Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 18/317,149

COMPRESSOR CYLINDER LUBRICATION SYSTEMS AND METHODS UTILIZING THREE-WAY VALVES

Non-Final OA §112
Filed
May 15, 2023
Examiner
TRUONG, MINH D
Art Unit
3654
Tech Center
3600 — Transportation & Electronic Commerce
Assignee
Chevron Phillips Chemical Company L.P.
OA Round
4 (Non-Final)
67%
Grant Probability
Favorable
4-5
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
91%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 67% — above average
67%
Career Allowance Rate
490 granted / 731 resolved
+15.0% vs TC avg
Strong +24% interview lift
Without
With
+24.4%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 11m
Avg Prosecution
25 currently pending
Career history
757
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§103
83.8%
+43.8% vs TC avg
§102
11.4%
-28.6% vs TC avg
§112
4.8%
-35.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 731 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 . Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114 A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 5/15/2026 has been entered. 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 2-3, 22-23, and 29 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. Claim 2 recites “a gas compressor having two or more gas compressor cylinders,” which is unclear. Is the said gas compressor of claim 2 associated with the gas compressor cylinder in claim 1 line 2? Is the gas compressor cylinder in claim 1 line 2 one of the gas compressor cylinders of claim 2 or additional cylinder? Claims 22 and 29 have a similar issue. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 1, 4-5, 7, 10, 12, 21, 24-26, 28, and 30 are allowed. Claims 2-3, 22-23, and 29 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include 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 MINH D TRUONG whose telephone number is (571)270-3014. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9-5 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, Robert Hodge can be reached at (571) 272-2097. 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. /Minh Truong/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3654
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Show 7 earlier events
Dec 17, 2025
Response after Non-Final Action
Dec 22, 2025
Applicant Interview (Telephonic)
Dec 22, 2025
Examiner Interview Summary
Jan 07, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §112
Mar 17, 2026
Response Filed
May 15, 2026
Request for Continued Examination
May 20, 2026
Response after Non-Final Action
Jun 25, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §112 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12680474
METHOD OF OPERATING A LUBRICATION SYSTEM FOR A TURBINE ENGINE
2y 7m to grant Granted Jul 14, 2026
Patent 12674545
LUBRICATION SYSTEM
1y 4m to grant Granted Jul 07, 2026
Patent 12663070
POWER TRANSMISSION DEVICE
1y 9m to grant Granted Jun 23, 2026
Patent 12655901
TRANSMISSION OF VEHICLE, POWERTRAIN, AND VEHICLE
1y 11m to grant Granted Jun 16, 2026
Patent 12618513
GUIDE JIG
1y 6m to grant Granted May 05, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

Strategy Recommendation AI-generated — please review before filing

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Prosecution Projections

4-5
Expected OA Rounds
67%
Grant Probability
91%
With Interview (+24.4%)
2y 11m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
High
PTA Risk
Based on 731 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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