USPTO Examiner MELTON TODD M - Art Unit 3669

Recent Applications

Detailed information about the 100 most recent patent applications.

Application NumberTitleFiling DateDisposal DateDispositionTime (months)Office ActionsRestrictionsInterviewAppeal
18943586ROBOTIC-THROTTLE CONTROL OF A FISHING VESSELNovember 2024February 2025Allow400NoNo
18815159SYSTEM FOR A BICYCLE INCLUDING AN ENERGY STORAGE DEVICEAugust 2024October 2025Allow1400NoNo
18813033HIERARCHICAL CONTROL METHOD OF TORQUE DISTRIBUTION FOR WHEEL HUB MOTOR-DRIVEN ELECTRIC VEHICLESAugust 2024November 2024Allow300NoNo
18808069Motion Planning for Autonomous Vehicle Driving Using Vehicle-to-Infrastructure CommunicationAugust 2024May 2025Allow920YesNo
18794628FIXED DRONE VISUALIZATION IN SECURITY SYSTEMSAugust 2024October 2025Allow1500NoNo
18729507ELECTRIC VEHICLE AND ELECTRIC-MACHINERY CONTROL METHOD THEREFOR, APPARATUS AND STORAGE MEDIUMJuly 2024October 2025Allow1500NoNo
18774235METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MANAGING POWER BATTERY OF A VEHICLE, STORAGE MEDIUM AND ELECTRONIC DEVICEJuly 2024October 2024Allow300NoNo
18745367MAP UPDATING METHOD AND COMPUTER PROGRAM RECORDED ON RECORDING MEDIUM TO EXECUTE THE SAMEJune 2024November 2024Allow510NoNo
18743841CONTROLLING DRIVING MODES OF SELF-DRIVING VEHICLESJune 2024January 2026Allow1900NoNo
18664954METHOD FOR MONITORING THE WEAR OF A POWERTRAIN OF AN ELECTRIC VEHICLE AND ELECTRIC VEHICLE IMPLEMENTING SAID METHODMay 2024February 2026Allow2110NoNo
18649130VEHICLE COLLISION AVOIDANCE ASSIST APPARATUSApril 2024January 2026Allow2110NoNo
18633285SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR THE DETECTION OF ROADSApril 2024January 2026Allow2210NoNo
18603018Methods and Systems Using Digital Map DataMarch 2024July 2025Allow1600NoNo
18594469QUADRANT PROTECTION IN STEADY AND TRANSIENT SHIFTER POSITIONSMarch 2024October 2025Allow1900NoNo
18587347GLOBAL ENERGY MANAGEMENT OPTIMIZATION METHOD IN MULTI-TASK CROSS-CORE DEPLOYMENT FOR HYBRID ELECTRIC VEHICLESFebruary 2024January 2025Allow1010NoNo
18438247SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR INTELLIGENTLY IMPLEMENTING AN AUTONOMOUS ELECTRIC-POWERED TRAILER DURING A TOWING OPERATIONFebruary 2024August 2024Allow610NoNo
18429204VEHICLE CONTROL APPARATUSJanuary 2024October 2025Allow2000NoNo
18293478VULNERABLE ROAD USER (VRU) COLLISION AVOIDANCE SYSTEMJanuary 2024December 2025Allow2310NoNo
18425134METHOD, VEHICLE AND STORAGE MEDIUM FOR VEHICLE ACCELERATION SLIP REGULATINGJanuary 2024February 2026Allow2410NoNo
18416840Methods and Systems for Automated Machine Vision Monitoring of Vehicle SeatsJanuary 2024February 2026Allow2510YesNo
18578111METHOD FOR ALIGNED PARKING OF A TRAILERJanuary 2024January 2026Allow2510NoNo
18577734AIRCRAFT WITH MOVING SYSTEM FOR MOVING SENSING MEANS DURING FLIGHTJanuary 2024January 2026Allow2510NoNo
18408032SPLASH DETECTION USING RADARJanuary 2024August 2025Allow1900NoNo
18406797Use of Relationship Between Activities of Different Traffic Signals in a Network to Improve Traffic Signal State EstimationJanuary 2024February 2025Allow1300NoNo
18400606VEHICLE MEDICAL DEVICE INTERFACE SYSTEMDecember 2023May 2024Allow510NoNo
18535579AERIAL VEHICLE POWERING OFF METHOD AND DEVICE, AND AERIAL VEHICLEDecember 2023January 2025Allow1300NoNo
18525077MOTORCYCLE WITH HAPTIC BRAKING HAZARD ALERTNovember 2023October 2024Allow1000NoNo
18516828Systems and Methods for Utilizing Machine-Assisted Vehicle Inspection to Identify Insurance Buildup or FraudNovember 2023October 2024Allow1100NoNo
18513720SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR IMPLEMENTING A NEUTRAL STATE IN MULTI-RATIO ELECTRIC DRIVE MODULENovember 2023October 2025Allow2310NoNo
18502777PHOTO-DETECTION APPARATUS AND PHOTO-DETECTION SYSTEMNovember 2023October 2024Allow1100NoNo
18498653CONTROL SYSTEM FOR STRADDLED ELECTRIC VEHICLE AND STRADDLED ELECTRIC VEHICLEOctober 2023June 2025Allow2000NoNo
18385092LANE-RELATED ADVANCED DRIVER ASSISTANCE SYSTEM AND CONTROL METHOD THEREOF, AND VEHICLE HAVING THE SAMEOctober 2023October 2025Allow2300NoNo
