Prosecution Insights
Last updated: May 29, 2026
Application No. 18/560,905

MEASURING DEVICE, MEASURING METHOD, AND TIME SYNCHRONIZATION SYSTEM

Non-Final OA §112
Filed
Nov 14, 2023
Priority
May 19, 2021 — nonprovisional of PCTJP2021019029
Examiner
COLLINS, JASON M
Art Unit
2831
Tech Center
2800 — Semiconductors & Electrical Systems
Assignee
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
75%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2m
Est. Remaining
88%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 75% — above average
75%
Career Allowance Rate
381 granted / 511 resolved
+6.6% vs TC avg
Moderate +13% lift
Without
With
+12.9%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 9m
Avg Prosecution
17 currently pending
Career history
524
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§103
74.2%
+34.2% vs TC avg
§102
11.4%
-28.6% vs TC avg
§112
10.1%
-29.9% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 511 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 . 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 1-6 and 8-15 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 limitations "acquiring time information regarding an in-device time of the first device" on line 10. There is insufficient antecedent basis for “the first device” in the claim. Further, a first device is later recited adding confusion if “a first device” is the same as the first device. Claim 1 furthers recites “the second device” and “the in-device time of the second device”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for these limitations in the claim. Claims 2-5, 8 and 9 are rejected for depending from rejected claim 1. Claim 6 is rejected because the following limitations lack antecedent basis: “the reference time”, “the first device”, “the second device”, “the in-device time of the second device”. Claims 10-15 are rejected for depending from claim 6. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 1-6 and 8-15 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. Claims 7 and 16-20 are allowed. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: The prior art fails to disclose or reasonably suggest the claimed invention further including acquiring a copy of a packet transmitted and received between the first and second devices calculating a second offset that is a difference between the in-device time of the first device and the in-device time of the second device based on the acquired packet and a transmission delay between the first and second devices; and measuring a degree of accuracy of the in-device time of the second device with respect to the reference time based on the first and second offsets. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JASON COLLINS whose telephone number is (571)270-3994. The examiner can normally be reached 9:30 AM - 6:00 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, Regis Betsch can be reached at (571) 270-7101. 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. /JASON M COLLINS/ Examiner, Art Unit 2844 /EDWIN A. LEON/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2833
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Nov 14, 2023
Application Filed
Jan 09, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §112 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12638811
METHOD FOR OPTIMISING AN OPERATION OF SETTING AND WINDING A WATCH, AND DEVICE FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF SAME
2y 11m to grant Granted May 26, 2026
Patent 12632012
VISUAL TIMER
1y 8m to grant Granted May 19, 2026
Patent 12627756
ADAPTIVE ALARM MANAGEMENT IN AN ELECTRONIC DEVICE
2y 6m to grant Granted May 12, 2026
Patent 12625469
FASTENING ELEMENT FOR TIMEPIECES
2y 6m to grant Granted May 12, 2026
Patent 12625466
CONSTANT-ENERGY ESCAPEMENT FOR TIMEPIECE
2y 6m to grant Granted May 12, 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
75%
Grant Probability
88%
With Interview (+12.9%)
2y 9m (~2m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 511 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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