The complaint

The case is Vision Sphere Labs LLC v. Asus Computer International, No. 5:26-cv-12344 (N.D. Cal.), a 40-page complaint for patent infringement filed October 22, 2026, ECF No. 1. The docket shows the case assigned to Magistrate Judge Nathanael M. Cousins, with consent or declination to magistrate judge jurisdiction due November 5, 2026. The complaint says Vision Sphere Labs is a Texas limited liability company with a place of business in Houston, Texas. It alleges, on information and belief, that Asus Computer International is a California corporation with a place of business in Fremont, California.

Jurisdiction and venue

The complaint pleads subject matter jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. 1331 and 1338(a) and venue under 28 U.S.C. 1400(b), alleging that Asus is incorporated in California and, on information and belief, that it maintains a place of business in Fremont and committed at least a portion of the alleged infringement in the district.

The patents and claims

The complaint alleges that Vision Sphere Labs is the assignee of all right, title and interest in both patents. Recorded USPTO assignments show that Harris Corporation, the original assignee of both patents, assigned them to a Texas company in an assignment executed October 31, 2018 (Reel 47551, Frame 0415), and that company assigned them to Vision Sphere Labs effective March 31, 2024, recorded May 16, 2024 (Reel 67436, Frame 0366). For the '860 patent, the recorded assignments also include an assignment from Harris Corporation to Harris Solutions NY, Inc. executed January 27, 2017 and recorded November 19, 2018 (Reel 47600, Frame 0598), and an April 17, 2018 change of that company's name to Harris Global Communications, Inc. (Reel 47598, Frame 0361).

The complaint says the '028 patent expired on September 5, 2022. Google Patents lists the '028 patent as lapsed for failure to pay a maintenance fee, effective August 3, 2022. It lists the '860 patent as lapsed for failure to pay its 12th-year maintenance fee effective August 2, 2023, and reinstated on March 20, 2024, when the USPTO accepted the late fee.

U.S. Patent 7,990,860, Method and System for Rule-Based Sequencing for QoS, issued August 2, 2011. Claim 1 covers a method in which a processing device at a node at the edge of a network receives data, determines a network status from network measurements, selects a mode with a user defined sequencing rule based on that status, prioritizes and sequences the data under the selected mode's rule, determines an effective link speed or link proportion, meters inbound data by shaping and outbound data by policing, and communicates the data based on its priority, the effective link speed or the link proportion, with receiving and prioritizing occurring at the transport layer of a protocol stack.

U.S. Patent 7,769,028, Systems and Methods for Adaptive Throughput Management for Event-Driven Message-Based Data, issued August 3, 2010. Claim 13 covers a system with a data prioritization component that assigns priority in or at the top of the transport layer, a network analysis component that determines network status, a mode selection component that selects a mode based on that status, and a data communications component that communicates data based on priority and network status, with prioritization rules selected by mode and a transmission rate metered on network status.

The accused products

Count I accuses the ASUS RT-AX88U PRO, RT-AX88U, RT-AX86U, RT-AX86U Pro, RT-AC5300, GT-AX11000, GT-AX11000 Pro, GT-AX6000, GT-AXE16000 and GT-BE98 PRO. Count II accuses the RT-AX88U, RT-AX86U, RT-AC5300, GT-AX11000, GT-AX6000 and GT-AXE16000.

The infringement allegations

The complaint alleges, upon information and belief, direct infringement of claim 1 of the '860 patent and claim 13 of the '028 patent. For the '860 patent, it also alleges induced and contributory infringement, citing Asus marketing materials. It says Vision Sphere Labs sent a letter to Asus on June 26, 2024, identifying the '860 patent and a product that it said required a license. It alleges, on information and belief, that Asus has known of the patent and its infringement since receiving that letter, and alleges that the infringement is willful. For the '028 patent, the complaint alleges direct infringement only.

The relief sought

The prayer asks for judgments that claim 1 of the '860 patent has been and is being infringed directly and/or indirectly and that claim 13 of the '028 patent was infringed, damages, costs and an accounting, a finding that infringement of the '860 patent was willful with treble damages under 35 U.S.C. 284 and attorneys' fees under 35 U.S.C. 285, preliminary and permanent injunctions against infringing claim 1 of the '860 patent, interest, and other relief. The complaint demands a jury.

Related cases

Vision Sphere Labs filed patent suits the same day against Edgecore Americas Networking Corporation, No. 8:26-cv-03112 (C.D. Cal.), and MSI Computer Corporation, No. 2:26-cv-12366 (C.D. Cal.). Since November 2024 it has sued on the '860 and '028 patents in the Eastern, Western, Northern and Southern Districts of Texas. Its Northern District of Texas suits name Bigleaf Networks, Inc. (No. 3:25-cv-01626, filed June 24, 2025), Adtran, Inc. (No. 3:25-cv-02278, filed August 25, 2025), Snap One, LLC (No. 3:25-cv-02293, filed August 26, 2025), Teltonika United States Inc. (No. 3:25-cv-02304, filed August 26, 2025) and DrayTek Corporation (No. 3:25-cv-02477, filed September 12, 2025). The Adtran case was transferred for improper venue and is now Vision Sphere Labs, LLC v. Adtran, Inc., No. 5:26-cv-00728 (N.D. Ala.).

What to watch next

Watch for Asus's answer or Rule 12 motion and the parties' consent or declination to proceed before a magistrate judge, due November 5, 2026.