Prosecution Insights
Prosecution Insights
Technology area: Transportation, E-Commerce & Mechanical Systems
55 pending office actions • 31 art units • 55 examiners • 0 of 55 (0%) have an AI response strategy ready • 204 patents granted in the last 365 days
Volkswagen AG has 55 pending office actions in the Transportation, E-Commerce & Mechanical Systems technology area. There are 55 distinct examiners assigned to these actions, meaning every single pending office action is being handled by a different individual. This total lack of examiner overlap is paired with a distribution across 30 distinct art units.
The busiest examiner, GANCI, MATTHEW JOSEPH, has 1 busiest examiner pending action. This is consistent with the overall distribution where each of the 55 pending office actions is managed by one of the 55 distinct examiners. Such a decentralized prosecution profile suggests that the company's patent outcomes are subject to a wide variety of individual examiner interpretations across 30 distinct art units. For practitioners, this means there is no opportunity to leverage a relationship with a single examiner to resolve multiple matters. The presence of 30 distinct art units further indicates that the portfolio covers a broad range of technical sub-specialties. Each application effectively stands alone in the prosecution process, requiring a tailored approach for each of the 55 distinct examiners involved.
Based on the USPTO statutory response window for each pending office action. 15 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. 15 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 | 9 (16%) |
| §103 only | 15 (27%) |
| §102 only | 3 (5%) |
| §112 only | 1 (2%) |
| Multi-statute (no §101) | 27 (49%) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| GANCI, MATTHEW JOSEPH | 1 | 93.1% | -2.9% |
| ARCIERO, ADAM A | 1 | 65.1% | -17.6% |
| ALKIRSH, AHMED | 1 | 47.7% | +32.9% |
| NELESKI, ELIZABETH ROSE | 1 | 74.8% | +15.7% |
| TRAN, LONG T | 1 | 83.2% | +13.8% |
| TRAN, MINH | 1 | 86.3% | +15.9% |
| AU, SCOTT D | 1 | 77.1% | +10.8% |
| WINDRICH, MARCUS E | 1 | 79.2% | +7.1% |
| ALIZADA, OMEED | 1 | 77.4% | +32.7% |
| KAZIMI, MAHMOUD M | 1 | 65.3% | +18.0% |
Cases in front of an examiner with an allow rate of 80%+ where the difficulty is Easy or Medium. The top 1 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19127193 | METHOD FOR CARRYING OUT A SITUATION-CONTINGENT BRAKING OPERATION OF A VEHICLE BY MEANS OF AN ELECTRONIC PARKING BRAKE, ELECTRONIC BRAKING SYSTEM AND MOTOR VEHICLE | TRAN, LONG T | — |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18005881 | Method and System for Monitoring a Wireless Communication Network | ASRES, HERMON | 155d overdue |
| 18885279 | VALIDATING A TRAVEL CORRIDOR FOR LATERAL GUIDANCE OF A MOTOR VEHICLE | HORNER, MINATO LEE | 71d overdue |
| 18667747 | METHOD FOR DIAGNOSING A CRANKCASE SYSTEM, CRANKCASE SYSTEM, VEHICLE AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT | MOSCOLA, MATTHEW JOHN | 31d overdue |
| 18698736 | A CONCEPT FOR CONTROLLING AN UPDATE PROCESS OF A COMPUTATIONAL FUNCTION BLOCK IN A VEHICLE | SOLTANZADEH, AMIR | 9d overdue |
| 18499065 | VEHICLE SUSPENSION FOR TRAILER COUPLING MECHANISM AND VEHICLE SUPPORT | FRISBY, KEITH J | 16d |
| 18294000 | METHOD, COMPUTER PROGRAM, AND DEVICE FOR PROCESSING SIGNALS | YEA, JI-HAE P | 35d |
| 18649958 | METHOD AND DEVICE FOR LAMINATING COMPONENTS OF A BATTERY CELL | GROSS, CARSON | 43d |
| 18263807 | METHOD, DATA PROCESSING DEVICE, COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT AND DATA CARRIER SIGNAL | BEAN, GRIFFIN TANNER | 70d |
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 7 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19114270 | STEERING COLUMN SWITCH, STEERING WHEEL SYSTEM, MOTOR VEHICLE, AND METHOD | AU, SCOTT D | 9d |
| 19479539 | Method for Activating a Vehicle Function, Vehicle Function System, and Vehicle | ALKIRSH, AHMED | — |
