USPTO Examiner ZHEN LI B - Art Unit 2121

Recent Applications

Detailed information about the 100 most recent patent applications.

Application NumberTitleFiling DateDisposal DateDispositionTime (months)Office ActionsRestrictionsInterviewAppeal
18898799Method for Constructing Boolean Algebra System of Ising Perceptual Computer and Ising Machine Programming InterfaceSeptember 2024October 2025Abandon1210NoNo
17993108APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR GENERATING AN ACTIVITY ARTICLENovember 2022May 2025Abandon3050YesNo
17545135FEDERATED LEARNING MECHANISMDecember 2021February 2026Abandon5020NoNo
17474413TELEOPERATION FOR TRAINING OF ROBOTS USING MACHINE LEARNINGSeptember 2021July 2025Abandon4610NoNo
17167890HIERARCHICAL MULTI-AGENT IMITATION LEARNING WITH CONTEXTUAL BANDITSFebruary 2021June 2025Abandon5220YesNo
17259130Systems and Methods for Generative Models for DesignJanuary 2021February 2025Abandon4920NoNo
17115609MULTI-MODEL ANALYTICS ENGINE FOR ANALYZING REPORTSDecember 2020July 2025Abandon5540YesNo
17099861NODE SHARING FOR A RULE ENGINE CODED IN A COMPILED LANGUAGENovember 2020October 2023Allow3510YesNo
17082396APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR LEARNING TEXT DETECTION MODELOctober 2020March 2025Abandon5320NoNo
17081841QUANTIZED ARCHITECTURE SEARCH FOR MACHINE LEARNING MODELSOctober 2020June 2025Abandon5530NoNo
16978446Behaviour Models for Autonomous Vehicle SimulatorsSeptember 2020October 2024Abandon4910YesNo
16969052DYNAMIC DISTRIBUTION ESTIMATION DEVICE, METHOD, AND PROGRAMAugust 2020June 2025Abandon5840YesNo
16938478AUTONOMOUS BEHAVIORS IN A MULTIAGENT ADVERSARIAL SCENEJuly 2020March 2025Abandon5630YesNo
16926763METHOD FOR PRELOADING APPLICATION, STORAGE MEDIUM, AND TERMINALJuly 2020April 2024Abandon4510NoNo
16924077INFORMATION PROCESSING APPARATUSJuly 2020October 2023Abandon3910NoNo
16839966Selective Inference Generation with Distributed Machine-Learned ModelsApril 2020July 2024Abandon5230NoNo
16797394PREDICTION MODELING IN SEQUENTIAL FLOW NETWORKSFebruary 2020April 2025Abandon6040YesNo
16573597SYSTEMS AND TECHNIQUES FOR IDENTIFYING AND EXPLOITING RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN MEDIA CONSUMPTION AND HEALTHSeptember 2019August 2020Abandon1100NoNo
16466828DEFUZZIFICATION APPARATUS AND METHODJune 2019May 2024Abandon5930NoNo
16421850QUESTION ANSWERING SYSTEM, QUESTION ANSWERING PROCESSING METHOD, AND QUESTION ANSWERING INTEGRATED SYSTEMMay 2019October 2022Abandon4120NoNo
16365475LOW LATENCY AND HIGH THROUGHPUT INFERENCEMarch 2019December 2021Abandon3310NoNo
16271064Systems and Methods for Distributed Generation of Decision Tree-Based ModelsFebruary 2019April 2022Abandon3820YesNo
