Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/588,183

VEHICLE HOOK CAPABLE OF PREVENTING REEL DISENGAGEMENT AND VEHICLE

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Feb 27, 2024
Examiner
KIM, SANG K
Art Unit
3654
Tech Center
3600 — Transportation & Electronic Commerce
Assignee
Nio Technology (Anhui) Co. Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
81%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 6m
To Grant
91%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 81% — above average
81%
Career Allow Rate
1419 granted / 1749 resolved
+29.1% vs TC avg
Moderate +10% lift
Without
With
+10.3%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 6m
Avg Prosecution
46 currently pending
Career history
1795
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.3%
-39.7% vs TC avg
§103
33.2%
-6.8% vs TC avg
§102
30.2%
-9.8% vs TC avg
§112
28.6%
-11.4% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1749 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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 1-2, and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Vogeler, U.S. Patent No. 10526812 B1. Regarding claim 1, Vogeler ‘812 discloses a mounting portion 12 configured to be connected to a vehicle 18, at least two mounting notches (apertures of 32) being provided on the mounting portion, and a rewinding reel 10 rotatably arranged in the mounting notches (apertures of 32) and removably connected to the mounting portion 12 (see figure 5), wherein at least one of the at least two mounting notches is a closable notch (i.e., using 38 which is adjustable by moving up and down vertically, claim 2), and a vehicle hook capable of preventing reel disengagement (12, 10, apertures of 32, as same as applicant’s claimed device, see applicant’s paragraph [0033], claim 10), see figures 1-6. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 3-9 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. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: The claims 3-9 are patentable over the prior art of record because the teachings of the references taken as a whole do not show or render obvious the combination set forth in claims 3-9, including every structural element recited in the claim and how it functions. None of the references of the prior art teach or suggest the elements of the device as advanced above and such do not provide the necessary motivation, absent applicant's specification, for modifying the device in the manner required by the claims. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SANG K KIM whose telephone number is 571-272-6947. The examiner can normally be reached Tuesday through Thursday from 10:30 A.M. to 9 P.M or Tuesday through Thursday from 10:30 A.M. to 7 P.M. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner's supervisor, Victoria Augustine, can be reached on (313) 446-4858. 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). SK 12/3/25 /SANG K KIM/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3654
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Feb 27, 2024
Application Filed
Dec 04, 2025
Non-Final Rejection — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12600590
Surface Rewinder with Center Assist and Belt and Winding Drum Forming a Winding Nest
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12600596
MULTI-FUNCTION SYSTEM FOR HANDLING FIBER OPTIC CABLE REELS AT AN INSTALLATION SITE AND METHOD OF USING SAME
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12600460
PROPELLER
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12589965
Mobile Reel Carrier
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 31, 2026
Patent 12589970
HOSE GUIDE FOR HOSE REEL
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 31, 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
81%
Grant Probability
91%
With Interview (+10.3%)
2y 6m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1749 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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