Technology area: Semiconductors, Circuits & Optics
32 pending office actions • 16 art units • 27 examiners • 0 of 32 (0%) have an AI response strategy ready • 68 patents granted in the last 365 days
FEI Company has 33 pending office actions in Semiconductors, Circuits & Optics. The portfolio spans 27 examiners and 16 art units, indicating extensive dispersion across both individual examination assignments and technical groups. Prosecution management therefore requires a structured portfolio process rather than reliance on a single examiner or art-unit strategy.
CHOI, JAMES J is the busiest examiner, with 3 pending matters. Those matters provide a defined cluster for examiner-specific coordination, while the broader portfolio calls for consistent claim interpretation and centralized tracking across the remaining assignments. The art-unit coverage also supports reviewing related applications by technical grouping before preparing responses.
Based on the USPTO statutory response window for each pending office action. 9 of the docket's apps have a known mailing date; the rest are excluded from the tile counts.
Every pending office action with a known statutory deadline, placed on a days-until-due axis. Dots left of Today are overdue; the further right, the more runway. Cases that share a deadline window stack vertically. 9 of the docket's apps have a known mailing date.
Difficulty is derived from the rejection statutes on the most recent pending office action. §101-driven and multi-statute cases are graded Hard; §112-only and obviousness-type double-patenting cases are graded Easy; everything else is Medium. "Unknown" means we have not yet parsed a statute for that office action.
| Bucket | Cases |
|---|---|
| §101 + other | 3 (9%) |
| §103 only | 8 (25%) |
| §102 only | 1 (3%) |
| Double-patenting + other | 1 (3%) |
| Multi-statute (no §101) | 18 (56%) |
| No statute on record | 1 (3%) |
How the docket's pending cases split across USPTO tech-center bands.
Manual office-action response work runs about 10 hours per case. The time-saved bands below show what IP Author's prosecution pipeline typically delivers — a conservative 20% on the low end, 35% in the middle, 50% on the high end.
| Examiner | Apps on this docket | Allow rate | Interview lift |
|---|---|---|---|
| CHOI, JAMES J | 2 | 68.3% | +44.9% |
| LOGIE, MICHAEL J | 2 | 63.1% | +9.5% |
| LEE, EUNICE SOMIN | 2 | 89.4% | +24.5% |
| SMYTH, ANDREW P | 2 | 71.7% | +14.6% |
| WANG, JING | 2 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| MERCADO, RAMON A | 1 | 81.1% | +18.8% |
| ZAKARIA, AKM | 1 | 82.6% | +16.2% |
| RIDER, JUSTIN W | 1 | 84.4% | +11.9% |
| SMITH, DAVID E | 1 | 85.3% | +6.9% |
| NOH, JAE NAM | 1 | 86.4% | -9.4% |
Cases in front of an examiner with an allow rate of 80%+ where the difficulty is Easy or Medium. The top 3 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18747753 | LARGE LANGUAGE MODEL ASSISTANCE FOR CHARGED-PARTICLE MICROSCOPE OPERATION | LEE, EUNICE SOMIN | 31d overdue |
| 18747764 | LARGE LANGUAGE MODEL ASSISTANCE FOR CHARGED-PARTICLE MICROSCOPE OPERATION | LEE, EUNICE SOMIN | 28d overdue |
| 18950590 | CLASS NEIGHBORHOOD GRAPH GENERATION FOR LAMELLA MILLING | MERCADO, RAMON A | — |
Multi-statute / §101-driven matters, or cases in front of an examiner with an allow rate under 30%. The top 8 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17823661 | Automated Selection And Model Training For Charged Particle Microscope Imaging | BEZUAYEHU, SOLOMON G | 9d overdue |
| 17957445 | DATA TRIAGE IN MICROSCOPY SYSTEMS | SHARIFF, MICHAEL ADAM | 27d |
| 18955676 | TRANSMISSION ELECTRON MICROSCOPE WITH VARIABLE EFFECTIVE FOCAL LENGTH | CHOI, JAMES J | — |
| 18934034 | TECHNIQUES FOR ELECTRICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF LOGICAL CELLS IN INTEGRATED CIRCUIT TESTING SYSTEMS | ZAKARIA, AKM | — |