18384726ELECTRIFIED VEHICLE AND METHOD OF CONTROLLING SAMEOctober 2023June 2025Allow2000NoNo
18493014METHOD OF LABELING DATA OBTAINED FROM VEHICLE SENSOROctober 2023October 2025Allow2410NoNo
18483206TRANSMISSION SYSTEM AND SHIFTING METHODOctober 2023June 2025Allow2100NoNo
18375335SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR TOWING ELECTRIC VEHICLESSeptember 2023January 2026Allow2810NoNo
18477297FIELD CALIBRATION OF AN AUGMENTED REALITY DEVICESeptember 2023June 2025Allow2110YesNo
18474182SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR DETECTING AND MANAGING CONDUCTIVE GAPSSeptember 2023October 2025Allow2510NoNo
18465337CONTROL OF BATTERY SYSTEM TEMPERATURE FOR HIGH PERFORMANCESeptember 2023October 2025Allow2510YesNo
18367399METHOD OF IMPLEMENTING VIRTUAL JET PROPULSION MODE IN ELECTRIC VEHICLESeptember 2023May 2025Allow2000NoNo
18458223BATTERY ELECTRIC VEHICLE HAVING UNLOCKABLE ELECTRIC MOTOR OUTPUTAugust 2023August 2025Allow2410NoNo
18279125METHOD OF ATTENUATING LONGITUDINAL ACCELERATION OSCILLATIONS OF A VEHICLE BODYAugust 2023May 2025Allow2000NoNo
18237750VEHICLE AND CONTROL METHOD FOR EXECUTING A POWER SAVING MODEAugust 2023September 2025Allow2510NoNo
18237275METHOD OF CONTROLLING TORQUE OF DRIVE SYSTEM OF ELECTRIC VEHICLEAugust 2023April 2025Allow2000NoNo
18235613System and Method for Location-Based TransactionsAugust 2023October 2023Allow200NoNo
18446471VEHICLE CONTROLLER FOR REDUCTION OF POWER CONSUMPTION WHILE TOWINGAugust 2023June 2025Allow2310YesNo
18446768RULE-BASED ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL SYSTEM FOR A VEHICLEAugust 2023April 2025Allow2000NoNo
18228867APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR ASSISTING DRIVING OF HOST VEHICLEAugust 2023August 2025Allow2510NoNo
18228140FIXED DRONE VISUALIZATION IN SECURITY SYSTEMSJuly 2023June 2024Allow1100NoNo
18262824AN ELECTRICAL WHEEL MODULE FOR ACCELERATION AND BRAKING OF A HEAVY-DUTY VEHICLEJuly 2023March 2025Allow2000NoNo
18224449VEHICLEJuly 2023April 2025Allow2000NoNo
18222774CONTROLLING DRIVING MODES OF SELF-DRIVING VEHICLESJuly 2023April 2024Allow900NoNo
18339258SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR NAVIGATING A VEHICLE AMONG ENCROACHING VEHICLESJune 2023October 2024Allow1500NoNo
18333445ELECTRIC VEHICLE (EV) SYSTEM AND OPERATING METHODJune 2023March 2025Allow2200NoNo
18203425METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PREDICTING A VEHICLE COLLISION WITH A SURROUNDING OBJECTMay 2023September 2025Allow2710NoNo
18321760Computing Systems and Methods for Controlling Current in Vehicle MotorsMay 2023October 2024Allow1600NoNo
18319364INTELLIGENT VEHICLE NAVIGATORMay 2023October 2024Allow1700NoNo
18197023SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR INTELLIGENTLY IMPLEMENTING AN AUTONOMOUS ELECTRIC-POWERED TRAILER DURING A TOWING OPERATIONMay 2023November 2023Allow610YesNo
18195085AUTONOMOUS CONTAINERMay 2023September 2025Abandon2910NoNo
18142345METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR GENERATING POWER FOR WORK MACHINEMay 2023April 2025Allow2300NoNo
18139621VEHICLE-MOUNTED EQUIPMENT FOR RAPID DETECTION OF DANGER AND HIDDEN DANGER OF A DIKE AND OPERATION METHOD THEREOFApril 2023June 2023Allow200NoNo
18136382CONTROL METHOD, CONTROL SYSTEM, AND DEVICE FOR GRAB OF PORTAL CRANEApril 2023July 2023Allow300NoNo
18299233METHOD FOR CONTROLLING A MOTION OF A VEHICLE, DATA PROCESSING APPARATUS, COMPUTER PROGRAM, COMPUTER-READABLE STORAGE MEDIUM, AND VEHICLE PROPULSION SYSTEMApril 2023April 2025Allow2400NoNo
18133873METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR RAISING AND LOWERING A PAYLOADApril 2023January 2024Allow910NoNo
18245165VEHICLE CONTROL SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR GENERATING SPEED LIMIT SIGNALMarch 2023September 2025Allow3010NoNo
18023936POWER GENERATION PLANNING DEVICE AND POWER GENERATION PLANNING METHODFebruary 2023June 2025Allow2810NoNo
18023817Vehicle Management SystemFebruary 2023February 2025Allow2400NoNo
