Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 19/221,717

LITHOGRAPHIC PRINTING PLATE PRECURSOR, METHOD OF PREPARING LITHOGRAPHIC PRINTING PLATE, AND LITHOGRAPHIC PRINTING METHOD

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
May 29, 2025
Examiner
ROBINSON, CHANCEITY N
Art Unit
1737
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
Fujifilm Corporation
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
72%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 9m
To Grant
58%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 72% — above average
72%
Career Allow Rate
758 granted / 1052 resolved
+7.1% vs TC avg
Minimal -14% lift
Without
With
+-14.0%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 9m
Avg Prosecution
40 currently pending
Career history
1092
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.4%
-39.6% vs TC avg
§103
36.3%
-3.7% vs TC avg
§102
20.9%
-19.1% vs TC avg
§112
24.8%
-15.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1052 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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 . Priority Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d). Specification Applicant is reminded of the proper language and format for an abstract of the disclosure. The abstract should be in narrative form and generally limited to a single paragraph on a separate sheet within the range of 50 to 150 words in length. The abstract should describe the disclosure sufficiently to assist readers in deciding whether there is a need for consulting the full patent text for details. The language should be clear and concise and should not repeat information given in the title. It should avoid using phrases which can be implied, such as, “The disclosure concerns,” “The disclosure defined by this invention,” “The disclosure describes,” etc. In addition, the form and legal phraseology often used in patent claims, such as “means” and “said,” should be avoided. The abstract of the disclosure is objected to because the abstract is less than 50 words. A corrected abstract of the disclosure is required and must be presented on a separate sheet, apart from any other text. See MPEP § 608.01(b). Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status. 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) 1-4 and 6-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kakino et al. (EP 1695821 A2). Regarding claims 1-4 and 8-16, Kakino teaches a lithographic ( planographic) printing plate precursor ( see abstract, claims, examples and comparative examples using the polymers AP-1, AP-4 , AP-5 and AP-6) comprising a support [0019] and an image-recording layer (recording layer) is provided on a support, wherein the recording layer contains a polymer which is a (meth)acrylic polymer A having a substitutent containing two or more silicone atoms in a side chain and a polymer B having a constitutional unit represented by formula 1 ( See examples and comparative examples using the polymers AP-1, AP-4 , AP-5 and AP-6; [0019-0063]). Regarding claims 6-7, Kakino teaches the image recording layer further contains at least one of resin particles and a color developing agent [0064-0094] Claim(s) 1-3, 6, 8-11 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Ara et al. (US 2013/0260317 A1). Regarding claims 1-3, 6, 8-11 and 16, Ara et al. disclose a lithographic ( planographic) printing plate precursor ( see abstract, claims, examples 18-22) comprising a support [0019] and an image-recording layer (recording layer) is provided on a support [0230-0239], wherein the recording layer contains a polymer which is a (meth)acrylic polymer A having a substitutent containing two or more silicone atoms in a side chain and a polymer B having a constitutional unit represented by formula 1 ( See examples 18-22 in Table 3). Regarding claims 6-7, Kakino teaches the image recording layer further contains at least one of resin particles and a color developing agent [0203-0205]. Claim(s) 1-2, 6, 8-12 and 14- 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Oda (US 6228559 B1). Regarding claims 1-2, 6, 8-12 and 14-16, Oda teaches a lithographic printing plate precursor ( see abstract, claims, examples and col. 2, lines 27-66, cols. 3-12, col. 13, lines 1-15, col. 25, lines 41-67, col. 26, lines 1-51, col. 29, lines 1-29 & col. 30, lines 1-19) comprising a support (col. 15, lines 25-55) ; and an image-recording layer ( light-sensitive layer) is provided on a support, wherein the light-sensitive layer includes a siloxane polymer compound, wherein the polymer compound is obtained through addition polymerization of an addition-polymerizable ethylenically unsaturated monomer having a an unsaturated double bond group and/or hydroxy group , and an addition-polymerizable ethylenically unsaturated monomer having a siloxane group; and the polymer compound has a repeating unit such as compounds (B-1) to (B-9), (D-1) to (D-6) and (E-1) to (E-7) meeting the limitation of a (meth)acrylic polymer A having a substitutent containing two or more silicone atoms in a side chain as recited by instant claim 1 and a polymer B having a constitutional unit represented by Formula (I) as recited by instant claim 2 and claims 9, 10, 15 and 16 ( see cols. 3-12 , col. 13, lines 1-15 ,col. 29, lines 1-29 & col. 30, lines 1-19 ) . The layer further contains a color developing agent ( col. 13, line 62- col. 14, line 65). Further regards to claims 8, 11-12 and 14, Oda teaches the compound (A-6) or (A-7) is included as a repeating unit of the polymer compound , and the polymer compound has the additional features recited in claims 8, 11-12 and 14 ( see col. 8, lines 20-35). Claim(s) 1-9, 11 and 15- 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Van Aert et al. (US 2005-0106501 A1). Regarding claims 1-9, 11 and 15-16, Van Aert et al. teach a lithographic printing plate precursor ( see abstract, claims, examples and paragraphs [0019-0046]) ; and an image-recording layer (heat light-sensitive layer) on a support having a hydrophilic surface, a copolymer of a repeating unit X of a hydrophilic pendant group and a repeating unit Y of a hydrophobic pendant group, wherein the precursor has a repeating unit Y of the hydrophobic pendant groups [0044] meeting the limitation of a (meth)acrylic polymer A having a substitutent containing two or more silicone atoms in a side chain as recited by instant claim 1 and a polymer B having a constitutional unit represented by Formula (I) as recited by instant claim 2 and claims 8,9, 11, 15 and 16 ( see [0041 and 0044] ) . The layer further contains a color developing agent and a resin particles [0080 & 0082]. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 17-20 are 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. No prior art teaches a method of preparing a lithographic printing plate or a lithographic printing method comprising exposing the printing plate precursor in shape of an image; supplying at least one selected from the group consisting of a printing ink and dampening water on a printer to remove an image recording layer , wherein the image recording layer contains a (meth)acrylic polymer A having a substitutent containing two or more silicone atoms in a side chain as recited by instant claim 1 and a polymer B having a constitutional unit represented by Formula (I) as recited by instant claim 2 , in a non-image area as instantly claimed. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHANCEITY N ROBINSON whose telephone number is (571)270-3786. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday (8:00 am-6:00 pm; IFP; PHP). 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, Mark Huff can be reached at 571-272-1385. 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. /CHANCEITY N ROBINSON/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1737
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

May 29, 2025
Application Filed
Feb 26, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102 (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
72%
Grant Probability
58%
With Interview (-14.0%)
2y 9m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1052 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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