Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/696,577

MACHINE FOR HANDLING A LOAD OR A PERSON

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Mar 28, 2024
Examiner
LA, ANH V
Art Unit
2685
Tech Center
2600 — Communications
Assignee
Manitou Bf
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
84%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 4m
To Grant
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 84% — above average
84%
Career Allow Rate
962 granted / 1141 resolved
+22.3% vs TC avg
Moderate +14% lift
Without
With
+14.4%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 4m
Avg Prosecution
22 currently pending
Career history
1163
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
3.2%
-36.8% vs TC avg
§103
46.7%
+6.7% vs TC avg
§102
19.9%
-20.1% vs TC avg
§112
4.8%
-35.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1141 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)(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. Claim(s) 16 and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Gilbride (US 2021/0276845). Regarding claim 16, Gilbride discloses a handling vehicle 10 comprising: a chassis 20, 22, movable along a ground surface (figure 1); a handling system 14 supported by the chassis, the handling system including a turntable 800, and a pivoting arm 58, 60, pivotably mounted to the turntable, the pivoting arm being movable between a lowered position and a raised position (figures 1-2); a driver station 100 supported by the chassis (figures 39-40); and a control system (200, 2006, 2008, 1008) to control the handling system, the handling system being remotely controllable from outside the driver station via the control system (figures 47-49, paragraph 184, p. 185, p. 187, p. 188). Regarding claim 20, Gilbride discloses a control console (2006, 2008) removably couplable to the driver station, wherein the control system is integrated into to the control console (figures 47-49, p. 184, p. 185, p. 187, p. 188). Allowable Subject Matter Claims 17-19 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. Claims 1-15 are allowed. The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance: The prior art cited fails to disclose a handling vehicle comprising the at least one of driver station including a lower part secured to the chassis and disposed along one of the first and second lateral sides of the chassis and an upper part that moves with the turntable. Because of these limitations in the context of other limitations in the claim, the claim as a whole, which is claiming a very specific mechanism is not anticipated or obvious over the prior art of record or found during Examiner’s search. Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Puszkiewicz, Mourlam, and Korycan disclose work vehicles. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ANH V LA whose telephone number is (571)272-2970. The examiner can normally be reached 8:30 AM-5:00 PM. 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, Quan-Zhen Wang can be reached at 571-272-3114. 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. /ANH V LA/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2685 ANH V. LA Primary Examiner Art Unit 2685 Al January 2, 2026
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Mar 28, 2024
Application Filed
Jan 02, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102
Apr 08, 2026
Response Filed

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12600375
PARKING ASSISTANCE DEVICE AND PARKING ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12586455
DEVICES, SYSTEMS, AND METHODS FOR MONITORING CONTROLLED SPACES FOR TRANSITORY USES
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 24, 2026
Patent 12573293
METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR ADVANCED TRAFFIC ANALYSIS
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 10, 2026
Patent 12565196
PARKING ASSISTANCE DEVICE, PARKING ASSISTANCE METHOD, AND COMPUTER-READABLE MEDIUM
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 03, 2026
Patent 12557790
SYSTEMS, METHODS AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCTS FOR MONITORING THE BEHAVIOR, HEALTH, AND/OR CHARACTERISTICS OF AN ANIMAL
2y 5m to grant Granted Feb 24, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

AI Strategy Recommendation

Get an AI-powered prosecution strategy using examiner precedents, rejection analysis, and claim mapping.
Powered by AI — typically takes 5-10 seconds

Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
84%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+14.4%)
2y 4m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1141 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

Sign in with your work email

Enter your email to receive a magic link. No password needed.

Personal email addresses (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.) are not accepted.

Free tier: 3 strategy analyses per month