USPTO Examiner O NEILL PATRICK - Art Unit 2842

Recent Applications

Detailed information about the 100 most recent patent applications.

Application NumberTitleFiling DateDisposal DateDispositionTime (months)Office ActionsRestrictionsInterviewAppeal
18901088INVERTER AND BOOTSTRAP INVERTER WITH IMPROVED OUTPUT CHARACTERISTICSSeptember 2024June 2025Allow901NoNo
18821349RESETTABLE LEVEL SHIFTING LATCHAugust 2024February 2026Allow1700NoNo
18817238PHASE-LOCKED LOOP CONTROL CIRCUIT, PHASE-LOCKED LOOP CIRCUIT AND CONTROL METHOD THEREOFAugust 2024November 2025Allow1500NoNo
18790551LEVEL SHIFTING CIRCUIT MANUFACTURING METHODJuly 2024October 2025Allow1500NoNo
18833547ELECTRONIC CIRCUITJuly 2024February 2026Allow1910NoNo
18773324LEVEL SHIFTER ENABLEJuly 2024January 2026Allow1810NoNo
18768843FLIP-FLOP CIRCUIT AND METHODJuly 2024April 2025Allow1010NoNo
18767158Semiconductor Device Including a Level Shifter and Method of Mitigating a Delay Between Input and Output SignalsJuly 2024April 2025Allow1010NoNo
18764205LEAKAGE-FREE DUMMY CELL FOR SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICESJuly 2024April 2025Allow1010NoNo
18749829VOLTAGE LEVEL DOWN-SHIFTING CIRCUIT STRUCTURE WITH INPUT STAGE PULL-DOWN CAPACITORJune 2024January 2026Allow1910YesNo
18749250DIGITAL SYSTEM SYNCHRONIZATIONJune 2024October 2025Allow1600NoNo
18722051SIGNAL TRANSMISSION SYSTEMJune 2024October 2025Allow1600NoNo
18746075LATCH CALIBRATION SYSTEM AND LATCH DRIVING SYSTEMJune 2024October 2025Allow1600NoNo
18742762INPUT BUFFER CIRCUIT HAVING A SIGNAL SPLITTER AND COMBINER CIRCUITJune 2024January 2026Allow1910YesNo
18738586FAST-LOCKING PHASE-LOCKED LOOP, FREQUENCY DIVIDER, AND COMMUNICATION DEVICEJune 2024August 2025Allow1400NoNo
18676873INTEGRATED CIRCUIT HAVING LATCH WITH TRANSISTORS OF DIFFERENT GATE WIDTHSMay 2024April 2025Allow1010NoNo
18675139GATE DRIVERMay 2024August 2025Allow1400NoNo
18667405PHASE LOCK LOOP HAVING LOW CLOCK JITTERSMay 2024August 2025Allow1400NoNo
18666532SINGLE PIN CLOCK-FREE RETENTION FLIP-FLOPMay 2024October 2025Allow1700NoNo
18644540LOGARITHMIC DEMODULATOR FOR LASER WAVELENGTH-MODULATON SPECTROSCOPYApril 2024September 2025Allow1610NoNo
18635005SHIFT REGISTER HAVING LOW POWER MODEApril 2024March 2025Allow1110NoNo
18621244LEVEL SHIFTER CIRCUITMarch 2024August 2025Allow1600NoNo
18620972CRYOGENIC POWER SUPPLYMarch 2024November 2025Allow1910NoNo
18609985TEST MODE FOR GLITCH DETECTOIN AND BIT MISS IN A DIGITAL ISOLATORMarch 2024August 2025Allow1600NoNo
18602670TEST APPARATUS AND TEST METHOD FOR DETECTING DEFECTS OF ELEMENTS INCLUDED IN INTEGRATED CIRCUITMarch 2024August 2025Allow1700NoNo
18590903SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICEFebruary 2024November 2025Allow2010NoNo
18584479MULTIPLYING DELAY LOCKED LOOP WITH HIGH TOLERANCE TO INPUT JITTERFebruary 2024August 2025Allow1700NoNo
18581756FREQUENCY CONTROL ASSIST DEVICE, FREQUENCY CONTROL DEVICE, AND RADIO DEVICEFebruary 2024October 2025Allow2010NoNo
18581310PHASE LOCKED LOOP CIRCUITFebruary 2024June 2025Allow1500NoNo
18437546ELECTRONIC DEVICES INCLUDING LOCK DETECTING CIRCUITFebruary 2024September 2025Allow2010NoNo
18430700Level shifterFebruary 2024April 2025Allow1520NoNo
18425722LOW AREA AND POWER MULTI-BIT FLIP-FLOPJanuary 2024May 2025Allow1500NoNo
18416808OUTPUT SIGNAL GENERATION CIRCUITJanuary 2024March 2025Abandon1410NoNo
18409671POWER TRANSMITTING APPARATUS, POWER RECEIVING APPARATUS, CONTROL METHOD THEREFOR, AND STORAGE MEDIUMJanuary 2024December 2025Allow2330NoNo
