Prosecution Insights
Last updated: May 28, 2026
Application No. 18/578,988

GAS METER

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Jan 12, 2024
Priority
Jul 16, 2021 — JP 2021-117520 +1 more
Examiner
ROYSTON, JOHN M
Art Unit
2855
Tech Center
2800 — Semiconductors & Electrical Systems
Assignee
Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
78%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
1m
Est. Remaining
95%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 78% — above average
78%
Career Allowance Rate
501 granted / 644 resolved
+9.8% vs TC avg
Strong +17% interview lift
Without
With
+16.8%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 6m
Avg Prosecution
13 currently pending
Career history
658
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
1.4%
-38.6% vs TC avg
§103
80.1%
+40.1% vs TC avg
§102
9.6%
-30.4% vs TC avg
§112
5.5%
-34.5% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 644 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 . 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. Claims 1 and 2 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Shirasawa et al. US PG-PUB 2020/0116541 A1 (hereafter Shirasawa), prior art of record as indicated on the IDS filed 12 January 2024. As to claim 1: Shirasawa discloses a gas meter (1; see fig. 1 and ¶ 19) comprising: a flow rate measuring member (3; see fig. 1 and ¶ 20) configured to measure a flow rate of a gas (see ¶ 21); a storage (9; see fig. 1 and ¶ 23) configured to store a plurality of pieces of predetermined data (see ¶ 23 and 24), except for a meter read value (see ¶ 23 and 24; neither of which discloses the data being a meter read value specifically), of a plurality of pieces of data each of which is calculated based on the flow rate measured by the flow rate measuring member (see ¶ 24); a condition setting member (7; see fig. 1 and ¶ 21) configured to set a type of, and a storage condition for, the predetermined data to be stored in the storage (see ¶ 23 and 24); and a communicator (10; see fig. 1 and ¶ 27) for transmitting (see ¶ 27) the plurality of pieces of predetermined data stored in the storage to an external device (11; see fig. 1 and ¶ 27); the storage starting sequentially storing the plurality of pieces of predetermined data in response to an occurrence of a predetermined event set by the condition setting member (see ¶ 27 as well as ¶ 33 and ¶ 35), the communicator (10) transmitting, at a predetermined timing set by the condition setting member, the plurality of pieces of predetermined data stored in the storage to the external device (see ¶ 27 and 30). As to claim 2: Shirasawa discloses a gas meter (1; see fig. 1 and ¶ 19) comprising: a flow rate measuring member (3; see fig. 1 and ¶ 20) configured to measure a flow rate of a gas (see ¶ 21); a sensor member (12; see fig. 1 and ¶ 30) including a sensor (12) configured to measure at least one of vibration, temperature (see ¶ 30), or pressure; a storage (9; see fig. 1 and ¶ 23) configured to store a plurality of pieces of predetermined data (see ¶ 23 and 24) of a plurality of pieces of data measured by the sensor member (see ¶ 30); a condition setting member (7; see fig. 1 and ¶ 21) configured to set a type of, and a storage condition for, the predetermined data to be stored in the storage (see ¶ 23 and 24); and a communicator (10; see fig. 1 and ¶ 27) configured to transmit (see ¶ 27) the plurality of pieces of predetermined data stored in the storage to an external device (11; see fig. 1 and ¶ 27), the storage starting sequentially storing the plurality of pieces of predetermined data in response to an occurrence of a predetermined event set by the condition setting member (see ¶ 27 as well as ¶ 33 and ¶ 35), the communicator (10) transmitting, at a predetermined timing set by the condition setting member, the plurality of pieces of predetermined data stored in the storage to the external device (see ¶ 27 and 30). References Cited but not Relied Upon As to references cited but not relied upon: Downie US PG-PUB 2013/0340859 A1 discloses a meter for measuring the mass flow rate of a gas and appears pertinent to Applicant’s disclosure. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOHN M ROYSTON whose telephone number is (571)270-7215. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8-4:30 E.S.T.. 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, Peter Macchiarolo can be reached at 571-272-2375. 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. /JOHN M ROYSTON/Examiner, Art Unit 2855
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Jan 12, 2024
Application Filed
Jan 15, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102
Apr 15, 2026
Response Filed

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

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
78%
Grant Probability
95%
With Interview (+16.8%)
2y 6m (~1m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 644 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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