Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 01, 2026
Application No. 19/266,133

METHOD FOR ADJUSTING TENSIONING FORCES IN AN ELECTROMECHANICAL WHEEL BRAKE

Non-Final OA §101
Filed
Jul 10, 2025
Priority
Jul 12, 2024 — DE 10 2024 206 608.7
Examiner
HUYNH, HAI H
Art Unit
3747
Tech Center
3700 — Mechanical Engineering & Manufacturing
Assignee
Continental AG
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
93%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
7m
Est. Remaining
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 93% — above average
93%
Career Allowance Rate
1173 granted / 1256 resolved
+23.4% vs TC avg
Moderate +7% lift
Without
With
+7.1%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Fast prosecutor
1y 9m
Avg Prosecution
10 currently pending
Career history
1269
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
3.8%
-36.2% vs TC avg
§103
16.9%
-23.1% vs TC avg
§102
53.9%
+13.9% vs TC avg
§112
1.9%
-38.1% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1256 resolved cases

Office Action

§101
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 . Inventorship This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention. Priority Acknowledgment is made of applicant's claim for foreign priority based on an application filed in Germany on July 12, 2024. It is noted, however, that applicant has not filed a certified copy of the DE 10 2024 206 608.7 application as required by 37 CFR 1.55. 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 1-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significantly more. The claim(s) recite(s) determining a setpoint application force (evaluation); determining a corresponding setpoint position of the actuator for applying the setpoint application force (evaluation); carrying out an initialization function for determining a first offset position as the zero point of the coordinate system for determining the setpoint position of the actuator from the setpoint application force (judgement), when there is an activation condition for carrying out the initialization function; determining a second offset position when a motor torque threshold value is exceeded (evaluation); correcting the setpoint position of the actuator (judgement) by means of a correction value ΔXLS, Korr determined therefrom, wherein the following applies: XAkt, Soll, Korr = XAkt, solil+ΔXLS, Korr (mathematical) ; and activating the actuator (judgement) to reach the setpoint position with the corrected setpoint position of the actuator. The claim(s) does/do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception because claimed limitations perform the abstract ideas of evaluation/judgement/mathematical process there is no controller/ecu/computer for determining the values and correcting the setpoint position of the actuator. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 13-16 are allowed. Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Kumar 2026/0109331 teaches an electromechanical brake system. Lim 2025/0236277 teaches an electromechanical brake and control system. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HAI H HUYNH whose telephone number is (571)272-4844. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:00 AM-4:00 PM. 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, Lindsay M Low can be reached at 571-272-1196. 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. /HAI H HUYNH/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3747
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Prosecution Timeline

Jul 10, 2025
Application Filed
Aug 19, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §101 (current)

Precedent Cases

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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
93%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+7.1%)
1y 9m (~7m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1256 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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