If you want to make a third-party submission of prior art in a pending patent application, looking at the statute is not very useful. What you want to see is how the USPTO implemented the statute. Look here The relevant Patent Rule is 37 CFR 1.290.

If you want to make a third-party submission of prior art in a pending patent application, looking at the statute is not very useful. What you want to see is how the USPTO implemented the statute. Look here The relevant Patent Rule is 37 CFR 1.290.

Some art units at the USPTO take longer than others to examine applications. Some mechanical cases issue in 12 months. Some business methods and software patents take 5 years. The reference you want is the most recent electronic issue of the Official Gazette. Browse to the most recent issue and look to the bottom for Patent Technology Centers. That listing gives the average filing date for a first office action in the last three months.