Last updated: October 27, 2026

Application No. 18/898,441

USER INTERFACES INTEGRATING HARDWARE BUTTONS

Non-Final OA

Filed

Sep 26, 2024

Priority

Jan 18, 2024 — provisional 63/622,536 +4 more

Examiner

TITCOMB, WILLIAM D

Art Unit

2178

Tech Center

2100 — Computer Architecture & Software

Assignee

Apple Inc.

OA Round

1 (Non-Final)

Interview Optional

— +13.5% interview lift. Interview already conducted in this application's prosecution history. This examiner has a 84% grant rate with +13.5% interview lift. Since an interview has already been tried, recommend written response with narrowed claims based on precedent claim evolution patterns.

Based on 643 resolved cases, 2023–2026

Examiner Intelligence

TITCOMB, WILLIAM D View full profile →

Grants 84% — above average

Career Allowance Rate

538 granted / 643 resolved

+28.7% vs TC avg

Moderate +14% lift

Without

With

+13.5%

Interview Lift

resolved cases with interview

Typical timeline

2y 7m

Avg Prosecution

17 currently pending

Career history

660

Total Applications

across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101

8.8%

-31.2% vs TC avg

§103

45.3%

+5.3% vs TC avg

§102

28.1%

-11.9% vs TC avg

§112

15.9%

-24.1% vs TC avg

Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 643 resolved cases

Prosecution Timeline

Sep 26, 2024

Application Filed

Jan 08, 2026

Response after Non-Final Action

Aug 12, 2026

Applicant Interview (Telephonic)

Sep 11, 2026

Request for Continued Examination

Sep 16, 2026

Response after Non-Final Action

Sep 29, 2026

Non-Final Rejection mailed (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

18/623,120

Patent 12770432

Authentication Using Face Biometrics Without Enrolling Face Information

2y 6m to grant Granted Oct 20, 2026

18/624,752

Patent 12755398

Method for Determining a Trajectory for a Mobile Device

2y 6m to grant Granted Oct 06, 2026

18/793,598

Patent 12743191

Immersive, Multi-State Uni-Card

2y 1m to grant Granted Sep 22, 2026

18/387,268

Patent 12737097

ELECTRONIC APPARATUS AND CONTROL METHOD THEREOF

2y 10m to grant Granted Sep 15, 2026

18/596,079

Patent 12734406

AUTOMATIC ANALYSIS SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR FITNESS TRAINING

2y 6m to grant Granted Sep 15, 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

84%

Grant Probability

97%

With Interview (+13.5%)

2y 7m (~6m remaining)

Median Time to Grant

Low

PTA Risk

Based on 643 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.