18406858CLOCK DISTRIBUTION NETWORK, AND SEMICONDUCTOR APPARATUS AND SEMICONDUCTOR SYSTEM USING THE CLOCK DISTRIBUTION NETWORKJanuary 2024August 2025Allow1900NoNo
18391720APPARATUS FOR INPUTTING SIGNAL FROM COMMUNICATION LINE AND METHOD THEREOFDecember 2023May 2025Allow1700NoNo
18570902SAMPLING SIGNALSDecember 2023October 2025Allow2210NoNo
18542585SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR IMPROVED RELIABILITY IN VOLTAGE LEVEL SHIFTERSDecember 2023May 2025Allow1710YesNo
18522347Driver Circuit, Display Device, And Electronic DeviceNovember 2023March 2025Allow1510NoNo
18522153OUTPUT CIRCUITNovember 2023September 2024Allow1010NoNo
18507867FLIP-FLOP BASED ON CLOCK SIGNAL AND PULSE SIGNALNovember 2023April 2025Allow1700NoNo
18385516SYSTEM FOR SELECTIVELY ADDING NOISE PEDESTAL TO GENERATED SIGNALOctober 2023March 2025Allow1700NoNo
18496148ELECTRONIC CONTROL UNIT INTERFACES WITH FLEXIBLE INPUT SIGNAL CONDITIONINGOctober 2023November 2025Allow2500NoNo
18495584PROGRAMMABLE LINEAR-FEEDBACK SHIFT REGISTER SYSTEMS AND METHODSOctober 2023April 2025Allow1700NoNo
18489692METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING CLOCK SIGNALOctober 2023October 2024Allow1210YesNo
18480751LATCH CIRCUITS AND METHODS FOR OPERATING THE SAMEOctober 2023October 2025Allow2400NoNo
18477979APPARATUS TO CHARGE BOOTSTRAP CAPACITORSeptember 2023October 2025Allow2510NoNo
18477018POWER CIRCUIT, DRIVING CIRCUIT AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING DRIVING VOLTAGESeptember 2023February 2025Allow1700NoNo
18370513SWITCHING CIRCUIT AND POWER SUPPLY CIRCUITSeptember 2023February 2025Allow1700NoNo
18550640SWITCHED CAPACITOR BASED HARMONIC REJECTION MIXER WITH THE CLOCKS HAVING TWO DIFFERENT DUTY CYCLESSeptember 2023May 2025Allow2000NoNo
18467234SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ELECTRONIC FUSE MANAGEMENTSeptember 2023May 2025Allow2000NoNo
18367761DRIVER CIRCUITRY AND ELECTRONIC CIRCUITRYSeptember 2023February 2025Allow1700NoNo
18465169VOLTAGE FOLLOWER CIRCUITSeptember 2023February 2025Allow1700NoNo
18459522RETENTION FLIP-FLOP WITH MULTIPLE POSITIVE SUPPLY VOLTAGE DOMAINSSeptember 2023May 2025Allow2000NoNo
18460086SEMICONDUCTOR INTEGRATED CIRCUIT, TRANSMITTER, AND SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICESeptember 2023August 2025Allow2411NoNo
18447372Semiconductor Device Including a Level Shifter and Method of Mitigating a Delay Between Input and Output SignalsAugust 2023April 2024Allow800NoNo
18447369Semiconductor Device Including a Level Shifter and Method of Mitigating a Delay Between Input and Output SignalsAugust 2023June 2024Allow1000NoNo
18447904SENSE AMPLIFIER FOR COUPLING EFFECT REDUCTIONAugust 2023August 2024Allow1310NoNo
18447154LEVEL SHIFTING CIRCUIT MANUFACTURING METHODAugust 2023June 2024Allow1100NoNo
18446849Semiconductor Device Including a Level Shifter and Method of Mitigating a Delay Between Input and Output SignalsAugust 2023August 2024Allow1210NoNo
18364950LEVEL CONVERTER CIRCUITAugust 2023November 2024Allow1520NoNo
18229152THIN OXIDE LOW VOLTAGE TO HIGH VOLTAGE LEVEL SHIFTERSAugust 2023December 2025Allow2811YesNo
18263393BATTERY SWITCH DRIVING CIRCUITJuly 2023February 2025Allow1900NoNo
18361059FREQUENCY DETECTOR AND OPERATING METHOD THEREOFJuly 2023February 2025Allow1800NoNo
18361313VARIABLE CIRCUITJuly 2023January 2025Allow1700NoNo
18357562DIFFERENTIAL INTERFACE CIRCUITJuly 2023November 2024Allow1500NoNo
