Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/145,744

ACCELERATING KECCAK ALGORITHMS

Final Rejection §112
Filed
Dec 22, 2022
Examiner
VICARY, KEITH E
Art Unit
2183
Tech Center
2100 — Computer Architecture & Software
Assignee
Intel Corporation
OA Round
4 (Final)
58%
Grant Probability
Moderate
5-6
OA Rounds
3y 8m
To Grant
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 58% of resolved cases
58%
Career Allow Rate
393 granted / 683 resolved
+2.5% vs TC avg
Strong +41% interview lift
Without
With
+41.2%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 8m
Avg Prosecution
41 currently pending
Career history
724
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
8.7%
-31.3% vs TC avg
§103
34.0%
-6.0% vs TC avg
§102
12.0%
-28.0% vs TC avg
§112
37.6%
-2.4% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 683 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 . Claims 1-15 and 17-21 are pending in this office action and presented for examination. Claims 3, 8, 10, 15, and 17-21 are newly amended by the response received December 22, 2025. Specification The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities. Appropriate correction is required. Paragraph [0085] of the original disclosure associates “Reg field” in lines 1 and 2 with reference character 744. However, paragraph [0152] as amended on December 22, 2022, associates “Reg field” with reference character 745. Consequently, it is unclear as to whether “Reg field” corresponds to reference character 744 or reference character 745. The deletion of “In Example 18, the subject matter of any one of Examples 15–17 can optionally include instructions to commit a result of the executed transform instruction” in paragraph [00152] via the amendment to the specification on December 22, 2022, constitutes new matter. (Note that new matter can include not only the addition of unsupported subject matter, but also the deletion of particular embodiments.) Drawings The drawings as amended on July 7, 2025 (and resubmitted on December 22, 2025, with better reproduction quality) are objected to because: In FIG. 7C, reference character 745 is used twice, to indicate two different entities. A same entity (“REG”) appears to be associated with two different reference characters (744 in FIG. 7A, 745 in FIG. 7C). FIG. 7C associates “REGISTER INDEX FIELD” with reference character 745; however, paragraph [0075] associates “register field” with reference character 745. FIG. 7C associates “REG” with reference character 745; however, paragraph [0082] associates “register index field” with reference character 745. Amended paragraph [0152] discloses “Reg field 745” in two locations. However, in FIG. 7A, a “REG” field is associated with reference character 744. In addition, in FIG. 7C, one instance of reference character 745 is associated with REGISTER INDEX FIELD rather than “REG”. Paragraph [0084] discloses “Reg field 744” in two locations; however, FIG. 7C discloses the REG field associated with reference character 745. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance. Claim Objections Claims 3-7 are objected to because of the following informalities. Appropriate correction is required. In claim 3, line 3, “opcode,a” should be “opcode, a” for grammatical clarity. Claims 4-7 are objected to for failing to alleviate the objection of claim 3 above. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a): (a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention. The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112: The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention. Claims 3-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. Claim 3 recites the limitation “execute the first decoded transform instruction to: retrieve respective data from the first source, from the second source, and from the third register” in lines 7-9. However, the original disclosure does not appear to provide support for this limitation. For example, the original disclosure (e.g., paragraph [0060]) does not appear to provide support for executing the first decoded transform instruction to retrieve data from the third register which is identified by a third source identifier of an encoded parity instruction and which identifies an index. Claims 4-7 are rejected for failing to alleviate the rejection of claim 3 above. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 1-2, 8-15, and 17-21 are allowed. Response to Arguments Applicant on page 8 argues: “The Office Action objects to Figure 7C because of informalities. Applicant has amended Figure 7C accordingly and submits a Replacement Sheet herewith.” However, the amended Figure 7C does not appear to overcome the previously presented drawing objections. Applicant on page 8 argues: “The Examiner objected to claims 10-14 and 17. Applicant has amended these claims.” In view of the aforementioned amendments, the previously presented objections to the claims are withdrawn. Applicant on page 8 argues: “Applicant has amended several claims and believe they cure any perceived definite deficiencies.” In view of the aforementioned amendments, the previously presented indefinite rejections are withdrawn. Conclusion Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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 KEITH E VICARY whose telephone number is (571)270-1314. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. 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, Jyoti Mehta can be reached at (571)270-3995. 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. /KEITH E VICARY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2183
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Dec 22, 2022
Application Filed
Jul 16, 2024
Non-Final Rejection — §112
Jan 17, 2025
Response Filed
Jan 29, 2025
Final Rejection — §112
Jul 07, 2025
Request for Continued Examination
Jul 13, 2025
Response after Non-Final Action
Jul 17, 2025
Non-Final Rejection — §112
Dec 22, 2025
Response Filed
Jan 13, 2026
Final Rejection — §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

5-6
Expected OA Rounds
58%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+41.2%)
3y 8m
Median Time to Grant
High
PTA Risk
Based on 683 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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