Prosecution Insights
Last updated: August 06, 2026
Application No. 19/046,204

BARRIER COATINGS FOR ONE OR MORE OXIDIZING SUBSTANCES

Non-Final OA §112
Filed
Feb 05, 2025
Priority
Feb 13, 2024 — provisional 63/552,989
Examiner
OTT, PATRICK S
Art Unit
1794
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
Sierra Space Corporation
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
68%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
1y 1m
Est. Remaining
90%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 68% — above average
68%
Career Allowance Rate
154 granted / 227 resolved
+2.8% vs TC avg
Strong +22% interview lift
Without
With
+22.2%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 7m
Avg Prosecution
36 currently pending
Career history
265
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
2.3%
-37.7% vs TC avg
§103
46.8%
+6.8% vs TC avg
§102
15.7%
-24.3% vs TC avg
§112
30.8%
-9.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 227 resolved cases

Office Action

§112
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 § 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 6-8 and 11-20 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. In claims 6-8, the limitation “the one or more metals” lacks antecedent basis and thus is indefinite because the claims depend on claims 1-4 which recite ceramics and polymers but not “one or more metals”. This rejection may be overcome by amending the claims to depend on claim 5, which recites one or more metals, or reciting that the housing comprises one or more metals in claim 4. In claims 11-13 and 17-18, the limitation “the mixture” lacks antecedent basis and thus is indefinite because there is no previous recitation of a “mixture” and therefore it is unclear whether the mixture is intended to refer to the one or more oxidizing substances or another mixture. In claim 20, the limitation “the precursor and source” is indefinite because it is unclear which of the “one or more precursors and one or more inert carrier sources” are being referred to or if the limitation is intended to require that there is only one precursor and one source. This rejection may be overcome by amending the claim to recite “the one or more precursors and the one or more sources”. Claims 14-20 are indefinite by virtue of depending on an indefinite claim. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 1-5 and 9-10 are allowed. Claims 6-8 and 11-20 would be allowable if rewritten 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 and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance: Regarding claim 1, the closest prior art to the claimed invention is Yousefiani (US 20080121548 A1). Yousefiani teaches using a zirconium nitride coating (barrier coating) disposed on an inner surface of a pressure tank 14 (coated article having a housing with an outer surface and inner surface) for holding/storing and passing/delivering hydrogen peroxide (one or more oxidizing substances) in/through the tank ((Abstract, para 0028-0029; Fig. 1A-1B). The aforementioned reference fails to explicitly teach the barrier coating comprises hydrogen-terminated silicon. Additionally, there is no teaching, suggestion, or motivation to modify the aforementioned references to meet the claimed limitation. Therefore, claim 1 is allowed. Claims 2-5 and 9-10 depend on claim 1 and thus are allowed for the same reasons. Claims 6-8 and 11-20 depend on claim 1 and thus would be allowable for the same reasons if amended to overcome the rejections under 35 U.S.C. 112(b). 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. Yamashita (US 20200345938 A1) teaches a storage container for hydrogen peroxide including a silicone oil for stabilizing storage but explicitly teaches that the silicone oil does not include an SiH group (hydrogen terminated silicon). Bretschger (US 2056894 A) teaches a container for hydrogen peroxide coated with a layer of paraffin, bitumen, or beeswax but does not consider a hydrogen-terminated silicon containing layer. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PATRICK S OTT whose telephone number is (571)272-2415. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9am-5pm. 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, James Lin can be reached at (571) 272-8902. 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. /PATRICK S OTT/Examiner, Art Unit 1794
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Feb 05, 2025
Application Filed
Jul 27, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §112 (current)

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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
68%
Grant Probability
90%
With Interview (+22.2%)
2y 7m (~1y 1m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 227 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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