Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 02, 2026
Application No. 18/693,216

METHOD, USER EQUIPMENT, AND NETWORK NODE

Final Rejection §112
Filed
Mar 19, 2024
Priority
Oct 21, 2021 — GB 2115145.1 +1 more
Examiner
WEST, LEWIS G
Art Unit
2699
Tech Center
2600 — Communications
Assignee
NEC Corporation
OA Round
2 (Final)
83%
Grant Probability
Favorable
3-4
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
91%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 83% — above average
83%
Career Allowance Rate
571 granted / 685 resolved
+21.4% vs TC avg
Moderate +8% lift
Without
With
+7.5%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 3m
Avg Prosecution
22 currently pending
Career history
699
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
4.7%
-35.3% vs TC avg
§103
36.2%
-3.8% vs TC avg
§102
33.2%
-6.8% vs TC avg
§112
13.1%
-26.9% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 685 resolved cases

Office Action

§112
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 . Response to Arguments Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 22-26 and 29-31 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument. Particularly, new matter has been added and there is no specific support for the claim language as amended. Further this means no proper determination of scope can be made. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 1st Paragraph The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a): (a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention. The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112: The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention. Claims 22-26 and 29-31 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. There is no support for” and performing the measurement regardless of the distance between the current location of the UE and the reference location of the serving cell in a case where the system information includes time information indicating that the serving cell is going to stop serving a current area.”, or the similar addition to claims 29-31. Applicant points to paragraphs 0105-0108 and 0145, however the applications specification ends at paragraph 0103. Those portion of the US PGPub document only show remaining time information taken into consideration with respect to a target cell, not with respect to the current serving cell, and thus no support appears to exist for the currently added claim language. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 2nd The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a): (a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention. The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112: The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention. Claims 22-26 and 29-31 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention. “performing the measurement regardless of the distance between the current location of the UE and the reference location of the serving cell in a case where the system information includes time information indicating that the serving cell is going to stop serving a current area.”, or the similar addition to claims 29-31. As stated above, those portion of the US PGPub document only show remaining time information taken into consideration with respect to a target cell, not with respect to the current serving cell, and thus no support appears to exist for the currently added claim language. Thus there is no way to properly interpret the claim in light of the specification, to interpret the additional features as claimed. Conclusion Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a). A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to LEWIS G WEST whose telephone number is (571)272-7859. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 8:00-4:00. 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, George Eng can be reached at (571) 272-7495. 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. /LEWIS G WEST/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2699
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Mar 19, 2024
Application Filed
Feb 26, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §112
Jun 26, 2026
Response Filed
Sep 08, 2026
Final Rejection mailed — §112 (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

3-4
Expected OA Rounds
83%
Grant Probability
91%
With Interview (+7.5%)
2y 3m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Moderate
PTA Risk
Based on 685 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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