16225042AUTOMATIC ANNOTATION AND GENERATION OF DATA FOR SUPERVISED MACHINE LEARNING IN VEHICLE ADVANCED DRIVER ASSISTANCE SYSTEMSDecember 2018July 2023Abandon5520NoNo
16059100LEARNING SERVICE PROVIDING APPARATUSAugust 2018September 2022Abandon4910NoNo
16011651AUTOMATED FEATURE GENERATION, SELECTION AND HYPERPARAMETER TUNING FROM STRUCTURED DATA FOR SUPERVISED LEARNING PROBLEMSJune 2018January 2023Abandon5540YesNo
15948805COMPUTER BASED REASONING AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SYSTEMSApril 2018September 2022Abandon5420NoNo
15944905INTELLIGENT INCENTIVE DISTRIBUTIONApril 2018September 2022Abandon5420YesNo
15932289RULE-BASED SYSTEM AND METHOD TO BE USED IN THE SYSTEMFebruary 2018November 2021Abandon4510NoNo
15855912EMBEDDED LEARNING FOR RESPONSE PREDICTIONDecember 2017September 2022Abandon5710YesNo
15812568GENERATING A PREDICTIVE BEHAVIOR MODEL FOR PREDICTING USER BEHAVIOR USING UNSUPERVISED FEATURE LEARNING AND A RECURRENT NEURAL NETWORKNovember 2017January 2021Allow3800NoNo
15717495SOCIAL COLLABORATION IN PROBABILISTIC PREDICTIONSeptember 2017December 2020Allow3810NoNo
15628832CRIME RISK FORECASTINGJune 2017May 2021Abandon4600YesNo
15468034NETWORK-PROBABILITY RECOMMENDATION SYSTEMMarch 2017May 2021Abandon4900YesNo
15443635SYSTEMS, METHODS, AND COMPUTER-READABLE MEDIA FOR MAPPING NATURAL FRACTURE NETWORK IN SHALEFebruary 2017November 2020Abandon4510NoNo
15406916METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR CLASSIFYING INPUT DATA ARRIVED ONE BY ONE IN TIMEJanuary 2017August 2020Abandon4310NoNo
15403958USER STATE PREDICTIONS FOR PRESENTING INFORMATIONJanuary 2017August 2020Abandon4300YesNo
15390915SYSTEM TO DETECT MACHINE-INITIATED EVENTS IN TIME SERIES DATADecember 2016January 2021Abandon4820NoNo
15383759Method and Apparatus for Establishing and Using User Recommendation Model in Social NetworkDecember 2016February 2024Abandon6080YesNo
15316366METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR RECOMMENDATION BY APPLYING EFFICIENT ADAPTIVE MATRIX FACTORIZATIONDecember 2016February 2020Abandon3910NoNo
15273505NEUROMORPHIC COMPUTING DEVICE, MEMORY DEVICE, SYSTEM, AND METHOD TO MAINTAIN A SPIKE HISTORY FOR NEURONS IN A NEUROMORPHIC COMPUTING ENVIRONMENTSeptember 2016October 2019Allow3710NoNo
15208020VECTOR OPERATORS FOR DISTRIBUTIONAL ENTAILMENTJuly 2016October 2019Abandon3910NoNo
15134905SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR FAILURE PREDICTION IN INDUSTRIAL ENVIRONMENTSApril 2016July 2019Abandon3920NoYes
14879349System and Method for Extracting Table Data from Text Documents Using Machine LearningOctober 2015June 2019Abandon4410NoNo
14845236SEQUENTIAL IMAGE SAMPLING AND STORAGE OF FINE-TUNED FEATURESSeptember 2015June 2019Abandon4520YesNo
14810544Production Control Support Apparatus and Production Control Support MethodJuly 2015May 2019Abandon4510NoNo

