Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 02, 2026
Application No. 18/782,112

CONTROL DEVICE, QUANTUM ANNEALING SYSTEM, AND CONTROL METHOD

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Jul 24, 2024
Priority
Jul 27, 2023 — JP 2023-122734
Examiner
PEACE, RHONDA S
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
NEC Corporation
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
85%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
98%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 85% — above average
85%
Career Allowance Rate
1071 granted / 1254 resolved
+25.4% vs TC avg
Moderate +13% lift
Without
With
+12.6%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Fast prosecutor
2y 0m
Avg Prosecution
21 currently pending
Career history
1268
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
1.3%
-38.7% vs TC avg
§103
49.4%
+9.4% vs TC avg
§102
33.2%
-6.8% vs TC avg
§112
12.7%
-27.3% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1254 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 . Priority Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55. Information Disclosure Statement The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 7/24/24 was filed in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner. 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 and 4-8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Puri et al. (US 2018/0341874 A1). Re. Claim 1, Puri et al. discloses a control device comprising: at least one memory configured to store instructions ([0026]-[0027]); and at least one processor configured to execute the instructions ([0026]-[0027]) to control a quantum annealing device including Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators to perform quantum annealing ([0003] and [0007]), on the basis of: an interaction number constant, which is a constant indicating the number of interacting Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators and is set to three or a greater number ([0007]); an interaction strength constant, which is a constant indicating the strength of interaction of the Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators ([0010]-[0011]); a Kerr coefficient, which is a constant indicating the Kerr nonlinearity of the Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators ([0011]); and a pump constant, which is a constant related to the initial value of the pump intensity of the Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators ([0055]-[0056]), which is set to a value determined by the interaction number constant, the interaction strength constant, and the Kerr coefficient, or to a greater value ([0151]-[0154]). Re. Claim 4, Puri et al. discloses the at least one processor is configured to execute the instructions to, after starting to decrease a detuning value while keeping a pump intensity at 0, increase the pump intensity from 0 ([0159]). Re. Claim 5, Puri et al. discloses a quantum annealing system comprising a quantum annealing device using Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators and a control device, wherein the control device comprises: at least one memory configured to store instructions ([0026]-[0027]); and at least one processor configured to execute the instructions ([0026]-[0027]) to control the quantum annealing device to perform quantum annealing ([0003] and [0007]), on the basis of: an interaction number constant, which is a constant indicating the number of interacting Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators and is set to three or a greater number ([0007]); an interaction strength constant, which is a constant indicating the strength of interaction of the Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators ([0010]-[0011]); a Kerr coefficient, which is a constant indicating the Kerr nonlinearity of the Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators ([0011]); and a pump constant, which is a constant related to the initial value of the pump intensity of the Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators ([0055]-[0056]), which is set to a value determined by the interaction number constant, the interaction strength constant, and the Kerr coefficient, or to a greater value ([0151]-[0154]). Re. Claim 6, Puri et al. discloses at least one processor is configured to execute the instructions to, after starting to decrease a detuning value while keeping a pump intensity at 0, increase the pump intensity from 0 ([0159]). Re. Claim 7, Puri et al. discloses a control method comprises making a control device that controls a quantum annealing device using Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators ([0026]-[0027]) control the quantum annealing device to perform quantum annealing ([0003], [0007]), on the basis of an interaction number constant, which is a constant indicating the number of interacting Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators and is set to three or a greater number ([0007]); an interaction strength constant, which is a constant indicating the strength of interaction of the Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators ([0010]-[0011]); a Kerr coefficient, which is a constant indicating the Kerr nonlinearity of the Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators ([0011]); and a pump constant, which is a constant related to the initial value of the pump intensity of the Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators ([0055]-[0056]), which is set to a value determined by the interaction number constant, the interaction strength constant, and the Kerr coefficient, or to a greater value ([0151]-[0154]). Re. Claim 8, Puri et al. discloses after starting to decrease a detuning value while keeping a pump intensity at 0, increasing the pump intensity from 0 (0159]). Allowable Subject Matter Claims 2-3 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 following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: Re. Claim 2, the prior art does not disclose or reasonably suggest a control device as required by the claimed invention, specifically wherein the value of the pump constant is set to the value of p - 4 2 p - 2 K p - 2 2 2 p p - 2 J 2 p - 4 or a value greater than that based on the interaction number constant p, the Kerr coefficient K, and the interaction strength constant J. Re. Claim 3, the prior art does not disclose or reasonably suggest a control device as required by the claimed invention, specifically wherein the value of the pump constant is set to the value of 1 8 K J 2 p - 4 or a value greater than that based on the Kerr coefficient K, the interaction strength constant J, and the maximum value p of the number of interacting Kerr nonlinear parametric oscillators. The most applicable prior art, Puri et al. (US 2018/0341874 A1), discussed above, fails to disclose or reasonably suggest the claimed invention, specifically those portions highlighted above in combination with the remaining limitations of the claims. Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See the attached PTO-892. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to R. PEACE whose telephone number is (571)272-8580. The examiner can normally be reached 9-5 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, Uyen-Chau Le can be reached at (571) 272-2397. 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. /RHONDA S PEACE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2874 9/18/26
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Jul 24, 2024
Application Filed
Sep 22, 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
85%
Grant Probability
98%
With Interview (+12.6%)
2y 0m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1254 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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