USPTO Examiner ZEMAN MARY K - Art Unit 1686

Recent Applications

Detailed information about the 100 most recent patent applications.

Application NumberTitleFiling DateDisposal DateDispositionTime (months)Office ActionsRestrictionsInterviewAppeal
18812691Parallel Bitwise Determination of OriginAugust 2024June 2025Abandon1010NoNo
18198558Ancestry FinderAugust 2023December 2024Abandon1910NoNo
17542398HIERARCHICAL MACHINE LEARNING TECHNIQUES FOR IDENTIFYING MOLECULAR CATEGORIES FROM EXPRESSION DATADecember 2021November 2024Allow3651YesNo
17499068PREDICTION OF INFECTION IN PLANT PRODUCTSOctober 2021March 2025Allow4120YesNo
17449081GENETIC COMPARISONS BETWEEN GRANDPARENTS AND GRANDCHILDRENSeptember 2021February 2025Allow4110NoNo
17396279DATABASE AND DATA PROCESSING SYSTEM FOR USE WITH A NETWORK-BASED PERSONAL GENETICS SERVICES PLATFORMAugust 2021May 2025Abandon4520NoNo
17339153METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR THE SAFETY, ANALYSIS AND SUPERVISION OF INSULIN PUMP ACTION AND OTHER MODES OF INSULIN DELIVERY IN DIABETESJune 2021November 2024Allow4220YesNo
17289930METHOD FOR ESTIMATING SURVIVAL OF COLCHICINE-INTOXICATED PATIENTSApril 2021December 2024Abandon4401NoNo
17279565MICROBIOTA COMPOSITION, AS A MARKER OF RESPONSIVENESS TO ANTI-PD1/PD-L1/PD-L2March 2021March 2025Abandon4801NoNo
17277446PHENOTYPIC AND MOLECULAR CHARACTERISATION OF SINGLE CELLSMarch 2021March 2025Abandon4801NoNo
17190915COMPUTATIONAL TECHNIQUES FOR IDENTIFYING THE SURFACE OF A BRAINMarch 2021February 2025Abandon4710NoNo
17255485AUTOMATED SYSTEM FOR CONTROLLING THE BLOOD SUGAR OF A PATIENTDecember 2020April 2025Allow5220YesNo
17126039METHODS OF EFFICIENTLY TRANSFORMING AND COMPARING RECOMBINABLE DNA INFORMATIONDecember 2020April 2025Allow5270YesNo
17047325CLINICAL INTERPRETATION OF GENOMIC AND TRANSCRIPTOMIC DATA AT THE POINT OF CARE FOR PRECISION CANCER MEDICINEOctober 2020December 2024Abandon5020YesNo
16947678IDENTIFYING VARIANTS OF INTEREST BY IMPUTATIONAugust 2020December 2024Abandon5220YesNo
16874470BAMBAM: PARALLEL COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF HIGH-THROUGHPUT SEQUENCING DATAMay 2020March 2025Allow5830YesNo
16862266HAPLOTYPE PHASING MODELSApril 2020May 2025Allow6030YesNo
16854754SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR VISUALIZING STRUCTURAL VARIATION AND PHASING INFORMATIONApril 2020April 2025Allow6030YesNo
16853712CREATION OR USE OF ANCHOR-BASED DATA STRUCTURES FOR SAMPLE-DERIVED CHARACTERISTIC DETERMINATIONApril 2020June 2025Abandon6020YesYes
16631778Systems and Methods for Analyzing Mixed Cell PopulationsJanuary 2020December 2024Allow5941NoNo
16701162ANCESTRAL HUMAN GENOMESDecember 2019July 2024Allow5620YesNo
16669261ANALYSIS OF DATA OBTAINED FROM MICROARRAYSOctober 2019April 2025Abandon6030NoNo
16597302METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR INTERACTION ANALYSISOctober 2019March 2025Allow6040YesNo
16562186SYSTEMS, METHODS, AND COMPOSITIONS FOR VIRAL-ASSOCIATED TUMORSSeptember 2019March 2025Allow6050YesNo
16387049COMBINED SIZE- AND COUNT-BASED ANALYSIS OF MATERNAL PLASMA FOR DETECTION OF FETAL SUBCHROMOSOMAL ABERRATIONSApril 2019August 2024Allow6030YesNo
15777091METHODS FOR DETECTING COPY-NUMBER VARIATIONS IN NEXT-GENERATION SEQUENCINGMay 2018November 2024Abandon6061YesNo
15967501SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR THE ANALYSIS OF PROXIMITY BINDING ASSAY DATAApril 2018January 2025Allow6051YesNo
15964180INTERACTIVE PRECISION MEDICINE EXPLORER FOR GENOMIC ABBERATIONS AND TREATMENT OPTIONSApril 2018March 2025Abandon6080YesNo
13969935METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PERFORMING SIMILARITY SEARCHINGAugust 2013September 2016Allow3711NoNo
