Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/023,405

PREPARATION METHOD FOR NOVEL RHO-RELATED PROTEIN KINASE INHIBITOR AND INTERMEDIATE IN PREPARATION METHOD

Non-Final OA §112
Filed
Feb 27, 2023
Examiner
MCDOWELL, BRIAN E
Art Unit
1624
Tech Center
1600 — Biotechnology & Organic Chemistry
Assignee
BEIJING TIDE PHARMACEUTICAL CO., LTD.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
74%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 4m
To Grant
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 74% — above average
74%
Career Allow Rate
818 granted / 1102 resolved
+14.2% vs TC avg
Strong +30% interview lift
Without
With
+30.3%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 4m
Avg Prosecution
58 currently pending
Career history
1160
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
1.0%
-39.0% vs TC avg
§103
15.0%
-25.0% vs TC avg
§102
19.5%
-20.5% vs TC avg
§112
47.6%
+7.6% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1102 resolved cases

Office Action

§112
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 . DETAILED ACTION RESPONSE TO ELECTION/RESTRICTION Applicant's election with traverse of group I, drawn to method of making compounds of the formula Ic and elected species: PNG media_image1.png 130 264 media_image1.png Greyscale in the reply filed on 12/9/2025 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that the restriction is unsupportable and the inventions form a single inventive concept. Further arguing that there would not be a search burden for the examiner. This is not found persuasive because the instantly claimed compounds encompass a myriad of heterocyclic functionalities that do not share a common chemical structure (e.g., formulas I, Ic). Therefore, these claims can be said to lack unity a priori as there is no technical feature common to all the claims. In reference to search burden; the inventions are drawn to different final products and intermediates encompassing various reaction sequences as stated by Applicant. One search for one invention does not necessarily cover the subject matter of a different invention due to the latter. The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL. Claims 13, 14, 17, and 20-24 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. An action on the merits of claims 11, 12, 15, 16, 18, and 19 is contained herein. Priority This application is a U.S. Nat'l Phase application of Int'l Appl. No. PCT/CN2021/115197, filed August 30, 2021, which claims priority to Int'l Appl. No. PCT/CN2020/112505, filed August 31, 2020. However, a certified English version of the foreign priority document was not received. Failure to provide a certified translation may result in no benefit being accorded for the non-English application (i.e., the examiner respectfully requests submission of the appropriate English translated version of the foreign priority document if benefit is sought). See MPEP 213.04. Information Disclosure Statement The examiner has considered the references cited in the information disclosure statement filed of record. Specification A corrected abstract of the disclosure is required and must be presented on a separate sheet, apart from any other text. See MPEP § 608.01(b). Correction is required. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b): (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. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph: The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention. Claims 11, 12, 15, 16, 18, and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor, or for pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention. Regarding the claims, the phrases "such as", “e.g.”, “preferably” renders the claims indefinite because it is unclear whether the limitations following the phrase are part of the claimed invention. See MPEP § 2173.05(d). Correction is required. Conclusion No claims are allowed. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRIAN E MCDOWELL whose telephone number is (571)270-5755. The examiner can normally be reached on 8:30-6 MF. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jeffrey Murray can be reached at 571-272-9023. 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. /BRIAN E MCDOWELL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1624
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Prosecution Timeline

Feb 27, 2023
Application Filed
Feb 25, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §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

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
74%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+30.3%)
2y 4m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1102 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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