Near Field Electronics Sues James Avery Over Past Use of NFC Payment Readers on Five Patents It Says Have Expired.

The complaint

The case is Near Field Electronics LLC v. James Avery Craftsman, Inc., No. 4:26-cv-01226 (E.D. Tex., Sherman Division), a complaint for patent infringement filed September 8, 2026, ECF No. 1, with copies of the five patents and an exemplary claim chart for each attached as exhibits. The docket shows the case assigned to District Judge Robert W. Schroeder, III on September 8, 2026. The complaint describes Near Field as a Texas limited liability company with a place of business in Plano, Texas, and alleges, on information and belief, that James Avery is a Texas corporation with a place of business in Frisco, Texas. It pleads venue under 28 U.S.C. 1400(b).

The five patents and the asserted claims

The complaint asserts U.S. Patent 6,691,201, Dual Mode USB-PS/2 Device, issued February 10, 2004; U.S. Patent 6,742,071, Real-Time I/O Processor Used to Implement Bus Interface Protocols, issued May 25, 2004; U.S. Patent 6,959,350, Configurable USB Interface With Virtual Register Architecture, issued October 25, 2005; U.S. Patent 6,996,727, Power Supply for Universal Serial Bus Interface With Programmable Bus Pullup Resistor, issued February 7, 2006; and U.S. Patent 7,373,531, Signal Detection Method, Frequency Detection Method, Power Consumption Control Method, Signal Detecting Device, Frequency Detecting Device, Power Consumption Control Device and Electronic Apparatus, issued May 13, 2008. It alleges Near Field is the assignee and owner of each patent, including the right to recover for past infringement.

The complaint asserts one method claim from each patent. Claim 14 of the '201 patent covers automatically selecting a signaling protocol for communicating with a host by detecting the signaling protocol of a bus connected to an integrated circuit that operates in several protocols, and configuring the circuit to communicate in one of them in response, with each selected protocol operating over the bus through a single set of pins. Claim 15 of the '071 patent covers providing an interface to an external bus by generating control signals in response to a processor's current state, progressing to a next state based on that state, an internal control signal, and an input from the bus, driving an output control signal onto the bus, and updating the state. Claim 10 of the '350 patent covers configuring an interface controller by receiving a host's configuration request for one or more endpoints, forwarding it to a device processor, receiving configuration values back, and using them to configure the controller. Claim 18 of the '727 patent covers supplying a voltage by reducing current consumption in a power down mode, not reducing it at a standard voltage level, and pulling up a pullup resistor on an external bus with a programmable resistor in the power down mode, controlled by a register loaded from nonvolatile memory. Claim 2 of the '531 patent covers a signal detection method that detects a through current flowing in a circuit that receives an input signal, determines that the signal is alternating between high and low levels when the through current is detected, and determines that the signal is held at one level when no through current is detected within a predetermined period.

The accused use

For each patent, the complaint alleges that James Avery directly infringed by using, or causing to be used, NFC front-end components, including a named third-party NFC front-end chip and components with materially similar functionality, to perform the claimed method during contactless credit card payment transactions at the point of sale. The allegations on the '201, '071, and '531 patents are made on information and belief. The complaint calls its claim charts preliminary and exemplary.

Expired patents and the damages window

The complaint alleges that the '071 patent expired on November 21, 2021, the '201 patent on January 31, 2022, the '727 patent on April 14, 2022, the '350 patent on August 12, 2023, and the '531 patent on March 19, 2026. For each patent it asserts liability only for the period beginning September 8, 2020 and ending at that expiration date, alleging that James Avery put the accused components to use in the regular course of its business for processing NFC payment transactions.

The relief sought

Near Field asks for a judgment that the five patents were infringed, damages for past infringement with interest, costs, and an accounting, a declaration that the case is exceptional under 35 U.S.C. 285 with attorneys' fees, and other relief. It demands a jury trial.

The docket so far

The docket shows James Avery's summons returned executed and a clerk's entry on October 8, 2026 on James Avery's unopposed application for an extension of time to answer. Near Field filed nine retail suits in the Sherman Division on September 8, 2026, Nos. 4:26-cv-01222, 4:26-cv-01223, 4:26-cv-01224, 4:26-cv-01226, 4:26-cv-01227, 4:26-cv-01228, 4:26-cv-01229, 4:26-cv-01230, and 4:26-cv-01231.

What to watch next

Watch for James Avery's answer or Rule 12 motion after the extended deadline, and for any consolidation of the Sherman Division suits. The case can end at any time, including by settlement or voluntary dismissal.