Average Patent Application Backlog by USPTO Technology Center

Dennis Crouch at the Patently-O Blog has taken the USPTO's “average filing date of applications receiving a first office action” and calculated an average backlog, in months, for each technology center. The backlog ranges from a low of 10 months for plant patent applications in TC 1660 to a high of 40 months for multiplex communication patent applications in TC 2660. Dennis adds that

Although this is unconfirmed, I believe that these numbers are somewhat
skewed because they include continuing applications that generally have a
shorter delay before receiving a first office action. As such, the expected delay for a newly filed non-continuation may be greater than that listed. Nonetheless, the table is useful for providing a new applicant a better estimate of the expected timetable.

Dennis also notes that Stephen Nipper's Invent Blog has provided a concise explanation of how to use the pendency table here and John Doll, the PTO’s Acting Commissioner for Patents recently gave a presentation on this and other topics at the NAPP meeting here.

Nice blogging, guys.