Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/944,627

DETERMINATION OF RELIABILITY OF VEHICLE CONTROL COMMANDS VIA REDUNDANCY

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Nov 12, 2024
Examiner
SHAAWAT, MUSSA A
Art Unit
3669
Tech Center
3600 — Transportation & Electronic Commerce
Assignee
Lodestar Licensing Group LLC
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
76%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 10m
To Grant
82%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 76% — above average
76%
Career Allow Rate
665 granted / 876 resolved
+23.9% vs TC avg
Moderate +6% lift
Without
With
+6.3%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 10m
Avg Prosecution
29 currently pending
Career history
905
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
18.1%
-21.9% vs TC avg
§103
28.5%
-11.5% vs TC avg
§102
37.5%
-2.5% vs TC avg
§112
8.9%
-31.1% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 876 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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 . 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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. Claim(s) 1-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being (anticipated) by Omori et al., US Pg. Pub. No. (2020/0125441) referred to hereinafter as Omori. As per claim 1, Omori teaches an autonomous vehicle, comprising: a control element configured to effectuate driving of the vehicle (see at least 25, 35, 46-47, fig.1, 3); and a plurality of sub-systems configured to generate redundant commands for the control element (see at least 25, 35-37, 46-47, 53, 171-176, fig.1, 3). As per claim 2, Omori teaches an autonomous vehicle of claim 1, further comprising: a command controller coupled between the control element and the sub-systems and configured to determine whether a command among the redundant commands is erroneous (see at least 25, 35-37, 46-47, 171-176, fig.1, 3). As per claim 3, Omori teaches an autonomous vehicle of claim 2, wherein each of the sub-systems includes a separate system on a chip (SoC) (see at least 25, 35-37, 46-47, 171-176, fig.1, 3). As per claim 4, Omori teaches an autonomous vehicle of claim 2, wherein the command controller is configured to determine whether a command among the redundant commands is erroneous based on matching the redundant commands with each other (see at least 25, 35-37, 46-47, 171-176, fig.1, 3). As per claim 5, Omori teaches an autonomous vehicle of claim 2, wherein the command controller is configured to determine which of the redundant commands is erroneous (see at least 25, 35-37, 46-47, 171-176, fig.1, 3). As per claim 6, Omori teaches an autonomous vehicle of claim 5, wherein the command controller is configured to determine which of the redundant commands is erroneous based on a memory test of the sub-systems (see at least 25, 35-37, 46-47, 171-176, fig.1, 3). As per claim 7, Omori teaches an autonomous vehicle of claim 5, wherein the command controller is configured to determine which of the redundant commands is erroneous by testing memories of the sub-systems in parallel (see at least 25, 35-37, 46-47, 171-176, fig.1, 3). As per claim 8, Omori teaches an autonomous vehicle of claim 5, wherein the control element is configured to control acceleration, speed, or direction of the vehicle (see at least 25, 35-37, 46-47, 171-176, fig.1, 3). As per claims 9-20, the limitations of claims 9-20 are similar to the limitations of claims 1-8, therefore they are rejected based on the same rationale. Conclusion Please refer to from 892 for cited references. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MUSSA A SHAAWAT whose telephone number is (313)446-6592. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9am-5pm. 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, Erin Piateski can be reached at 571-270-7429. 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. /MUSSA A SHAAWAT/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3669
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Prosecution Timeline

Nov 12, 2024
Application Filed
Mar 13, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102 (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
76%
Grant Probability
82%
With Interview (+6.3%)
2y 10m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 876 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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