Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 01, 2026
Application No. 18/180,865

SUB-RATE ASYMMETRIC FFE GENERATION FOR OPTICAL TRANSMITTER

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Mar 09, 2023
Priority
Jan 03, 2023 — TW 112100054
Examiner
HARVEY, MINSUN OH
Art Unit
2828
Tech Center
2800 — Semiconductors & Electrical Systems
Assignee
National Tsing Hua University
OA Round
2 (Non-Final)
72%
Grant Probability
Favorable
2-3
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
71%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 72% — above average
72%
Career Allowance Rate
29 granted / 40 resolved
+4.5% vs TC avg
Minimal -1% lift
Without
With
+-1.3%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 6m
Avg Prosecution
14 currently pending
Career history
55
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.6%
-39.4% vs TC avg
§103
53.0%
+13.0% vs TC avg
§102
25.6%
-14.4% vs TC avg
§112
20.8%
-19.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 40 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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 . Response to Arguments Applicant's arguments filed on 5/22/26 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. On page 3 to page 4, line 6, the applicant argued that Raj does not disclose “a structure configured to receive a plurality of sets of differential input data” . However, the applicant’s argument is not persuasive because as shown in figure 6, elements 620 receives 2 input signals where each signal is set of input data (4 delay elements). In addition, a plurality could be interpreted as having more than 1. On page 4, line 14 to page 5, the applicant argued that Raj does not disclose detecting rising/falling edges of the plurality of sets of differential output data. However, the applicant’s argument is not persuasive because edge detector 530 of Raj reference does detect the plurality of sets of the output signal ( falling (Fb and F are multiple) and rising (R and RB are multiple)). Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 2. The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action: A person shall be entitled to a patent unless – (a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. 3. Claims 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Raj et al. (US 20150139257). Regarding claim 1, Raj et al. discloses in figure 6 and specification: 1. An edge detector (see, 630, fig. 6, see also, paragraph [0041]-[0042]) applied to a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (see, 602, fig. 6), the edge detector comprising: an alignment circuit (see, 620, fig. 6, see also, paragraph [0043], here, equalization delay module 620) configured to receive a plurality of sets of differential input data, and align the plurality of sets of differential input data to output a plurality of sets of corresponding differential output data, wherein the plurality of sets of differential output data comprise a set of delayed differential output data (see, paragraph [0043]); a rising-edge detecting circuit (see, paragraph [0043], here, the rising edge detector 430) coupled to the alignment circuit, the rising-edge detecting circuit configured to detect rising edges of the plurality of sets of differential output data to output a plurality of sets of corresponding differential rising data; and a falling-edge detecting circuit (see, paragraph [0043], here, the falling edge detector 440) coupled to the alignment circuit, the falling-edge detecting circuit configured to detect falling edges of the plurality of sets of differential output data to output a plurality of sets of corresponding differential falling data (see, paragraph [0043]). PNG media_image1.png 318 438 media_image1.png Greyscale Allowable Subject Matter Claims 2 to 10 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MINSUN OH HARVEY whose telephone number is (571)272-1835. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday. 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, John Fristoe can be reached at 571-272-4926. 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. MINSUN OH. HARVEY Supervisory Patent Examiner Art Unit 2828
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Mar 09, 2023
Application Filed
Feb 25, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102
May 22, 2026
Response Filed
Jul 01, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

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3y 3m to grant Granted Sep 29, 2026
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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
72%
Grant Probability
71%
With Interview (-1.3%)
3y 6m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Moderate
PTA Risk
Based on 40 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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