Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/620,755

LIGHTING APPARATUS INCORPORATING CONTROL APPARATUS WITH LED MODULE IDENTIFICATION

Non-Final OA §102§103
Filed
Mar 28, 2024
Examiner
TANINGCO, ALEXANDER H
Art Unit
2844
Tech Center
2800 — Semiconductors & Electrical Systems
Assignee
Arkalumen Inc.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
74%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 10m
To Grant
73%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 74% — above average
74%
Career Allow Rate
298 granted / 404 resolved
+5.8% vs TC avg
Minimal -1% lift
Without
With
+-0.7%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 10m
Avg Prosecution
29 currently pending
Career history
433
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
8.5%
-31.5% vs TC avg
§103
43.8%
+3.8% vs TC avg
§102
27.5%
-12.5% vs TC avg
§112
16.7%
-23.3% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 404 resolved cases

Office Action

§102 §103
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. (a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. Claims 1-9, 12-17, and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)/(a)(2) as being anticipated by Nakano US20180192489. With respect to claims 1, 12, and 20, Nakano discloses a lighting apparatus [Fig. 1] comprising: a light emitting diode (LED) module 10 comprising: one or more LEDs 11 to emit light; and an identification element 13; and a control apparatus 20 electrically coupled to the LED module [paragraph 34], the control apparatus operable to determine an identification indication 23, 24 related to the identification element and to control the LED module at least in part in response to the identification indication [paragraphs 53-54]. With respect to claim 2, The lighting apparatus of claim 1, wherein the identification element is a passive electrical component 13 [Fig. 1]. With respect to claim 3, The lighting apparatus of claim 2, wherein the passive electronic component is a resistor with a particular resistance value [paragraph 35]. With respect to claim 4, The lighting apparatus of claim 3, wherein to determine the identification indication, the control apparatus is operable to determine a voltage drop across the resistor [paragraphs 41-48]. With respect to claims 5 and 13, The lighting apparatus of claim 1, wherein, to control the LED module, the control module is operable to determine an operating configuration for the LED module at least in part in response to the identification indication and to control the LED module at least in part in response to the operating configuration for the LED module [paragraphs 35-36 and 54]. With respect to claims 6 and 14, The lighting apparatus of claim 5, wherein the operating configuration comprises at least a maximum current to apply to the LED module; and wherein, to control the LED module [paragraph 54], the control module is further operable to control the LED module to ensure the current applied to the LED module is less than or equal to the maximum current [paragraph 55]. With respect to claims 7 and 15, The lighting apparatus of claim 5, wherein the LED module comprises a plurality of LED channels [paragraph 75]; wherein the operating configuration comprises at least a respective maximum current to apply to each of the LED channels [paragraph 54]; and wherein, to control the LED module, the control module is further operable to control each of the LED channels to ensure the current applied to each of the LED channels is less than or equal to the respective maximum current [paragraph 55]. With respect to claims 8 and 16, The lighting apparatus of claim 5, wherein the LED module comprises a plurality of LED channels [paragraph 75]; and the operating configuration comprises at least calibration information related to a mix of the plurality of LED channels required to achieve a particular lighting effect [paragraphs 9 and 14-15]; wherein, to control the LED module, the control module is further operable to control the LED channels to achieve the particular lighting effect [paragraphs 4 and 54]. With respect to claims 9 and 17, The lighting apparatus of claim 5, wherein the operating configuration comprises at least a predetermined voltage to apply to the LED module [paragraphs 35 and 39]; wherein, to control the LED module, the control module is further operable to control the LED channels to set a voltage to apply to the LED module to the predetermined voltage [paragraph 54]. 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. Claims 10 and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nakano US20180192489 as applied to claim 5 above, and further in view of Mcananama et al. US20240284578. With respect to claims 10 and 18, Nakano disclose the apparatus as recited above in claim 5. Nakano fails to disclose wherein the operating configuration comprises at least a network identifier for the lighting apparatus; wherein, to control the LED module, the control module is further operable to control the LED module in response to communications on a network using the network identifier. Mcananama et al. discloses a network identifier for the lighting apparatus; wherein, to control the LED module, the control module is further operable to control the LED module in response to communications on a network using the network identifier [paragraphs 35 and 43]. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate the features of Mcananama et al. into the apparatus of Nakano to improve operation of lighting devices to achieve a particular lighting effect and/or control lighting devices independently as implied by Mcananama et al. [paragraphs 43 and 45]. Claims 11 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nakano US20180192489 as applied to claim 5 above, and further in view of Speer et al. US20190082610. With respect to claims 11 and 19, Nakano disclose the apparatus as recited above in claim 5. Nakano fails to disclose wherein, to control the LED module, the control module is further operable to determine if a programmed configuration of the control module is acceptable considering the operating configuration of the LED module; and, if the programmed configuration of the control module is not acceptable considering the operating configuration of the LED module, to control the LED module to at least one of provide a warning indication; and disable the LED module. Speer et al. discloses a control module is further operable to determine if a programmed configuration of the control module is acceptable considering the operating configuration of the LED module; and, if the programmed configuration of the control module is not acceptable considering the operating configuration of the LED module, to control the LED module to at least one of provide a warning indication; and disable the LED module [paragraph 48]. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to incorporate the features of Speer et al. into the apparatus of Nakano to improve operation as taught by Speer et al.. Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Yang US20200359474 shows identifiable LED lamp and self-adaptive dimming driving system. Weber et al. US20180105099 shows led light module. Mishima US20160270177 shows lighting circuit. Mishima US20160270175 shows a lighting assembly. Toyota et al. US20050062445 shows a lighting apparatus. Kayser US20020047546 shows warning to the user about the excessive operating temperature – the user would then be able to make the decision whether or not to terminate the light generation. Sood et al. US20220008575 shows outputting a warning sound signal configured to provide an audio cue to the user that the UV light source has been deactivated Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Alexander Taningco whose telephone number is (571)272-8048. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri, 8am-4pm, EST. 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, ANDREA WELLINGTON can be reached at 571 272 4483. 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. ALEXANDER H. TANINGCO Supervisory Patent Examiner Art Unit 2844 /ALEXANDER H TANINGCO/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2844
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Mar 28, 2024
Application Filed
Jul 27, 2025
Non-Final Rejection — §102, §103
Jan 29, 2026
Response Filed
Jan 29, 2026
Response after Non-Final Action

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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
74%
Grant Probability
73%
With Interview (-0.7%)
2y 10m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 404 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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