Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 01, 2026
Application No. 18/579,326

RF ENERGY RADIATION DEVICE

Non-Final OA §112
Filed
Jan 12, 2024
Priority
Aug 24, 2021 — JP 2021-135995 +1 more
Examiner
TRAN, THIEN S
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
Panasonic Holdings Corporation
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
72%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
7m
Est. Remaining
96%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 72% — above average
72%
Career Allowance Rate
993 granted / 1382 resolved
+11.9% vs TC avg
Strong +24% interview lift
Without
With
+24.1%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 3m
Avg Prosecution
48 currently pending
Career history
1408
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
1.4%
-38.6% vs TC avg
§103
54.2%
+14.2% vs TC avg
§102
16.9%
-23.1% vs TC avg
§112
23.3%
-16.7% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1382 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 . Priority 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. 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. Claim 19 is 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 19, lines 2-3 recites “the traveling-wave power during on-time”, lines 3-4 recites “the traveling-wave power during off-time”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 10-18 are allowed. The following is an examiner's statement of reasons for allowance: allowance of the claims is indicated because none of the prior art of record, alone or in combination, appears to teach, or fairly suggest or render obvious the invention of the claims or recited allowable subject matter in claim 18. Claim 1 recites an RF energy radiation device, comprising: a controller configured to control both the oscillator and the power amplifier in accordance with the reflected-wave power, wherein the controller is configured to set an operation mode to either a first control mode or a second control mode, wherein the first control mode includes performing a pulse width control to generate the traveling-wave power by performing one or both of setting the pulse width to a predetermined pulse width and setting the pulse period to a predetermined pulse period, wherein the second control mode includes performing the pulse width control to generate the traveling-wave power by performing one or both of setting the pulse width to a pulse width different from the pulse width in the first control mode and setting the pulse period to a pulse period different from the pulse period in the first control mode, and wherein the traveling-wave power is not shut off in the first control mode, and the traveling-wave power is shut off when the reflected-wave power exceeds a predetermined threshold in the second control mode which the closest cited prior art of Takano (US 2021/0274609) or Bilchinsky (US 2013/0062334) fails to disclose or render obvious. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THIEN S TRAN whose telephone number is (571)270-7745. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday [8:00-4:00]. 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, Steven Crabb can be reached at 571-270-5095. 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. /THIEN S TRAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3761 9/8/2026
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Prosecution Timeline

Jan 12, 2024
Application Filed
Sep 11, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §112 (current)

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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
72%
Grant Probability
96%
With Interview (+24.1%)
3y 3m (~7m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1382 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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