Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/227,634

RUBBER COMPOSITION AND PNEUMATIC TIRE USING THE SAME

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Jul 28, 2023
Examiner
JOHNSTON, BRIEANN R
Art Unit
1766
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
Toyo Tire Corporation
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
49%
Grant Probability
Moderate
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 11m
To Grant
82%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 49% of resolved cases
49%
Career Allow Rate
491 granted / 1002 resolved
-16.0% vs TC avg
Strong +33% interview lift
Without
With
+33.2%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 11m
Avg Prosecution
61 currently pending
Career history
1063
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.4%
-39.6% vs TC avg
§103
50.4%
+10.4% vs TC avg
§102
21.6%
-18.4% vs TC avg
§112
17.9%
-22.1% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1002 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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 . In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status. 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. Claims 1-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by WO 2023/095808 based on a foreign filing date of November 24, 2021. For convenience, the machine translation will be cited below. WO ‘808 exemplifies a rubber composition C which is used in Example 1 comprising the following: PNG media_image1.png 478 1092 media_image1.png Greyscale Anti-aging agent 2 is N,N’-bis(1,4-dimethylpentyl)-p-phenylenediamine. WO ‘808 discloses the vulcanization accelerator is preferably N-cyclohexyl-2-benzothiazolylsulfenamide. WO ‘808 exemplifies the inclusion of less than 2 phr of other chemicals, and specifically discloses that the anti-aging component can further comprise a quinoline-based anti-aging agent in addition to the amine-based anti-aging agent. The broadest reasonable interpretation of the claimed composition is the inclusion of 0-70 wt% silica. No silica is present. WO ‘808 teaches away from using anti-aging agent N-phenyl-N’-(1,3-dimethylbutyl)-p-phenylenediamine which is used in Composition A and Comparative Example 1. WO ‘808 anticipates instant claims 1, 5 and 9. Claims 2, 6 and 10 are rejected as the instant invention does not require the presence of silica, and claims 2, 6 and 10 only limit the silica when it is present. As to claims 3-4, 7-8 and 11-12, WO ‘808 discloses the rubber composition as suitable for use in a rubber-metal composite, which can be used as a reinforcing agent in automobile tires, particularly wire chafers, which are known in the art as a protective layer located in the sidewall/bead area of a tire to protect against rim chafing. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRIEANN R JOHNSTON whose telephone number is (571)270-7344. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 8:00 AM - 4:00 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, Randy Gulakowski can be reached at (571)272-1302. 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. /Brieann R Johnston/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1766
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Jul 28, 2023
Application Filed
Nov 22, 2023
Response after Non-Final Action
Feb 12, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12599545
DENTAL ADHESIVE COMPOSITION, DENTAL ADHESIVE MATERIAL, AND DENTAL ADHESIVE MATERIAL PACKAGE
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12595385
INKJET INKS
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 07, 2026
Patent 12577371
OXIDATIVELY CURABLE COATING COMPOSITION
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 17, 2026
Patent 12570829
PIPE MADE OF PEROXIDE-CROSSLINKED POLYETHYLENE OF HIGH UV STABILITY
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 10, 2026
Patent 12570828
CHARCOAL PRODUCTS MADE WITH PHENOLIC RESIN BINDER AND METHODS FOR MAKING THEREOF
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 10, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

AI Strategy Recommendation

Get an AI-powered prosecution strategy using examiner precedents, rejection analysis, and claim mapping.
Powered by AI — typically takes 5-10 seconds

Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
49%
Grant Probability
82%
With Interview (+33.2%)
2y 11m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1002 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

Sign in with your work email

Enter your email to receive a magic link. No password needed.

Personal email addresses (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.) are not accepted.

Free tier: 3 strategy analyses per month