Prosecution Insights
Last updated: August 18, 2026
Application No. 18/003,615

Compound of Formula (I), a Semiconductor Material Comprising at Least One Compound of Formula (I), a Semiconductor Layer Comprising at Least One Compound of Formula (I) and an Electronic Device Comprising at Least One Compound of Formula (I)

Final Rejection §112
Filed
Dec 28, 2022
Priority
Jul 27, 2020 — EU 20187943.4 +2 more
Examiner
YOUNG, WILLIAM D
Art Unit
1761
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
Novaled GmbH
OA Round
6 (Final)
54%
Grant Probability
Moderate
7-8
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
70%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 54% of resolved cases
54%
Career Allowance Rate
380 granted / 699 resolved
-10.6% vs TC avg
Strong +15% interview lift
Without
With
+15.4%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 11m
Avg Prosecution
52 currently pending
Career history
741
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.5%
-39.5% vs TC avg
§103
45.9%
+5.9% vs TC avg
§102
22.4%
-17.6% vs TC avg
§112
26.8%
-13.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 699 resolved cases

Office Action

§112
DETAILED ACTION The following Office action concerns Patent Application Number 18/003,615. Claims 1-9 and 11-17 are pending in the application. The applicant’s amendment filed June 16, 2026 has been entered. The previous grounds of rejection are withdrawn in light of the applicant’s amendment. The restriction requirement as to claims 2-8 and 11 is withdrawn and the claims are rejoined. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 1-5, 9, 12-17 are allowable over the closest prior art of Stoessel et al. The reference does not teach or suggest a compound of formula (I) including heteroaryl groups D1-D29. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. § 112 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action: (b) CONCLUSION.-The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention. (d) REFERENCE IN DEPENDENT FORMS.—Subject to subsection (e), a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers. Claims 6-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 112(b) because the substituted C2 to C24 heteroaryl groups are different from the substituted heteroaryl groups D1 to D29 defined in claim 1. As a result, the scope of the claims is unclear. Claim 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 112(b) because formula E5 is outside the scope of claim 1 because it does not contain any of D1-D29. Conclusion The applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a). A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any extension fee pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the date of this final action. Examiner’s Information Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to William Young whose telephone number is (571) 270-5078. The examiner can normally be reached Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 5 PM. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Angela Brown-Pettigrew, can be reached at 571-272-2817. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000./WILLIAM D YOUNG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1761 June 22, 2026
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Show 10 earlier events
Aug 04, 2025
Response Filed
Aug 21, 2025
Final Rejection mailed — §112
Nov 21, 2025
Response after Non-Final Action
Dec 17, 2025
Request for Continued Examination
Dec 19, 2025
Response after Non-Final Action
Mar 16, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §112
Jun 16, 2026
Response Filed
Jun 24, 2026
Final Rejection mailed — §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

7-8
Expected OA Rounds
54%
Grant Probability
70%
With Interview (+15.4%)
2y 11m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
High
PTA Risk
Based on 699 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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