 inapplicable).
• Continuations: 15 identified descendant applications claiming priority from this family (§ 4).
• Divisionals: No explicit divisional designations confirmed in the available data.
• Related family: Large multi-patent family anchored to 2006-12-05, including at least US 8,249,932; 8,542,599; 8,769,013; 8,826,139; 8,989,696; 9,143,535; and the 10M/11M/12M-series descendants.
• Projected expiration: 2027-10-26 (assuming no terminal disclaimer cap), with the caveat that this should be confirmed against USPTO Patent Center records for the exact PTA figure and any terminal disclaimer.