USPTO Examiner BERNS MICHAEL ANDREW - Art Unit 3666

Recent Applications

Detailed information about the 100 most recent patent applications.

Application NumberTitleFiling DateDisposal DateDispositionTime (months)Office ActionsRestrictionsInterviewAppeal
18808066Automatic Event Capturing for Autonomous Vehicle DrivingAugust 2024April 2025Allow820YesNo
18671128MOBILITY DEVICEMay 2024June 2025Allow1210NoNo
18600958VEHICULAR CONTROL SYSTEM WITH HANDOVER PROCEDURE FOR DRIVER OF CONTROLLED VEHICLEMarch 2024February 2025Allow1110NoNo
18688988Driving Force Control Method and Driving Force Control DeviceMarch 2024October 2024Allow810YesNo
18432887SAFETY PROCEDURE ANALYSIS FOR OBSTACLE AVOIDANCE IN AUTONOMOUS VEHICLESFebruary 2024May 2025Allow1510YesNo
18406949Optical Laser TargetJanuary 2024December 2024Allow1101NoNo
18378590Intelligent Seat SystemsOctober 2023December 2024Allow1410NoNo
18470512AUTONOMOUS VEHICLE SIMULATION SYSTEMSeptember 2023September 2024Allow1210NoNo
18465210Mobility DeviceSeptember 2023November 2024Allow1430YesNo
18462494VEHICLE CONTROL DEVICE, VEHICLE CONTROL METHOD AND COMPUTER-READABLE STORAGE MEDIUMSeptember 2023July 2024Allow1010YesNo
18362305PREDICTIVE VEHICLE OPERATING ASSISTANCEJuly 2023February 2025Abandon1910NoNo
18223579Assistance on the GoJuly 2023July 2024Allow1210YesNo
18212694ANALYSIS OF TRANSPORT DAMAGEJune 2023September 2024Allow1520NoNo
18209695Hill Hold Function for a Motor Vehicle Comprising a Plurality of Driven AxlesJune 2023June 2025Allow2410NoNo
18207093ROAD SURFACE CONDITION GUIDED DECISION MAKING AND PREDICTIONJune 2023February 2025Allow2030YesNo
18318333CLOUD-BASED VEHICLE MONITORING PLATFORMMay 2023April 2025Allow2300NoNo
18310494METHOD FOR LANE DETECTIONMay 2023June 2025Allow2510NoNo
18140084SYSTEM FOR OBSTACLE DETECTIONApril 2023July 2024Allow1410NoNo
18299164SYNCHRONISING A PLURALITY OF AIRCRAFT TIRE MONITORING DEVICESApril 2023June 2025Allow2710NoNo
18299126ACOUSTIC MONITORING SYSTEMApril 2023July 2024Allow1511NoNo
18132234AUTONOMOUS DRIVING CONTROL SYSTEM AND METHOD THEREOFApril 2023March 2024Allow1210NoNo
18183633SYSTEMS AND TECHNIQUES FOR DETERMINING RANGE AND RANGE-RATE USING TIME-OF-FLIGHT SENSORSMarch 2023May 2025Allow2610NoNo
18182082CONTROLLER FOR PROCESSING IMAGE DATA, IMAGE PROCESSING SYSTEM INCLUDING CONTROLLER, AND METHOD OF OPERATING CONTROLLERMarch 2023June 2025Allow2710YesNo
18022812WORK MACHINEFebruary 2023March 2025Allow2510YesNo
18173507METHODS, APPARATUSES, AND SYSTEMS FOR MONITORING AND MAINTAINING VEHICLE CONDITIONFebruary 2023March 2025Allow2530YesNo
18104171SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR CRASH DETERMINATIONJanuary 2023January 2024Allow1210NoNo
18161417TRAINING OF A PERCEPTION MODEL ON EDGE OF A VEHICLEJanuary 2023June 2025Allow2810NoNo
18017972METHOD, COMPUTER-IMPLEMENTED TOOL, VEHICLE CONTROL UNIT, AND VEHICLE FOR LOCATING OBSTACLES IN VEHICLE ROADWAY REGIONS, WHICH ARE CHARACTERIZED BY LANDMARKSJanuary 2023February 2025Allow2520YesNo
18158962OBJECT POSITIONING METHOD, ELECTRONIC APPARATUS, AND COMPUTER-READABLE STORAGE MEDIUMJanuary 2023April 2025Allow2710NoNo
18098619ADAPTIVE REGENERATIVE BRAKING FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLEJanuary 2023June 2025Abandon2910NoNo
18151533VEHICULAR CONTROL SYSTEM WITH HANDOVER PROCEDURE FOR DRIVER OF CONTROLLED VEHICLEJanuary 2023January 2024Allow1310NoNo
18015020METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR VEHICLE SIDESLIP ANGLE ESTIMATION BASED ON EVENT-TRIGGERED STATE ESTIMATIONJanuary 2023April 2025Allow2710NoNo
18013016ALERT OUTPUT METHOD, ALERT OUTPUT DEVICE, COMPUTER PROGRAM, COMPUTER READABLE MEDIUM, VEHICLE ALERT OUTPUT SYSTEM, AND VEHICLEDecember 2022March 2025Abandon2710NoNo
18083159SAFETY PROCEDURE ANALYSIS FOR OBSTACLE AVOIDANCE IN AUTONOMOUS VEHICLESDecember 2022January 2024Allow1310YesNo
18081863Multi-Computer System for Dynamically Detecting and Identifying HazardsDecember 2022September 2024Abandon2110YesNo
