Prosecution Insights
Last updated: May 29, 2026
Application No. 18/815,250

THERMAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FOR A VEHICLE

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Aug 26, 2024
Priority
Mar 02, 2022 — DE 10 2022 202 121.5 +1 more
Examiner
RUPPERT, ERIC S
Art Unit
3763
Tech Center
3700 — Mechanical Engineering & Manufacturing
Assignee
VITESCO TECHNOLOGIES GMBH
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
59%
Grant Probability
Moderate
1-2
OA Rounds
1y 0m
Est. Remaining
84%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 59% of resolved cases
59%
Career Allowance Rate
444 granted / 752 resolved
-11.0% vs TC avg
Strong +25% interview lift
Without
With
+24.7%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 9m
Avg Prosecution
46 currently pending
Career history
805
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.1%
-39.9% vs TC avg
§103
84.7%
+44.7% vs TC avg
§102
6.0%
-34.0% vs TC avg
§112
8.0%
-32.0% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 752 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 Objections Claim 8 is objected to because of the following informalities: The parenthetical “(405)” should be removed. Appropriate correction is required. 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) 1-2 and 11-12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a) (1) as being anticipated by Vader (US20210094383A1). Regarding claim 1, Vader discloses a thermal management system (see Fig. 1-2) for a vehicle, having: a cooling medium circuit (circuit 118), further comprising: a cooling medium pump (134) for delivering a cooling medium in the cooling medium circuit for cooling a component of an electric drive motor (electric machine 116) of the vehicle; and a heating medium circuit (circuit 180), further comprising: at least one heating medium pump (192) for delivering a heating medium in the heating medium circuit for cooling and/or heating a battery (batteries 186) and/or for heating an interior of the vehicle, by a heat exchanger (heat exchanger 204 & heat the air in the cabin ¶[0035]); a heat transfer device (heat exchanger 202) for exchanging heat between the cooling medium in the cooling medium circuit and the heating medium in the heating medium circuit. Regarding claim 2. The thermal management system of claim 1, further comprising: at least one temperature recording unit (temperature sensor 148 & ¶[0028]), which is adapted to record an interior temperature of the interior of the vehicle; at least one manifold valve (210 & ¶[0036]), by which an amount of heating medium delivered to the heat exchanger is set; and a control unit (thermal coordinator 112), which is adapted to drive the at least one manifold valve in such a way that the heating medium is delivered to the heat exchanger when the interior temperature is less than a predefined interior temperature threshold value (¶[0032]). Regarding claim 11, Vader discloses the limitations of claim 1, and Vader further discloses a cooling circuit (refrigerant circuit 152), further comprising: an evaporator (194) for cooling the interior of the vehicle (via 204); a condenser (138/170); a compressor (166) for delivering a further heating medium in the cooling circuit; and a further heat transfer device (heat exchanger 202) for exchanging heat between the heating medium in the heating medium circuit and the further heating medium in the cooling circuit. Regarding claim 12, Vader further discloses a vehicle (see Title) having a thermal management system of claim 1 (see above). Allowable Subject Matter Claims 3-10 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 closest art of record is Vader, which does not teach or suggest actuating the brake of the vehicle when the temperature is less than the predefined temperature threshold value. Thus, Vader alone, or in combination with any other known prior art does not anticipate or render obvious the claimed invention. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ERIC S RUPPERT whose telephone number is (571)272-9911. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8 am - 4 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, Len Tran can be reached at 571-272-1184. 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. /ERIC S RUPPERT/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3763
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Aug 26, 2024
Application Filed
Feb 24, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102
May 18, 2026
Response Filed

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12638241
DOUBLE-TUBE HEAT EXCHANGER AND MANUFACTURING METHOD THEREFOR
2y 11m to grant Granted May 26, 2026
Patent 12638251
HEATING AND COOLING SYSTEM USING MECHANICAL TRANSFER OF ENCAPSULATED PHASE CHANGE MATERIALS
2y 2m to grant Granted May 26, 2026
Patent 12631406
ELECTRIC ARRANGEMENT, PANEL AND HEAT EXCHANGER
3y 7m to grant Granted May 19, 2026
Patent 12635522
ELECTRONIC COMPONENT COOLER
2y 7m to grant Granted May 19, 2026
Patent 12631399
WOUND HEAT EXCHANGER AND METHOD
2y 6m to grant Granted May 19, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

Strategy Recommendation AI-generated — please review before filing

Get a prosecution strategy drawn from examiner precedents, rejection analysis, and claim mapping.
Typically takes 5-10 seconds — AI-generated, attorney review required before filing

Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
59%
Grant Probability
84%
With Interview (+24.7%)
2y 9m (~1y 0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 752 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance 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