Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/491,156

SEALING SYSTEM, ASSEMBLY AND VEHICLE COMPRISING SUCH A SEALING SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ASSEMBLING A VEHICLE COMPRISING SUCH A SEALING SYSTEM

Non-Final OA §112
Filed
Oct 20, 2023
Examiner
BROWNE, SCOTT A
Art Unit
3666
Tech Center
3600 — Transportation & Electronic Commerce
Assignee
Alstom Holdings
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
72%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
3y 1m
To Grant
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 72% — above average
72%
Career Allow Rate
355 granted / 495 resolved
+19.7% vs TC avg
Strong +36% interview lift
Without
With
+35.9%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 1m
Avg Prosecution
13 currently pending
Career history
508
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.6%
-39.4% vs TC avg
§103
40.4%
+0.4% vs TC avg
§102
25.8%
-14.2% vs TC avg
§112
29.6%
-10.4% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 495 resolved cases

Office Action

§112
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 appl icant regards as his invention. Claims 5 and 8 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 claims 5 and 8, the phrase "preferentially" renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear whether the limitation(s) following the phrase are part of the claimed invention. See MPEP § 2173.05. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 1-4, 6-7, and 9-10 are allowed. Claims 5 and 8 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. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: there are several “X” references in the ISR. However, each one has deficiencies which are not cured by the cited prior art. Specifically, the only independent claim recites that the bellows is in contact with the body. The RU / ES references fail to disclose this. The claim effectively requires that not only that there be a box structure but the box contacts the bellows such that an end of the bellows is surrounded by the box. The DE reference fails to disclose a box. Further, while there are intended use lim itations, the body of the vehicle as cited in the preamble is repeatedly recited in the body of the claim thus such structure carries patentable weight. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SCOTT A BROWNE whose telephone number is (571)270-0151. The examiner can normally be reached on Variable Workweek/IFP. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s colleague, SPE Ramon Mercado can be reached on (571) 270-5744. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov . Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /SCOTT A BROWNE/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3666
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Oct 20, 2023
Application Filed
Mar 12, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §112 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12594977
CROSS RAIL STRUCTURE FOR OHT SYSTEM AND OHT SYSTEM USING THE SAME
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 07, 2026
Patent 12577734
RAIL ANCHORING SPIKE
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 17, 2026
Patent 12537715
FULL-ELECTRONIC TURNOUT SECURITY CONTROL SYSTEM FOR TRAIN-TO-TRAIN COMMUNICATION AND METHOD THEREOF
2y 5m to grant Granted Jan 27, 2026
Patent 12472799
COMPUTER-IMPLEMENTED METHOD OF CONTROLLING THE CABIN CLIMATE IN A VEHICLE TRAVELLING ON A ROAD
2y 5m to grant Granted Nov 18, 2025
Patent 12393089
VEHICULAR DRIVER MONITORING SYSTEM WITH CAMERA AND LIGHT EMITTER IN INTERIOR REARVIEW MIRROR
2y 5m to grant Granted Aug 19, 2025
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

AI Strategy Recommendation

Get an AI-powered prosecution strategy using examiner precedents, rejection analysis, and claim mapping.
Powered by AI — typically takes 5-10 seconds

Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
72%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+35.9%)
3y 1m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 495 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow 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