| 19224040 | METHOD FOR CHARGING AN ELECTRIC MOTOR VEHICLE | NELESKI, ELIZABETH ROSE | — |
| 19127193 | METHOD FOR CARRYING OUT A SITUATION-CONTINGENT BRAKING OPERATION OF A VEHICLE BY MEANS OF AN ELECTRONIC PARKING BRAKE, ELECTRONIC BRAKING SYSTEM AND MOTOR VEHICLE | TRAN, LONG T | — |
| 19176979 | Method For Operating At Least One Luminaire Of A Vehicle And Luminaire | TRAN, MINH | — |
| 19020772 | DEVICE AND SYSTEM FOR A MOTOR VEHICLE FOR LOCKING AND/OR UNLOCKING AN OBJECT | ALIZADA, OMEED | — |
| 19018105 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PROVIDING TRAJECTORIES FOR AT LEAST ONE VEHICLE | KAZIMI, MAHMOUD M | — |
| Art Unit | Apps |
|---|---|
| 3665 | 4 |
| 3614 | 2 |
| 3668 | 2 |
| 3663 | 2 |
| 2121 | 2 |
| 1727 | 1 |
| 3747 | 1 |
| 2624 | 1 |
| 2686 | 1 |
| 2689 | 1 |
| App # | Title | Examiner | Art Unit | Statutes | Status | Due in | AI | Filed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19480265 | VEHICLE HAVING A RESTRAINT DEVICE | GANCI, MATTHEW JOSEPH | 3614 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Oct 30, 2025 |
| 18001240 | DEVICE AND METHOD FOR DISTRIBUTING THE POWER OF FUEL CELL SYSTEMS IN A VEHICLE | ARCIERO, ADAM A | 1727 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 08, 2022 |
| 19479539 | Method for Activating a Vehicle Function, Vehicle Function System, and Vehicle | ALKIRSH, AHMED | 3668 | §101§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Oct 28, 2025 |
| 19224040 | METHOD FOR CHARGING AN ELECTRIC MOTOR VEHICLE | NELESKI, ELIZABETH ROSE | — | §102 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 30, 2025 |
| 19127193 | METHOD FOR CARRYING OUT A SITUATION-CONTINGENT BRAKING OPERATION OF A VEHICLE BY MEANS OF AN ELECTRONIC PARKING BRAKE, ELECTRONIC BRAKING SYSTEM AND MOTOR VEHICLE | TRAN, LONG T | 3747 | §102 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 05, 2025 |
| 19176979 | Method For Operating At Least One Luminaire Of A Vehicle And Luminaire | TRAN, MINH | — | §102§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 11, 2025 |
| 19114270 | STEERING COLUMN SWITCH, STEERING WHEEL SYSTEM, MOTOR VEHICLE, AND METHOD | AU, SCOTT D | 2624 | §103 | Non-Final OA | 9d | Pending | Mar 21, 2025 |
| 19033652 | Method For Sensing Surroundings Of A Vehicle By Means Of A Sensor System On The Basis Of Consecutive Interconnection Of Subarrays Of The Sensor System, And Sensor System And Vehicle | WINDRICH, MARCUS E | — | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 22, 2025 |
| 19020772 | DEVICE AND SYSTEM FOR A MOTOR VEHICLE FOR LOCKING AND/OR UNLOCKING AN OBJECT | ALIZADA, OMEED | 2686 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 14, 2025 |
| 19018105 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PROVIDING TRAJECTORIES FOR AT LEAST ONE VEHICLE | KAZIMI, MAHMOUD M | 3665 | §101§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 13, 2025 |
| 19015259 | METHOD AND DEVICE FOR LONGITUDINALLY GUIDING A MOTOR VEHICLE | SHUDY, ANGELINA M | 3668 | §112 | Final Rejection | 28d | Pending | Jan 09, 2025 |
| 18881387 | Method for Operating a Vehicle, and Vehicle | BARAKAT, MOHAMED | 2689 | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 06, 2025 |
| 19007376 | MOTORCYCLE LANE SPLITTING DETECTION SYSTEM | MOORE, WHITNEY | 3646 | §101§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 31, 2024 |
| 18879365 | Method for Hand Detection, Computer Program, and Device | MARUNDA II, TORRENCE S | 3663 | §101§102 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 27, 2024 |
| 18914121 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING INTERCONNECTED COMPONENTS OF AN INTERIOR-TRIM PART, AND INTERCONNECTED COMPONENTS OF AN INTERIOR-TRIM PART | CONDO, VERONICA MARIE | — | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Oct 12, 2024 |