18355731METHODS AND CIRCUITS FOR CONTROLLING MULTICYCLE PATH IN SERIALIZER INTERFACEJuly 2023October 2025Allow2700NoNo
18223976HOT SWITCHING SPUR SUPPRESSIONJuly 2023August 2025Allow2400NoNo
18223371CHANNEL BASED CONFIGURABLE CML, LVDS, OPEN DRAIN OUTPUTJuly 2023February 2025Allow1900NoNo
18272271PHASE-LOCKED LOOP CIRCUIT AND SIGNAL PROCESSING DEVICEJuly 2023August 2025Allow2510NoNo
18272053D FLIP-FLOP HAVING MULTIPLEXER FUNCTIONJuly 2023May 2025Allow2220NoNo
18345725MANAGING MULTI-PHASE CLOCK SIGNALS FOR INTEGRATED CIRCUIT DEVICESJune 2023February 2025Allow1900NoNo
18343841SKEW-CORRECTING CLOCK BUFFERJune 2023June 2024Allow1210NoNo
18332522POWER ON RESET (POR) CIRCUITJune 2023December 2024Allow1810NoNo
18330731DUAL-EDGE-TRIGGERED FLIP-FLOPJune 2023October 2024Allow1600NoNo
18330471TEMPERATURE SENSOR AND ELECTRONIC SYSTEM FOR EXECUTING TRIMMING OPERATIONSJune 2023January 2026Allow3110NoNo
18329774WIRELINE RECEIVER SAMPLING CIRCUITJune 2023October 2024Allow1600NoNo
18313384LEAKAGE-FREE DUMMY CELL FOR SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICESMay 2023April 2024Allow1100NoNo
18142939PHASE-LOCKED LOOP DEVICE AND OPERATION METHOD THEREOFMay 2023February 2025Allow2100NoNo
18308783SYNCHRONIZATION OF MULTIPLE CLOCK DIVIDERS BY USING LOWER-FREQUENCY CLOCKS AND SLIPPING CYCLESApril 2023February 2025Allow2100NoNo
18302178FLIP-FLOP CIRCUIT AND METHODApril 2023March 2024Allow1110NoNo
18194049METHOD AND CIRCUIT FOR DLL LOCKING MECHANISM FOR WIDE RANGE HARMONIC DETECTION AND FALSE LOCK DETECTIONMarch 2023February 2025Allow2200NoNo
18185399VOLTAGE LEVEL SHIFTER AND OPERATION METHOD THEREOFMarch 2023July 2024Allow1610NoNo
18120838SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR PLL DUTY CYCLE CALIBRATIONMarch 2023October 2024Allow1900NoNo
18120489Driver Circuit, Display Device, And Electronic DeviceMarch 2023July 2023Allow400NoNo
18025155CLOCK DOMAIN CROSSINGMarch 2023May 2024Allow1400NoNo
18118271DIGITAL ISOLATORMarch 2023July 2024Allow1610NoNo
18114847PHASE-LOCKED LOOPS (PLL), INCLUDING TIME-TO-DIGITAL CONVERTER (TDC) GAIN CALIBRATION CIRCUITS AND RELATED METHODSFebruary 2023April 2024Allow1300YesNo
18170864Voltage Droop MonitorFebruary 2023August 2024Allow1700NoNo
18171074Scan Flip FlopFebruary 2023December 2025Abandon3420NoNo
18107934INPUT BUFFER CIRCUIT AND SEMICONDUCTOR SYSTEM INCLUDING THE SAMEFebruary 2023October 2024Allow2000NoNo
18104916PHASE-LOCKED LOOPS (PLL) INCLUDING DIGITALLY CONTROLLED OSCILLATOR (DCO) GAIN CALIBRATION CIRCUITS AND RELATED METHODSFebruary 2023December 2025Allow3410YesNo
18163461SENSE AMPLIFIER FOR COUPLING EFFECT REDUCTIONFebruary 2023June 2023Allow500NoNo
18161365Suppressing Superconducting Qubit Measurement-Induced State TransitionsJanuary 2023July 2025Allow2910YesNo
18160630INTEGRATED CIRCUIT HAVING LATCH WITH TRANSISTORS OF DIFFERENT GATE WIDTHSJanuary 2023January 2024Allow1200NoNo
18100975AREA, COST, AND TIME-EFFECTIVE SCAN COVERAGE IMPROVEMENTJanuary 2023April 2025Allow2711NoNo
18156148OUTPUT SIGNAL GENERATION CIRCUITJanuary 2023October 2023Allow910NoNo
18097173SHIFT REGISTER CIRCUIT, ACTIVE MATRIX SUBSTRATE, AND DISPLAY APPARATUSJanuary 2023July 2023Allow600NoNo
18150772TEMPERATURE SENSOR CIRCUITS AND CONTROL CIRCUITS AND METHOD FOR TEMPERATURE SENSOR CIRCUITSJanuary 2023May 2025Allow2800NoNo
18092507MULTI-BIT FLIP-FLOP CIRCUIT WITH REDUCED AREA AND REDUCED WIRE COMPLEXITYJanuary 2023October 2023Allow1000NoNo