18043253Remote Operation of Robotic SystemsFebruary 2023June 2025Allow2810NoNo
18023513REMOTE OPERATION DEVICE FOR A WORK MACHINEFebruary 2023June 2025Allow2710NoNo
18042609HYBRID VEHICLE CONTROL METHOD AND HYBRID VEHICLE CONTROL DEVICE FOR SUPPRESSING SYSTEM RESONANCE OTHER THAN NATURAL VIBRATIONFebruary 2023October 2023Allow810NoNo
18042397ESTIMATION METHOD, ESTIMATION APPARATUS AND ESTIMATION PROGRAM OF CAUSE OF LINE OF VEHICLESFebruary 2023July 2025Allow2920YesNo
18171446VEHICULAR CABIN MONITORING SYSTEMFebruary 2023July 2024Allow1700NoNo
18110187VEHICLE COLLISION AVOIDANCE DEVICE AND METHOD THEREFORFebruary 2023May 2025Allow2710NoNo
18169602DRIVING ASSISTANCE DEVICE, DRIVING ASSISTANCE METHOD, AND PROGRAMFebruary 2023September 2025Allow3120YesNo
18108390ROBOT AND CONTROL METHOD THEREOFFebruary 2023November 2024Allow2100NoNo
18164979LANE BIASING FOR NAVIGATING MACHINESFebruary 2023December 2025Allow3530YesNo
18163682METHODS AND SYSTEM FOR IMPROVING ELECTRIC MACHINE EFFICIENCYFebruary 2023June 2025Allow2910NoNo
18103689Preemptive Logical Configuration of Vehicle Control SystemsJanuary 2023November 2024Allow2210YesNo
18103491Field Registration Method, Field Registration System, And Field Registration ProgramJanuary 2023March 2025Allow2610NoNo
18160092TRAVEL ROUTE GENERATION DEVICE, VEHICLE CONTROLLER, AND COMPUTER-READABLE MEDIUM STORING TRAVEL ROUTE GENERATION PROGRAMJanuary 2023September 2025Abandon3220NoNo
18150304Use of Relationship Between Activities of Different Traffic Signals in a Network to Improve Traffic Signal State EstimationJanuary 2023October 2023Allow900NoNo
18067850DETERIORATION ESTIMATION DEVICE, METHOD, SOLAR SYSTEM, AND VEHICLEDecember 2022January 2025Allow2510NoNo
18065153Vehicle, Server, Method of Controlling Vehicle, and Method of Controlling ServerDecember 2022March 2025Allow2710NoNo
18062682METHOD FOR ASSISTING A USER OF A VEHICLE BY USING AN INDICATOR FOR SIGNALING A CHANGE OF AN OPERATING MODE OF THE VEHICLE WITH RESPECT TO DEGREE OF AUTOMATION AND FOR SIGNALING AN ESCALATION LEVEL FOR THE CHANGEDecember 2022July 2025Allow3110NoNo
17999813AUTONOMOUS AND MANUAL MODE SWTICHING FOR UTILITY VEHICLENovember 2022January 2025Allow2610NoNo
17992695Motorcycle with haptic braking hazard alertNovember 2022March 2023Allow400NoNo
17989432Systems and Methods for Utilizing Machine-Assisted Vehicle Inspection to Identify Insurance Buildup or FraudNovember 2022August 2023Allow910YesNo
17996804METHODS, CONTROL UNIT, PERSONAL MOBILE TERMINAL, LIGHTWEIGHT VEHICLE, AND SYSTEMOctober 2022July 2025Allow3320NoNo
18047034APPARATUS FOR AND METHOD OF TRANSFERRING VEHICLE COMMUNICATION CONTENTOctober 2022December 2024Allow2610NoNo
17966069SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MANAGING RESIDUAL ENERGY IN A CHARGING COMPONENTOctober 2022November 2024Allow2510NoNo
18046498METHOD FOR NOTIFYING OF AN ABNORMAL EVENT AND SELF-PROPELLED DEVICE AND NOTIFICATION SYSTEM FOR IMPLEMENTING THE SAMEOctober 2022February 2025Abandon2810NoNo
17938480WHEEL MOTOR COMPENSATION SYSTEMS AND METHODS USING WHEEL SENSOR DATAOctober 2022March 2025Allow2900NoNo
17995502ON-BOARD RELAY DEVICE, INFORMATION PROCESSING METHOD, AND PROGRAMOctober 2022November 2024Allow2610NoNo
17956850AUTOMATIC BERTHING SYSTEM AND METHODSeptember 2022July 2024Allow2200NoNo
17951467VEHICLE MEDICAL DEVICE INTERFACE SYSTEMSeptember 2022October 2023Allow1320NoNo
17755685DEVICE FOR CONTROLLING AN AUTOMATED DRIVING OPERATION OF A VEHICLEAugust 2022October 2024Allow2910NoNo
17884125SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MONITORING AND MITIGATING PILOT ACTIONS IN AN ELECTRIC AIRCRAFTAugust 2022June 2023Allow1010YesNo
17880948FIXED DRONE VISUALIZATION IN SECURITY SYSTEMSAugust 2022June 2023Allow1100NoNo
17869478AI-BASED NOISE GENERATION DIAGNOSIS APPARATUS AND METHOD OF PE COMPONENTS FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLEJuly 2022June 2024Allow2300NoNo
17869533MARINE PROPULSION SYSTEM AND JOYSTICK CONTROL METHODJuly 2022November 2024Allow2810NoNo

