Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/663,030

PATTERNING A CONDUCTIVE DEPOSITED LAYER USING A NUCLEATION INHIBITING COATING AND AN UNDERLYING METALLIC COATING

Non-Final OA §112
Filed
May 13, 2024
Examiner
HO, ANTHONY
Art Unit
2817
Tech Center
2800 — Semiconductors & Electrical Systems
Assignee
Oti Lumionics Inc.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
91%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 5m
To Grant
93%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 91% — above average
91%
Career Allow Rate
1007 granted / 1110 resolved
+22.7% vs TC avg
Minimal +2% lift
Without
With
+2.3%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 5m
Avg Prosecution
38 currently pending
Career history
1148
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
2.3%
-37.7% vs TC avg
§103
31.8%
-8.2% vs TC avg
§102
40.5%
+0.5% vs TC avg
§112
16.1%
-23.9% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1110 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 on May 13, 2024 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner. The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on December 20, 2024 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner. 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 applicant regards as his invention. Claims 1-81 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. Claim 1 recites the limitation "the at least one patterning coating" in line 16 of claim 1. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Claim 1 further recites, “…at least one of: the at least one second moiety, and a terminal group thereof…” in lines 14-15 of claim 1. However, it is unclear what “a terminal group thereof” is pertaining to. Thus, one of ordinary skill in the art would not be able to define the metes and bounds of the claimed invention. Claims 2-81 are rejected based on their dependency, directly or indirectly, to independent claim 1. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 1-81 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ANTHONY HO whose telephone number is (571)270-1432. The examiner can normally be reached 9AM - 5PM, Monday-Friday. 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, Marlon Fletcher can be reached at 571-272-2063. 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. /ANTHONY HO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2817
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

May 13, 2024
Application Filed
Nov 22, 2025
Non-Final Rejection — §112 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12604478
SEMICONDUCTOR MEMORY DEVICE AND ELECTRONIC SYSTEM INCLUDING THE SAME
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12593662
ELECTRONIC DEVICE FOR DETECTING DEFECT IN SEMICONDUCTOR PACKAGE AND OPERATING METHOD THEREOF
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 31, 2026
Patent 12575309
PRODUCTION METHOD FOR PATTERNED ORGANIC FILM, PRODUCTION APPARATUS FOR PATTERNED ORGANIC FILM, ORGANIC SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE PRODUCED BY SAME, AND INTEGRATED CIRCUIT INCLUDING ORGANIC SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 10, 2026
Patent 12575267
DISPLAY SUBSTRATE AND PREPARATION METHOD THEREFOR, AND DISPLAY APPARATUS
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 10, 2026
Patent 12568758
LIGHT-EMITTING DEVICE AND ELECTRONIC APPARATUS INCLUDING THE SAME
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
91%
Grant Probability
93%
With Interview (+2.3%)
2y 5m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1110 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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