Prosecution Insights
Last updated: May 29, 2026
Application No. 19/270,560

INTELLIGENT LIGHTING FIXTURE WITH EMERGENCY BACKUP SYSTEM

Non-Final OA §103
Filed
Jul 16, 2025
Priority
Oct 07, 2022 — CIP of 17/962,195 +1 more
Examiner
GARLEN, ALEXANDER K
Art Unit
2896
Tech Center
2800 — Semiconductors & Electrical Systems
Assignee
E2 Lighting International Inc.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
66%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
1y 2m
Est. Remaining
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 66% — above average
66%
Career Allowance Rate
451 granted / 683 resolved
-2.0% vs TC avg
Strong +42% interview lift
Without
With
+42.3%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Fast prosecutor
2y 1m
Avg Prosecution
10 currently pending
Career history
692
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§103
65.6%
+25.6% vs TC avg
§102
28.7%
-11.3% vs TC avg
§112
4.2%
-35.8% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 683 resolved cases

Office Action

§103
DETAILED ACTION 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 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 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. Claims 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Brown et al. (US 2018/0188018, hereinafter Brown) in view of Wang (US 2010/0079975). In regards to claim 1, Brown discloses in Figures 6A-6C and 8, an intelligent lighting fixture (34), comprising: a light housing (38) having reflective surfaces (Par. [0096-0097]) for providing light in a generally downward direction, the light housing mountable to a ceiling surface having a low clearance above the ceiling surface (Par. [0087], noting a “low clearance” is read broadly as there is no explicit definition provided); an LED lamp disposed in the light housing (Par. [0082, 0096]); a control box (270) movable with respect to the light housing (Par. [0093]); a battery (1004) disposed in the control box (Par. [0099]); a control circuit (336) disposed in the control box (Par. [0099]) for controlling power flow through the battery and the power flow through the LED lamp (Par. [0102]); a wire harness electrically connecting the LED lamp through the light housing to the control box (Par. [0099], noting such is required for the operation and connection of the device); wherein power is stored in the battery and the battery is in constant electrical connection to the control circuit (Par. [0102]); and wherein when power is supplied to the LED lamp from the control circuit, an area is illuminated below the emergency lighting fixture (such is required of the lighting device to be properly operational); a motion sensor (348, Par. [0133]) configured to trigger lighting functions (Par. [0101]); a control circuit (372) for lighting functions and control functions (Par. [0102]); and a smart BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) control sensor system (344) integrated into the control circuit (Par. [0109-0110]); wherein the control circuit is accessible from a mobile device (368, Par. [0110]); wherein, upon detecting motion, the motion sensor (348) sends a signal to the control circuit (Par. [0101-0102, 0133, 0137, 0141, 0165]) which triggers the lighting functions for turning on the light, adjusting lighting intensity and changing color temperature (Par. [0101-0102, 0133, 0137, 0141, 0165]); and wherein the smart BLE control sensor system is configured to communicate with the mobile device through a mobile application (Par. [0101-0102, 0133, 0137, 0141, 0165]), the mobile application configured to send programming commands to the control circuit through the smart BLE control sensor system (Par. [0101-0102, 0133, 0137, 0141, 0165]), wherein the commands are based on user input or pre-set preferences and instructs the control circuit to adjust the lighting functions and control functions of the fixture (Par. [0101-0102, 0133, 0137, 0141, 0165]). While Brown contemplates the use of temperature and fire sensors (Par. [0063, 0222, and 0282], Brown fails to disclose or fairly suggest the control box having a temperature sensor and the temperature sensor has a temperature set point and the temperature sensor enabled to enable the power flow from the battery when the temperature reaches the temperature set point and a smoke detector has a smoke detector set point and the a smoke detector enabled to enable the power flow from the battery when the temperature sensor reaches the temperature set point and the smoke detector reaches the smoke detector set point and a switching device is enabled and the LED lamp using the switching device and the switching device is attached to the wire harness and the switching device is enabled to independently from the control box to provide power to the LED lamp when the temperature sensor and smoke alarm are activated. Wang teaches in Figure 1A, “the illumination device further includes a smoke-detecting sensor 6a and a temperature sensor 7a both electrically connected to a power source and positioned on the frame unit 5a. In the first embodiment, both the smoke-detecting sensor 6a and the temperature sensor 7a are respectively positioned on two bottom sides of the two retaining portions 11a of the frame unit 1a in order to respectively sense the indoor smoke concentration and the indoor temperature. If the indoor smoke concentration and the indoor temperature are over high, an alarm is started in order to warning indoor peoples” (Par. [0037]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize both a smoke detector and temperature sensor, both with set points which when both activated provide power to the lighting device of Brown as suggested by Wang, in order to prevent the system from being overly sensitive and/or false activation as it requires two variables instead of one. In regards to claim 2, Brown teaches in Figures 6A-6C and 8, the control circuit is programmable to customize the lighting functions and control functions (Par. [0101, 0111]). In regards to claim 3, Brown teaches in Figures 6A-6C and 8, an emergency battery backup system configured to automatically power the LED in the event of a power outage (Par. [0104]). In regards to claim 4, Brown teaches in Figures 6A-6C and 8, the emergency battery backup is rechargeable (Par. [0102, 0104]). In regards to claim 5, Brown teaches in Figures 6A-6C and 8, the switching device can be selected from the group consisting of a relay, solid state relay, transistors, thyristors, and Insulated-Gate Bipolar Transistors (examples of some of these switches are represented in Par. [0011, 0035, 0119], Fig. 11A-11E), the Examiner notes such switching devices are notoriously well known in the art. Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Please review the cited references found on the attached PTO-892, too numerous to list here, which teaches either alone or in combination intelligent lighting fixtures including housings, reflective surfaces, LED lamp, control box, battery, control box and circuitry, wiring harness, sensors, detectors, BLE system, all similar to that which is currently claimed above and that which is disclosed. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ALEXANDER K GARLEN whose telephone number is (571)272-3599. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00-5:00 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, Jessica Han can be reached at 571-272-2078. 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. /ALEXANDER K GARLEN/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2896
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Jul 16, 2025
Application Filed
Feb 26, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §103 (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
66%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+42.3%)
2y 1m (~1y 2m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 683 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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