18000005HYBRID SYSTEMNovember 2022February 2025Allow2610NoNo
17988709PERCEPTION SUPPORTING HARDWARE FEATURES FOR A WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBLE AUTONOMOUS VEHICLENovember 2022January 2024Allow1410YesNo
17984344COMPUTER, VEHICLE, SERVER, MOBILE TERMINAL, AND VEHICLE MANAGEMENT METHODNovember 2022December 2024Allow2510YesNo
18053534VEHICLE DRIVER PERFORMANCE BASED ON CONTEXTUAL CHANGES AND DRIVER RESPONSENovember 2022March 2024Allow1610YesNo
17977197MAPPING METHOD AND APPARATUS, VEHICLE, READABLE STORAGE MEDIUM, AND CHIPOctober 2022February 2025Allow2710NoNo
17976064PRECEDING VEHICLE SELECTION DEVICE, PRECEDING VEHICLE SELECTION METHOD, AND NON-TRANSITORY RECORDING MEDIUMOctober 2022November 2024Allow2410YesNo
18050522VEHICLE BATTERY HEALTH OPTIMIZATION AND COMMUNICATIONOctober 2022February 2025Allow2810YesNo
18050160Smart Electronic Power Steering System and Method for a Retrofitted Electric VehicleOctober 2022May 2024Allow1910NoNo
17921419Method and System for Automatically Determining a Display Status of a Traffic Signal InstallationOctober 2022March 2025Allow2920NoNo
17973401VEHICLE ASSEMBLY HAVING A CAPACITIVE SENSOROctober 2022February 2025Allow2710NoNo
17969405APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING AN IN-VEHICLE LIGHTING ENVIRONMENTOctober 2022December 2024Allow2610NoNo
17919116VIDEO DISTRIBUTION APPARATUS, VIDEO DISTRIBUTION METHOD AND PROGRAMOctober 2022October 2024Allow2410NoNo
18046615SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING A MOTOR DURING CLUTCH SHIFTING IN A MULTI-SPEED ELECTRIC DRIVETRAINOctober 2022December 2024Allow2610YesNo
18045221METHOD FOR GENERATING A MAP DISPLAY FOR VEHICLESOctober 2022October 2024Allow2410NoNo
17961752Systems And Machine Learning Models For Automated Vehicle MonitoringOctober 2022November 2024Allow2510YesNo
17917561SPACE TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT SYSTEM, SPACE TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT DEVICE, SPACE TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT METHOD, COLLISION AVOIDANCE ASSISTANCE BUSINESS DEVICE, MEGA-CONSTELLATION BUSINESS DEVICE, SPACE OBJECT BUSINESS DEVICE, SPACE SITUATIONAL AWARENESS BUSINESS DEVICE, AND OADROctober 2022September 2024Allow2410YesNo
17960297MULTIPLE AUTONOMOUS UNDERWATER VEHICLE SYSTEMS AND METHODSOctober 2022March 2023Allow610YesNo
17937929SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR DETECTING WATER ALONG DRIVING ROUTES AND ADJUSTING VEHICLE SPEEDOctober 2022November 2024Allow2610YesNo
17916422CONTROL DEVICE FOR CONTROLLING A VEHICLE FUNCTION FOR A VEHICLE, AND METHOD FOR OPERATING A CONTROL DEVICESeptember 2022February 2024Allow1710YesNo
17947609AUTONOMOUS DRIVING KIT, VEHICLE PLATFORM, VEHICLE CONTROL INTERFACE BOX, AND VEHICLESeptember 2022October 2024Allow2510NoNo
17947681SYSTEM FOR DYNAMIC AUTONOMOUS VEHICLE SERVICE PRICINGSeptember 2022May 2024Allow1920YesNo
17943232MULTICOMPUTER PROCESSING OF USER DATA WITH CENTRALIZED EVENT CONTROLSeptember 2022March 2024Allow1810YesNo
17930664SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR DIGITAL TWIN FOR CONDITION BASED MAINTENANCESeptember 2022September 2024Allow2510NoNo
17941007INTELLIGENT HORIZONTAL TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR AUTOMATIC SIDE-LOADING/UNLOADING CONTAINER TARMINALSeptember 2022April 2025Abandon3110NoNo
17901127METHOD AND DEVICE FOR MONITORING OPERATIONS OF AN AUTOMATED DRIVING SYSTEM OF A VEHICLESeptember 2022September 2024Allow2510YesNo
17884136VEHICLE ATTITUDE ESTIMATION METHOD, ELECTRONIC DEVICE AND STORAGE MEDIUMAugust 2022September 2024Allow2610NoNo
17882392DISPLAY SYSTEM, CAMERA MONITORING SYSTEM, AND DISPLAY METHODAugust 2022September 2024Allow2510YesNo
17878245MOBILITY DEVICEAugust 2022November 2023Allow1610YesNo
17795942VEHICLE MONITORING SYSTEM, VEHICLE MONITORING METHOD, AND VEHICLE MONITORING APPARATUSJuly 2022February 2025Allow3120NoYes
17814880VEHICLE DATA TRANSMISSIONJuly 2022August 2024Allow2510YesNo
