Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 26, 2026
Application No. 19/178,322

ROBOTIC MANIPULATOR, JOINT STRUCTURE, AND SURGICAL ROBOT

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Apr 14, 2025
Priority
Dec 02, 2022 — CN 202211542727.3 +1 more
Examiner
BOES, TERENCE
Art Unit
3618
Tech Center
3600 — Transportation & Electronic Commerce
Assignee
Cornerstone Technology (Shenzhen) Limited
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
68%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
1y 5m
Est. Remaining
89%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 68% — above average
68%
Career Allowance Rate
551 granted / 806 resolved
+16.4% vs TC avg
Strong +21% interview lift
Without
With
+20.8%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 11m
Avg Prosecution
13 currently pending
Career history
814
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
2.5%
-37.5% vs TC avg
§103
41.3%
+1.3% vs TC avg
§102
27.1%
-12.9% vs TC avg
§112
25.8%
-14.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 806 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
DETAILED ACTION 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. Claims 1,11,18,19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by HONGQIANG et al. CN109223182A. Claim 1- a first link (103)and a second link (104) pivotably connected at a joint; a pulley assembly (3) arranged at the joint and comprising a flanged shaft (3-6), and a pulley (3-4) concentric with and rotatably connected to the flanged shaft, wherein the pulley is rigidly connected to the second link (104) , the flanged shaft comprises a shaft (3-6) and a flange (3-3) rigidly connected to each other, the shaft extends through the pully to connect with the first link (see fig. 2), and the shaft is rotatably adjustable relative to the first link (the device is capable of this function); and a transmission assembly (3-3-3) connected to the flange and movable with rotation of the flange. Claim 11- a linkage assembly including a first link (1-3), a second link (1-4), a third link (1-5) pivotably connected in series at a first joint and a second joint (see fig. 6), the linkage assembly further including an instrument holder (1-6) pivotably connected to the third link; a transmission mechanism(3-3-1, 3-3-3, 3-3-5) coupled to the linkage assembly and configured to drive the instrument holder rotate about a pitch axis (the device is capable of this function), the transmission mechanism including: a first pulley assembly (3-4, 3-6) arranged at the first joint and comprising a first flanged shaft (3-6), and a first pulley concentric (3-4) with and rotatably connected to the first flanged shaft, wherein the first pulley is rigidly connected to the second link (see connection at 3-11-1 in fig. 6), the first flanged shaft connects the first link and is rotatably adjustable relative to the first link (the device is capable of this function) a second pulley assembly (3-7) arranged at the second joint and comprising a second flanged shaft (3-9), and a second pulley (3-7) concentric with and rotatably connected to the second flanged shaft (3-9), wherein the second pulley (3-7) is rigidly connected to the third link (second and upper instance of 1-5 in figure 4), the second flanged shaft (3-9) connects the second link (1-4) and is rotatably adjustable relative to the second link (1-4); a first strap (3-3-3) connecting the first flanged shaft (3-6) and the second pulley (3-7); and a second strap (3-3-5) connecting the second flanged shaft (3-9) and the instrument holder 1-6). Claims 18 and 19- A surgical robot, comprising at least one robotic manipulator according to claim 1 (the device is a surgical robot). Allowable Subject Matter Claims 2-10, and 12-17 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. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: the prior art neither discloses nor renders obvious the claimed combinations including wherein the first link defines a connection groove, the shaft has an end provided with a connection part extending into the connection groove, and the connection part is movable within the connection groove, and the flanged shaft rotates with movement of the connection part within the connection groove. wherein the transmission assembly comprises a strap wrapping around a periphery of the flange, the strap has an end connected to the flange through a tensioning mechanism. wherein the second flanged shaft comprises a second shaft and a second flange rigidly connected to each other, the second shaft extends through the second pully to connect with the second link, the second link defines a second connection groove, the second shaft has an end provided with a second connection part extending into the second connection groove, and the second connection part is movable within the second connection groove, and the second flanged shaft rotates with movement of the second connection part within the second connection groove. Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US 2212823 A discloses a structurally similar device. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TERENCE BOES whose telephone number is (571)272-4898. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 10-6:30. 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, Minnah Seoh can be reached at (571) 270-7778. 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. TERENCE BOES Primary Examiner Art Unit 3618 /TERENCE BOES/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3618
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Apr 14, 2025
Application Filed
Sep 09, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12760784
TRACTION MECHANISM WITH INTERNAL TOOTHING AND EXTERNAL TOOTHING, AND TRANSMISSION WITH TRACTION MECHANISM
2y 0m to grant Granted Oct 13, 2026
Patent 12753825
SPINDLE TURNING DEVICE
1y 6m to grant Granted Oct 06, 2026
Patent 12733917
TORQUE BALANCING DEVICE, SELF-BALANCING JOINT, AND SURGICAL ROBOT
4y 2m to grant Granted Sep 15, 2026
Patent 12736033
APPARATUS FOR CREATING CENTRIPETAL FORCE DIFFERENTIAL
1y 9m to grant Granted Sep 15, 2026
Patent 12729760
TRANSMISSION DEVICE FOR DENTATE STRUCTURE
2y 8m to grant Granted Sep 08, 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
68%
Grant Probability
89%
With Interview (+20.8%)
2y 11m (~1y 5m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 806 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