| 18902039 | METHOD FOR INFLUENCING AN AGING PROCESS OF A COMPONENT OF AN EXHAUST AFTERTREATMENT SYSTEM FOR A VEHICLE, COMPUTER PROGRAM, CONTROL UNIT, DRIVING MACHINE, AND MOTOR VEHICLE | TESSEMA, BESUFEKAD LEMMA | 3665 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 30, 2024 |
| 18885279 | VALIDATING A TRAVEL CORRIDOR FOR LATERAL GUIDANCE OF A MOTOR VEHICLE | HORNER, MINATO LEE | 3665 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | 71d overdue | Pending | Sep 13, 2024 |
| 18782968 | BRAKE ELEMENT FOR A MOTOR VEHICLE, AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING A BRAKE ELEMENT | TAYLOR II, JAMES JOSEPH | — | §102§103Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 24, 2024 |
| 18727648 | METHOD, COMPUTER PROGRAM, DEVICE AND USER INTERFACE FOR RESTORING AUTOMATICALLY RESET SETTINGS OF A MACHINE | SILVERMAN, SETH ADAM | 2174 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 09, 2024 |
| 18737213 | TRACTION NETWORK FOR A VEHICLE AND METHOD FOR OPERATING A TRACTION NETWORK | PHAM, DUC M | 2849 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 07, 2024 |
| 18734456 | Method And Assistance System For Parking Support By Means Of A Hybrid Map, Corresponding Digital Hybrid Map, And Correspondingly Configured Motor Vehicle | ROBINSON, KITO R | 3664 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 05, 2024 |
| 18731639 | REMOVAL TOOL AND REMOVAL SYSTEM FOR REMOVING, FROM A POWDER BED, COMPONENTS MANUFACTURED BY MEANS OF 3D PRINTING METHODS | SONG, INJA | — | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 03, 2024 |
| 18713380 | METHOD FOR USER EQUIPMENT FOR INCREASING A SIGNAL STRENGTH, METHOD FOR COMMUNICATION DEVICE, APPARATUS, VEHICLE AND COMPUTER PROGRAM | LEE, JOHN J | 2649 | §103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | May 24, 2024 |
| 18713593 | MULTIFUNCTIONAL OPERATING DEVICE FOR A MOTOR VEHICLE, AND MOTOR VEHICLE | LEIBY, CHRISTOPHER E | 2621 | §103 | Final Rejection | 76d | Pending | May 24, 2024 |
| 18713125 | COMPUTER IMPLEMENTED METHOD FOR ORGANIZING ACCESS TO A SHARED MEMORY OF A VEHICLE | LI, SIDNEY | — | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 23, 2024 |
| 18668121 | STRUCTURED ARTIFICIAL LEATHER MATERIAL COMPRISING WATER-LADEN PARTICLES FROM A RENEWABLE RAW MATERIAL | SALVATORE, LYNDA | 1789 | §103§112 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | May 17, 2024 |
| 18667747 | METHOD FOR DIAGNOSING A CRANKCASE SYSTEM, CRANKCASE SYSTEM, VEHICLE AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT | MOSCOLA, MATTHEW JOHN | 3663 | §101§103 | Non-Final OA | 31d overdue | Pending | May 17, 2024 |
| 18649958 | METHOD AND DEVICE FOR LAMINATING COMPONENTS OF A BATTERY CELL | GROSS, CARSON | 1746 | §103§112 | Final Rejection | 43d | Pending | Apr 29, 2024 |
| 18647823 | BATTERY CELL AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING SUCH A BATTERY CELL | CULLEN, SEAN P | — | §102§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 26, 2024 |
| 18646686 | LITHIUM-ION BATTERY | SCHULER, JACOB JEROME | — | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 25, 2024 |
| 18644983 | ANODE MATERIAL, BATTERY AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING AN ANODE MATERIAL | SIDDIQUEE, MUHAMMAD S | — | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 24, 2024 |
| 18634658 | PASSENGER-COMPARTMENT COMPONENT FOR AN AIR VENT, AIR VENT AND PRODUCTION METHOD | HAMILTON, FRANCES F | — | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 12, 2024 |
| 18627232 | POSITION SENSOR FOR A VALVE AND METHOD FOR MEASURING THE POSITION OF A VALVE | FURDGE, LARRY L | 3763 | §103 | Final Rejection | 26d | Pending | Apr 04, 2024 |
| 18698736 | A CONCEPT FOR CONTROLLING AN UPDATE PROCESS OF A COMPUTATIONAL FUNCTION BLOCK IN A VEHICLE | SOLTANZADEH, AMIR | 2191 | §103§112 | Final Rejection | 9d overdue | Pending | Apr 04, 2024 |
