Prosecution Insights
Last updated: May 04, 2026
Application No. 18/202,607

ELEVATOR INTERACTION IN PUBLIC SPACES

Non-Final OA §102§103
Filed
May 26, 2023
Priority
Dec 10, 2020 — continuation of PCTUS2020064216
Examiner
IACOLETTI, MICHELLE M
Art Unit
2877
Tech Center
2800 — Semiconductors & Electrical Systems
Assignee
Kone Corporation
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
85%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
94%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 85% — above average
85%
Career Allowance Rate
431 granted / 506 resolved
+17.2% vs TC avg
Moderate +9% lift
Without
With
+8.9%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 4m
Avg Prosecution
5 currently pending
Career history
511
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
3.0%
-37.0% vs TC avg
§103
39.4%
-0.6% vs TC avg
§102
28.0%
-12.0% vs TC avg
§112
22.1%
-17.9% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 506 resolved cases

Office Action

§102 §103
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 § 102 In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status. 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. Claims 1-6, 8-23, 25, 26 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 ( a )( 1 ) as being anticipated by Troesch et al (US 2018/0162 6 88). Claims 1 , 9, 16 - 18 , 26 : With regard to claim 1, Troesch et al disclose (Fig. 1 and associated text) a method for enabling temporary interaction between a user device (28) of a passenger (30) and an elevator or an elevator group (10) provided for public use in a public space, characterized in that wherein the method comprises the steps of: maintaining a database comprising information on at least one elevator or elevator group available for public use, said information comprising at least a unique identifier and a geographical location of each of said elevators or elevator groups available for public use ([0022] The sensors 4 , which are networked with the control system 8 , 12 by a cable 22 , each have an individual identifier in the network. The identifier identifies a sensor 4 in the network, and a fixed location (installation site) in the building 2 is associated with it. Using the identifier of the sensor 4 , information about the location of the sensor 4 can be transmitted ) ; receiving, from a user device, a request message comprising validation information, wherein the validation information comprises at least a unique identification of an elevator or elevator group; obtaining a location of the user device; validating said request message, wherein said validation comprises at least verifying that the unique identification of the elevator or elevator group in said validation information is among said at least one elevator or elevator group available for public use and that the location of the user device and the geographical location of the elevator or elevator group identified by the unique identification fulfill a predefined proximity criterion ([0028], the control system 8, 12 can identify which mobile device 28 is located near the location of the beacon 4. If the passenger 30 moves within the building 2, the described process repeats as soon as a communicative link is established between the mobile device 28 and a different beacon 4. This permits the control system 8, 12 to track the movement of the mobile device 28 ) ; and if the request message is deemed valid, sending an acknowledgement message to the user device, wherein said acknowledgment message indicates a grant of a temporary access to an elevator application running on the user device for communicating with the elevator or elevator group identified in the request message via an elevator call application programming interface (API), for entering at least one call for elevator service [0032] . With regard to the touchless token of claim s 9 and 26 , [0026] discloses “ a beacon 4 can always transmit the same data ”, [00 22 ] discloses “ The sensors 4 are based on a known radio technology, such as RFID, NFC, WiFi or Bluetooth ”. With regard to claim s 16 and 17 , the control system (8, 12) contains a computer program product for enabling temporary interaction between a user device of a passenger and an elevator or an elevator group provided for public use in a public space, wherein the computer program product is embodied on anon-transitory computer readable medium and comprises computer executable code that, when executed by a computing device or a computing system, performs the steps according to claim 1. Claim 18 is the corresponding apparatus claim . Claim s 2 , 10, 19 : [ 0028] teaches that the predefined proximity criterion comprises a maximum predefined proximity radius between the location of the user device and the geographical location of the respective elevator or elevator group, group (inherent to “ the control system 8 , 12 can identify which mobile device 28 is located near the location of the beacon 4 ”) . Claims 5 , 22 : [ 0032] discloses that the request message further comprises a unique user identity of a registered user, and