Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 25, 2026
Application No. 18/690,164

METHOD FOR THE TREATMENT OF PRODUCTS IN A MICROWAVE TREATMENT DEVICE AND MICROWAVE TREATMENT DEVICE

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Mar 07, 2024
Priority
Sep 10, 2021 — DE 10 2021 123 499.9 +1 more
Examiner
VAN, QUANG T
Art Unit
3761
Tech Center
3700 — Mechanical Engineering & Manufacturing
Assignee
Muegge GmbH
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
74%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
10m
Est. Remaining
83%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 74% — above average
74%
Career Allowance Rate
823 granted / 1107 resolved
+4.3% vs TC avg
Moderate +8% lift
Without
With
+8.3%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 5m
Avg Prosecution
25 currently pending
Career history
1136
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.5%
-39.5% vs TC avg
§103
57.6%
+17.6% vs TC avg
§102
23.9%
-16.1% vs TC avg
§112
13.9%
-26.1% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1107 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 Objections Claims 1, and 30-39 are objected to because of the following informalities: the term “the at least one 15 parameter” recited in claim 1, line 9, has typo error and should be changed to “the at least one parameter” for consistency throughout the claim. Appropriate correction is required. 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. Claim(s) 1, 18, 30-33, 40-43 and 47 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(A)(1) as being anticipated by Dev et al (US 2020/0128837) cited by applicant. Regarding claims 1, 18 and 47, Dev discloses non-linear slotted waveguide for diverse application, wherein microwave treatment device (10) has at least one treatment chamber (26) and at least two coupling elements (24) and the coupling element (24) are configured to couple microwaves into the treatment chamber (26) so that a product arranged in the treatment chamber (26) is treated by the microwaves propagating in the treatment chamber (26), wherein the device has a recording device, wherein the recording device is designed to record characteristic variables of the product arranged in the treatment chamber (par. 0093 and par. 0021; Figure 1). Regarding claims 30-33, Dev discloses in the parameter determination step (3), a plurality of similar parameters are collected and a spatial or temporal distribution of the similar parameters is determined, and/or in that, in the parameter determination step (3), a plurality of different parameters are determined, and/or in that the parameters collected in the parameter determination step (3) are used in an adjustment step (5) to adjust the treatment parameter of the treatment step (par.0093 and par. 0121, Figure 1). Regarding claims 40-43, Dev discloses the recording device is a camera, wherein the camera is configured to record the light spectrum of ultraviolet light and/or visible light and/or infrared light (par. 0093, par. 0021. Figure 1). Claims 34-39 and 44-46 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 prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Baars et al (US 11,864,298) discloses device for treating a product with microwaves. Oomori et al (US 11,683,867) discloses microwave treatment device. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to QUANG T VAN whose telephone number is (571)272-4789. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 9:00-6:00. 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 W 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. /QUANG T VAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3761 October 7, 2026
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Mar 07, 2024
Application Filed
Oct 13, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102 (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
74%
Grant Probability
83%
With Interview (+8.3%)
3y 5m (~10m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1107 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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