Office Action Predictor
Last updated: April 16, 2026
Application No. 18/684,517

PET NAIL CLIPPER AND METHODS

Non-Final OA §102§103
Filed
Feb 16, 2024
Examiner
FLORES SANCHEZ, OMAR
Art Unit
3724
Tech Center
3700 — Mechanical Engineering & Manufacturing
Assignee
Gregory Van Eyk
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
74%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 10m
To Grant
88%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 74% — above average
74%
Career Allow Rate
1262 granted / 1712 resolved
+3.7% vs TC avg
Moderate +14% lift
Without
With
+14.3%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 10m
Avg Prosecution
19 currently pending
Career history
1731
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§103
39.1%
-0.9% vs TC avg
§102
31.5%
-8.5% vs TC avg
§112
25.2%
-14.8% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1712 resolved cases

Office Action

§102 §103
DETAILED ACTION The previous action is replaced/withdrawn with the following Office Action. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 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. Claim(s) 1 and 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being disclosed by Zhu Haiyuan (CN210538114). Zhu Haiyuan discloses the invention/method including: Claim 1; a cutter 11 including a first blade having a first v-shaped cutting edge 111; a second blade, opposed to the first blade, having a second v-shaped cutting edge 112; the first v-shaped cutting edge and second v-shaped cutting edge being positioned relative to each other to form a hole 4 to receive a nail; (b) a first arm 12 secured to the first blade; and (c) a second arm 1 secured to the second blade. Claim 18; positioning a toenail into a hole formed by opposing first and second blades having v-shaped cutting edges (see Abstract); and squeezing together first and second arms secured to the blades to move the cutting edges through the toenail (see Abstract). Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 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, 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) 2-6 and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhu Haiyuan (CN210538114) in view of Kong (KR20180072047A). Zhu Haiyuan discloses the invention substantially as claimed including a handle section and a blade holding section (see Fig. 1). Zhu Haiyuan doesn' t show a light source positioned to project light onto the cutter, the light source is positioned to project light from the first arm onto the cutter, the light source is an extended light pipe positioned adjacent to the first blade, and the light pipe is secured to the blade holding section. However, Kong teaches the use of a light source positioned to project light onto the cutter (see Fig. 4), the light source is positioned to project light from the first arm onto the cutter (see Fig. 1), the light source is an extended light pipe positioned adjacent to the first blade (see Fig. 1), and the light pipe is secured to the blade holding section (see Fig. 1) for the purpose of improving visibility in the cutting area. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to have modified the device of Zhu Haiyuan by providing the above missing limitations as taught by Kong in order to obtain a device that improves visibility in the cutting area. Claim(s) 7 and 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhu Haiyuan (CN210538114) in view of Smith et al. (7,621,011). Zhu Haiyuan discloses the invention substantially as claimed except for the light source is energized by an electronic charge port, a power source held within one of the first arm or second arm. However, Smith et al. teaches the use of the light source is energized by an electronic charge port 150 (see col. 4, lines 40-56), a power source 148 held within one of the first arm or second arm 114 for the purpose of providing power supply to the accessories. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to have modified the device of Zhu Haiyuan by providing the above limitation as taught by Smith et al. in order to obtain a device that providing power supply to the light. Claim(s) 9-11 and 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhu Haiyuan (CN210538114) in view of Wenkai (CN200966258Y). Zhu Haiyuan discloses the invention substantially as claimed except for a transparent nail backstop 32 adjustably positioned relative to the cutter and a rotatable dial 33 has an outer knurled surface. However, Wenkai teaches the use of a transparent nail backstop adjustably positioned relative to the cutter and a rotatable dial has an outer knurled surface 331 (see Fig. 1) for the purpose of adjusting the distance between the nail and the cutter. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to have modified the device of Zhu Haiyuan by providing the above limitations as taught by Wenkai in order to obtain a device that adjust the distance between the nail and the cutter. Claim(s) 12-17 and 21 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhu Haiyuan (CN210538114) in view of Zhu Haiyuan discloses the invention substantially as claimed except for an on-board medicinal agent 10, the second arm includes a movable cover 16 to expose the medicinal agent, wherein the movable cover is a flip cap pivotably attached to a remaining part of the second arm, the medicinal agent is a clotting agent, and the medicinal agent is a gelatinous pad (see fig. 1-6). However, Wenkai teaches the use of a transparent nail backstop adjustably positioned relative to the cutter and a rotatable dial has an outer knurled surface 331 (see Fig. 1) for the purpose of treating the cut area. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to have modified the device of Zhu Haiyuan by providing the above limitations as taught by Wenkai in order to obtain a device that treat the cut area. Allowable Subject Matter Claim 6 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. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to OMAR FLORES SANCHEZ whose telephone number is (571)272-4507. The examiner can normally be reached Monday thru Thursday8:00-4:00 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, Adam Eiseman can be reached at 571-270-3818. 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. /OMAR FLORES SANCHEZ/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3724
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Feb 16, 2024
Application Filed
Sep 11, 2025
Non-Final Rejection — §102, §103
Apr 14, 2026
Response after Non-Final Action

Precedent Cases

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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
74%
Grant Probability
88%
With Interview (+14.3%)
2y 10m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1712 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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