Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/440,004

SHEET CONVEYING DEVICE, AUTOMATIC DOCUMENT FEEDER, AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS

Final Rejection §112
Filed
Feb 13, 2024
Examiner
NICHOLSON III, LESLIE AUGUST
Art Unit
3653
Tech Center
3600 — Transportation & Electronic Commerce
Assignee
Ricoh Company Ltd.
OA Round
2 (Final)
88%
Grant Probability
Favorable
3-4
OA Rounds
2y 3m
To Grant
93%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 88% — above average
88%
Career Allow Rate
1167 granted / 1323 resolved
+36.2% vs TC avg
Moderate +5% lift
Without
With
+5.1%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 3m
Avg Prosecution
22 currently pending
Career history
1345
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
1.3%
-38.7% vs TC avg
§103
34.5%
-5.5% vs TC avg
§102
39.5%
-0.5% vs TC avg
§112
23.8%
-16.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1323 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 . Response to Arguments/Amendments 1. Due to Applicant's arguments and/or amendments filed 2/17/2026, all previous prior art rejections are hereby withdrawn. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 2. 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. 3. Claims 1-10 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 1 recites the limitation "the abnormal conveyance" in line 10 of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Allowable Subject Matter 4. Claims 11-18 are allowed. Claims 1-10 would be allowable if rewritten or amended 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. Conclusion 6. 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. 7. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to LESLIE A. NICHOLSON III whose telephone number is (571)272-5487. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 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, Michael C McCullough can be reached at 571-272-7805. 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. /LESLIE A NICHOLSON III/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3653 2/25/2026
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Feb 13, 2024
Application Filed
Dec 15, 2025
Non-Final Rejection — §112
Feb 17, 2026
Response Filed
Feb 25, 2026
Final Rejection — §112 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12600595
MACHINE FOR PRODUCING LAMINAR PRODUCTS MADE OF PAPER MATERIAL, IN PARTICULAR PACKAGES OF NAPKINS, TISSUES OR SIMILAR PRODUCTS AND RELATED PRODUCTION METHOD
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12595148
SHEET CONVEYING DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 07, 2026
Patent 12589966
SHEET POSTPROCESSING DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING SYSTEM INCLUDING THE SHEET POSTPROCESSING DEVICE
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 31, 2026
Patent 12592114
AUTOMATED SORTATION AND DISPENSING SYSTEM
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 31, 2026
Patent 12583200
Method for forming a creasing on a paper item and paper item provided with a creasing
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 24, 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
88%
Grant Probability
93%
With Interview (+5.1%)
2y 3m
Median Time to Grant
Moderate
PTA Risk
Based on 1323 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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