13787137PREDICTING RISK OF MAJOR ADVERSE CARDIAC EVENTSMarch 2013September 2017Allow5440YesYes
13645086DRUG SUBSTANCE INTERACTION AND GENERIC SUBSTANCE INFORMATION RETRIEVALOctober 2012August 2017Allow5841NoNo
13475183MINIMIZATION OF SURPRISAL DATA THROUGH APPLICATION OF HIERARCHY OF REFERENCE GENOMESMay 2012May 2014Allow2411NoNo
12947063LEAST-SQUARE DECONVOLUTION (LSD): A METHOD TO RESOLVE DNA MIXTURESNovember 2010November 2011Allow1210YesNo
12942770METHOD OF CLASSIFYING GENE EXPRESSION STRENGTH IN LUNG CANCER TISSUESNovember 2010April 2012Allow1711NoNo
12844668PAIRING PROCESSES FOR PREPARING ALLOREACTIVE CYTOTOXIC T CELLSJuly 2010April 2013Allow3312NoNo
12309162DIAGNOSTIC METHODNovember 2009June 2012Allow4111NoNo
12609578IDENTIFICATION, MONITORING AND TREATMENT OF DISEASE AND CHARACTERIZATION OF BIOLOGICAL CONDITION USING GENE EXPRESSION PROFILESOctober 2009June 2011Allow2011NoNo
12541146PHARMACO-GENOMIC MUTATION LABELINGAugust 2009August 2013Allow4831NoNo
12486545METHOD TO IDENTIFY CANCER FUSION GENESJune 2009August 2012Allow3820YesNo
12437329SELECTION OF SIGNAL REGIONS FOR PARAMETER EXTRACTIONMay 2009March 2013Allow4621YesNo
12437326Consistent Signal Selection By Signal Segment Selection TechniquesMay 2009May 2013Allow4821YesNo
12379520BIOMARKERS FOR AGINGFebruary 2009March 2010Allow1310NoNo
12083153Method for Analyzing Gene Expression DataFebruary 2009December 2012Allow5621NoNo
12271944METHOD TO DETERMINE TRANSCRIPTIONAL REGULATION PATHWAYS IN ORGANISMSNovember 2008June 2012Allow4321NoNo
12208900TECHNIQUES FOR RECORDING SIGNALSSeptember 2008June 2012Allow4540NoYes
12092952METHODS FOR THE IDENTIFICATION OF MICRORNA AND THEIR APPLICATIONS IN RESEARCH AND HUMAN HEALTHSeptember 2008September 2011Allow4111NoNo
12205889CALCULATING SAMPLE SIZE FOR CLINICAL TRIALSeptember 2008June 2013Allow5830YesNo
12049949METHODS FOR RAPID FORENSIC ANALYSIS OF MITOCHONDRIAL DNAMarch 2008March 2012Allow4821NoNo
12074200PROTEIN SYNTHESIS MODULATORSFebruary 2008November 2012Allow5721YesNo
12072980PROTEIN SYNTHESIS MODULATORSFebruary 2008September 2012Allow5430NoNo
11956570APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR CODING GENETIC INFORMATIONDecember 2007May 2009Allow1710NoNo
11846406PHARMACOGENETIC METHOD FOR PREDICTION OF THE EFFICACY OF METHOTREXATE MONOTHERAPY IN RECENT-ONSET ARTHRITISAugust 2007September 2011Allow4921NoNo
11841660METHODS FOR DIAGNOSING IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROMEAugust 2007January 2013Allow6031NoNo
10592309SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CLASSIFYING A BODY TISSUE SAMPLEJuly 2007October 2011Allow6021NoNo
11697665SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR PREDICTING AN INDIVIDUAL'S RISK OF DEVELOPING RHEUMATOID ARTHRITISApril 2007January 2010Allow3310NoNo
11732442PROGNOSTIC AND DIAGNOSTIC METHOD FOR CANCER THERAPYApril 2007September 2010Allow4211YesNo
11705055GENOTYPING RESULT EVALUATION METHOD AND SYSTEMFebruary 2007May 2010Allow3920NoNo
11617042MICRORNA PRECURSORSDecember 2006June 2011Allow5411YesNo
11617038MICRORNA MOTIFSDecember 2006December 2010Allow4810NoNo
11610185METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DETERMINING SPECIFICITY OF A CANDIDATE PROBEDecember 2006August 2010Allow4420YesNo
11506089METHOD FOR THE DESIGN OF OLIGONUCLEOTIDES FOR MOLECULAR BIOLOGY TECHNIQUESAugust 2006August 2010Allow4811NoNo
11493838METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR ROBUST CLASSIFICATION STRATEGY FOR CANCER DETECTION FROM MASS SPECTROMETRY DATAJuly 2006October 2010Allow5120NoNo
11413183LEAST-SQUARE DECONVOLUTION (LSD): A METHOD TO RESOLVE DNA MIXTURESApril 2006October 2009Allow4211NoNo
11008265METHOD OF CLASSIFYING GENE EXPRESSION STRENGTH IN LUNG CANCER TISSUESDecember 2004August 2010Allow6041NoNo
