Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/284,403

RESIN COMPOSITION AND MOLDED PRODUCT

Non-Final OA §102§103
Filed
Sep 27, 2023
Examiner
WOLLSCHLAGER, JEFFREY MICHAEL
Art Unit
1742
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
Tbm Co. Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
62%
Grant Probability
Moderate
1-2
OA Rounds
3y 6m
To Grant
91%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 62% of resolved cases
62%
Career Allow Rate
610 granted / 990 resolved
-3.4% vs TC avg
Strong +30% interview lift
Without
With
+29.6%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 6m
Avg Prosecution
45 currently pending
Career history
1035
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.3%
-39.7% vs TC avg
§103
48.0%
+8.0% vs TC avg
§102
16.9%
-23.1% vs TC avg
§112
27.1%
-12.9% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 990 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. Claim s 1 and 4-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(1) as being anticipated by Cai et al. (CN 110 079 008) . Regarding claim s 1 and 4 , Cai et al. teach a resin composition comprising: a polyethylene-based resin ( paragraphs [0012], [0020], [0067]-[0070] ) , an inorganic substance powder ( paragraphs [0012], [0013], [0067], [0070]; e.g. heavy calcium carbonate ) , zinc stearate ( paragraphs [0012], [0019], [0067] ) , and stearic acid ( paragraphs [0012], [0017], [0067] ) , wherein a mass ratio of the polyethylene-based resin and the inorganic substance powder is 10:90 to 90:10 ( paragraphs [0012], [0067] ) ; a content of the zinc stearate is 0.05% by mass or more and 0.60% by mass or less relative to the resin composition ( paragraphs [0012], [0067]; 0.5% ) ; a content of the stearic acid is 0.10% by mass or more and 1.20% by mass or less relative to the resin composition ( paragraphs [0012], [0067]; 1% ) ; and a mass ratio of the zinc stearate and the stearic acid is 1:1.5 to 1:4 ( paragraphs [0012], [0067]; an anticipatory 1:2 mass ratio at paragraph [0067] and an overlapping range at paragraph [0012] ) . As to claim 5, Cai et al. teach the average particle size as claimed with sufficient specificity (paragraphs [0013], [0067], [0070]). As to claims 6-8, Cai et al. teach extruding or blow molding the composition into a molded product/membrane (paragraphs [0005] and [0010]). 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. 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. Claim s 2 and 3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cai et al. (CN 110 079 008), as applied to claims 1 and 4-8 above . As to claim 2, Cai et al. suggest blends of polyethylene may be utilized (paragraph [0020], [0067]). It would have been prima facie obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art to have determined suitable polyethylenes to use in blends/mixtures of Cai et al., including the relative densities and melt flow rates as claimed, in order to achieve desired properties in the molded membrane. As to claim 3, Cai et al. teach the composition set forth above. Further, Cai et al. suggest inclusion of polyethylene wax in amounts that overlap the claimed range (paragraph [0019]). Overlapping ranges are prima facie obvious (see MPEP 2144.05). Further, i t would have been prima facie obvious to have utilized a mixture of the processing aids, including polyethylene wax and zinc stearate, in amounts as claimed, in order to effectively provide processing aids in amounts disclosed as being suitable for the composition. The total amount of processing aid is up to 1% by mass in Cai et al. and the amounts of each of zinc stearate and polyethylene wax up to that value would have been readily determined (see MPEP 2144.06-2144.07). Conclusion T he following references cited in the International Search Report and utilized in the European, Japanese, and Chinese Patent Offices to reject the claims are also understood to remain applicable to the claimed invention substantially as set forth in the ISR and by the other Offices and are currently not applied in this Office Action to avoid duplicatin g/multiplying the rejections : JP 52-146454; JP 04-359941; and CN 103289179 . These references should also be considered by applicant prior to replying to this Office Action. The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The other cited references disclose analogous compositions. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FILLIN "Examiner name" \* MERGEFORMAT Jeff Wollschlager whose telephone number is FILLIN "Phone number" \* MERGEFORMAT (571)272-8937 . The examiner can normally be reached FILLIN "Work Schedule?" \* MERGEFORMAT M-F 7:00-3:30 . 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 Christina Johnson can be reached at FILLIN "SPE Phone?" \* MERGEFORMAT 571-272-1176 . 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. /JEFFREY M WOLLSCHLAGER/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1742
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Sep 27, 2023
Application Filed
Mar 19, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102, §103 (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

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
62%
Grant Probability
91%
With Interview (+29.6%)
3y 6m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 990 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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