Appeals Overview

This analysis examines appeal outcomes and the strategic value of filing appeals for examiner ZHEN, LI B.

Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) Decisions

Total PTAB Decisions
1
Examiner Affirmed
1
(100.0%)
Examiner Reversed
0
(0.0%)
Reversal Percentile
3.9%
Lower than average

What This Means

With a 0.0% reversal rate, the PTAB affirms the examiner's rejections in the vast majority of cases. This reversal rate is in the bottom 25% across the USPTO, indicating that appeals face significant challenges here.

Strategic Value of Filing an Appeal

Total Appeal Filings
1
Allowed After Appeal Filing
0
(0.0%)
Not Allowed After Appeal Filing
1
(100.0%)
Filing Benefit Percentile
2.4%
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, 0.0% of applications that filed an appeal were subsequently allowed. This appeal filing benefit rate is in the bottom 25% across the USPTO, indicating that filing appeals is less effective here than in most other areas.

Strategic Recommendations

Appeals to PTAB face challenges. Ensure your case has strong merit before committing to full Board review.

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

Examiner ZHEN, LI B - Prosecution Strategy Guide

Executive Summary

Examiner ZHEN, LI B works in Art Unit 2121 and has examined 43 patent applications in our dataset. With an allowance rate of 9.3%, this examiner allows applications at a lower rate than most examiners at the USPTO. Applications typically reach final disposition in approximately 46 months.

Allowance Patterns

Examiner ZHEN, LI B's allowance rate of 9.3% places them in the 1% percentile among all USPTO examiners. This examiner is less likely to allow applications than most examiners at the USPTO.

Office Action Patterns

On average, applications examined by ZHEN, LI B receive 1.79 office actions before reaching final disposition. This places the examiner in the 40% percentile for office actions issued. This examiner issues fewer office actions than average, which may indicate efficient prosecution or a more lenient examination style.

Prosecution Timeline

The median time to disposition (half-life) for applications examined by ZHEN, LI B is 46 months. This places the examiner in the 11% 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 -4.9% benefit to allowance rate for applications examined by ZHEN, LI B. This interview benefit is in the 5% 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, 0.0% of applications are subsequently allowed. This success rate is in the 0% percentile among all examiners. Strategic Insight: RCEs show lower effectiveness with this examiner compared to others. Consider whether a continuation application might be more strategic, especially if you need to add new matter or significantly broaden claims.

After-Final Amendment Practice

This examiner enters after-final amendments leading to allowance in 0.0% of cases where such amendments are filed. This entry rate is in the 0% percentile among all examiners. Strategic Recommendation: This examiner rarely enters after-final amendments compared to other examiners. You should generally plan to file an RCE or appeal rather than relying on after-final amendment entry. Per MPEP § 714.12, primary examiners have discretion in entering after-final amendments, and this examiner exercises that discretion conservatively.

Pre-Appeal Conference Effectiveness

When applicants request a pre-appeal conference (PAC) with this examiner, 0.0% result in withdrawal of the rejection or reopening of prosecution. This success rate is in the 5% percentile among all examiners. Note: Pre-appeal conferences show limited success with this examiner compared to others. While still worth considering, be prepared to proceed with a full appeal brief if the PAC does not result in favorable action.

Appeal Withdrawal and Reconsideration

This examiner withdraws rejections or reopens prosecution in 0.0% of appeals filed. This is in the 0% percentile among all examiners. Strategic Insight: This examiner rarely withdraws rejections during the appeal process compared to other examiners. If you file an appeal, be prepared to fully prosecute it to a PTAB decision. Per MPEP § 1207, the examiner will prepare an Examiner's Answer maintaining the rejections.

Petition Practice

When applicants file petitions regarding this examiner's actions, 100.0% are granted (fully or in part). This grant rate is in the 90% 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 0.0% of allowed cases (in the 9% percentile). This examiner rarely makes examiner's amendments compared to other examiners. You should expect to make all necessary claim amendments yourself through formal amendment practice.

Quayle Actions: This examiner issues Ex Parte Quayle actions in 0.0% of allowed cases (in the 10% percentile). This examiner rarely issues Quayle actions compared to other examiners. Allowances typically come directly without a separate action for formal matters.

Prosecution Strategy Recommendations

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

  • Prepare for rigorous examination: With a below-average allowance rate, ensure your application has strong written description and enablement support. Consider filing a continuation if you need to add new matter.
  • Plan for RCE after final rejection: This examiner rarely enters after-final amendments. Budget for an RCE in your prosecution strategy if you receive a final rejection.
  • Plan for extended prosecution: Applications take longer than average with this examiner. Factor this into your continuation strategy and client communications.

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.