| 18913013 | TEXT-CONDITIONED ANOMALY DETECTION FOR CHARGED-PARTICLE MICROSCOPY IMAGES | RIDER, JUSTIN W | — |
| 18904532 | BEAM ALIGNMENT AND SYNCHRONIZATION IN MICROSCOPY | SMITH, DAVID E | — |
| 18897649 | ACQUIRING AND ENCODING ELECTRON MICROSCOPE GENERATED IMAGES | NOH, JAE NAM | — |
| 18888100 | BETA TILT SAMPLE HOLDER | MCCORMACK, JASON L | — |
Cases in front of an examiner whose interview lift is 10 percentage points or more — i.e. interviewed cases historically resolve more favorably than non-interviewed ones. The top 8 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18747753 | LARGE LANGUAGE MODEL ASSISTANCE FOR CHARGED-PARTICLE MICROSCOPE OPERATION | LEE, EUNICE SOMIN | 31d overdue |
| 18747764 | LARGE LANGUAGE MODEL ASSISTANCE FOR CHARGED-PARTICLE MICROSCOPE OPERATION | LEE, EUNICE SOMIN | 28d overdue |
| 17957171 | CHARGED PARTICLE MICROSCOPE HAVING VACUUM IN SPECIMEN CHAMBER | CHOI, JAMES J | 28d |
| 18955676 | TRANSMISSION ELECTRON MICROSCOPE WITH VARIABLE EFFECTIVE FOCAL LENGTH | CHOI, JAMES J | — |
| 18950590 | CLASS NEIGHBORHOOD GRAPH GENERATION FOR LAMELLA MILLING | MERCADO, RAMON A | — |
| 18934034 | TECHNIQUES FOR ELECTRICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF LOGICAL CELLS IN INTEGRATED CIRCUIT TESTING SYSTEMS | ZAKARIA, AKM | — |
| 18913013 | TEXT-CONDITIONED ANOMALY DETECTION FOR CHARGED-PARTICLE MICROSCOPY IMAGES | RIDER, JUSTIN W | — |
| 18731712 | Method and System for Sample Preparation | SMYTH, ANDREW P | — |
| Art Unit | Apps |
|---|---|
| 2881 | 9 |
| 2878 | 6 |
| 2857 | 2 |
| 2656 | 2 |
| 1713 | 2 |
| 3658 | 1 |
| 2858 | 1 |
| 2486 | 1 |
| 2481 | 1 |
| 1794 | 1 |
| App # | Title | Examiner | Art Unit | Statutes | Status | Due in | AI | Filed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18955676 | TRANSMISSION ELECTRON MICROSCOPE WITH VARIABLE EFFECTIVE FOCAL LENGTH | CHOI, JAMES J | 2878 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 21, 2024 |
| 18950590 | CLASS NEIGHBORHOOD GRAPH GENERATION FOR LAMELLA MILLING | MERCADO, RAMON A | 3658 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 18, 2024 |
| 18934034 | TECHNIQUES FOR ELECTRICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF LOGICAL CELLS IN INTEGRATED CIRCUIT TESTING SYSTEMS | ZAKARIA, AKM | 2858 | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Oct 31, 2024 |
| 18913013 | TEXT-CONDITIONED ANOMALY DETECTION FOR CHARGED-PARTICLE MICROSCOPY IMAGES | RIDER, JUSTIN W | 2486 | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Oct 11, 2024 |
| 18904532 | BEAM ALIGNMENT AND SYNCHRONIZATION IN MICROSCOPY | SMITH, DAVID E | 2881 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Oct 02, 2024 |
| 18897649 | ACQUIRING AND ENCODING ELECTRON MICROSCOPE GENERATED IMAGES | NOH, JAE NAM | 2481 | §102§103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Sep 26, 2024 |
| 18893321 | METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR ELECTRON BACKSCATTER DIFFRACTION SAMPLE CHARACTERISATION | CHANG, HANWAY | 2878 | Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 23, 2024 |
| 18888100 | BETA TILT SAMPLE HOLDER | MCCORMACK, JASON L | 2881 | §102§103§112 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Sep 17, 2024 |
| 18828805 | METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR ELEMENTAL MAPPING | LOGIE, MICHAEL J | 2881 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 09, 2024 |
| 18808549 | MULTIMODAL SIGNAL ACQUISITION SYNCHRONIZED BY UNIVERSAL CLOCK | HAGOS, EYOB | 2857 | §101§102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Aug 19, 2024 |
| 18767485 | REDUCED BOERSCH EFFECT IN DISPERSIVE OPTICS | KALISZEWSKI, ALINA ROSE | 2881 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 09, 2024 |