17872413METHOD FOR DETERMINING AN OPTIMIZED TORQUE DISTRIBUTION TO THE DRIVE WHEELS OF A ROAD VEHICLE AND RELATIVE ROAD VEHICLEJuly 2022September 2024Allow2610YesNo
17872888MANAGING ELECTRIC VEHICLE RANGE IN CHANGING SURROUNDINGSJuly 2022October 2024Allow2710YesNo
17868318ALIGNMENT OF INDEPENDENT VISUAL NAVIGATION SYSTEMS AND METHODSJuly 2022December 2024Allow2810YesNo
17868280SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR IDENTIFYING OBSTACLES ENCOUNTERED BY A WORK VEHICLE WITHIN A WORK SITEJuly 2022March 2025Abandon3220NoNo
17813092GENERATING AND USING POSITIONING INDICESJuly 2022August 2024Allow2510NoNo
17854811SERVICE DISRUPTION PREVENTION THROUGH DYNAMIC GEOFENCESJune 2022August 2024Allow2610YesNo
17853012SYNOPTICS SYSTEM OF AN ELECTRIC AIRCRAFTJune 2022October 2023Allow1530YesNo
17789529ENERGY COORDINATION CONTROL METHOD AND SYSTEM AND VEHICLEJune 2022November 2024Allow2920YesNo
17846095APPARATUS FOR CALIBRATING AN ADVANCED DRIVER ASSISTANCE SYSTEM SENSOR OF A VEHICLEJune 2022January 2024Allow1910NoNo
17757467VEHICULAR TRAILERING GUIDANCE SYSTEMJune 2022January 2025Allow3220NoYes
17785342METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR MONITORING A KINEMATIC STATE OF AN UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLEJune 2022March 2025Allow3311NoNo
17833296SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR VEHICLE SMART SEATSJune 2022September 2023Allow1510NoNo
17805371Machine Learning System For Maximum Sound Pressure Level PredictionJune 2022August 2024Allow2610YesNo
17828767APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR THE INTEGRATED CONTROL OF A THERMAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEMMay 2022December 2024Allow3130NoNo
17780415REDUCING SWITCHING-ON AND SWITCHING-OFF PROCESSES IN AN ELECTRIC DRIVETRAINMay 2022January 2025Allow3120YesNo
17778221DETECTION DEVICE, DETECTION METHOD AND PROGRAM FOR DETECTING END POSITION OF TURNING DEVICEMay 2022July 2024Allow2610YesNo
17740336Wireless Communication Terminal DeviceMay 2022February 2025Allow3340YesYes
17662465VEHICULAR DRIVING ASSISTANCE SYSTEM WITH LATERAL MOTION CONTROLMay 2022July 2024Allow2610NoNo
17764888MAP BUILDING METHOD, SELF-MOVING DEVICE, AND AUTOMATIC WORKING SYSTEMMay 2022September 2024Allow2920NoNo
17728316DRIVING ASSISTANCE SYSTEM AND METHODApril 2022August 2023Allow1610YesNo
17768505MAINTENANCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND MAINTENANCE MANAGEMENT GROUND SYSTEMApril 2022February 2025Allow3430YesNo
17717038Intelligent Seat SystemsApril 2022June 2023Allow1400YesNo
17714232SAFETY APPARATUS WITH SENSORY ALERTS TO SURROUNDING PERSONSApril 2022September 2024Abandon2910YesNo
17714248Methods and Systems of Navigational State Detection for Unobservable RegionsApril 2022June 2024Allow2710NoNo
17642404OBJECT MOVING SYSTEMMarch 2022January 2025Allow3520NoNo
17690151TRACTION MOTOR BASED WHEEL SPEED RECOVERYMarch 2022April 2024Allow2510YesNo
17652916Vehicle Movement SensorFebruary 2022May 2024Allow2610NoNo
17675740DRIVING ASSISTANCE DEVICE AND RECORDING MEDIUMFebruary 2022August 2024Allow3020YesNo
17669401MARINE PROPULSION CONTROL SYSTEM AND MARINE VESSEL CAPABLE OF PERFORMING DYNAMIC POSITIONING CONTROLFebruary 2022April 2024Allow2610NoNo
17669246METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR ON-SITE TESTING OF AN OFF-ROAD VEHICLE INTERVENTION SYSTEMFebruary 2022March 2025Allow3730NoNo
17649733SMART DIGITAL TWIN FOR MONITORING A MACHINEFebruary 2022January 2025Allow3630YesNo
17649681REROUTING TRAFFIC POST VEHICLE CRASHFebruary 2022July 2024Abandon2910NoNo
17586612METHOD AND DEVICE FOR OPERATING A SELF-DRIVING CARJanuary 2022February 2024Allow2510NoNo
17576521AUTONOMOUS VEHICLE SIMULATION SYSTEMJanuary 2022August 2023Allow1910NoNo
17647191SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR SUGGESTING CONTEXT-RELEVANT COMMUNICATION FREQUENCIES FOR AN AIRCRAFTJanuary 2022November 2024Abandon3420YesNo

