Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 27, 2026
Application No. 18/292,018

PROCESS FOR PREPARING A HIGH-RESILIENCE POLYURETHANE FOAM

Non-Final OA §112
Filed
Jan 25, 2024
Priority
Aug 11, 2021 — EU 21190710.0 +1 more
Examiner
KRASNOW, NICHOLAS R
Art Unit
1744
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
Shell USA Inc.
OA Round
3 (Non-Final)
66%
Grant Probability
Favorable
3-4
OA Rounds
6m
Est. Remaining
79%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 66% — above average
66%
Career Allowance Rate
279 granted / 420 resolved
+1.4% vs TC avg
Moderate +13% lift
Without
With
+12.9%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 3m
Avg Prosecution
52 currently pending
Career history
487
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.9%
-39.1% vs TC avg
§103
58.4%
+18.4% vs TC avg
§102
8.8%
-31.2% vs TC avg
§112
28.8%
-11.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 420 resolved cases

Office Action

§112
DETAILED CORRESPONDENCE 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 . Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114 A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission has been entered. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a): (a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention. The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112: The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention. Claims 1-2, 4-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. In reference to claim 1, the specification discloses “wherein at least one of the following requirements (I) and (II) are met” there is no disclosure requiring “wherein at least one of the following requirements (I) and (II) and (III) are met” as newly claimed. Conclusion Any prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NICHOLAS KRASNOW whose telephone number is (571)270-1154. The examiner can normally be reached M-R: 8am-5pm. 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, Xiao Zhao can be reached on 571-270-5343. 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. /NICHOLAS KRASNOW/Examiner, Art Unit 1744
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Jan 25, 2024
Application Filed
Oct 22, 2025
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §112
Jan 22, 2026
Response Filed
Jun 17, 2026
Final Rejection mailed — §112
Aug 27, 2026
Request for Continued Examination
Aug 30, 2026
Response after Non-Final Action
Sep 30, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §112 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

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2y 6m to grant Granted Oct 06, 2026
Patent 12728580
HIGH PERFORMANCE COOLING ELEMENT
2y 7m to grant Granted Sep 08, 2026
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4y 4m to grant Granted Aug 04, 2026
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
66%
Grant Probability
79%
With Interview (+12.9%)
3y 3m (~6m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
High
PTA Risk
Based on 420 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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