Prosecution Insights
Last updated: August 17, 2026
Application No. 18/961,451

CONVEYING DEVICE

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Nov 27, 2024
Priority
Feb 01, 2024 — CN 202410141406.5
Examiner
AWAIS, MUHAMMAD SUMRAIZ
Art Unit
3651
Tech Center
3600 — Transportation & Electronic Commerce
Assignee
Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
82%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
5m
Est. Remaining
91%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 82% — above average
82%
Career Allowance Rate
165 granted / 202 resolved
+29.7% vs TC avg
Moderate +9% lift
Without
With
+9.3%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Fast prosecutor
2y 2m
Avg Prosecution
20 currently pending
Career history
212
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.2%
-39.8% vs TC avg
§103
49.3%
+9.3% vs TC avg
§102
34.8%
-5.2% vs TC avg
§112
13.4%
-26.6% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 202 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 . Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status. 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 Douglas (US 20210138802). Regarding claim-1, Douglas discloses a conveying device (Fig.4-5), comprising: a suction roller (vacuum rollers 145, Fig.4, [0048]) configured to generate negative pressure to adsorb a conveyed object; and a cap component (182, 184, Fig.4, [0051]), disposed between the suction roller and the conveyed object, wherein the cap component has a platform portion, the platform portion faces the conveyed object, the platform portion comprises a first platform portion (182) and a second platform portion (184), the first platform portion and the second platform portion are respectively disposed on a downstream side and an upstream side of the suction roller in a conveying direction, and the first platform portion and the second platform portion are separated from each other (Fig.4), and an open portion (See Fig.4) exposing the suction roller is disposed in a region where the first platform portion and the second platform portion are separated in the conveying direction (Fig.4). Allowable Subject Matter Claim 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 Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MUHAMMAD AWAIS whose telephone number is (571)272-4955. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7-4 pm (EST). 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, Gene Crawford can be reached at (571)272-6911. 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. /MA/Examiner, Art Unit 3651 /GENE O CRAWFORD/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3651
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Prosecution Timeline

Nov 27, 2024
Application Filed
Jul 14, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12703607
HANDRAIL SYSTEMS FOR MOVING WALKWAYS
2y 4m to grant Granted Aug 11, 2026
Patent 12692092
Method for a production plant, system and production plant
1y 9m to grant Granted Jul 28, 2026
Patent 12679659
CONVEYOR BELTS AND MODULES WITH SLIDE BODIES
2y 10m to grant Granted Jul 14, 2026
Patent 12679672
SUBSTRATE CARRIER
2y 5m to grant Granted Jul 14, 2026
Patent 12679700
PASSENGER CONVEYOR SYSTEM AND ANTI-COLLISION DEVICE FOR STEP AND COMB PLATE
1y 11m to grant Granted Jul 14, 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
82%
Grant Probability
91%
With Interview (+9.3%)
2y 2m (~5m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 202 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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