Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 23, 2026
Application No. 17/575,365

PORTIONING/TRIMMING OF RIB PRIMAL CUTS

Non-Final OA §101
Filed
Jan 13, 2022
Priority
Mar 11, 2019 — provisional 62/816,782 +1 more
Examiner
PRICE JR, RICHARD THOMAS
Art Unit
3643
Tech Center
3600 — Transportation & Electronic Commerce
Assignee
John Bean Technologies Corporation
OA Round
2 (Non-Final)
88%
Grant Probability
Favorable
2-3
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
93%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 88% — above average
88%
Career Allowance Rate
939 granted / 1073 resolved
+35.5% vs TC avg
Moderate +6% lift
Without
With
+5.6%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Fast prosecutor
1y 11m
Avg Prosecution
21 currently pending
Career history
1084
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
1.5%
-38.5% vs TC avg
§103
37.2%
-2.8% vs TC avg
§102
25.2%
-14.8% vs TC avg
§112
21.7%
-18.3% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1073 resolved cases

Office Action

§101
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 . Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101 35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows: Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title. Claims 11 and 13-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter. The claim(s) does/do not fall within at least one of the four categories of patent eligible subject matter because in claim 11, a control system capable of “receiving designations of design criteria”, “generating a first data set regarding physical characteristics of the primal cut”, “determining how to divide the primal cut” may be performed by observing, remembering, scanning and evaluating which can be practically performed in the human mind using observation, evaluation, judgement, opinion, skill and/or memory. Contact Information Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to RICHARD T. PRICE JR whose telephone number is (571)272-6892. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7AM-3:30PM. 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, Peter M. Poon can be reached at 571-272-6891. 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. RICHARD THOMAS. PRICE JR Examiner Art Unit 3643 /RICHARD T PRICE JR/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3643
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Jan 13, 2022
Application Filed
Sep 24, 2025
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §101
Dec 18, 2025
Response Filed
Apr 08, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §101 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12677840
APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR SEPARATING MEAT FROM BONE
1y 7m to grant Granted Jul 14, 2026
Patent 12667111
Closing Machine For Closing Sausage Products
1y 6m to grant Granted Jun 30, 2026
Patent 12660829
SWEEP EDGE BLADES FOR LOIN PULLER MACHINE
2y 5m to grant Granted Jun 23, 2026
Patent 12660830
TRUSSING SYSTEM AND METHOD
1y 11m to grant Granted Jun 23, 2026
Patent 12642276
Systems And Methods For Rotating Products During Processing
9m to grant Granted Jun 02, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

2-3
Expected OA Rounds
88%
Grant Probability
93%
With Interview (+5.6%)
1y 11m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Moderate
PTA Risk
Based on 1073 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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