in response to deeming that the request message is valid, the unique user identity of the registered user is stored in a temporary user database associated with the elevator or elevator group identified in the validation information [0036-0037] Claims 6 , 23 , 14, 8, 15, 25 : [0037] anticipates a subsequently received elevator call request concerning the elevator or elevator group is accepted, if the unique user identity of the registered user or the respective temporary user token included in the elevator call request is found in the respective temporary user database associated with the respective elevator or elevator group ( If these processes repeat, e.g. every day at particular times, then it is possible to derive one or more behavior patterns therefrom. One group of behavior patterns encompasses behavior patterns in which the passenger 30 uses the elevator system 1 to travel to a particular destination floor ) . This also anticipates claims 8, 15 and 25: the validation information further comprises information on a current floor, and wherein the grant of a temporary access grants access for entering a call for elevator service between the current floor and a destination floor. Claims 3, 4, 11 , 12, 20 , 21 : [ 0036] implicitly discloses sending, by the user device, a query comprising the location of the user device (room 26) ; and in response to the query, receiving information on at least one elevator or elevator group (elevator system 1) available for public use that fulfills the predefined proximity criterion. Claim 13 : [0032] discloses that the request message further comprises a unique user identity of a registered user ( For each registered passenger, a user profile is saved in a database and contains e.g. personal data (e.g. name, company, possibly physical handicaps, identification data for a mobile device 28 (e.g. ID code (media access control (MAC) address)), identification data for an employee identity card (badge) with RFID technology or an optical code (e.g. barcode) and/or person-specific access and/or usage authorizations) . Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action: A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made. Claims 7 and 24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Troesch et al (US 2018/0162 6 88) in view of Manikantan Shila et al (US 2017/0243417). Claims 7 and 24 : Troesch et al teach the method/system according to claim 6 /23 , but is silent to the unique user identity or the temporary user token is respectively removed from the temporary user database associated once the requested elevator call has been served and/or upon expiry of a predefined time period. Manikantan Shila et al teach [0009] a secure access token with a long-term expiration date. It would have been obvious to a skilled artisan at the time of the effective filing date of the instant application to use an expiration date for the token of Troesch et al, to prevent attacks by hackers ( Manikantan Shila [0004]) Contact Information Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FILLIN "Examiner name" \* MERGEFORMAT MICHELLE M IACOLETTI whose telephone number is FILLIN "Phone number" \* MERGEFORMAT (571)270-5789 . The examiner can normally be reached FILLIN "Work Schedule?" \* MERGEFORMAT 8 am -5 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, FILLIN "SPE Name?" \* MERGEFORMAT Allana Bidder can be reached at FILLIN "SPE Phone?" \* MERGEFORMAT 571 272 5560 . 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. /MICHELLE M IACOLETTI/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2877
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

May 26, 2023
Application Filed
Mar 26, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102, §103 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12604803
SYSTEM FOR MEASURING THRESHING LOSSES
3y 7m to grant Granted Apr 21, 2026
Patent 12578247
Eye Glasses Lens Inspection Device with Interchangeable Lenses
3y 7m to grant Granted Mar 17, 2026
Patent 12560483
APPARATUS FOR INSPECTING DISPLAY PANEL AND METHOD FOR INSPECTING DISPLAY PANEL
3y 0m to grant Granted Feb 24, 2026
Patent 12546706
Optical referencing from optical references with variable perturbative drift rates
3y 10m to grant Granted Feb 10, 2026
Patent 12540898
Laser Interferometer
2y 2m to grant Granted Feb 03, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

Strategy Recommendation AI-generated — please review before filing

Get a prosecution strategy drawn from examiner precedents, rejection analysis, and claim mapping.
Typically takes 5-10 seconds — AI-generated, attorney review required before filing

Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
85%
Grant Probability
94%
With Interview (+8.9%)
2y 4m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 506 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

Sign in with your work email

Enter your email to receive a magic link. No password needed.

Personal email addresses (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.) are not accepted.

Free tier: 3 strategy analyses per month