Prosecution Insights
Last updated: August 06, 2026
Application No. 17/795,440

PARAHYDROGEN AND ATOMIC HYDROGEN FUEL

Non-Final OA §102§112
Filed
Jul 26, 2022
Priority
Jan 27, 2020 — provisional 62/966,189 +1 more
Examiner
COHEN, BRIAN W
Art Unit
1759
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
Ecombustible Energy LLC
OA Round
3 (Non-Final)
54%
Grant Probability
Moderate
3-4
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 54% of resolved cases
54%
Career Allowance Rate
349 granted / 641 resolved
-10.6% vs TC avg
Strong +48% interview lift
Without
With
+47.8%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 3m
Avg Prosecution
40 currently pending
Career history
670
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.6%
-39.4% vs TC avg
§103
57.9%
+17.9% vs TC avg
§102
14.1%
-25.9% vs TC avg
§112
24.0%
-16.0% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 641 resolved cases

Office Action

§102 §112
DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114 A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 2/24/2026 has been entered. Response to Amendment The amendment filed on 5/22/2026 (and 2/24/2026) has been entered into the prosecution for the application. Currently claims 1-17 and 19-21 are pending with claims 1-12 withdrawn from consideration. Claims 13-17 and 19-21 are pending examination. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a): (a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention. The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112: The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention. Claims 13-17 and 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. Claim 13 recites “converting the parahydrogen gas into atomic hydrogen by passing the parahydrogen gas through a magnetic reactor that produces a magnetic field that acts to split the parahydrogen gas into atomic hydrogen; and varying the frequency of the magnetic field produced by the magnetic field reactor between 13 kHz and 37 kHz, wherein varying the frequency of the magnetic field provides different calorific values for the final fuel.” The limitation of actively varying the frequency of the magnetic field between 13 kHz and 37 kHz during the converting step from parahydrogen gas to atomic hydrogen is not supported by the specification. In the arguments filed on 5/22/2026 and 9/22/2025 there is no recitation for where the support for the amendment can be found. The specification allows for the magnetic reactor to apply different frequencies as the gas passes through in the conversion of parahydrogen gas to atomic hydrogen, but does not support actively varying the frequency (see [0008], [0010], [0013], [0041], and [0058] of the specification). Claims 14-17 and 19-20 are rejected as being dependent on claim 13. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action: A person shall be entitled to a patent unless – (a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. Claim 21 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US 9,701,917 of Benitez. As to claim 21, Benitez teaches of a method for generating a fuel (Benitez, Abstract), the method comprising: supplying water to a hydrogen production cell (Benitez, col 3 lines 33-40 and col 3 line 41 thru col 4 line 26 and Fig. 1) ; cleaving the water into molecular hydrogen gas and oxygen gas in the cell using electrolysis, the molecular hydrogen gas comprises orthohydrogen gas and parahydrogen gas (Benitez, col 4 lines 26-35), converting the orthohydrogen gas into parahydrogen gas by applying a vibration to the molecular hydrogen gas with a coil disposed at a hydrogen outlet of the hydrogen production cell (Benitez, col 6 lines 11-22); passing the parahydrogen gas through a water trap and filter to remove moisture from the parahydrogen gas (Benitez, col 4 lines 44-60); converting the parahydrogen gas into atomic hydrogen by passing the parahydrogen gas through a magnetic reactor that produces a magnetic field that acts to split the parahydrogen gas into atomic hydrogen, wherein the magnetic field of the magnetic reactor is variable including a specific frequency of about 25.58 kHz, thus anticipating the range (Benitez, col 4 line 61 thru col 5 line 1 and col 8 lines 55-64). PNG media_image1.png 728 632 media_image1.png Greyscale As seen in Fig. 1, water is introduced into the system at a water supply (61). The water goes into hydrogen production cell (10) such that at the hydrogen outlet there is a set of coils (not shown) to convert the orthohydrogen to parahydrogen by vibration. The parahydrogen then passes through a water trap (68) and filter (50) before being introduced into magnetic reactor (50). The magnetic reactor is capable of applying a variable frequency including about 25.58 kHz, to spilt the parahydrogen into atomic hydrogen. Response to Arguments Applicant's arguments filed 5/22/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Applicant’s arguments to claim 13 are moot until they can provide support for the actively varying frequency step of the magnetic reactor. As to claim 21, Applicant argues that “about” does not demonstrate the magnetic reactor is variable between the desired frequency. This argument is not persuasive. The language of “about” allows for the applied frequency to lie within a range of ± the applied frequency. It is further noted that Benitez actually states that the magnetic reactor can apply a frequency over a range (see col 8 lines 55-64). While the numbers in the range are of an order of magnitude below those claimed, Benitez also teaches the magnetic frequency of about 25.58 kHz (see col 4 lines 65-67). One of these number is a typo. Either the conversion of parahydrogen to atomic hydrogen occurs at 25.58 kHz or it occurs at 2.58 kHz. This is a property of parahydrogen and thus the magnetic field generator of Benitez would be configured to provide the desired magnetic field to accomplish the conversion. As Benitez teaches a magnetic reactor that can provide a range of frequencies, the claim limitation of claim 21 is anticipated. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRIAN W COHEN whose telephone number is (571)270-7961. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 9 am to 5 pm EST. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Duane Smith can be reached at 571-272-1166. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. BRIAN W. COHEN Primary Examiner Art Unit 1759 /BRIAN W COHEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1759
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Show 1 earlier event
May 02, 2025
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102, §112
Aug 01, 2025
Response Filed
Aug 25, 2025
Final Rejection mailed — §102, §112
Sep 22, 2025
Response after Non-Final Action
Feb 24, 2026
Request for Continued Examination
Mar 03, 2026
Response after Non-Final Action
Mar 03, 2026
Response after Non-Final Action
Jul 27, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102, §112 (current)

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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

3-4
Expected OA Rounds
54%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+47.8%)
3y 3m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
High
PTA Risk
Based on 641 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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