| 18688286 | COOLANT DISTRIBUTOR DEVICE FOR A MOTOR VEHICLE, AND MOTOR VEHICLE COMPRISING A COOLANT DISTRIBUTOR DEVICE | STANLEY, TYLER JAY | — | §102§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 21, 2024 |
| 18607462 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING A SOLID-STATE BATTERY CELL | MCCONNELL, WYATT P | — | §102 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 16, 2024 |
| 18605545 | METHOD FOR OPERATING A ROLLING DEVICE FOR MANUFACTURING AN ELECTRODE SHEET, AND ROLLING DEVICE | WOLLSCHLAGER, JEFFREY MICHAEL | 1742 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 14, 2024 |
| 18691247 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING AN ELECTRODE OF A SOLID-STATE BATTERY CELL | WEI, YVONNE | — | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 12, 2024 |
| 18294000 | METHOD, COMPUTER PROGRAM, AND DEVICE FOR PROCESSING SIGNALS | YEA, JI-HAE P | 2471 | §101§103§112 | Non-Final OA | 35d | Pending | Feb 12, 2024 |
| 18409597 | METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING A SOLID-STATE ELECTROLYTE FOR A BATTERY CELL | ERWIN, JAMES M | — | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 10, 2024 |
| 18542730 | BATTERY WITH OPTIMIZED TEMPERATURE CONTROLLABILITY | HOANG, NATHAN NGOC-NGOC | — | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 17, 2023 |
| 18541363 | TRANSFORMER-BASED AI PLANNER FOR LANE CHANGING ON MULTI-LANE ROAD | ROBERT, DANIEL M | 3665 | §103 | Final Rejection | 8d | Pending | Dec 15, 2023 |
| 18560017 | METHOD FOR ELECTRICALLY CHARGING A DRIVE BATTERY, COMPUTER PROGRAMME PRODUCT, AND STORAGE MEANS | FANTU, YALKEW | — | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 09, 2023 |
| 18499065 | VEHICLE SUSPENSION FOR TRAILER COUPLING MECHANISM AND VEHICLE SUPPORT | FRISBY, KEITH J | 3614 | §102§112 | Final Rejection | 16d | Pending | Oct 31, 2023 |
| 18373512 | HYBRID 3D SENSING USING TIME-OF-FLIGHT, EVENT-BASED STRUCTURED LIGHT AND STEREO VISION | HELLNER, MARK | 3645 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 27, 2023 |
| 18263807 | METHOD, DATA PROCESSING DEVICE, COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT AND DATA CARRIER SIGNAL | BEAN, GRIFFIN TANNER | 2121 | §101§112 | Non-Final OA | 70d | Pending | Aug 01, 2023 |
| 18260368 | Method, Computer Program, and Device for Operating an AI Module | HILAIRE, CLIFFORD | 2488 | §103 | Non-Final OA | 55d | Pending | Jul 05, 2023 |
| 18027884 | METHOD FOR OPERATING A MOTOR VEHICLE, AND MOTOR VEHICLE | MCCLEARY, CAITLIN RENEE | 3669 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 31, 2023 |
| 18005881 | Method and System for Monitoring a Wireless Communication Network | ASRES, HERMON | 2449 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | 155d overdue | Pending | Jan 18, 2023 |
| 17874753 | METHOD FOR REDUCING CARBON FOOTPRINT LEVERAGING A COST FUNCTION FOR FOCUSED OPTIMIZATION | GODBOLD, DAVID GARRISON | 3628 | §101§103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Jul 27, 2022 |
| 17835838 | GENERATING AND ANALYZING MATERIAL STRUCTURES BASED ON NEURAL NETWORKS | COCCHI, MICHAEL EDWARD | 2188 | §101§103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Jun 08, 2022 |
| 17639207 | Method and System for Determining an Electrical System State of at Least One Motor Vehicle | FORRISTALL, JOSHUA L | 2857 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 28, 2022 |
| 17564002 | GENERATING SYNTHETIC TRAINING DATA FOR PERCEPTION MACHINE LEARNING MODELS USING DATA GENERATORS | GRUSZKA, DANIEL PATRICK | 2121 | §103 | Final Rejection | 2d overdue | Pending | Dec 28, 2021 |
| 17613018 | MONITORING OF AN AI MODULE OF A VEHICLE DRIVING FUNCTION | WONG, WILLIAM | 2144 | §103§112 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Nov 19, 2021 |
| 17612241 | Method for Making a Neural Network More Robust in a Function-Specific Manner | TRAN, TAN H | 2141 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 18, 2021 |
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