Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 18/539,540

ENABLING QUANTUM MACHINE LEARNING TO BE USED EFFECTIVELY WITH CLASSICAL DATA BY MAPPING CLASSICAL DATA INTO A QUANTUM STATE SPACE

Final Rejection §102
Filed
Dec 14, 2023
Examiner
KINKEAD, ARNOLD M
Art Unit
2849
Tech Center
2800 — Semiconductors & Electrical Systems
Assignee
International Business Machines Corporation
OA Round
2 (Final)
91%
Grant Probability
Favorable
3-4
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 91% — above average
91%
Career Allowance Rate
1267 granted / 1390 resolved
+23.2% vs TC avg
Moderate +8% lift
Without
With
+7.9%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Fast prosecutor
2y 0m
Avg Prosecution
19 currently pending
Career history
1405
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.5%
-39.5% vs TC avg
§103
51.2%
+11.2% vs TC avg
§102
24.1%
-15.9% vs TC avg
§112
15.3%
-24.7% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1390 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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 . The examiner kindly requests a telephone interview prior to the next response in hopes of advancing prosecution. Response to Arguments The examiner withdraws the 101 and 112 issues in light of the arguments 04-11-26. However, a simple reference to a processor to execute instructions would be helpful.(Should be discussed in any interview going forward) Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1, 8 and 15(under 102 rejection) have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection (new cite from IDS 01-28-26)does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status. The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action: A person shall be entitled to a patent unless – (a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. Claim(s) 1, 8 and 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)as being anticipated by Schuld et al(NPL Quantum machine learning in feature Hilbert spaces(09-March-2018), new cite by applicants) Re claim 1, 8 and 15 : please see figure below: The reference to Shuld et al shows a quantum computing machine w/ learning network configuration, see figure 3 and description, that makes use of classical data(INPUT DATA). The data is mapped, i.e., classical data is passed thru the quantum device , where a quantum state space is used to form quantum data (feature mapping)using classical machine learning methods(that is, making use of classical kernels as noted); PNG media_image1.png 500 502 media_image1.png Greyscale The QNN model/ A hybrid quantum machine learning on a quantum computer using said formed quantum data is provided for with inherent memory for data used in the storing and manipulating transformed data representations shown in the reference. The method steps being inherent by virtue of the process flow diagram above as described. Allowable Subject Matter Claim 2-7, 9-14 and 16-20 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. Conclusion Applicant's submission of an information disclosure statement under 37 CFR 1.97(c) with the timing fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(p) on )1-28-26 prompted the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 609.04(b). 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 ARNOLD M KINKEAD whose telephone number is (571)272-1763. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7am-5:30pm(Fri-Flex). 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, Menatoallah Youssef can be reached at 571-270-3684. 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. /ARNOLD M KINKEAD/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2836
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Dec 14, 2023
Application Filed
Nov 28, 2025
Non-Final Rejection (signed) — §102
Jan 14, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102
Apr 11, 2026
Response Filed
Jun 26, 2026
Final Rejection mailed — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

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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
91%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+7.9%)
2y 0m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Moderate
PTA Risk
Based on 1390 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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