Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/430,875

INFORMATION PROCESSING APPARATUS, CONTROL METHOD, AND NON-TRANSITORY COMPUTER-READABLE STORAGE MEDIUM STORING PROGRAM

Non-Final OA §103
Filed
Feb 02, 2024
Examiner
PACHOL, NICHOLAS C
Art Unit
2699
Tech Center
2600 — Communications
Assignee
Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
59%
Grant Probability
Moderate
1-2
OA Rounds
3y 3m
To Grant
82%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 59% of resolved cases
59%
Career Allow Rate
332 granted / 559 resolved
-2.6% vs TC avg
Strong +22% interview lift
Without
With
+22.5%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 3m
Avg Prosecution
35 currently pending
Career history
594
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
7.2%
-32.8% vs TC avg
§103
59.9%
+19.9% vs TC avg
§102
17.3%
-22.7% vs TC avg
§112
11.7%
-28.3% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 559 resolved cases

Office Action

§103
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 . Specification The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 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. Claim(s) 1-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Inoue (US 2021/0200488) in view of Hirai (US 2016/0039234). Regarding Claim 1, Inoue teaches a control method of an information processing apparatus implemented by an application that extends a function of print data generation software stored in the information processing apparatus (Paragraph 26), comprising: acquiring a medium type supported by a printing apparatus (Paragraphs 35 and 42, wherein the medium type is acquired); identifying a display text corresponding to the medium type based on the acquired medium type (Paragraph 53, wherein the wording for displaying the paper type is determined). Inoue does not teach identifying, based on the acquired medium type, a group to which the medium type belongs; causing a display unit of the information processing apparatus to display the group in accordance with selection of an object for setting a medium type of a medium to be used for printing; and controlling to cause the display unit to display the display text based on selection of the group. Hirai does teach identifying, based on the acquired medium type, a group to which the medium type belongs (Paragraph 75, wherein paper types can be categorized); causing a display unit of the information processing apparatus to display the group in accordance with selection of an object for setting a medium type of a medium to be used for printing (Paragraphs 134-137, wherein the category can be displayed); and controlling to cause the display unit to display the display text based on selection of the group (Paragraphs 134-137, wherein based on the category selected the display is updated). Inoue and Hirai are combinable because they both deal with determination of paper types. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to combine the teachings of Inoue with the teachings of Hirai for the purpose ensuring the preferred paper is selected by the user (Hirai: Paragraph 7). Regarding Claim 2, Hirai further teaches wherein the group is identified based on some pieces of information included in the medium type (Paragraph 75, wherein paper types can be categorized). Inoue and Hirai are combinable because they both deal with determination of paper types. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to combine the teachings of Inoue with the teachings of Hirai for the purpose ensuring the preferred paper is selected by the user (Hirai: Paragraph 7). Regarding Claim 3, Inoue further teaches wherein the display text is acquired from the printing apparatus (Paragraph 39, wherein the language information is provided). Regarding Claim 4, Hirai further teaches wherein whether to display the group is controlled in accordance with a setting by a user (Paragraphs 131 and 132, wherein the user can select a paper type category or a paper type). Inoue and Hirai are combinable because they both deal with determination of paper types. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the application to combine the teachings of Inoue with the teachings of Hirai for the purpose ensuring the preferred paper is selected by the user (Hirai: Paragraph 7). Regarding Claim 5, Inoue further teaches wherein acquisition of the medium type is performed by communication using a predetermined protocol (Paragraphs 33 and 47, wherein the capability information is obtained through IPP). Regarding Claim 6, Inoue further teaches wherein the predetermined protocol is Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) (Paragraphs 33 and 47, wherein the capability information is obtained through IPP). Regarding Claim 7, Inoue further teaches wherein the medium type is a media-type attribute value of the IPP (Paragraphs 33 and 37, wherein the capability information includes paper type). Regarding Claim 8, Inoue further teaches wherein the print data generation software is software provided by an operating system of the information processing apparatus (Paragraphs 24 and 26, wherein the application is run by the operating system). Regarding Claim 9, the limitations are similar to those treated in and are met by the references as discussed in claim 1 above. Regarding Claim 10, the limitations are similar to those treated in and are met by the references as discussed in claim 1 above. Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The additional cited prior art of A-D, F, H-K all relate to designating printing media types and categorizing the media type. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NICHOLAS PACHOL whose telephone number is (571)270-3433. The examiner can normally be reached M-Th: 8-4. 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, George Eng can be reached at 571-272-7495. 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. /NICHOLAS PACHOL/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2699
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Feb 02, 2024
Application Filed
Jan 09, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §103 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12596900
IMAGE COMPARISON CALIBRATIONS
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 07, 2026
Patent 12592730
SIGNAL PROCESSING DEVICE, SIGNAL PROCESSING METHOD, AND NON-TRANSITORY COMPUTER READABLE MEDIUM FOR A DISTORTION COMPENSATION CIRCUIT
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 31, 2026
Patent 12593002
CONTROL APPARATUS, CONTROL METHOD, AND STORAGE MEDIUM THAT CONTROL PRINTING A FLUORESENT MATSDIAL PATCH ON A PRENTING MEDIUM
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 31, 2026
Patent 12568177
DOCUMENT READING APPARATUS AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS INCLUDING HINGE MECHANISM THAT SUPPORTS A DOCUMENT CONVEYANCE UNIT
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 03, 2026
Patent 12556642
IMAGE PROCESSING APPARATUS WHICH CONVERTS COLOR IMAGES TO MONOCHROME WITH PERCEPTIBLE GRADATIONS IN GRAY VALUE, AND IMAGE PROCESSING METHOD AND STORAGE MEDIUM FOR SAME
2y 5m to grant Granted Feb 17, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
59%
Grant Probability
82%
With Interview (+22.5%)
3y 3m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 559 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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