Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 25, 2026
Application No. 18/990,284

ADAPTIVE COMMUTATION PHASE TUNING FOR ROBUST CONTROL AND OPTIMAL POWER CONSUMPTION IN BRUSHLESS MOTORS

Non-Final OA §101§103
Filed
Dec 20, 2024
Priority
Aug 06, 2024 — IN 202411059285
Examiner
MASIH, KAREN
Art Unit
2837
Tech Center
2800 — Semiconductors & Electrical Systems
Assignee
Infineon Technologies AG
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
91%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
1m
Est. Remaining
98%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 91% — above average
91%
Career Allowance Rate
944 granted / 1037 resolved
+23.0% vs TC avg
Moderate +7% lift
Without
With
+6.6%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Fast prosecutor
1y 11m
Avg Prosecution
14 currently pending
Career history
1056
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
6.6%
-33.4% vs TC avg
§103
50.6%
+10.6% vs TC avg
§102
9.8%
-30.2% vs TC avg
§112
24.1%
-15.9% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1037 resolved cases

Office Action

§101 §103
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 § 103 The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action: A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made. Claim(s) 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over EP2486648 in view of Mondoux et al (2020/0373861) and Kern (2012/0049776). EP 2486648 discloses controller for controlling brushless dc motor, control comprising fist control loop configured to calculate duty cycle based on sensor signal received from position sensor in motor, see claims. EP2486648 lacks disclosing second control loop to calculate update commutation timing based on present commutation timing, and control commutation in bldc motor based on calculated duty cycle and updated commutation timing. Mondoux et al disclosed calculate update commutation timing see paragraph 10-12. Kern discloses control commutation in bldc motor based on calculated duty cycle and update commutation timing, see paragraph 17. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of claimed invention to combine controller of EP2486648 with commutation timing of Mondoux et al and control with duty cycle and update commutation timing of Kern for improved control. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101 35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows: Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title. Claims 15-24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significantly more. The claims recite routine data gathering such as adjusting duty cycle and adjusting commutation phase. there is nothing else being done to the motor. The judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application. Additional elements that are not abstract such as stator winding and power supply are generic and are not adding significantly more than abstract idea. Additional elements do not integrate abstract idea into practical application because it does not impose any meaningful limit s on practicing abstract idea. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 2-14 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base cclaim butwould be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. Prior art does not disclose measured variable tracks reference value and adaptive control loop. Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. 5780986 discloses duty cycle and commutation timing. 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

Dec 20, 2024
Application Filed
Oct 08, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §101, §103 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12771266
SYNCHRONIZED TORQUE PULSATIONS FOR ELECTRIC DRIVE SYSTEMS
2y 8m to grant Granted Oct 20, 2026
Patent 12763705
HYBRID MULTI-STAGE DEVICE FOR MOTOR STARTERS
2y 6m to grant Granted Oct 13, 2026
Patent 12763596
ELECTRONIC POWER SYSTEM WITH MODULAR SEALED ENCLOSURE
2y 5m to grant Granted Oct 13, 2026
Patent 12749999
OIL TEMPERATURE CONTROL DEVICE AND METHOD
2y 5m to grant Granted Sep 29, 2026
Patent 12741626
BUS CURRENT CONTROL METHOD, DEVICE, SYSTEM, AND STORAGE MEDIUM
2y 11m to grant Granted Sep 22, 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
91%
Grant Probability
98%
With Interview (+6.6%)
1y 11m (~1m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1037 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

Sign in with your work email

Enter your email to receive a magic link. No password needed.

Personal email addresses (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.) are not accepted.

Free tier: 3 strategy analyses per month