Prosecution Insights
Prosecution Insights
Technology area: Medical Devices & Mechanical Engineering
1 pending office actions • 1 art units • 1 examiners • 0 of 1 (0%) have an AI response strategy ready • 1 patents granted in the last 365 days
Gerber Outdoor LLC currently maintains a very focused patent prosecution profile with 1 pending office action in the Medical Devices & Mechanical Engineering technology area. This action is handled by 1 distinct examiner, VOLZ, ELIZABETH J. Consequently, the entire pending portfolio is currently subject to the review of this individual. This creates a high-stakes environment for the applicant, as the outcome of their current patent office activity depends entirely on the interactions with this specific examiner. This concentrated activity requires precise communication with the examiner to ensure the application progresses efficiently.
The activity is limited to a single distinct art unit, reflecting the singular nature of the current prosecution. VOLZ, ELIZABETH J is also listed as the busiest examiner. For this company, the prosecution strategy is simplified but lacks the diversification seen in larger portfolios. Practitioners should focus on the specific history and allowance patterns of this examiner within the assigned art unit, as there are no other pending matters to offset a potential rejection. The singular focus on this art unit suggests a very specific technical niche for the company's current intellectual property efforts.
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 |
|---|---|
| Multi-statute (no §101) | 1 (100%) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| VOLZ, ELIZABETH J | 1 | 66.7% | +19.0% |
Multi-statute / §101-driven matters, or cases in front of an examiner with an allow rate under 30%. The top 1 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18980372 | COOKWARE WITH REMOVABLE HANDLE | VOLZ, ELIZABETH J | — |
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 1 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18980372 | COOKWARE WITH REMOVABLE HANDLE | VOLZ, ELIZABETH J | — |
| Art Unit | Apps |
|---|---|
| 3733 | 1 |
| App # | Title | Examiner | Art Unit | Statutes | Status | Due in | AI | Filed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18980372 | COOKWARE WITH REMOVABLE HANDLE | VOLZ, ELIZABETH J | 3733 | §102§103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Dec 13, 2024 |
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Start Free TrialGerber Outdoor LLC has 1 pending office actions as of October 2026, spread across 1 art units and 1 examiners.
Elizabeth J Volz has the most, with 1 of Gerber Outdoor LLC's pending office actions.
Mostly Medical Devices & Mechanical Engineering (USPTO Tech Center 3700), based on where its pending office actions are examined.