Prosecution Insights
Last updated: May 29, 2026
Application No. 18/910,603

OPTICAL LAMINATE AND DISPLAY APPARATUS

Final Rejection §103
Filed
Oct 09, 2024
Priority
Oct 10, 2023 — JP 2023-175528
Examiner
BRIGGS, NATHANAEL R
Art Unit
2871
Tech Center
2800 — Semiconductors & Electrical Systems
Assignee
Nitto Denko Corporation
OA Round
2 (Final)
76%
Grant Probability
Favorable
3-4
OA Rounds
1y 0m
Est. Remaining
88%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 76% — above average
76%
Career Allowance Rate
824 granted / 1081 resolved
+8.2% vs TC avg
Moderate +11% lift
Without
With
+11.3%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 7m
Avg Prosecution
20 currently pending
Career history
1105
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§103
79.4%
+39.4% vs TC avg
§102
18.6%
-21.4% vs TC avg
§112
0.1%
-39.9% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1081 resolved cases

Office Action

§103
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 . Response to Arguments Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action. Claim(s) 1 and 5-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yasui et al. (US 2019/0258101) in view of Kuroda et al. (WO 2020/100869; translation previously attached). Regarding claim 1, Yasui discloses an optical laminate (see figures 1-2, for instance), comprising: a polarizing plate (60) including a polarizing film (61) having a first main surface (bottom surface of 61) and a second main surface (top surface of 61) opposed to each other; a first pressure-sensitive adhesive layer (65) arranged on a first main surface side of the polarizing film (61); a second pressure-sensitive adhesive layer (63; [0073]) arranged on a second main surface side of the polarizing film (61), a support (64c) bonded to the polarizing plate (61) via the second pressure-sensitive adhesive layer (63), and a third pressure-sensitive adhesive layer (55, of element 50) arranged on the support (64c) at the opposite side with respect to the polarizing plate (61), wherein the second pressure-sensitive adhesive layer (63) has a haze of 66% or more ([0073], “As an example, haze values of light diffusion layers 53 and 63 are 80%.”), and wherein the polarizing film (61) includes a polyvinyl alcohol-based film containing iodine ([0071]). However, Yasui does not expressly disclose wherein the polarizing film contains a compound including one of a nitroxy radical or a nitroxide group. Kuroda discloses an optical laminate (see figure 1, for instance), including a polarizing film (10), wherein the polarizing film contains a compound including one of a nitroxy radical or a nitroxide group (see Abstract of attached translation). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use the nitroxy radical or nitroxide group as Kuroda in the polarizing film of Yasui. The motivation for doing so would have been to obtain an excellent effect of suppressing a decrease in single transmittance due to coloring of the polarizing membrane in a high-temperature environment, as taught by Kuroda (see Abstract). Regarding claim 5, Yasui in view of Kuroda discloses the optical laminate according to claim 1, wherein the polarizing film contains the compound including one of a nitroxy radical or a nitroxide group in a content of 20 wt % or less (see Kuroda Abstract). Regarding claim 6, Yasui in view of Kuroda discloses the optical laminate according to claim 1, wherein the polarizing film (61) contains the iodine in a content of 1 wt % or more and 15 wt % or less (paragraph 4, page 17 of Kuroda). Regarding claim 7, Yasui in view of Kuroda discloses the optical laminate according to claim 1, wherein the first pressure-sensitive adhesive layer (65) is formed of a pressure-sensitive adhesive composition containing a (meth)acrylic polymer and a cross-linking agent, wherein the cross-linking agent contains an isocyanate-based cross-linking agent, and wherein a content of the isocyanate-based cross-linking agent is less than 1 part by weight with respect to 100 parts by weight of the (meth)acrylic polymer (see Kuroda page 12, paragraph 6 of attached translation). Regarding claim 8, Yasui in view of Kuroda discloses the optical laminate according to claim 7, wherein the isocyanate-based cross-linking agent is a non-aromatic system (see Kuroda page 12, paragraph 6 of attached translation). Regarding claim 9, Yasui in view of Kuroda discloses the display apparatus, in which a plurality of display panels (200, 100) each including a liquid crystal cell (13, 23) are arranged so as to overlap each other, and which is configured to display an image on each of the display panels, the display apparatus comprising: a first display panel (200); a second display panel (100) arranged at a position closer to an observer as compared to the first display panel; and the optical laminate (50, 60) of claim 1 arranged between the first display panel (200) and the second display panel (100), wherein the first pressure-sensitive adhesive layer (65) of the optical laminate is bonded to the first display panel. Conclusion Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a). A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NATHANAEL R BRIGGS whose telephone number is (571)272-8992. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday, 9:00 am - 5:00 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, Jennifer Carruth can be reached at (571)-272-9791. 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. /NATHANAEL R BRIGGS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2871 3/19/2026
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Oct 09, 2024
Application Filed
Dec 04, 2025
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §103
Feb 19, 2026
Response Filed
Mar 23, 2026
Final Rejection mailed — §103 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12638623
FILTER ASSEMBLY AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING SAME
3y 3m to grant Granted May 26, 2026
Patent 12638709
LIQUID CRYSTAL DIFFRACTION ELEMENT, OPTICAL ELEMENT, IMAGE DISPLAY UNIT, HEAD-MOUNTED DISPLAY, BEAM STEERING, AND SENSOR
2y 1m to grant Granted May 26, 2026
Patent 12635304
DISPLAY DEVICE AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING THE SAME
3y 2m to grant Granted May 19, 2026
Patent 12619015
METHOD OF MANUFACTURING OPTICAL MEMBER
2y 9m to grant Granted May 05, 2026
Patent 12613416
AUGMENTED REALITY DISPLAY HAVING LIQUID CRYSTAL VARIABLE FOCUS ELEMENT AND ROLL-TO-ROLL METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING THE SAME
2y 3m to grant Granted Apr 28, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

Strategy Recommendation AI-generated — please review before filing

Get a prosecution strategy drawn from examiner precedents, rejection analysis, and claim mapping.
Typically takes 5-10 seconds — AI-generated, attorney review required before filing

Prosecution Projections

3-4
Expected OA Rounds
76%
Grant Probability
88%
With Interview (+11.3%)
2y 7m (~1y 0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Moderate
PTA Risk
Based on 1081 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance 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