10494543METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR PROTEIN SEQUENCE AYALYSISOctober 2004September 2010Allow6052YesNo
10711806TOXICITY REPORTING SYSTEMOctober 2004July 2012Allow6060NoNo
10938394METHOD OF MODELING FOR DRUG DESIGN, EVALUATION, AND PRESCRIPTION IN THE TREATMENT OF DISEASESeptember 2004May 2011Allow6041YesNo
10474385SYSTEM FOR CELLULAR STORAGE AND GENETIC INFORMATION RETRIEVALMay 2004November 2007Allow5050NoYes
10786321SAFETY TEST SUPPORT SYSTEM, METHOD AND PROGRAMFebruary 2004November 2007Allow4510NoNo
10714791COMPUTER SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CALCULATING A PHARMACOKINETIC BEHAVIOR OF A CHEMICAL SUBSTANCE IN INSECTSNovember 2003January 2009Allow6021YesNo
10639608TECHNIQUE FOR ANALYZING ARRAYED SIGNALS USING QUANTUM EXPRESSOR FUNCTIONSAugust 2003May 2005Allow2120NoNo
10633611CHEMICAL ARRAY WITH TEST DEPENDENT SIGNAL READING OR PROCESSINGJuly 2003October 2007Allow5141YesNo
10453194FORENSIC AND GENEALOGICAL TESTJune 2003March 2007Allow4540YesNo
10329056METHODS AND COMPOSITIONS FOR REGULATING BONE AND CARTILAGE FORMATIONDecember 2002March 2007Allow5022NoNo
10317034METHOD FOR CREATING SPECIFIC, HIGH AFFINITY NUCLEAR RECEPTOR PHARMACEUTICALSDecember 2002June 2007Allow5431YesYes
10262124BIOPOLYMER ARRAY SCANNER WITH REAL-TIME SATURATION DETECTIONSeptember 2002October 2005Allow3621NoNo
10172485NUCLEAR MAGNETIC RESONANCE ASSEMBLY OF CHEMICAL ENTITIESJune 2002September 2009Allow6041NoYes
10146720METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR IDENTIFYING SPLICE VARIANTS OF A GENEMay 2002October 2007Allow6041NoNo
10141099PROBE DESIGNING APPARATUS AND PROBE DESIGNING METHODMay 2002November 2005Allow4231YesNo
10113219METHOD AND SYSTEM TO BUILD OPTIMAL MODELS OF 3-DIMENSIONAL MOLECULAR STRUCTURESMarch 2002March 2005Abandon3620YesNo
10100262CLUSTER ANALYSIS OF GENETIC MICROARRAY IMAGESMarch 2002November 2005Allow4321NoNo
10081904METHODS FOR ESTABLISHING A PATHWAYS DATABASE AND PERFORMING PATHWAY SEARCHESFebruary 2002June 2005Allow4011YesNo
10058216METHOD, SYSTEM, AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT FOR ANALYZING COMBINATORIAL LIBRARIESJanuary 2002November 2005Allow4631NoNo
09977064INTERACTIVE CORRELATION OF COMPOUND INFORMATION AND GENOMIC INFORMATIONOctober 2001December 2005Allow5031YesNo
09970966COMPOSITIONS AND METHODS FOR THE THERAPY AND DIAGNOSIS OF OVARIAN CANCEROctober 2001November 2003Allow2521NoNo
09961058AUTOMATED METHOD OF IDENTIFYING AND ARCHIVING NUCLEIC ACID SEQUENCESSeptember 2001October 2004Allow3720NoNo
09949015METHODS FOR CELL-BASED COMBINATORIAL LOGICSeptember 2001December 2005Allow5141YesNo
09924400COMPOSITIONS AND METHODS FOR THE THERAPY AND DIAGNOSIS OF BREAST CANCERAugust 2001January 2007Allow6061YesYes
09875935METHOD FOR GENE MAPPING FROM CHROMOSOME AND PHENOTYPE DATAJune 2001February 2005Allow4420NoYes
09866543A VIRTUAL LIBRARY SEARCHABLE FOR POSSIBLE COMBINATORIALLY DERIVED PRODUCT MOLECULES HAVING DESIRED PROPERTIES WITHOUT THE NECESSITY OF GENERATING PRODUCT STRUCTURESMay 2001June 2006Allow6041YesYes
09830558SYSTEM FOR REGULATING THE HANDLING OF MILK DURING THE MILKING PROCESS AND A METHOD FOR REGULATING SAID MILKING PROCESSMay 2001December 2004Allow4330NoNo
09846328BIOPOLYMER MARKER INDICATIVE OF DISEASE STATE HAVING A MOLECULAR WEIGHT OF 2753 DALTONSApril 2001June 2005Abandon5031NoNo
09744291METHOD FOR ANALYSIS OF BIOLOGICAL SYSTEMSApril 2001May 2005Allow5221YesYes
09804866SEQUENCING OF PEPTIDES BY MASS SPECTROMETRYMarch 2001October 2003Allow3110NoNo
09776711COMPUTER-IMPLETMENTED METHOD OF MERGING LIBRARIES OF MOLECULES USING VALIDATED MOLECULAR STRUCTURAL DESCRIPTORS AND NEIGHBORHOOD DISTANCES TO MAXIMIZE DIVERSITY AND MINIMIZE REDUNDANCYFebruary 2001September 2005Allow5530YesNo

