Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 18/919,921

MOTOR CONTROL METHOD

Non-Final OA §102§112
Filed
Oct 18, 2024
Priority
Oct 18, 2023 — GR 20230100861
Examiner
MASIH, KAREN
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
ZF Automotive UK Limited
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
91%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2m
Est. Remaining
98%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 91% — above average
91%
Career Allowance Rate
922 granted / 1014 resolved
+30.9% vs TC avg
Moderate +7% lift
Without
With
+6.7%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Fast prosecutor
1y 11m
Avg Prosecution
21 currently pending
Career history
1034
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
4.7%
-35.3% vs TC avg
§103
66.9%
+26.9% vs TC avg
§102
10.1%
-29.9% vs TC avg
§112
10.3%
-29.7% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1014 resolved cases

Office Action

§102 §112
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 . Drawings The drawings are objected to because rotor is not shown in figures . Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance. 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 1-8 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 line 4 “ the angular position” , line 5 “ the velocity “ , line 7 “ the position sensor”, line 17 “ the current rotor position” lacks antecedent basis . 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 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by DE102021133421. DE102020033421 discloses controlling motor in apparatus , comprising a motor ( 12) having a rotor ( 20), sensor estimates angular position of rotor and estimate of velocity , see abstract , microcontroller (14) and communication network connects microcontroller and sensor , see abstract , sending request for rotor angular position , receiving from sensor indicating rotor angular position and velocity with aging value , modifying recieved rotor angular position value using aging signal , velocity signal to generate modified angular position signal that is estimate of current rotor position and generating a set of control signals for motor , see abstract . Claim 9 is the same as claim 1 subject matter. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 2-8, 10-11 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. Prior art does not disclose compensation value , counter value will be greater than counter value at time of angular position value was calculated . Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. 8723460 and WO2006/120547 discloses time delay in position . Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KAREN MASIH whose telephone number is (571)272-2068. The examiner can normally be reached m-f 8-5 with second Friday off. 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, Eduardo Colon-Santana can be reached at 571-272-2060. 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. KAREN . MASIH Examiner Art Unit 2837 /KAREN MASIH/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2837
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Oct 18, 2024
Application Filed
Jul 02, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102, §112 (current)

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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
91%
Grant Probability
98%
With Interview (+6.7%)
1y 11m (~2m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1014 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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