Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 18, 2026
Application No. 18/572,242

MICRONEEDLE ARRAYS

Non-Final OA §112
Filed
Dec 20, 2023
Examiner
FREDRICKSON, COURTNEY B
Art Unit
3783
Tech Center
3700 — Mechanical Engineering & Manufacturing
Assignee
Latch Medical Limited
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
75%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
3y 2m
To Grant
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 75% — above average
75%
Career Allow Rate
289 granted / 384 resolved
+5.3% vs TC avg
Strong +31% interview lift
Without
With
+31.0%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 2m
Avg Prosecution
48 currently pending
Career history
432
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
1.5%
-38.5% vs TC avg
§103
38.2%
-1.8% vs TC avg
§102
20.6%
-19.4% vs TC avg
§112
29.3%
-10.7% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 384 resolved cases

Office Action

§112
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. Information Disclosure Statement The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner. Claim Objections Claims 1 and 43 are objected to because of the following informalities: Regarding claim 1 , it is recommended to amend the claim to recite “ a plane of a first sheet” and “ a plane of a second sheet” in lines 2 and 3, respectively. Regarding claim 1, it is recommended to amend the claim to recite “the first and second sheets overlie one another” in line 4 to correct for spelling. Regarding claim 43 , it is recommended to amend the claim to recite “ a plane of a first sheet” and “ a plane of a second sheet” in lines 2 and 4, respectively. Appropriate correction is required. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b): (b ) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA), second paragraph: The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the appl icant regards as his invention. Claims 38 and 50 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention. Regarding claims 38 and 50 , the claims recite that the microneedles “ lie in a plane perpendicular to the plane of the first and second sheet and parallel to the direction of relative displacement between the first and second sheets ”. Claims 1 and 43, from which claims 38 and 50 depend, respectively, recite that the direction of displacement is parallel to the plane of the first and second sheets. As such, it is unclear how the microneedles can be both perpendicular to the plane of the first/second sheets and parallel to the direction of relative displacement. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 1, 28-37, 39-49, and 51-53 are allowed over the prior art of record. The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance: The claims in this application are allowed because the prior art of record fails to disclose either singly or in combination the claimed microneedle system and method of manufacturing the microneedle system. The closest prior art of record is Bertollo (US 20190314012 ). Regarding independent claims 1 and 43 , Bertollo fails to teach among all the limitations or render obvious at least some of the microneedles are folded out of the plane of the first or second sheet about a fold axis that extends parallel to the direction of relative displacement between the first and second arrays of microneedles , in combination with the total structure and function as claimed. Bertollo teaches a substantially similar microneedle system and associated method of manufacture (figs. 22a-d). Specifically, Bertollo discloses a first array of microneedles (see below) formed from and folded out of the plane of a first sheet (first section 814 in fig. 22a); a second array of microneedles (see below) formed from and folded out of the plane of a second sheet (second section 816 in fig. 22a); the first and second sheets overly one another (fig. 22a-d) and the second array of microneedles extends through an array of openings in the first sheet to be interspersed with the first array of microneedles (see the three openings formed by dotted line below; figs. 22a-b shows the second array below as extending through the openings) ; wherein the first array of microneedles is displaceable relative to the second array of microneedles in a direction parallel to the plane of the first and second sheets (fig. 22a-b shows the sections 814 and 816 moving horizontally which is a direction parallel to the plane of the sections 814 and 816). Bertollo further discloses that at least some of the microneedles are folded out of the plane of the first or second sheet about a fold axis (see below). However, as seen below, this fold axis is perpendicular to the direction of relative displacement between the first and second arrays of microneedles (see below), and not parallel , as required by the claim. Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.” Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See PTO-892 for additional references which disclose microneedles are formed from and folded out of first and second sheets and in which the first and second sheets overlie each other . Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FILLIN "Examiner name" \* MERGEFORMAT COURTNEY FREDRICKSON whose telephone number is FILLIN "Phone number" \* MERGEFORMAT (571)270-7481 . The examiner can normally be reached FILLIN "Work Schedule?" \* MERGEFORMAT Monday-Friday (9 AM - 5 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 BHISMA MEHTA can be reached at FILLIN "SPE Phone?" \* MERGEFORMAT 571-272-3383 . 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. /COURTNEY FREDRICKSON/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3783
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Dec 20, 2023
Application Filed
Mar 28, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §112 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12576258
Infusion Pump Assembly
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 17, 2026
Patent 12576193
BREAST PUMP
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 17, 2026
Patent 12564704
INTRALUMINAL DEVICE WITH LOOPED CORE WIRE
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 03, 2026
Patent 12544104
SUBCUTANEOUS DEVICE WITH LEAK PREVENTION
2y 5m to grant Granted Feb 10, 2026
Patent 12533011
MEDICAL DEVICE
2y 5m to grant Granted Jan 27, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

AI Strategy Recommendation

Get an AI-powered prosecution strategy using examiner precedents, rejection analysis, and claim mapping.
Powered by AI — typically takes 5-10 seconds

Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
75%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+31.0%)
3y 2m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 384 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

Sign in with your work email

Enter your email to receive a magic link. No password needed.

Personal email addresses (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.) are not accepted.

Free tier: 3 strategy analyses per month