Last updated: July 17, 2026

Application No. 18/999,556

IMAGE SENSOR AND ELECTRONIC CAMERA

Final Rejection

Filed

Dec 23, 2024

Priority

Sep 30, 2015 — JP 2015-195280 +4 more

Examiner

YODER III, CHRISS S

Art Unit

2638

Tech Center

2600 — Communications

Assignee

NIKON Corporation

OA Round

1 (Final)

Interview Optional

— +21.7% interview lift. Examiner has a relatively high allowance rate (75%); +21.7% interview lift. A written response may suffice.

Based on 687 resolved cases, 2023–2026

Examiner Intelligence

YODER III, CHRISS S View full profile →

Grants 75% — above average

Career Allowance Rate

516 granted / 687 resolved

+13.1% vs TC avg

Strong +22% interview lift

Without

With

+21.7%

Interview Lift

resolved cases with interview

Typical timeline

2y 8m

Avg Prosecution

14 currently pending

Career history

702

Total Applications

across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101

0.8%

-39.2% vs TC avg

§103

76.4%

+36.4% vs TC avg

§102

13.0%

-27.0% vs TC avg

§112

4.1%

-35.9% vs TC avg

Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 687 resolved cases

Prosecution Timeline

Dec 23, 2024

Application Filed

Mar 19, 2026

Final Rejection mailed (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

18/859,718

Patent 12684235

INFORMATION PROCESSING DEVICE, INFORMATION PROCESSING METHOD, AND PROGRAM

1y 8m to grant Granted Jul 14, 2026

18/435,758

Patent 12666175

PHOTOELECTRIC CONVERSION DEVICE, PHOTOELECTRIC CONVERSION SYSTEM, MOVABLE OBJECT AND EQUIPMENT

2y 4m to grant Granted Jun 23, 2026

18/840,208

Patent 12666176

AUTOMATIC INTEGRATION AND READOUT GAIN READ OUT INTEGRATED CIRCUIT (ROIC)

1y 10m to grant Granted Jun 23, 2026

18/017,399

Patent 12656492

Distance measurement sensor with multiple memory nodes

3y 4m to grant Granted Jun 16, 2026

18/383,122

Patent 12659627

IMAGE SENSOR CIRCUIT

2y 7m to grant Granted Jun 16, 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.

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Prosecution Projections

2-3

Expected OA Rounds

75%

Grant Probability

97%

With Interview (+21.7%)

2y 8m (~1y 1m remaining)

Median Time to Grant

Low

PTA Risk

Based on 687 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.