Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/618,919

GAMEPAD

Non-Final OA §102§103
Filed
Mar 27, 2024
Examiner
RENWICK, REGINALD A
Art Unit
3715
Tech Center
3700 — Mechanical Engineering & Manufacturing
Assignee
Vivo Mobile Communication Co., Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
71%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
3y 0m
To Grant
80%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 71% — above average
71%
Career Allow Rate
499 granted / 704 resolved
+0.9% vs TC avg
Moderate +9% lift
Without
With
+9.1%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 0m
Avg Prosecution
41 currently pending
Career history
745
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
25.7%
-14.3% vs TC avg
§103
42.4%
+2.4% vs TC avg
§102
23.4%
-16.6% vs TC avg
§112
5.8%
-34.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 704 resolved cases

Office Action

§102 §103
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 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by GameSir X2 Type C Mobile Gaming Controller (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8BqTycA9_4 herein’ known as GameSir). Re claim 1: Gamesir discloses a gamepad, comprising: a housing, wherein the housing is provided with an accommodation space, the housing is provided with an opening, and the opening communicates with the accommodation space (see Gamesir X2, 0:58-0141: showing a showing a game controller housing that includes an opening for an electrical connecter that communicates with the accommodation space inside the housing); and an interface support, wherein the interface support is accommodated in the accommodation space and is movably connected to the housing, the interface support is provided with an interface for plugging into an electronic device, and the interface protrudes out of the housing through the opening, wherein the interface support is capable of moving in a first direction relative to the housing to drive the interface to move in the first direction, wherein the first direction is perpendicular to a protruding direction of the interface (see Gamesir X2, 0:141-01:51: as is shown, the opening includes an electric plug that can be tilted in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the housing and opening. It is inherent that the electric connector includes a support that allows the connector to move in said perpendicular direction). Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action: A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made. Claim(s) 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over GameSir in view of Lu (U.S. Patent No. 12,274,933). Re claim 10: GameSir fails to disclose with respect to the gamepad according to claim 1, wherein a side of the housing provided with the opening is provided with a first clamping portion and a second clamping portion that protrude in a same direction, and the interface is located between the first clamping portion and the second clamping portion, wherein the second clamping portion comprises a fastening portion and a movable portion, the movable portion is capable of moving in a direction towards or away from the fastening portion, and the first clamping portion and the movable portion clamp the electronic device in a case that the gamepad is plugged into the electronic device through the interface. However, Lu discloses a game controller that includes a first and second clamping portions of a game controller (Fig. 3, objects 3A and 3B), wherein both portions include a moveable portion that extends in the direction of the game controller in a linear fashion, and a fastening portion that that secures the display in the clamp (see Figs. 2 and 3). Additionally, an electrical connector interface, (see Fig. 6, object 32), is disposed before between the two clamping portions. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed, to simply substitute the display securing mechanism of GameSir, with the display securing mechanism of Lu as such would have produced the predictable results of game controllers on the end of a mobile display, wherein each game controller has a clamping mechanism. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 2-9 and 11-13 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. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to REGINALD A RENWICK whose telephone number is (571)270-1913. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 11am-7pm. 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, Kang Hu can be reached at (571)270-1344. 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. REGINALD A. RENWICK Primary Examiner Art Unit 3714 /REGINALD A RENWICK/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3715
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Mar 27, 2024
Application Filed
Jan 09, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102, §103 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12599843
GAMEPLAY RECORDING VIDEO CREATION SYSTEM
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12599832
AUTOMATIC UMPIRING SYSTEM
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12594491
THUMBSTICK ASSEMBLY WITH ADJUSTABLE DAMPING AND GAMEPAD
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 07, 2026
Patent 12576307
METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR GENERATING SPORTS ANALYTICS WITH A MOBILE DEVICE
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 17, 2026
Patent 12569773
AUTOMATED VIDEO GAME TEST BED AND METHODS
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 10, 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
71%
Grant Probability
80%
With Interview (+9.1%)
3y 0m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 704 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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