Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/063,951

COMPUTER-BASED COORDINATION OF INTERACTIVE FENCE ZONES AND INDIVIDUALIZED ALERTS

Non-Final OA §101§112
Filed
Dec 09, 2022
Examiner
NGUYEN, TAI T
Art Unit
2685
Tech Center
2600 — Communications
Assignee
International Business Machines Corporation
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
84%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 2m
To Grant
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 84% — above average
84%
Career Allow Rate
919 granted / 1087 resolved
+22.5% vs TC avg
Strong +17% interview lift
Without
With
+17.4%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 2m
Avg Prosecution
27 currently pending
Career history
1114
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
2.8%
-37.2% vs TC avg
§103
27.1%
-12.9% vs TC avg
§102
26.5%
-13.5% vs TC avg
§112
28.5%
-11.5% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1087 resolved cases

Office Action

§101 §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 December 09, 2022 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 applicant regards as his invention. Claims 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. As per claim 1, line 3, it is unclear where the “location data” being received from? As per claim 1, line 8, it is unclear where the “plurality of parameters” being received from? As per claim 1, line 15, it is unclear that the “user device” being associated with the “first object”? Applicant is required to clarify what “data” being received to meet “a first rule of the rule table”? As per claims 10 and 19, refer to claim 1 above. Claims 2-9, 11-18 and 20 should have been rejected for the same reason for their dependency. 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. Reject Claims 1-20 under 35 U.S.C. § 101 as directed to patent-ineligible subject matter. Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to a judicial exception (an abstract idea) without significantly more. The claims are directed to the abstract idea of collecting location information, comparing the information to predetermined rules, and generating alerts—which is a fundamental economic practice, a method of organizing human activity, and a mental process; The claims do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception because the additional elements, when considered individually and as an ordered combination, amount to no more than generic computer components performing generic computer functions of receiving, processing, and transmitting data. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TAI T. NGUYEN whose telephone number is (571)272-2961. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri: 9am-6pm. 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, Quan-Zhen Wang can be reached at 571-272-7114. 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. /TAI T NGUYEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2685 February 18, 2026
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Dec 09, 2022
Application Filed
Nov 16, 2023
Response after Non-Final Action
Feb 18, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §101, §112 (current)

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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
84%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+17.4%)
2y 2m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1087 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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