Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 02, 2026
Application No. 18/854,931

POWER TRANSMISSION DEVICE

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Oct 07, 2024
Priority
Apr 13, 2022 — JP 2022-066153 +1 more
Examiner
COOK, WILLIAM J
Art Unit
3618
Tech Center
3600 — Transportation & Electronic Commerce
Assignee
Tsubakimoto Sprocket Co.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
86%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2m
Est. Remaining
97%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 86% — above average
86%
Career Allowance Rate
529 granted / 614 resolved
+34.2% vs TC avg
Moderate +11% lift
Without
With
+11.0%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 2m
Avg Prosecution
21 currently pending
Career history
630
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
2.0%
-38.0% vs TC avg
§103
37.4%
-2.6% vs TC avg
§102
23.3%
-16.7% vs TC avg
§112
33.7%
-6.3% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 614 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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 10/07/2024 has been considered by the examiner. 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 3-5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by JP 62-43176 (hereinafter D1). D1 discloses a power transmission device, comprising: a first power transmission member (2) including first meshing portions (see Fig. 1) arranged next to each other in a circumferential direction about an axis extending in a first direction, the first power transmission member being rotatable about the axis; and a second power transmission member (3) including second meshing portions (see Fig. 1) that are arranged next to each other in a second direction intersecting the first direction and are capable of meshing with the first meshing portions, the second power transmission member rotating or moving in the second direction as the first power transmission member rotates with the first meshing portions meshed with the second meshing portions, wherein the first power transmission member includes: a hub (1) that rotates about the axis; a gear (2) including the first meshing portions on an outer circumferential side of the gear and an insertion hole (see Fig. 1) on an inner circumferential side of the gear, the hub being inserted through the insertion hole to be slidable in the first direction; a first engagement portion (4) that moves integrally with the hub in a rotation direction of the hub; and a second engagement portion (5) provided on the gear to be engageable with the first engagement portion in the rotation direction of the hub; wherein the hub includes a retaining part (7) that prevents the gear, in a state in which the hub is slidably inserted through the insertion hole, from falling off from an end of the hub in the first direction by coming into contact with the gear (7 would prevent the gear 2 from falling off of an end of 1); wherein the retaining part is detachable (7 can be removed from 1) from the hub; wherein the first engagement portion extends in the first direction, and the second engagement portion is provided on the gear to be slidable (5 is slidable in 4) in the first direction while being engaged (5 cannot rotate relative to 4, and is therefore considered “engaged”) with the first engagement portion in the rotation direction. Allowable Subject Matter Claim 2 is 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 Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JAKE COOK whose telephone number is (571)272-5968. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00-4:00 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, Minnah Seoh can be reached at (571) 270-7778. 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. JAKE COOK Primary Examiner Art Unit 3618 /Jake Cook/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3618
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Prosecution Timeline

Oct 07, 2024
Application Filed
Jun 08, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12747778
DRIVE DEVICE, DRIVE SYSTEM, CONTROL SYSTEM AND DRIVE MOTOR
1y 10m to grant Granted Sep 29, 2026
Patent 12742490
LINEAR ACTUATOR WITH RADIAL SUPPORT MEMBER
1y 5m to grant Granted Sep 22, 2026
Patent 12734717
HUMANOID ROBOT WITH ADVANCED WIRING ASSEMBLY
1y 1m to grant Granted Sep 15, 2026
Patent 12723646
OIL GUIDING ARRANGEMENT FOR A TRANSMISSION
1y 9m to grant Granted Sep 01, 2026
Patent 12691592
TORSIONAL SERIES ELASTIC ACTUATOR
1y 10m to grant Granted Jul 28, 2026
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
86%
Grant Probability
97%
With Interview (+11.0%)
2y 2m (~2m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 614 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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