Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 02, 2026
Application No. 18/417,909

HAIR CARE ACCESSORIES

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Jan 19, 2024
Priority
Jan 19, 2023 — provisional 63/480,680 +5 more
Examiner
WAN, DEMING
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
Sharkninja Operating LLC
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
76%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 76% — above average
76%
Career Allowance Rate
720 granted / 942 resolved
+16.4% vs TC avg
Strong +42% interview lift
Without
With
+42.4%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 6m
Avg Prosecution
35 currently pending
Career history
961
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.5%
-39.5% vs TC avg
§103
51.3%
+11.3% vs TC avg
§102
19.4%
-20.6% vs TC avg
§112
25.1%
-14.9% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 942 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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 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. 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 9, 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Chinese Patent 2384490 to Luo. In Reference to Claim 9 Luo discloses a heater assembly comprising: a wall (Fig. 4, annotated by the examiner) having an inner surface (Fig. 4, annotated by the examiner) and an outer surface (Fig. 4, annotated by the examiner), a heating element (Fig. 4, 22) positioned adjacent to the inner surface of the wall, a plate (Fig. 4, 21) positioned adjacent to the heating element and configured to maintain the heating element in contact with the inner surface of the wall, and a power supply (Fig. 2, shows a power supply) configured to power the heating element. In Reference to Claim 10 Luo discloses the outer surface (Fig. 4, annotated by the examiner) of the wall comprises a heated hair contacting surface of a hair care appliance or a hair appliance accessory. (Fig. 4, 26) In Reference to Claim 12 Luo discloses the plate (Fig. 4, 21) is configured to maintain the heating element (Fig. 4,22) in contact with the inner surface (Fig. 4, annotated by the examiner) of the housing via pressure fitting the heater assembly within a housing of a hair care appliance or a hair appliance accessory. PNG media_image1.png 508 614 media_image1.png Greyscale Allowable Subject Matter Claims 1-8 and 14-17 are allowed. Claims 11 and 13 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DEMING WAN whose telephone number is (571)272-1410. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Thur: 8 am to 6 PM. 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, Michael Hoang can be reached at 57122726460. 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. DEMING . WAN Examiner Art Unit 3762 /DEMING WAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3762 8/11/26
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Jan 19, 2024
Application Filed
Aug 13, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12735830
CLOTHING TREATMENT APPARATUS
4y 0m to grant Granted Sep 15, 2026
Patent 12728446
FLUID VAPOR MIXING AND DELIVERY SYSTEM
3y 11m to grant Granted Sep 08, 2026
Patent 12729909
ELECTRODE SHEET OVEN DRYING APPARATUS, BATTERY PRODUCTION DEVICE, AND ELECTRODE SHEET OVEN DRYING METHOD
3y 2m to grant Granted Sep 08, 2026
Patent 12716652
DEVICE FOR DRYING SEMICONDUCTOR SUBSTRATES
4y 2m to grant Granted Aug 25, 2026
Patent 12721083
SUBSTRATE PROCESSING APPARATUS AND SUBSTRATE PROCESSING METHOD
3y 11m to grant Granted Aug 25, 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
76%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+42.4%)
2y 6m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 942 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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