Appeals Overview

This analysis examines appeal outcomes and the strategic value of filing appeals for examiner MELTON, TODD M.

Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) Decisions

Total PTAB Decisions
3
Examiner Affirmed
3
(100.0%)
Examiner Reversed
0
(0.0%)
Reversal Percentile
17.2%
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
19
Allowed After Appeal Filing
9
(47.4%)
Not Allowed After Appeal Filing
10
(52.6%)
Filing Benefit Percentile
76.2%
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, 47.4% 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

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

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

Examiner MELTON, TODD M - Prosecution Strategy Guide

Executive Summary

Examiner MELTON, TODD M works in Art Unit 3669 and has examined 621 patent applications in our dataset. With an allowance rate of 87.3%, this examiner has an above-average tendency to allow applications. Applications typically reach final disposition in approximately 25 months.

Allowance Patterns

Examiner MELTON, TODD M's allowance rate of 87.3% places them in the 66% percentile among all USPTO examiners. This examiner has an above-average tendency to allow applications.

Office Action Patterns

On average, applications examined by MELTON, TODD M receive 1.27 office actions before reaching final disposition. This places the examiner in the 17% 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 MELTON, TODD M is 25 months. This places the examiner in the 81% percentile for prosecution speed. Applications move through prosecution relatively quickly with this examiner.

Interview Effectiveness

Conducting an examiner interview provides a +11.9% benefit to allowance rate for applications examined by MELTON, TODD M. This interview benefit is in the 47% 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, 37.5% of applications are subsequently allowed. This success rate is in the 85% 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 65.5% of cases where such amendments are filed. This entry rate is in the 89% 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, 100.0% result in withdrawal of the rejection or reopening of prosecution. This success rate is in the 75% percentile among all examiners. Strategic Recommendation: Pre-appeal conferences are highly effective with this examiner compared to others. Before filing a full appeal brief, strongly consider requesting a PAC. The PAC provides an opportunity for the examiner and supervisory personnel to reconsider the rejection before the case proceeds to the PTAB.

Appeal Withdrawal and Reconsideration

This examiner withdraws rejections or reopens prosecution in 83.3% of appeals filed. This is in the 77% percentile among all examiners. Of these withdrawals, 40.0% 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, 32.1% are granted (fully or in part). This grant rate is in the 19% 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 51% 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 0.7% of allowed cases (in the 58% percentile). This examiner issues Quayle actions more often than average when claims are allowable but formal matters remain (MPEP § 714.14).

Prosecution Strategy Recommendations

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

  • 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.
  • 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.
  • Request pre-appeal conferences: PACs are highly effective with this examiner. Before filing a full appeal brief, request a PAC to potentially resolve issues without full PTAB review.
  • 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.