Assignment history

Inventors

• Jeff Lukanc (Synaptics Inc)
• Kirk Hargreaves (Synaptics Inc)
• David Sobel (Synaptics Inc)
• Joseph Kurth Reynolds (Synaptics Inc)

It is generally assumed that inventors' employers at the time of filing own the rights to the invention, especially given that Synaptics Inc. was the original assignee.

Original assignee

The original assignee listed on the issued patent is Synaptics Inc. Synaptics Inc. is an American neural network technologies and computer-to-human interface devices development company based in San Jose, California. They develop and sell semiconductor products, including touchpads, fingerprint biometrics, touch and display drivers, and low-power AI processors, which are used in various devices like laptops, smartphones, smart home devices, wearables, and automobiles. Synaptics sells its products to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and display manufacturers. As of May 2026, Synaptics Inc. is an actively operating company, publicly traded on NASDAQ (SYNA).

Assignment timeline

• 2016-02-23 (executed) / recorded 2016-02-23 — Reel 037592/0698

  • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignors Interest
  • Assignor: REYNOLDS, JOSEPH KURTH; SOBEL, DAVID; HARGREAVES, KIRK; LUKANC, JEFF
  • Assignee: SYNAPTICS INCORPORATED
  • Correspondent: Synaptics Incorporated, 1251 McKay Dr., San Jose, CA 95131
  • Context: Internal transfer of inventorship rights to the employing entity.

• 2017-09-27 (executed) / recorded 2017-09-27 — Reel 041285/0795

  • Conveyance: Security Interest
  • Assignor: SYNAPTICS INCORPORATED
  • Assignee: WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
  • Correspondent: COOLEY LLP, 1299 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20004-2440
  • Context: Grant of a security interest, typically part of a financing agreement.

• 2019-08-28 (executed) / recorded 2019-08-28 — Reel 047648/0642

  • Conveyance: Release By Secured Party
  • Assignor: WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
  • Assignee: SYNAPTICS INCORPORATED
  • Correspondent: COOLEY LLP, 1299 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20004-2440 (This correspondent recurs in this chain.)
  • Context: Release of the security interest, returning full rights to Synaptics.

• 2019-08-29 (executed) / recorded 2019-08-29 — Reel 047648/0643

  • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignors Interest
  • Assignor: SYNAPTICS INCORPORATED
  • Assignee: WACOM CO., LTD.
  • Correspondent: FAEGRE DRINKER BIDDLE & REATH LLP, 1500 K STREET, N.W., SUITE 1100, WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 20005-1209
  • Context: Transfer of ownership from Synaptics Incorporated to Wacom Co., Ltd.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 9977519
    2016 : Assigned to Synaptics Inc
    2017 : Security interest to Wells Fargo
    2018 : Issued
    2019 : Security interest released
         : Assigned to Wacom Co Ltd

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Not present. Both Synaptics Inc. and Wacom Co., Ltd. are established operating companies that produce and sell products related to the patent's claims.
2. Known asserter in the chain — Not present. Neither Synaptics Inc. nor Wacom Co., Ltd. appear on public NPE lists from Unified Patents or RPX.
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Present. Cooley LLP appears as the correspondent for both the Security Interest (Reel 041285/0795) and the Release By Secured Party (Reel 047648/0642) on behalf of Synaptics Incorporated.
4. Cascading transfers — Not present. There are two assignments and one release over a period of approximately 3 years and 7 months, which does not indicate rapid, consecutive transfers.
5. Pre-litigation transfer — Unclear. While there is an ongoing PTAB case (IPR2025-01533) and a US case filed in Texas Eastern District Court (2:24-cv-00702), the specific dates of these litigations relative to the assignment to Wacom Co., Ltd. (2019-08-29) would need to be precisely checked to determine if the transfer occurred within 6 months of the first suit. The IPR case was filed in 2025 and the district court case in 2024, both well after the 2019 assignment.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. Synaptics Inc. is an active, publicly traded company.
7. Privateering — Not present. No evidence suggests that Synaptics transferred the patent to Wacom for assertion against Synaptics' competitors. Both are operating companies.
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The current assignee, Wacom Co., Ltd., is an operating company, not a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

Insufficient data. While the patent has moved from its original assignee, Synaptics Inc., to another operating company, Wacom Co., Ltd., there are no strong signals indicating NPE activity based on the available assignment records. The presence of a repeat correspondent (Cooley LLP) is noted, but this firm also does work for operating companies and its recurrence in this chain is limited to the security interest and its release, not successive assignments between different entities suggesting a shell game. Without more detailed information about the litigation timeline relative to the assignment to Wacom, it is not possible to confidently identify pre-litigation transfer patterns.

For verification, see the USPTO Assignment Center: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/