Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/509,649

ADJUSTABLE AEROSOL GENERATION APPARATUS

Non-Final OA §103
Filed
Nov 15, 2023
Examiner
FIGG, LAURA B
Art Unit
1781
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
Yibla (Usa) Technology Co. Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
58%
Grant Probability
Moderate
1-2
OA Rounds
3y 7m
To Grant
80%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 58% of resolved cases
58%
Career Allow Rate
196 granted / 341 resolved
-7.5% vs TC avg
Strong +23% interview lift
Without
With
+22.7%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 7m
Avg Prosecution
32 currently pending
Career history
373
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.4%
-39.6% vs TC avg
§103
55.9%
+15.9% vs TC avg
§102
17.4%
-22.6% vs TC avg
§112
22.1%
-17.9% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 341 resolved cases

Office Action

§103
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 § 103 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 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. The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows: 1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art. 2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue. 3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art. 4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness. Claims 1-3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nettenstrom et al. (US 2019/0046745) in view of Mcevoy et al. (WO 2022/238119) . Regarding claims 1-3, Nettenstrom teaches an adjustable aerosol generation apparatus ( Nettenstrom para 6, 91 ) comprising a suction nozzle (mouthpiece) ( Nettenstrom para 31, item 250) , a housing (shell) ( Nettenstrom para 47, item 410 /480 ) , a liquid storage member (reservoir) ( Nettenstrom para 26, item 270) , an atomization core (atomization chamber) ( Nettenstrom para 50, item 465) , a sealing base (cartomizer plug) ( Nettenstrom para 50, item 462) , an adjusting member ( Nettenstrom para 91) , and a controller ( Nettenstrom para 48, 85, item 300) . Nettenstrom further teaches that the suction nozzle (mouthpiece) ( item 250) is connected to the housing ( item 480 ) via latches ( item 413 ) where the housing has a receiving cavity ( Nettenstrom f ig 4, unnumbered) and air intake hole ( item 214 ) ( Nettenstrom fig 8B, para 33) . The liquid storage member ( item 270 ) slots into the receiving cavity ( fig 4) and as it holds e-liquid is therefore configured to store to-be-atomized liquid ( Nettenstrom para 26-29) ; the atomization core is situated within the liquid storage member (reservoir) ( Nettenstrom para 56) and is configured to atomize the liquid ( Nettenstrom para 51-56) ; and a sealing bases covers an end face, opposite the suction nozzle of the liquid storage member and acts as an end seal for the reservoir ( Nettenstrom para 50, item 460) . The air intake hole is at the base of the device ( Nettenstrom fig 8B ) and an air guide hole ( item 583 ) is provided to the atomization chamber ( Nettenstrom para 62); and the controller is electrically connected to the atomization core ( Nettenstrom para 26-29) . Finally, Nettenstrom teaches that the air intake may be subjected to a user-controlled baffle or other mechanism (adjusting member) to increase or decrease airflow by a desired amount ( Nettenstrom para 91). Nettenstrom is silent with respect to the air intake adjustment being movably disposed on a side of the sealing base opposite the liquid storage member, and is configured to adjust the air intake volume of the air guide hole and is configured to adjust an air intake volume. Nettenstrom and Mcevoy are related in the field of aerosol generation devices. Mcevoy teaches providing such a device with a n adjustable member disposed on a side of the unit such as a screw (which can push or pull) , or other mechanical mechanisms like levers that have the same effect ( Mcevoy para 31- 33, 35-37 ) . Mcevoy further teaches that the adjustable member may comprise a sheet which may protrude into the air flow channel, moving perpendicularly to cut airflow ( Mcevoy para 32) and that the adjustable member may extend into the air flow path, but not cut it off fully ( Mcevoy para 36, fig 1, 2 item 17) . It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the adjusting member of Nettenstrom to specifically be a user-controlled baffle (adjusting sheet) that can be mechanically moved across the air guide hole via a mechanism such as a screw (push/pull protrusion) such that it is not of a greater depth than the air intake hole as taught by Mcevoy because this allows a user to control the amount of air drawn by the air intake/air flow guide holes. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 4-17 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. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: the prior art of record does not teach or suggest the combination of features and structural elements set forth in claims 4-17. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FILLIN "Examiner name" \* MERGEFORMAT LAURA B FIGG whose telephone number is FILLIN "Phone number" \* MERGEFORMAT (571)272-9882 . The examiner can normally be reached FILLIN "Work Schedule?" \* MERGEFORMAT M-Th 9a-6p Mountain . 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 Frank Vineis can be reached at FILLIN "SPE Phone?" \* MERGEFORMAT (571) 270-1547 . 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. /LAURA B FIGG/ Examiner, Art Unit 1781 3/21/2026
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Nov 15, 2023
Application Filed
Mar 21, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §103 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

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COSMETIC MATERIAL AND PRODUCTION METHOD FOR COSMETIC MATERIAL
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12598697
CIRCUIT BOARD AND MULTILAYER CIRCUIT BOARD
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 07, 2026
Patent 12576558
THERMOPLASTIC PREPREG, FIBER-REINFORCED PLASTIC, AND MANUFACTURING METHOD THEREFOR
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 17, 2026
Patent 12571122
AUTOMOTIVE CRASHWORTHINESS ENERGY ABSORPTION PART, AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING AUTOMOTIVE CRASHWORTHINESS ENERGY ABSORPTION PART
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Patent 12558201
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2y 5m to grant Granted Feb 24, 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
58%
Grant Probability
80%
With Interview (+22.7%)
3y 7m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 341 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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