Prosecution Insights
Last updated: May 04, 2026
Application No. 18/027,469

HETEROCYCLIC COMPOUND, ORGANIC LIGHT-EMITTING DEVICE COMPRISING SAME, MANUFACTURING METHOD THEREFOR, AND COMPOSITION FOR ORGANIC LAYER OF ORGANIC LIGHT-EMITTING DEVICE

Non-Final OA §102§103
Filed
Mar 21, 2023
Priority
Oct 08, 2020 — RE 10-2020-0130395 +1 more
Examiner
DEGUIRE, SEAN M
Art Unit
1786
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
Lt Materials Co. Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
59%
Grant Probability
Moderate
1-2
OA Rounds
11m
Est. Remaining
91%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 59% of resolved cases
59%
Career Allowance Rate
161 granted / 271 resolved
-5.6% vs TC avg
Strong +31% interview lift
Without
With
+31.2%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
4y 0m
Avg Prosecution
57 currently pending
Career history
328
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.1%
-39.9% vs TC avg
§103
55.2%
+15.2% vs TC avg
§102
12.8%
-27.2% vs TC avg
§112
19.1%
-20.9% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 271 resolved cases

Office Action

§102 §103
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. 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. (a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. Claim s 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(2) as being anticipated by Kim et al (US 2022/0029110) (Kim) . In reference to claims 1-5 , Kim teaches the compound as shown below (p 76) that reads on the instant claims. For Claim 1: Reads on a compound of chemical formula 1 wherein A2 is a group of formula 1-1, A1, A3 and A4 are each hydrogen, B1 to B3 are each hydrogen, B4 is a group of formula 1-2, R1 and R4 to R8 are each hydrogen, R2 and R4 are fused to form an aromatic ring, L is a direct bond, N-Het is a substituted triazine. For Claim 2: Reads chemical formula 1-1-3. For Claim 3: Reads on chemical formula 1-2-1. For Claim 4: Reads on hydrogen. For Claim 5: Reads on compound 163. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action: A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made. The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows: 1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art. 2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue. 3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art. 4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness . This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention. Claims 6 and 9-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over by Kim et al (US 2022/0029110) (Kim) FILLIN "Insert the prior art relied upon." \d "[ 2 ]" . In reference to claim s 6 and 9-11 , Kim teaches the compound as shown above for claim 1 and further teaches that this compound is used in an organic electronic device comprising a first and second electrode with organic layers between that include an emitting layer comprising the compound as a host material with additional host materials and a dopant in addition to other layers such as a hole transport layer (Kim [0003] [0080] [0081] [0141] [0228]). While Kim does not exemplify a device with this exact material included as the host material and device configuration, it would have been obvious to the ordinarily skilled artisan before the effective filing date of the instant application to have used the taught material for the taught purpose in the taught device structure as described by Kim. Claims 7-8 and 12-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over by Kim et al (US 2022/0029110) (Kim) in view of Cho et al (KR 20160041822) (Cho) . In reference to claim s 7-8 and 12-15 , Kim teaches the device as described above for claim 6 comprising additional hosts in the emitting layer and exemplifies methods for forming such using mixtures of host materials. Kim does not expressly state that the additional host material is the claimed material. With respect to the difference, Cho teaches, in analogous art, the compounds of formula 1 such as compound 2-A-1 ( Cho [0167]) as shown below for use as host materials that can be mixed with other host materials and that the use of these compounds improves efficiency, driving voltage and lifetime of the resulting device ( Cho [0008] [0024] [00184] [0273] etc.). Given that Cho discloses the host compound that encompasses the presently claimed compound, including a second host of formula 1 of Cho, it therefore would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the instant application, to use the compound, which is both disclosed by Cho and encompassed within the scope of the present claims and thereby arrive at the claimed invention. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FILLIN "Examiner name" \* MERGEFORMAT Sean M DeGuire whose telephone number is FILLIN "Phone number" \* MERGEFORMAT (571)270-1027 . The examiner can normally be reached FILLIN "Work Schedule?" \* MERGEFORMAT Monday to Friday, 7:00 AM - 5:00 PM . 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, FILLIN "SPE Name?" \* MERGEFORMAT Jennifer A. Boyd can be reached at FILLIN "SPE Phone?" \* MERGEFORMAT (571) 272-7783 . 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. /Sean M DeGuire/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1786
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Mar 21, 2023
Application Filed
Mar 27, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102, §103 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12615909
Light-Emitting Device and Light-Emitting Apparatus
3y 10m to grant Granted Apr 28, 2026
Patent 12606545
COMPOUND FOR ORGANIC ELECTRONIC ELEMENT, ORGANIC ELECTRONIC ELEMENT USING THE SAME, AND AN ELECTRONIC DEVICE THEREOF
5y 1m to grant Granted Apr 21, 2026
Patent 12610731
ORGANIC LIGHT EMITTING DIODE AND ORGANIC LIGHT EMITTING DEVICE INCLUDING THE SAME
3y 6m to grant Granted Apr 21, 2026
Patent 12604658
A PLURALITY OF HOST MATERIALS AND ORGANIC ELECTROLUMINESCENT DEVICE COMPRISING THE SAME
5y 3m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12598909
HETEROCYCLIC COMPOUND AND ORGANIC LIGHT-EMITTING DEVICE INCLUDING THE SAME
6y 8m to grant Granted Apr 07, 2026
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
59%
Grant Probability
91%
With Interview (+31.2%)
4y 0m (~11m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 271 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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