Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 17/952,803

SMART SENSORIZED GRIPPER

Non-Final OA §112
Filed
Sep 26, 2022
Examiner
VU, STEPHEN A
Art Unit
3654
Tech Center
3600 — Transportation & Electronic Commerce
Assignee
National Cheng Kung University
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
82%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 2m
To Grant
97%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 82% — above average
82%
Career Allow Rate
909 granted / 1113 resolved
+29.7% vs TC avg
Strong +15% interview lift
Without
With
+15.3%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Fast prosecutor
2y 2m
Avg Prosecution
22 currently pending
Career history
1135
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.1%
-39.9% vs TC avg
§103
29.3%
-10.7% vs TC avg
§102
36.4%
-3.6% vs TC avg
§112
25.1%
-14.9% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1113 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. Information Disclosure Statement The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on February 2, 2023 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner. 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 appl icant regards as his invention. Claim s 1 -20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention. Claim 1 recites " two gripping assemblies " (line 11 on page 23 ) associated with the gripper base , " two moving assemblies " (line 21 ) associated with the gripper base, “two angle sensors” (line 10 on page 24) associated with the gripper base . The plural inclusion of " the corresponding gripping assembly " , “the two angle sensors”, “the two moving assemblies” could lead to confusion as to whether subsequent recitations of are one and the same. The same issue of multiple inclusion can be seen, for example, on claims 4-6 . For example, in claim 4, Applicant recites “ the two moving assemblies are respectively disposed at two sides of the driving assembly; and the two gripping assemblies are respectively disposed at the two sides of the driving assembly .” This appears to be unclear. Is it applicant’s intent ion to claim that each of th e two moving assemblies is disposed on each side of the driving assembly? Please note that this same issue also appears in claim 10 regarding “two axial guideway rays disposed at two sides of the driving screw rod”. Differentiation of the elements (e.g., a "first gripping assembly ", a " second gripping assembly ”, a “first angle sensor”, a “second angle sensor”, a “first moving assembly”, a “second moving assembly”, etc.) would further enhance the clarity of the claim. Allowable Subject Matter Claim 1 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. Claims 2-20 would be allowable if rewritten 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 and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Kobayashi , Lomerson, Monforte, Davi, and O’Connor are cited as being relevant art, because each prior art discloses a gripper comprising a gripper base and a driving assembly. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FILLIN "Examiner name" \* MERGEFORMAT STEPHEN VU whose telephone number is FILLIN "Phone number" \* MERGEFORMAT (571)272-1961 . The examiner can normally be reached FILLIN "Work Schedule?" \* MERGEFORMAT Monday-Friday, 7:00 am - 3:30 pm EST . 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, FILLIN "SPE Name?" \* MERGEFORMAT Victoria Augustine can be reached at FILLIN "SPE Phone?" \* MERGEFORMAT (313) 446-4858 . 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. FILLIN "Examiner Stamp" \* MERGEFORMAT STEPHEN VU Primary Examiner Art Unit 3654 /STEPHEN A VU/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3654
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Prosecution Timeline

Sep 26, 2022
Application Filed
Mar 11, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §112 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12600026
MAGNETIC CLEANING DEVICE
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12598955
SUBSTRATE TRANSFER DEVICE AND SUBSTRATE PROCESSING APPARATUS HAVING THE SAME
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 07, 2026
Patent 12594678
Device and Method for Gripping an Object
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 07, 2026
Patent 12589509
VACUUM SUCTION CYLINDER ASSEMBLY
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 31, 2026
Patent 12583132
ROBOTIC ARM
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 24, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
82%
Grant Probability
97%
With Interview (+15.3%)
2y 2m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1113 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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