Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/460,381

SUPPORTED METALLOCENE CATALYST, METHOD FOR PREPARING THE SAME, AND USE OF THE SAME FOR PREPARING POLYOLEFIN

Non-Final OA §102§103
Filed
Sep 01, 2023
Examiner
HUHN, RICHARD A
Art Unit
1764
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
National Chung Cheng University
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
66%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 11m
To Grant
72%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 66% — above average
66%
Career Allow Rate
585 granted / 882 resolved
+1.3% vs TC avg
Moderate +6% lift
Without
With
+6.0%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 11m
Avg Prosecution
36 currently pending
Career history
918
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.5%
-39.5% vs TC avg
§103
37.2%
-2.8% vs TC avg
§102
22.3%
-17.7% vs TC avg
§112
25.3%
-14.7% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 882 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 U.S.C. § 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 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. (a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. Claim s 1-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. §§ 102(a)(1) and 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by US Patent Application Publication No. 2013 / 0253155 A1 (herein “Luo”) . As to claim s 1 -7 and 9-15 : Luo describes supported catalyst compositions that are formed from interaction between an activator composition and a catalyst compound (see the abstract). Luo describes an example of a catalyst (see Example 1 in ¶¶ [0281]-[0282]) that is made by supporting trimethylaluminum and methylaluminoxane on silica gel (see ¶ [0281]) and then introducing the metallocene rac-1,2-bis[indenyl]-ethylene-zirconium dichloride (see ¶ [0282]). The trimethylaluminum is used in an amount of 8 wt% based on the combined weight of trimethylaluminum and methylaluminoxane (see the amounts in ¶ [0281]). As to claim s 8 and 16: The silica gel and metallocene in the cited example are used in a weight ratio of about 11:1 (0.50 g : 45 mg; see ¶¶ [0281]-[0282]). As to claim 17: Luo further discloses a process of using the cited catalyst to polymerize ethylene and 1-hexene (see ¶ [0293]-[0303]). Claim Rejections – 35 U.S.C. § 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 of this title, 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. Claim s 1-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103 as being unpatentable ove r Luo in view of US Patent No. 6,518,445 B1 (herein “Brantley”) . As to claims 1-7 and 9-15: Luo describes supported catalyst compositions that are formed from interaction between an activator composition and a catalyst compound (see the abstract). Luo describes an example of a catalyst (see Example 1 in ¶¶ [0281]-[0282]) that is made by supporting trimethylaluminum and methylaluminoxane on silica gel (see ¶ [0281]) and then introducing the metallocene rac-1,2-bis[indenyl]-ethylene-zirconium dichloride (see ¶ [0282]). The trimethylaluminum is used in an amount of 8 wt% based on the combined weight of trimethylaluminum and methylaluminoxane (see the amounts in ¶ [0281]), and the methylaluminoxane is provided in the form of a solution in toluene (id.). Luo does not disclose the full range of amounts of alkyl aluminum compound that is presently recited (greater than 0.01 to less than 14 wt% based on the alkyl aluminoxane and alkyl aluminum compounds). Brantley discloses that polyolefin manufacturers of products that come into contact with foodstuffs desire to minimize as much as possible, if not eliminate, aromatic hydrocarbons (see col. 1, ll. 58-65). Brantley discloses methylaluminoxane compositions that have superior solubility in non-aromatic hydrocarbons (see the abstract and col. 2, ll. 18-25). The compositions are either free of aluminum in the form of trimethylaluminum or if trimethylaluminum is present in the composition, most preferably no more than about 10 mole % of the total aluminum present in the composition is in the form of trimethylaluminum (see col. 2, ll. 42-48). This range overlaps the presently recited range of amounts of alkyl aluminum compound. In light of Brantley, one of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make and use Luo’s catalyst using Brantley’s methylaluminoxane compositions in place of Luo’s solution of methylaluminoxane in toluene order to reduce the amount of aromatic hydrocarbon solvent. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have made and used Luo’s catalyst using Brantley’s methylaluminoxane compositions in place of Luo’s solution of methylaluminoxane in toluene, thereby arriving at the presently claimed invention. As to claims 8 and 16: The silica gel and metallocene in the cited example of Luo are used in a weight ratio of about 11:1 (0.50 g : 45 mg; see ¶¶ [0281]-[0282]). As to claim 17: Luo further discloses a process of using the cited catalyst to polymerize ethylene and 1-hexene (see ¶ [0293]-[0303]). Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FILLIN "Examiner name" \* MERGEFORMAT RICHARD A. HUHN whose telephone number is FILLIN "Phone number" \* MERGEFORMAT (571)270-7345 . The examiner can normally be reached FILLIN "Work Schedule?" \* MERGEFORMAT Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 6 PM EST . 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 Arrie (Lanee) Reuther can be reached at FILLIN "SPE Phone?" \* MERGEFORMAT (571) 270-7026 . 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. /RICHARD A. HUHN/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1764
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Sep 01, 2023
Application Filed
Mar 10, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102, §103 (current)

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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
66%
Grant Probability
72%
With Interview (+6.0%)
2y 11m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 882 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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