Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 25, 2026
Application No. 17/353,637

GROUPING PAYMENTS AND PAYMENT REQUESTS

Non-Final OA §112
Filed
Jun 21, 2021
Priority
Mar 20, 2015 — continuation of 11/042,863
Examiner
FELTEN, DANIEL S
Art Unit
3692
Tech Center
3600 — Transportation & Electronic Commerce
Assignee
Block Inc.
OA Round
6 (Non-Final)
46%
Grant Probability
Moderate
6-7
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
58%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 46% of resolved cases
46%
Career Allowance Rate
277 granted / 598 resolved
-5.7% vs TC avg
Moderate +12% lift
Without
With
+12.1%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
4y 6m
Avg Prosecution
25 currently pending
Career history
643
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
28.4%
-11.6% vs TC avg
§103
38.3%
-1.7% vs TC avg
§102
6.8%
-33.2% vs TC avg
§112
24.3%
-15.7% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 598 resolved cases

Office Action

§112
DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . Acknowledgement The amendment/request for reconsideration filed 07/23/2026 is acknowledged. Status of Claims Claims 1-4, 6-8, 10-17 and 19-23 are amended. Claim 24 has been added. Claims 1-4, 6-8, 10-17 and 19-24 are pending. Response to Arguments Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b): (b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph: The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention. Claims 1-24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being incomplete for omitting essential steps, such omission amounting to a gap between the steps. See MPEP § 2172.01. The omitted steps are: Steps of using a first network of the first user device and using the corresponding channel that is selected for one or more second users is not provided. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 1, 19 and 20 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action. Conclusion THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a). A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DANIEL S FELTEN whose telephone number is (571)272-6742. The examiner can normally be reached Flex. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Ryan D Donlon can be reached at 5712703602. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. DANIEL S. FELTEN Examiner Art Unit 3692 /DANIEL S FELTEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3692
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Show 15 earlier events
Feb 12, 2026
Request for Continued Examination
Mar 04, 2026
Response after Non-Final Action
Mar 25, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §112
May 28, 2026
Interview Requested
Jun 16, 2026
Examiner Interview Summary
Jun 16, 2026
Applicant Interview (Telephonic)
Jul 23, 2026
Response Filed
Oct 14, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §112 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12749069
PAYMENT CARD DATA PREPARATION AND PERSONALIZATION PLATFORM
2y 4m to grant Granted Sep 29, 2026
Patent 12737712
HIERARCHICAL BLOCKCHAIN ARCHITECTURE FOR GLOBAL TRADE MANAGEMENT
1y 10m to grant Granted Sep 15, 2026
Patent 12731126
Presence Verification for Electronic Transactions
1y 6m to grant Granted Sep 08, 2026
Patent 12724609
MODULAR APPLICATION SYSTEM DECOMPOSED INTO SEPARATE MICRO FRONTENDS TO SUPPORT PERSONALIZED APPLICATION FLOWS
3y 0m to grant Granted Sep 01, 2026
Patent 12718246
GEOLOCATION-BASED CONSENSUS ALGORITHM FOR USE IN MONITORING PROPOSED DATA RECORDS FOR A DISTRIBUTED LEDGER
2y 7m to grant Granted Aug 25, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

6-7
Expected OA Rounds
46%
Grant Probability
58%
With Interview (+12.1%)
4y 6m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
High
PTA Risk
Based on 598 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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