Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/276,352

Curable Composition

Non-Final OA §102§103
Filed
Aug 08, 2023
Examiner
LEONARD, MICHAEL L
Art Unit
1763
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
LG Chem, Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
64%
Grant Probability
Moderate
1-2
OA Rounds
3y 3m
To Grant
72%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 64% of resolved cases
64%
Career Allow Rate
839 granted / 1319 resolved
-1.4% vs TC avg
Moderate +8% lift
Without
With
+8.0%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 3m
Avg Prosecution
64 currently pending
Career history
1383
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.6%
-39.4% vs TC avg
§103
50.5%
+10.5% vs TC avg
§102
19.2%
-20.8% vs TC avg
§112
18.7%
-21.3% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1319 resolved cases

Office Action

§102 §103
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. Claims 1-15 and 17-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2012/0252967 Ercole et al. As to claims 1, 6-9, 11-13, Ercole discloses a polyol composition containing fillers or pigments (0104) used in a curable polyurethane comprising polyols represented by the following formulas: PNG media_image1.png 96 416 media_image1.png Greyscale PNG media_image2.png 136 612 media_image2.png Greyscale In admixture with 1,4-butanediol and a polycaprolactone diol with a molecular weight of 1,000 (0230, Examples 4-14). As to claims 2-5, Ercole discloses a polyurethane polymer derived from the polyol component that is used as an adhesive between aluminum strips (0021-0024, Figures 4-7). Ercole discloses adhesive properties (Figures 6-7). Ercole is silent with respect to the claimed properties, however, the reference teaches the same reaction components used within amounts taught by the instant specification. Accordingly, the properties relating to adhesive would be inherently present. As to claim 14, Ercole discloses reacting the polyol composition with a polyisocyanate (See Examples 4-14). As to claims 17-18, Ercole discloses a two-component composition comprising a polyol composition containing fillers or pigments (0104) used in a curable (0209, 0232) polyurethane by reaction with a second component comprising a polyisocyanate comprising polyols represented by the following formulas: PNG media_image1.png 96 416 media_image1.png Greyscale PNG media_image2.png 136 612 media_image2.png Greyscale In admixture with 1,4-butanediol and a polycaprolactone diol with a molecular weight of 1,000 (0230, Examples 4-14). Ercole discloses the polyurethane polymer is used as an adhesive between aluminum strips (0021-0024, Figures 4-7). 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. Claims 2-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2012/0252967 Ercole et al. As to claims 2-5, Ercole discloses a polyol composition containing fillers or pigments (0104) used in a curable polyurethane comprising polyols represented by the following formulas: PNG media_image1.png 96 416 media_image1.png Greyscale PNG media_image2.png 136 612 media_image2.png Greyscale In admixture with 1,4-butanediol and a polycaprolactone diol with a molecular weight of 1,000 (0230, Examples 4-14). Ercole discloses a polyurethane polymer derived from the polyol component that is used as an adhesive between aluminum strips (0021-0024, Figures 4-7). Ercole discloses adhesive properties (Figures 6-7). Ercole is silent with respect to the claimed properties. However, the reference teaches all of the claimed ingredients. Therefore, the claimed effects and physical properties, i.e. adhesive properties and hardness properties would implicitly be achieved by a composite with all the claimed ingredients. If it is the applicants’ position that this would not be the case: (1) evidence would need to be provided to support the applicants’ position; and (2) it would the Office’s position that the application contains inadequate disclosure that there is no teaching as to how to obtain the claimed properties with only the claimed ingredients. Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2012/0252967 Ercole et al. in view of U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2019/0309207 to Kang et al. As to claim 15, Ercole discloses a polyol composition containing fillers or pigments (0104) used in a curable polyurethane comprising polyols represented by the following formulas: PNG media_image1.png 96 416 media_image1.png Greyscale PNG media_image2.png 136 612 media_image2.png Greyscale In admixture with 1,4-butanediol and a polycaprolactone diol with a molecular weight of 1,000 (0230, Examples 4-14). Ercole discloses a polyurethane polymer derived from the polyol component that is used as an adhesive between aluminum strips (0021-0024, Figures 4-7). Ercole discloses adhesive properties (Figures 6-7). Ercole does not expressly disclose the claimed fillers. However, the claimed fillers including aluminum nitride or boron nitride within polyurethane adhesives was known at the time of filing. This is support by Kang (0036-0040). At the time of filing it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to add the fillers taught in Kang to the composition of Ercole to obtain desired physical properties of the adhesive and provide improved insulation (0037). Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MICHAEL L LEONARD whose telephone number is (571)270-7450. The examiner can normally be reached M - F 7:00-4:00. 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, Joseph Del Sole can be reached at 571-272-1130. 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. /MICHAEL L LEONARD/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1763
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Aug 08, 2023
Application Filed
Dec 22, 2025
Non-Final Rejection — §102, §103 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

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CROSSLINKING AGENT COMPOSITION FOR WATER-COMPATIBLE RESIN, AND WATER-COMPATIBLE RESIN COMPOSITION
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Patent 12583993
RECYCLED POLYOL
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 24, 2026
Patent 12570789
CURABLE COMPOUND, CURABLE COMPOSITION, AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING CURABLE COMPOSITION
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 10, 2026
Patent 12565561
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2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 03, 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
64%
Grant Probability
72%
With Interview (+8.0%)
3y 3m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1319 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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