Appeals Overview

This analysis examines appeal outcomes and the strategic value of filing appeals for examiner O NEILL, PATRICK.

Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) Decisions

Total PTAB Decisions
5
Examiner Affirmed
2
(40.0%)
Examiner Reversed
3
(60.0%)
Reversal Percentile
83.6%
Higher than average

What This Means

With a 60.0% reversal rate, the PTAB has reversed the examiner's rejections more often than affirming them. This reversal rate is in the top 25% across the USPTO, indicating that appeals are more successful here than in most other areas.

Strategic Value of Filing an Appeal

Total Appeal Filings
7
Allowed After Appeal Filing
3
(42.9%)
Not Allowed After Appeal Filing
4
(57.1%)
Filing Benefit Percentile
71.1%
Higher 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, 42.9% of applications that filed an appeal were subsequently allowed. This appeal filing benefit rate is above the USPTO average, suggesting that filing an appeal can be an effective strategy for prompting reconsideration.

Strategic Recommendations

Appeals to PTAB show good success rates. If you have a strong case on the merits, consider fully prosecuting the appeal to a Board decision.

Filing a Notice of Appeal is strategically valuable. The act of filing often prompts favorable reconsideration during the mandatory appeal conference.

Examiner O NEILL, PATRICK - Prosecution Strategy Guide

Executive Summary

Examiner O NEILL, PATRICK works in Art Unit 2842 and has examined 572 patent applications in our dataset. With an allowance rate of 93.5%, this examiner allows applications at a higher rate than most examiners at the USPTO. Applications typically reach final disposition in approximately 15 months.

Allowance Patterns

Examiner O NEILL, PATRICK's allowance rate of 93.5% places them in the 81% percentile among all USPTO examiners. This examiner is more likely to allow applications than most examiners at the USPTO.

Office Action Patterns

On average, applications examined by O NEILL, PATRICK receive 0.77 office actions before reaching final disposition. This places the examiner in the 5% percentile for office actions issued. This examiner issues significantly fewer office actions than most examiners.

Prosecution Timeline

The median time to disposition (half-life) for applications examined by O NEILL, PATRICK is 15 months. This places the examiner in the 99% percentile for prosecution speed. Applications move through prosecution relatively quickly with this examiner.

Interview Effectiveness

Conducting an examiner interview provides a +3.8% benefit to allowance rate for applications examined by O NEILL, PATRICK. This interview benefit is in the 27% percentile among all examiners. Recommendation: Interviews provide a below-average benefit with this examiner.

Request for Continued Examination (RCE) Effectiveness

When applicants file an RCE with this examiner, 36.9% of applications are subsequently allowed. This success rate is in the 84% percentile among all examiners. Strategic Insight: RCEs are highly effective with this examiner compared to others. If you receive a final rejection, filing an RCE with substantive amendments or arguments has a strong likelihood of success.

After-Final Amendment Practice

This examiner enters after-final amendments leading to allowance in 43.8% of cases where such amendments are filed. This entry rate is in the 67% percentile among all examiners. Strategic Recommendation: This examiner shows above-average receptiveness to after-final amendments. If your amendments clearly overcome the rejections and do not raise new issues, consider filing after-final amendments before resorting to an RCE.

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 13% 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 58.3% of appeals filed. This is in the 32% percentile among all examiners. Of these withdrawals, 14.3% occur early in the appeal process (after Notice of Appeal but before Appeal Brief). Strategic Insight: This examiner shows below-average willingness to reconsider rejections during appeals. Be prepared to fully prosecute appeals if filed.

Petition Practice

When applicants file petitions regarding this examiner's actions, 29.4% are granted (fully or in part). This grant rate is in the 17% percentile among all examiners. Strategic Note: Petitions are rarely granted regarding this examiner's actions compared to other examiners. Ensure you have a strong procedural basis before filing a petition, as the Technology Center Director typically upholds this examiner's decisions.

Examiner Cooperation and Flexibility

Examiner's Amendments: This examiner makes examiner's amendments in 0.2% of allowed cases (in the 52% percentile). This examiner makes examiner's amendments more often than average to place applications in condition for allowance (MPEP § 1302.04).

Quayle Actions: This examiner issues Ex Parte Quayle actions in 9.3% of allowed cases (in the 88% 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:

  • RCEs are effective: This examiner has a high allowance rate after RCE compared to others. If you receive a final rejection and have substantive amendments or arguments, an RCE is likely to be successful.

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.