Appeals Overview

This analysis examines appeal outcomes and the strategic value of filing appeals for examiner ZEMAN, MARY K.

Strategic Value of Filing an Appeal

Total Appeal Filings
10
Allowed After Appeal Filing
3
(30.0%)
Not Allowed After Appeal Filing
7
(70.0%)
Filing Benefit Percentile
42.4%
Lower than average

Understanding Appeal Filing Strategy

Filing a Notice of Appeal can sometimes lead to allowance even before the appeal is fully briefed or decided by the PTAB. This occurs when the examiner or their supervisor reconsiders the rejection during the mandatory appeal conference (MPEP § 1207.01) after the appeal is filed.

In this dataset, 30.0% of applications that filed an appeal were subsequently allowed. This appeal filing benefit rate is below the USPTO average, suggesting that filing an appeal has limited effectiveness in prompting favorable reconsideration.

Strategic Recommendations

Filing a Notice of Appeal shows limited benefit. Consider other strategies like interviews or amendments before appealing.

Examiner ZEMAN, MARY K - Prosecution Strategy Guide

Executive Summary

Examiner ZEMAN, MARY K works in Art Unit 1686 and has examined 94 patent applications in our dataset. With an allowance rate of 85.1%, this examiner has an above-average tendency to allow applications. Applications typically reach final disposition in approximately 48 months.

Allowance Patterns

Examiner ZEMAN, MARY K's allowance rate of 85.1% places them in the 56% percentile among all USPTO examiners. This examiner has an above-average tendency to allow applications.

Office Action Patterns

On average, applications examined by ZEMAN, MARY K receive 2.55 office actions before reaching final disposition. This places the examiner in the 86% percentile for office actions issued. This examiner issues more office actions than most examiners, which may indicate thorough examination or difficulty in reaching agreement with applicants.

Prosecution Timeline

The median time to disposition (half-life) for applications examined by ZEMAN, MARY K is 48 months. This places the examiner in the 1% percentile for prosecution speed. Applications take longer to reach final disposition with this examiner compared to most others.

Interview Effectiveness

Conducting an examiner interview provides a +1.7% benefit to allowance rate for applications examined by ZEMAN, MARY K. This interview benefit is in the 18% percentile among all examiners. Note: Interviews show limited statistical benefit with this examiner compared to others, though they may still be valuable for clarifying issues.

Request for Continued Examination (RCE) Effectiveness

When applicants file an RCE with this examiner, 28.6% of applications are subsequently allowed. This success rate is in the 43% percentile among all examiners. Strategic Insight: RCEs show below-average effectiveness with this examiner. Carefully evaluate whether an RCE or continuation is the better strategy.

After-Final Amendment Practice

This examiner enters after-final amendments leading to allowance in 54.0% of cases where such amendments are filed. This entry rate is in the 76% percentile among all examiners. Strategic Recommendation: This examiner is highly receptive to after-final amendments compared to other examiners. Per MPEP § 714.12, after-final amendments may be entered "under justifiable circumstances." Consider filing after-final amendments with a clear showing of allowability rather than immediately filing an RCE, as this examiner frequently enters such amendments.

