Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/090,313

COMPOUND, RESIST UNDERLAYER FILM COMPOSITION INCLUDING SAME, AND RESIST UNDERLAYER FILM

Non-Final OA §102§112
Filed
Dec 28, 2022
Examiner
CHU, JOHN S Y
Art Unit
1737
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
Dongjin Semichem Co. Ltd.
OA Round
3 (Non-Final)
77%
Grant Probability
Favorable
3-4
OA Rounds
3y 1m
To Grant
82%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 77% — above average
77%
Career Allow Rate
740 granted / 959 resolved
+12.2% vs TC avg
Moderate +5% lift
Without
With
+5.1%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 1m
Avg Prosecution
65 currently pending
Career history
1024
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.2%
-39.8% vs TC avg
§103
48.2%
+8.2% vs TC avg
§102
29.9%
-10.1% vs TC avg
§112
12.1%
-27.9% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 959 resolved cases

Office Action

§102 §112
DETAILED CORRESPONDENCE This Office action is in response to the RCE received January 22, 2026. 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 1, 2, 4-9, are 11-18 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 applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention. Claim 1 is indefinite with respect to R1 which claims 2 or 3 substituents which are meta-substituted and para-substituted around the carbon(*) wherein R1 is shown to be connected to the benzene ring by a single bond according to [Formula 1], so it indefinite with respect to having 2 or 3 substituents which are meta-substituted and para-substituted around the carbon(*). Correction to clarify the scope of the protection sought is necessary. 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(s) 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a) (1) as being anticipated by LEE et al (2010/0190994). The claimed invention recites the following: PNG media_image1.png 540 682 media_image1.png Greyscale LEE et al disclose an intermediate compound which anticipates the claimed structure of [Formula 1] on page 17 para. [0029] shown below: PNG media_image2.png 164 218 media_image2.png Greyscale The reaction of an anthracene-9,10-dione with a dibromo benzene results in an intermediate structure above defined in Reaction Scheme 2 of page 17. The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. BERENS et al (8,101,776) is cited of interest as disclosing a compound used for preparing an electronic device Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOHN S CHU whose telephone number is (571)272-1329. The examiner can normally be reached M-F, IFP-Flex. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Mark Huff, can be reached at telephone number 571-272-1385. 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://portal.uspto.gov/external/portal. Should you have questions about access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). 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. /John S. Chu/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1737 J. Chu February 11, 2026
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Dec 28, 2022
Application Filed
Jun 28, 2025
Non-Final Rejection — §102, §112
Sep 29, 2025
Response Filed
Oct 17, 2025
Final Rejection — §102, §112
Dec 19, 2025
Response after Non-Final Action
Jan 22, 2026
Request for Continued Examination
Jan 27, 2026
Response after Non-Final Action
Feb 11, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102, §112 (current)

Precedent Cases

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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
77%
Grant Probability
82%
With Interview (+5.1%)
3y 1m
Median Time to Grant
High
PTA Risk
Based on 959 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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