Prosecution Insights
Last updated: May 29, 2026
Application No. 18/451,344

NOVEL POLYURETHANE OR POLYURETHANE-UREA COMPOSITION WITH ENHANCED LOW TEMPERATURE PERFORMANCE

Final Rejection §102
Filed
Aug 17, 2023
Priority
Oct 01, 2022 — provisional 63/378,055
Examiner
LEONARD, MICHAEL L
Art Unit
1763
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
Ingevity UK Ltd.
OA Round
2 (Final)
64%
Grant Probability
Moderate
3-4
OA Rounds
4m
Est. Remaining
72%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 64% of resolved cases
64%
Career Allowance Rate
845 granted / 1327 resolved
-1.3% vs TC avg
Moderate +8% lift
Without
With
+7.9%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 1m
Avg Prosecution
45 currently pending
Career history
1387
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.1%
-39.9% vs TC avg
§103
85.1%
+45.1% vs TC avg
§102
10.8%
-29.2% vs TC avg
§112
2.2%
-37.8% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1327 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 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 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by WO-2020/099540 to Phillips et al. (U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2022/0002468 will be used for citations). As to claims 1 and 5-8, Phillips discloses a polyurethane or polyurethane-urea composition comprising the reaction product of at least one block copolymer A-B-A having a molecular weight of 1,000 to 5,000 and a diisocyanate component wherein A-B-A is the reaction product of 45-55% by weight of polytetramethylene glycol (MW 1,000) or poly(methytetramethylene) glycol (MW 1,000) and 45-55 wt% of e-caprolactone or ethylene or propylene oxide (Table 1, 0042). Phillips discloses a molar ratio of NCO:OH of 0.9:1 to 2:1 (0045). As to claims 2 and 13-15, Phillips discloses wherein the reaction mixture further comprises a diol or diamine chain extender such as 1,4-butanediol (0053). As to claims 3-4 and 18, Phillips discloses a shore A hardness of 60 or 61 (Examples 9-10, Table 2) and NOC:OH ratios of 1:1 (See Example 1). As to claims 9-12, Phillips discloses suitable diisocyanates including 4,4-diphenylmethane diisocyanate (Examples 1-9) and 1,6-hexamethylene diisocyanate (0028). As to claims 16-17, Phillips discloses aromatic diamine chain extenders including 4,4-diaminodiphenylmethane (0030). As to claims 19-20, Phillips discloses wherein the composition is a thermoplastic polyurethane, a hot cast polyurethane, a cold cast polyurethane, a microcellular polyurethane foam, or polyurethane adhesive, or 1- or 2-component polyurethane coating, an additive manufacturing or a polyurethane sealant (0041). 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 17, 2023
Application Filed
Oct 27, 2025
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102
Oct 30, 2025
Response Filed
May 26, 2026
Final Rejection mailed — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12637535
Non-Ionic Hydrophilized Polyisocyanates Having a Very Low Monomer Content
2y 11m to grant Granted May 26, 2026
Patent 12624154
XYLYLENEDIISOCYANATE COMPOSITION AND OPTICAL POLYMERIZABLE COMPOSITION COMPRISING SAME
3y 2m to grant Granted May 12, 2026
Patent 12624149
POLYTHIOL COMPOSITION AND OPTICAL COMPOSITION COMPRISING SAME
3y 2m to grant Granted May 12, 2026
Patent 12617892
APPLICATION OF THE RING-OPENING OF URETDIONES AT LOW TEMPERATURE AND AMBIENT ATMOSPHERE
3y 3m to grant Granted May 05, 2026
Patent 12612485
CONTINUOUS PRODUCTION OF POLYURETHANE PREPOLYMERS
4y 7m to grant Granted Apr 28, 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
64%
Grant Probability
72%
With Interview (+7.9%)
3y 1m (~4m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Moderate
PTA Risk
Based on 1327 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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