Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 19/266,673

DRIVING ASSISTANCE APPARATUS, RECORDING MEDIUM HAVING DRIVING ASSISTANCE PROGRAM RECORDED THEREON, AND DRIVING ASSISTANCE METHOD

Non-Final OA §DP
Filed
Jul 11, 2025
Priority
Mar 31, 2021 — JP 2021-062102 +1 more
Examiner
WEISENFELD, ARYAN E
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
41%
Grant Probability
Moderate
1-2
OA Rounds
3y 2m
Est. Remaining
66%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 41% of resolved cases
41%
Career Allowance Rate
145 granted / 356 resolved
-19.3% vs TC avg
Strong +26% interview lift
Without
With
+25.6%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
4y 2m
Avg Prosecution
15 currently pending
Career history
378
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
8.3%
-31.7% vs TC avg
§103
70.9%
+30.9% vs TC avg
§102
15.0%
-25.0% vs TC avg
§112
4.0%
-36.0% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 356 resolved cases

Office Action

§DP
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 . Contents of this rejection: 35 U.S.C. 101 claim interpretation. There is no 35 U.S.C. 101 rejection Double Patenting Rejections Allowable Subject Matter For relevant prior art, see parent application 17679393 Claim Interpretation - 35 USC § 101 The claims are directed to acquiring vehicle acceleration and making a calculation based on that. The result of this is then displayed while showing path changes and center-of-gravity changes. This is a practical application and could not be performed mentally be a person. Double Patenting The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969). A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b). The filing of a terminal disclaimer by itself is not a complete reply to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection. A complete reply requires that the terminal disclaimer be accompanied by a reply requesting reconsideration of the prior Office action. Even where the NSDP rejection is provisional the reply must be complete. See MPEP § 804, subsection I.B.1. For a reply to a non-final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.111(a). For a reply to final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.113(c). A request for reconsideration while not provided for in 37 CFR 1.113(c) may be filed after final for consideration. See MPEP §§ 706.07(e) and 714.13. The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The actual filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/applying-online/eterminal-disclaimer. Claims 1-11 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1, 2, 11, 15 of U.S. Patent No. 12394255. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because: Claims 1 and 11 correspond to claims 1 and 15 of the parent case. Claims 2 and 8 corresponds to claim 11. Allowable Subject Matter Please see Notice of Allowance in Parent Case 17/679393 for which claim limitations are allowable and why they overcome the prior art of record. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ARYAN E WEISENFELD whose telephone number is (571)272-6602. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9-5. 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, Angela Ortiz can be reached at 5712721206. 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. ARYAN E. WEISENFELD Primary Examiner Art Unit 3689 /ARYAN E WEISENFELD/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3663
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Jul 11, 2025
Application Filed
Jun 23, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §DP (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12662128
METHOD AND SENSOR ARRANGEMENT FOR DETERMINING AN ADVERSE CONDITION OF A POWERTRAIN
1y 8m to grant Granted Jun 23, 2026
Patent 12656141
Method For Carrying Out a Function of a Vehicle, Computer-Readable Medium, System, and Vehicle
2y 7m to grant Granted Jun 16, 2026
Patent 12656137
Method and Apparatus for Planning an Electric Car Trip
1y 11m to grant Granted Jun 16, 2026
Patent 12638295
INFORMATION PROCESSING DEVICE AND INFORMATION PROCESSING SYSTEM
3y 0m to grant Granted May 26, 2026
Patent 12640032
SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR PREEMPTIVE COMMUNICATION OF ROAD CONDITION DATA
1y 7m to grant Granted May 26, 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
41%
Grant Probability
66%
With Interview (+25.6%)
4y 2m (~3y 2m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 356 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