Pre-Appeal Conference Effectiveness

When applicants request a pre-appeal conference (PAC) with this examiner, 66.7% result in withdrawal of the rejection or reopening of prosecution. This success rate is in the 50% percentile among all examiners. Strategic Recommendation: Pre-appeal conferences show above-average effectiveness with this examiner. If you have strong arguments, a PAC request may result in favorable reconsideration.

Appeal Withdrawal and Reconsideration

This examiner withdraws rejections or reopens prosecution in 100.0% of appeals filed. This is in the 86% percentile among all examiners. Of these withdrawals, 88.9% occur early in the appeal process (after Notice of Appeal but before Appeal Brief). Strategic Insight: This examiner frequently reconsiders rejections during the appeal process compared to other examiners. Per MPEP § 1207.01, all appeals must go through a mandatory appeal conference. Filing a Notice of Appeal may prompt favorable reconsideration even before you file an Appeal Brief.

Petition Practice

When applicants file petitions regarding this examiner's actions, 88.2% are granted (fully or in part). This grant rate is in the 94% percentile among all examiners. Strategic Note: Petitions are frequently granted regarding this examiner's actions compared to other examiners. Per MPEP § 1002.02(c), various examiner actions are petitionable to the Technology Center Director, including prematureness of final rejection, refusal to enter amendments, and requirement for information. If you believe an examiner action is improper, consider filing a petition.

Examiner Cooperation and Flexibility

Examiner's Amendments: This examiner makes examiner's amendments in 7.4% of allowed cases (in the 93% percentile). Per MPEP § 1302.04, examiner's amendments are used to place applications in condition for allowance when only minor changes are needed. This examiner frequently uses this tool compared to other examiners, indicating a cooperative approach to getting applications allowed. Strategic Insight: If you are close to allowance but minor claim amendments are needed, this examiner may be willing to make an examiner's amendment rather than requiring another round of prosecution.

Quayle Actions: This examiner issues Ex Parte Quayle actions in 7.5% of allowed cases (in the 84% percentile). Per MPEP § 714.14, a Quayle action indicates that all claims are allowable but formal matters remain. This examiner frequently uses Quayle actions compared to other examiners, which is a positive indicator that once substantive issues are resolved, allowance follows quickly.

Prosecution Strategy Recommendations

Based on the statistical analysis of this examiner's prosecution patterns, here are tailored strategic recommendations:

  • Expect multiple rounds of prosecution: This examiner issues more office actions than average. Address potential issues proactively in your initial response and consider requesting an interview early in prosecution.
  • Consider after-final amendments: This examiner frequently enters after-final amendments. If you can clearly overcome rejections with claim amendments, file an after-final amendment before resorting to an RCE.
  • Appeal filing as negotiation tool: This examiner frequently reconsiders rejections during the appeal process. Filing a Notice of Appeal may prompt favorable reconsideration during the mandatory appeal conference.
  • Plan for extended prosecution: Applications take longer than average with this examiner. Factor this into your continuation strategy and client communications.
  • Examiner cooperation: This examiner frequently makes examiner's amendments to place applications in condition for allowance. If you are close to allowance, the examiner may help finalize the claims.

Relevant MPEP Sections for Prosecution Strategy

  • MPEP § 713.10: Examiner interviews - available before Notice of Allowance or transfer to PTAB
  • MPEP § 714.12: After-final amendments - may be entered "under justifiable circumstances"
  • MPEP § 1002.02(c): Petitionable matters to Technology Center Director
  • MPEP § 1004: Actions requiring primary examiner signature (allowances, final rejections, examiner's answers)
  • MPEP § 1207.01: Appeal conferences - mandatory for all appeals
  • MPEP § 1214.07: Reopening prosecution after appeal

Important Disclaimer

Not Legal Advice: The information provided in this report is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. You should consult with a qualified patent attorney or agent for advice specific to your situation.

No Guarantees: We do not provide any guarantees as to the accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of the statistics presented above. Patent prosecution statistics are derived from publicly available USPTO data and are subject to data quality limitations, processing errors, and changes in USPTO practices over time.

Limitation of Liability: Under no circumstances will IronCrow AI be liable for any outcome, decision, or action resulting from your reliance on the statistics, analysis, or recommendations presented in this report. Past prosecution patterns do not guarantee future results.

Use at Your Own Risk: While we strive to provide accurate and useful prosecution statistics, you should independently verify any information that is material to your prosecution strategy and use your professional judgment in all patent prosecution matters.