Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 01, 2026
Application No. 18/848,364

POWER CONVERSION APPARATUS

Final Rejection §112
Filed
Sep 18, 2024
Priority
Mar 18, 2022 — RE 10-2022-0033685 +1 more
Examiner
LAXTON, GARY L
Art Unit
2838
Tech Center
2800 — Semiconductors & Electrical Systems
Assignee
LG Innotek Co., Ltd.
OA Round
2 (Final)
86%
Grant Probability
Favorable
3-4
OA Rounds
2m
Est. Remaining
92%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 86% — above average
86%
Career Allowance Rate
965 granted / 1116 resolved
+18.5% vs TC avg
Moderate +6% lift
Without
With
+5.8%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 2m
Avg Prosecution
28 currently pending
Career history
1135
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.9%
-39.1% vs TC avg
§103
33.0%
-7.0% vs TC avg
§102
33.3%
-6.7% vs TC avg
§112
15.8%
-24.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1116 resolved cases

Office Action

§112
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 . Response to Arguments Applicant’s arguments with respect to the claim(s) have been considered but are moot in view of new ground of rejection. 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 1, 4-13 and 15-21 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 1 recites the limitations "a transform having one side" in line 5, "an other side of the transformer" in line 6 and "an other side of the transformer" in line 8. It is unclear how many sides the applicant is claiming the transformer has. Do these limitations mean a first side, a second side and a third side? Or are the two instances of “an other side” meaning one and the same side?? Claim 1 recites the limitation "the other end of the first switch" in line 11. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Exactly which end is the other end? Claim 1 recites the limitation "the second power source" in line 12. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Claims 4-12 inherit the same from claim 1. Claim 12 recites the limitation "a second power source" in line 3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Is this the same second power source claimed in claim 1 or different? Claim 13 recites the limitation "the second power source" in line 16. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Claims 15-21 inherit the same from claim 13. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 1, 4-13 and 15-21 would be allowable if rewritten or amended 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. 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 GARY L LAXTON whose telephone number is (571)272-2079. 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, Crystal Hammond can be reached at 571-270-1682. 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. /GARY L LAXTON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2838 9/14/2026
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Sep 18, 2024
Application Filed
Apr 09, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §112
Jul 09, 2026
Response Filed
Sep 16, 2026
Final Rejection mailed — §112 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12749982
TRAPEZOIDAL CURRENT CONTROL IN ELECTRONIC TRANSFORMERS
3y 1m to grant Granted Sep 29, 2026
Patent 12744457
POWER CONVERTER AND METHOD OF CONTROLLING THE SAME
2y 11m to grant Granted Sep 22, 2026
Patent 12738857
POWER CONVERTER
3y 8m to grant Granted Sep 15, 2026
Patent 12738841
MULTI-PHASE HYBRID POWER CONVERTER ARCHITECTURE WITH LARGE CONVERSION RATIOS
2y 10m to grant Granted Sep 15, 2026
Patent 12738731
DC POWER DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM AND VOLTAGE STABILIZER
2y 5m to grant Granted Sep 15, 2026
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
86%
Grant Probability
92%
With Interview (+5.8%)
2y 2m (~2m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Moderate
PTA Risk
Based on 1116 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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