| 18747764 | LARGE LANGUAGE MODEL ASSISTANCE FOR CHARGED-PARTICLE MICROSCOPE OPERATION | LEE, EUNICE SOMIN | 2656 | §103DP | Final Rejection | 28d overdue | Pending | Jun 19, 2024 |
| 18747753 | LARGE LANGUAGE MODEL ASSISTANCE FOR CHARGED-PARTICLE MICROSCOPE OPERATION | LEE, EUNICE SOMIN | 2656 | §103 | Final Rejection | 31d overdue | Pending | Jun 19, 2024 |
| 18734069 | DETECTING AND ADJUSTING LAMELLA DEFORMATION | BRAYTON, JOHN JOSEPH | 1794 | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 05, 2024 |
| 18731712 | Method and System for Sample Preparation | SMYTH, ANDREW P | 2878 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 03, 2024 |
| 18677701 | INHOMOGENEOUS D-SHAPED FOCUSED ION BEAMS | SMYTH, ANDREW P | 2878 | §102§103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | May 29, 2024 |
| 18660569 | SPLIT-COLUMN ACCELERATION TUBE FOR SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPE | WANG, JING | 2881 | §102§103§112 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | May 10, 2024 |
| 18658470 | METHOD FOR CONFIRMING AND FINDING AN IONIZATION EDGE WITHIN A MEASURED EELS SPECTRUM | LUCK, SEAN M | 2878 | §102 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | May 08, 2024 |
| 18657534 | DRIFT COMPENSATION FOR RADIATION-SENSITIVE SPECIMENS | LOGIE, MICHAEL J | 2881 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 07, 2024 |
| 18624852 | SITU PROTECTIVE POLYMER VIA MILLING-EXCITATION | REMAVEGE, CHRISTOPHER | 1713 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 02, 2024 |
| 18617387 | AIRLESS TRANSFER AND ELECTRICAL TESTING OF SOLID STATE BATTERIES IN SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPES | WANG, JING | 2881 | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 26, 2024 |
| 18612557 | ION BEAM COLUMN ION SPECIES MEASUREMENT | LI, LARRY | 2881 | §103§112 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Mar 21, 2024 |
| 18690613 | APPARATUS FOR MOVING SAMPLE HOLDERS | MUI, CHRISTINE T | 1797 | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 08, 2024 |
| 18392097 | Detectors For Microscopy | FAYE, MAMADOU | 2884 | §103 | Final Rejection | 23d overdue | Pending | Dec 21, 2023 |
| 18510047 | INCREASING INFORMATION RESULTING FROM APODIZATION | RUDOLPH, VINCENT M | 2671 | §103 | Final Rejection | 50d overdue | Pending | Nov 15, 2023 |
| 18504000 | METHOD OF PREPARING A CRYOGENIC SAMPLE WITH IMPROVED COOLING CHARACTERISTICS | BANKS, KEONA LAUREN | 3763 | §103 | Non-Final OA | 18d overdue | Pending | Nov 07, 2023 |
| 18369967 | DELAYERING APPARATUS AND METHODS | ZERVIGON, RUDY | 1713 | §102§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 19, 2023 |
| 18448430 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PREPARING A SPECIMEN | GOURLIE, LAURA ELOISE | 2881 | §103 | Final Rejection | 6d | Pending | Aug 11, 2023 |
| 18362207 | ENERGY DISPERSIVE X-RAY SPECTROSCOPY PHASE SPECTRUM SYNTHESIS | BRYANT, CHRISTIAN THOMAS | 2857 | §101§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 31, 2023 |
| 17957171 | CHARGED PARTICLE MICROSCOPE HAVING VACUUM IN SPECIMEN CHAMBER | CHOI, JAMES J | 2878 | §103 | Final Rejection | 28d | Pending | Sep 30, 2022 |
| 17957445 | DATA TRIAGE IN MICROSCOPY SYSTEMS | SHARIFF, MICHAEL ADAM | 2672 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | 27d | Pending | Sep 30, 2022 |
| 17823661 | Automated Selection And Model Training For Charged Particle Microscope Imaging | BEZUAYEHU, SOLOMON G | 2674 | §101§103 | Final Rejection | 9d overdue | Pending | Aug 31, 2022 |
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Start Free TrialFEI Company has 32 pending office actions as of October 2026, spread across 16 art units and 27 examiners.
James J Choi has the most, with 2 of FEI Company's pending office actions.
Mostly Semiconductors, Circuits & Optics (USPTO Tech Center 2800), based on where its pending office actions are examined.
