Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 18/708,797

TRAIN POSITIONING METHOD BASED ON DYNAMIC MAP

Non-Final OA §102§112
Filed
May 09, 2024
Priority
Aug 04, 2022 — CN 202210934076.6 +1 more
Examiner
MCCARRY JR, ROBERT J
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
Casco Signal Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
82%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
6m
Est. Remaining
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 82% — above average
82%
Career Allowance Rate
1254 granted / 1531 resolved
+21.9% vs TC avg
Strong +17% interview lift
Without
With
+16.7%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 9m
Avg Prosecution
33 currently pending
Career history
1555
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.2%
-39.8% vs TC avg
§103
51.1%
+11.1% vs TC avg
§102
39.0%
-1.0% vs TC avg
§112
4.4%
-35.6% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1531 resolved cases

Office Action

§102 §112
DETAILED ACTION The Information Disclosure Statement filed on May 9, 2024 has been reviewed and considered by the Examiner. 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 § 112 The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b): (b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph: The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention. Claims 3-10 and 14-16 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. Claim 3 recites that the “positioning source in step S1 can obtained by the following manners:” and proceeds to list three manners. It is unclear if these manners may be independent or a combination thereof or if all three must be used. This leaves the claims vague and indefinite. 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(s) 1 and 2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by McGavran (US 20200151611). McGavran discloses a train positioning system and method based on a dynamic map and comprised of the steps of performing train positioning initialization based on a positioning source from sensor data 126 and obtaining key point information for creating the dynamic map by utilizing machine learned data 128. The system generates key point coordinates according to the key point information and creates the dynamic map through a map service system 114. The sensor data is continually updating a train position on the dynamic map according to train displacement and beacon information as described in paragraph 0124. Paragraph 0125 describes converting the updated train position in the updated dynamic map into a standard track map to achieve train positioning. The positioning source in step S1 comprises on board vehicle systems 116 provided at two ends of a train and being redundant systems for the overall map 124 and sensor data 126 inputs. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 3-10 and 14-16 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. Claims 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 The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Jia (CN 113428190 A), Hall (WO 2021071621 A1) and Xu (CN 112444835 A), all disclose various types of dynamic mapping systems. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Robert J McCarry Jr. whose telephone number is (571)272-6683. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7:00-3:00. 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, S. Joseph Morano can be reached at 571-272-6684. 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. /Robert J McCarry Jr/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3615 RJM July 8, 2026
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

May 09, 2024
Application Filed
Jul 09, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102, §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

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
82%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+16.7%)
2y 9m (~6m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1531 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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