Prosecution Insights
Last updated: May 29, 2026
Application No. 18/604,233

ROTATABLE DRIVE DEVICE FOR SCOPE TURRET OR OTHER OPTIC TURRET

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Mar 13, 2024
Priority
Mar 23, 2023 — provisional 63/491,929
Examiner
JOHNSON, VICKY A
Art Unit
3617
Tech Center
3600 — Transportation & Electronic Commerce
Assignee
Leupold & Stevens Inc.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
80%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
1m
Est. Remaining
92%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 80% — above average
80%
Career Allowance Rate
857 granted / 1074 resolved
+27.8% vs TC avg
Moderate +12% lift
Without
With
+12.2%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 4m
Avg Prosecution
23 currently pending
Career history
1112
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.7%
-39.3% vs TC avg
§103
25.0%
-15.0% vs TC avg
§102
57.9%
+17.9% vs TC avg
§112
15.9%
-24.1% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1074 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 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, 13, 14, 16, and 17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Bantle (DE 102007005142). Bantle discloses a turret including 1) a spindle or other first rotatable part (67) to adjust an optical or electronic element of an aiming device or other optical device, and 2) a knob (89) or other second rotatable part to rotate the spindle or other first rotatable part (67), the turret comprising: a rotatable drive device (71) having a rear end, a front end, and a length, the length arranged along an axis that is 1) non-coincident with an axis of rotation of the spindle or other first rotatable part (67), or of the knob (89) or other second rotatable part, the non-coincident axis 2) spaced apart from the axis of rotation (69); the rotatable drive device (71) rotatable from a first position (see Fig 8) to a second position (see Fig 9), and arranged to: in the first position (see Fig 8), cause the spindle or other first rotatable part (67) and the knob (89) or other second rotatable part to rotate together as a unit , and in the second position, disengage the knob (89) or from the spindle or other first rotatable part to allow the knob (89) or other second rotatable part to rotate relative to the spindle or other first rotatable part (see Fig 14). Re claim 13, a sighting device (1) including the turret of claim 1. Re claim 14, firearm, crossbow, air gun, or other ranged device (see Fig 19, including the turret of claim 1. Re claim 16, an apparatus including 1) a spindle or other first rotatable part (67) to adjust an optical or electronic element of an aiming device or other optical device and 2) a knob (89) or other second rotatable part to rotate the spindle or other first rotatable part (67), the apparatus comprising: a rotatable drive device (71) having a rear end, a front end, and a length, the length arranged along an axis that is 1) non-coincident with an axis of rotation of the spindle or other first rotatable part (67), or of the knob (89) or other second rotatable part, the non-coincident axis 2) spaced apart from the axis of rotation (69); and an adjustment device (80) operably coupled to the rotatable drive device (71); the rotatable drive device (71) to translate the adjustment device (80) linearly along a guide hole responsive to rotation of the rotatable drive device (71) from a first position (see Fig 8) to a second position (see Fig 9); the adjustment device to: in a first position (see Fig 8) in the guide hole (7), cause the spindle or other first rotatable part and the knob (89)or other second rotatable part to rotate together as a unit, and in a second different position in the guide hole, disengage the knob or other second rotatable part from the spindle or other first rotatable part (67) to allow the knob (89) or other second rotatable part to rotate relative to the spindle or other first rotatable part (67). Re claim 17, the adjustment device (80) is threadingly coupled to the rotatable drive device (71). Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to VICKY A JOHNSON whose telephone number is (571)272-7106. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday. 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, John R Olszewski can be reached at 571-272-2706. 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. /VICKY A JOHNSON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3617
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Mar 13, 2024
Application Filed
Apr 22, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

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3y 0m to grant Granted May 26, 2026
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Patent 12637037
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Patent 12632078
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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
80%
Grant Probability
92%
With Interview (+12.2%)
2y 4m (~1m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1074 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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