Appeals Overview

This analysis examines appeal outcomes and the strategic value of filing appeals for examiner BERNS, MICHAEL ANDREW.

Strategic Value of Filing an Appeal

Total Appeal Filings
4
Allowed After Appeal Filing
4
(100.0%)
Not Allowed After Appeal Filing
0
(0.0%)
Filing Benefit Percentile
99.2%
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, 100.0% of applications that filed an appeal were subsequently allowed. This appeal filing benefit rate is in the top 25% across the USPTO, indicating that filing appeals is particularly effective here. The act of filing often prompts favorable reconsideration during the mandatory appeal conference.

Strategic Recommendations

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

Examiner BERNS, MICHAEL ANDREW - Prosecution Strategy Guide

Executive Summary

Examiner BERNS, MICHAEL ANDREW works in Art Unit 3666 and has examined 315 patent applications in our dataset. With an allowance rate of 88.3%, this examiner has an above-average tendency to allow applications. Applications typically reach final disposition in approximately 28 months.

Allowance Patterns

Examiner BERNS, MICHAEL ANDREW's allowance rate of 88.3% places them in the 65% percentile among all USPTO examiners. This examiner has an above-average tendency to allow applications.

Office Action Patterns

On average, applications examined by BERNS, MICHAEL ANDREW receive 1.46 office actions before reaching final disposition. This places the examiner in the 34% 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 BERNS, MICHAEL ANDREW is 28 months. This places the examiner in the 53% percentile for prosecution speed. Prosecution timelines are slightly faster than average with this examiner.

Interview Effectiveness

Conducting an examiner interview provides a +12.5% benefit to allowance rate for applications examined by BERNS, MICHAEL ANDREW. This interview benefit is in the 52% percentile among all examiners. Recommendation: Interviews provide an above-average benefit with this examiner and are worth considering.

Request for Continued Examination (RCE) Effectiveness

When applicants file an RCE with this examiner, 40.9% of applications are subsequently allowed. This success rate is in the 91% 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 52.6% of cases where such amendments are filed. This entry rate is in the 74% 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, 100.0% result in withdrawal of the rejection or reopening of prosecution. This success rate is in the 74% 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 97% percentile among all examiners. Of these withdrawals, 50.0% 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, 54.5% are granted (fully or in part). This grant rate is in the 69% percentile among all examiners. Strategic Note: Petitions show above-average success regarding this examiner's actions. Petitionable matters include restriction requirements (MPEP § 1002.02(c)(2)) and various procedural issues.

Examiner Cooperation and Flexibility

Examiner's Amendments: This examiner makes examiner's amendments in 0.0% of allowed cases (in the 35% percentile). This examiner makes examiner's amendments less often than average. You may need to make most claim amendments yourself.

Quayle Actions: This examiner issues Ex Parte Quayle actions in 0.0% of allowed cases (in the 35% percentile). This examiner issues Quayle actions less often than average. Allowances may 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:

  • 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.
  • 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.

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.