Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/569,457

Aerosol Generating Device with a Vacuum Insulator

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Dec 12, 2023
Examiner
GRAY, LINDA LAMEY
Art Unit
1745
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
Jt International SA
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
83%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 9m
To Grant
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 83% — above average
83%
Career Allow Rate
651 granted / 787 resolved
+17.7% vs TC avg
Strong +17% interview lift
Without
With
+16.9%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 9m
Avg Prosecution
23 currently pending
Career history
810
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.1%
-39.9% vs TC avg
§103
37.3%
-2.7% vs TC avg
§102
22.9%
-17.1% vs TC avg
§112
33.9%
-6.1% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 787 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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 Objections Claim s 1 and 3 -4 are objected to because of the following informalit ies : (a) claim 1, “an” (L n 4) should be amended to read “the” (b) claim 3, “an” (Ln 2 ) should be amended to read “the” (c) claim 4, “an” (Ln2) should be amended to read “the”. 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. (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. Claims 1 - 7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(1) as being anticipated by Egoyants (WO 2013/034456 A1) . Claim 1 : Egoyants teaches a n aerosol generating device configured to generate an aerosol for inhalation by a user, comprising: ● a cavity 4 in which an aerosol forming substance 5 can be received ● a heater 3 configured to heat the aerosol forming substance 5 received in the cavity 4 (pg5 Lns19-32) ● a vacuum insulator 18 (pg20 L n 18) provided around the heater 3 (Fig1 Fig2 Fig3) , wherein an external surface of the vacuum insulator 18 may be an outer surface of the aerosol generating device (pg20 Lns18-20; pg21 Lns9-12; pg6 Lns11-14) that can be held by the user, in use (pg7 Lns4-6) (Fig1 annotated below): Claim 2 : Egoyants teaches the aerosol generating device of claim 1, further comprising an outer casing 7 that partially encloses the vacuum insulator 18 (pg20 Lns7-9) . Claim 3 : Egoyants teaches the aerosol generating device of claim 1, wherein the external surface of the vacuum insulator 18 is the outer surface of the aerosol generating device around a substantially f ull circumference of the aerosol generating device – in that the vacuum insulator 18 is about the full circumference of the aerosol generating device which encompasses “substantially” in claim 3 (Fig3 Fig5 as examples; pg4 Lns4-6 Lns10-12). Claim 4 : Egoyants teaches the aerosol generating device of claim 1, wherein the external surface of the vacuum insulator 18 is the outer surface of the aerosol generating device along a substantially full length of the aerosol generating device – in that the vacuum insulator 18 is along the full length of the aerosol generating device which encompasses “substantially” in claim 4 (Fig1 annotated above ). Claim 5 : Egoyants teaches the aerosol generating device of claims 1, wherein the vacuum insulator 18 comprises metal (pg20 Lns18-20). Claim 6 : Egoyants teaches the aerosol generating device of claim 1, configured to receive a consumable comprising tobacco within the cavity 4 (pg5 Lns19-22). Claim 7 : Egoyants teaches the aerosol generating device of claim 1, wherein the vacuum insulator 18 has an annular cylindrical shape (Fig3 – for example) . Prior Art of Record The following prior art is made of record , though not relied upon, is considered pertinent to applicant’s invention . ● Blandino teaches vacuum insulation around heating coils 122 of a smoking apparatus . ● Ballesteros teaches an aerosol generating device having vacuum insulation . ● Zhang teach a cigarette heater and metal vacuum insulation. ● MacDonald teaches tobacco in a fire cavity of a nicotine vaporizer. ● Qiu teaches an electronic cigarette having an annular vacuum insulation piece. ● Liu teaches the importance of insulation to prevent burning one’s hand when holding an e lectronic cigarette. ●A l teaches a layer of insulation along an entire length of an aerosol generating device. ● Sampson teaches an inhalation device having a controller, operating button, air inlets, cavity t o receive a tobacco rod, and a power source. ● Zinovik teaches an aerosol device having a heater along a cavity that receives a tobacco rod. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FILLIN "Examiner name" \* MERGEFORMAT LINDA GRAY whose telephone number is FILLIN "Phone number" \* MERGEFORMAT (571) 272-5778 . The examiner can normally be reached FILLIN "Work Schedule?" \* MERGEFORMAT Monday - Friday, 9 AM to 5:30 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, FILLIN "SPE Name?" \* MERGEFORMAT Phil Tucker can be reached at FILLIN "SPE Phone?" \* MERGEFORMAT (571) 272-1095 . 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. /LINDA L GRAY/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1745
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Dec 12, 2023
Application Filed
Mar 10, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

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2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 17, 2026
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Patent 12564215
PAPER SHEET FILTER ELEMENT FOR A SMOKING ARTICLE, AND ASSOCIATED METHOD
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 03, 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
83%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+16.9%)
2y 9m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 787 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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