Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/231,925

INVERTER APPARATUS AND INVERTER SYSTEM

Final Rejection §112
Filed
Aug 09, 2023
Examiner
SMITH, COURTNEY L
Art Unit
2835
Tech Center
2800 — Semiconductors & Electrical Systems
Assignee
Huawei Digital Power Technologies Co. Ltd.
OA Round
2 (Final)
85%
Grant Probability
Favorable
3-4
OA Rounds
2y 6m
To Grant
97%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 85% — above average
85%
Career Allow Rate
1062 granted / 1244 resolved
+17.4% vs TC avg
Moderate +12% lift
Without
With
+11.7%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 6m
Avg Prosecution
36 currently pending
Career history
1280
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§103
39.1%
-0.9% vs TC avg
§102
33.9%
-6.1% vs TC avg
§112
24.4%
-15.6% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1244 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 . 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 1-19, 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. Regarding Claim 1; in line 4, “each frame” is unclear; whereas “at least one frame” does not necessitate more than one frame. The office hereby notes that “at least one frame” only constitutes a broadest reasonable interpretation (BRI) of “one frame”. Regarding Claim 1; Claims 1-19, are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being incomplete for omitting essential elements, such omission amounting to a gap between the elements. See MPEP § 2172.01. The omitted elements are: in association to line(s) 11-12, “the alternating and direct current distribution cabinet outputs a converged alternating current” is asserted without presenting any structure by which structurally receive current and output a converged alternating current; whereas the cabinet alone does not necessitate an electrical structure, and thus sufficient structure must be presented to accomplish the asserted function. As such, it appears that “a bus” shall be asserted--as disclosed by the applicant at para. 0140 and further where the second alternating current output end is filled with “copper bus bars”—as disclosed by the applicant at para. 0096, and/or where alternating currents of the inverts may share “a bus” and be output from one side—as disclosed by the applicant at para. 0104. Response to Arguments Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1-19 have been considered but are moot; whereas 112(b) rejections are herein presented to read on the amended claim language. The office hereby notes that the claim are deemed as allowable upon correction of each of the above-mentioned deficiencies. 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 COURTNEY SMITH whose telephone number is (571)272-9094. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9-5p. 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, Jayprakash Gandhi can be reached at 571-272-3740. 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. /COURTNEY L SMITH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2835
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Aug 09, 2023
Application Filed
Aug 19, 2025
Non-Final Rejection — §112
Nov 06, 2025
Response Filed
Jan 28, 2026
Final Rejection — §112 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

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LOWER MODULE OF POWER ELECTRONIC DEVICE
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12604439
VEHICLE-MOUNTED POWER SUPPLY APPARATUS AND VEHICLE
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12604442
POWER MODULE, PARTICULARLY FOR POWER ELECTRONICS OF A VEHICLE
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12598726
Control Module for a Vehicle With at Least an Electric Motor and a Transmission
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 07, 2026
Patent 12593423
FLOW-THROUGH FOLDING MEMBRANE ACCUMULATOR FOR LIQUID COOLING SYSTEM
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 31, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

3-4
Expected OA Rounds
85%
Grant Probability
97%
With Interview (+11.7%)
2y 6m
Median Time to Grant
Moderate
PTA Risk
Based on 1244 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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