Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 18/850,766

ADAPTER AND IMAGING DEVICE

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Sep 25, 2024
Priority
Apr 20, 2022 — JP 2022-069345 +1 more
Examiner
MAHONEY, CHRISTOPHER E
Art Unit
2852
Tech Center
2800 — Semiconductors & Electrical Systems
Assignee
Sony Group Corporation
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
83%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2m
Est. Remaining
95%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 83% — above average
83%
Career Allowance Rate
899 granted / 1082 resolved
+15.1% vs TC avg
Moderate +12% lift
Without
With
+11.7%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Fast prosecutor
1y 11m
Avg Prosecution
21 currently pending
Career history
1100
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
1.3%
-38.7% vs TC avg
§103
70.1%
+30.1% vs TC avg
§102
12.8%
-27.2% vs TC avg
§112
5.5%
-34.5% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1082 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
DETAILED ACTION Priority Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55. 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 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Li (U.S. Publication No. 2022/0099909). Li teaches an attachment unit 3 that has one surface side (fig. 1, front) to which an interchangeable lens 21 having a lens-side engaging portion (¶59, positioning hole) is attached, and another surface side (fig. 1, back) to which a device main body 11 having a main-body-side engaging portion 122 is attached, wherein the attachment unit includes: a first positioning portion 33 that is engaged with the lens-side engaging portion (¶59, “the positioning protrusion 33 slides into the positioning hole”) and performs positioning of the interchangeable lens at least in a perpendicular direction (see curved arrow in fig. 2, positioning is performed in a direction that is perpendicular to a direction parallel to the optical axis); and a second positioning portion 31 that is engaged with the main-body- side engaging portion (¶61, “protrusions 31 are distributed on the upper and lower edges; a slot 122, two sides of the slot 122 are provided with a guide rail, the slot 122 is elongated, and the upper and lower edges have four grooves 123 matching the shape of the limiting protrusion 31”) and performs positioning of the device main body at least in a horizontal direction (fig. 2, see horizontal arrows), a position of an optical axis of the interchangeable lens is adjustable in the horizontal direction in a state in which the interchangeable lens is attached to the attachment unit, and a position of an optical axis of the device main body is adjustable in the perpendicular direction in a state in which the device main body is attached to the attachment unit. Allowable Subject Matter Claim 9 is allowed. Claims 2-8 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. Jannard (U.S. Publication No. 20160295095) and Shinohara (JP2011-78073) both teach modular camera units. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHRISTOPHER E MAHONEY whose telephone number is (571)272-2122. The examiner can normally be reached 9-5:30. 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, Stephanie Bloss can be reached at 571-272-3555. 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. /CHRISTOPHER E MAHONEY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2852
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Sep 25, 2024
Application Filed
Jul 07, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

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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
83%
Grant Probability
95%
With Interview (+11.7%)
1y 11m (~2m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1082 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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