Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 18/913,094

SURFACTANT COMPOSITION AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING SAME

Non-Final OA §102§Other
Filed
Oct 11, 2024
Priority
Sep 25, 2019 — JP 2019-173623 +4 more
Examiner
BOYER, CHARLES I
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
Nippon Shokubai Co., Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
70%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
6m
Est. Remaining
90%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 70% — above average
70%
Career Allowance Rate
778 granted / 1106 resolved
+10.3% vs TC avg
Strong +20% interview lift
Without
With
+19.5%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 3m
Avg Prosecution
27 currently pending
Career history
1138
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.1%
-39.9% vs TC avg
§103
84.7%
+44.7% vs TC avg
§102
6.7%
-33.3% vs TC avg
§112
1.4%
-38.6% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1106 resolved cases

Office Action

§102 §Other
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 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. Claims 1-4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 as being anticipated by Kadono et al, US 6,017,875. Kadono et al teach a higher secondary alcohol alkoxylate composition (see title). An example is a secondary tetradecanol ethoxylate formed by reacting tetradecanol with ethylene oxide (col. 11, example 3). As this reference meets all material limitations of the claims at hand, the reference is anticipatory. Claims 1-4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 as being anticipated by Inaoka et al, US 6,278,007. Inaoka et al teach a secondary tetradecanol polyethoxylate formed by reacting tetradecanol with ethylene oxide (col. 24, referential examples 8 and 9. As this reference meets all material limitations of the claims at hand, the reference is anticipatory. Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Secondary alcohol ethoxylates are well-known in the art and it is obvious to form them at any chain length. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHARLES I BOYER whose telephone number is (571)272-1311. The examiner can normally be reached M-S 10-430. 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, Angela Brown-Pettigrew can be reached at 5712722817. 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. /CHARLES I BOYER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1761
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Oct 11, 2024
Application Filed
Jul 01, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102, §Other (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12680053
A METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING A RESIST PATTERN USING AN AQUEOUS CLEANING SOLUTION COMPRISING A C4-C12 ALKYLCARBOXYLIC ACID
3y 9m to grant Granted Jul 14, 2026
Patent 12672657
COMPOSITIONS, METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR ELECTROLYTIC TREATMENT OF MYCOTOXIN, GLYPHOSATE, AND MICROBIAL CONTAMINATION
3y 11m to grant Granted Jul 07, 2026
Patent 12673016
COACERVATE CLEANSING COMPOSITION
2y 7m to grant Granted Jul 07, 2026
Patent 12648901
PERSONAL CARE COMPOSITIONS AND METHODS FOR USING SUCH COMPOSITIONS
1y 11m to grant Granted Jun 09, 2026
Patent 12630786
SOLID BENZYLOXIDE COMPOSITIONS, METHODS OF MAKING, AND USE IN CLEANING
2y 2m to grant Granted May 19, 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
70%
Grant Probability
90%
With Interview (+19.5%)
2y 3m (~6m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1106 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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