Technology area: Medical Devices & Mechanical Engineering
115 pending office actions • 47 art units • 85 examiners • 0 of 115 (0%) have an AI response strategy ready • 110 patents granted in the last 365 days
Align Technology Inc. has 116 pending office actions in Medical Devices & Mechanical Engineering. The portfolio reaches 86 examiners and 49 art units, showing substantial examiner diversity alongside recurring technical groupings.
SAUNDERS, MATTHEW P is the busiest examiner, with 6 pending matters. This concentration supports coordinated review of matters before that examiner, but the broader examiner distribution requires a wider management process. Shared art-unit patterns can inform prosecution planning without replacing application-specific responses.
Based on the USPTO statutory response window for each pending office action. 33 of the docket's apps have a known mailing date; the rest are excluded from the tile counts.
Every pending office action with a known statutory deadline, placed on a days-until-due axis. Dots left of Today are overdue; the further right, the more runway. Cases that share a deadline window stack vertically. 33 of the docket's apps have a known mailing date.
Difficulty is derived from the rejection statutes on the most recent pending office action. §101-driven and multi-statute cases are graded Hard; §112-only and obviousness-type double-patenting cases are graded Easy; everything else is Medium. "Unknown" means we have not yet parsed a statute for that office action.
| Bucket | Cases |
|---|---|
| §101 only | 2 (2%) |
| §101 + other | 25 (22%) |
| §103 only | 39 (34%) |
| §112 only | 1 (1%) |
| Double-patenting only | 5 (4%) |
| Double-patenting + other | 2 (2%) |
| Multi-statute (no §101) | 40 (35%) |
| No statute on record | 1 (1%) |
How the docket's pending cases split across USPTO tech-center bands.
Manual office-action response work runs about 10 hours per case. The time-saved bands below show what IP Author's prosecution pipeline typically delivers — a conservative 20% on the low end, 35% in the middle, 50% on the high end.
| Examiner | Apps on this docket | Allow rate | Interview lift |
|---|---|---|---|
| MORAN, EDWARD JOHN | 5 | 42.0% | +61.2% |
| NELSON, MATTHEW M | 5 | 57.9% | +24.0% |
| SAUNDERS, MATTHEW P | 5 | 46.9% | +38.4% |
| APONTE, MIRAYDA ARLENE | 4 | 63.1% | +21.1% |
| EIDE, HEIDI MARIE | 3 | 50.6% | +32.5% |
| FARAJ, LINA AHMAD | 3 | 42.1% | +69.8% |
| HUYNH, COURTNEY NGUYEN | 3 | 41.1% | +49.4% |
| WEBB LYTTLE, ADRIENA JONIQUE | 3 | 13.3% | +66.7% |
| MAI, HAO D | 2 | 49.2% | +39.4% |
| LUCCHESI, NICHOLAS D | 2 | 78.4% | +9.5% |
Multi-statute / §101-driven matters, or cases in front of an examiner with an allow rate under 30%. The top 8 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18461307 | TREATMENT OF TEMPEROMANDIBULAR JOINT DYSFUNCTION WITH ALIGNER THERAPY | BELK, SHANNEL NICOLE | 73d overdue |
| 18189102 | DIRECT FABRICATION OF ORTHODONTIC ALIGNERS | WEBB LYTTLE, ADRIENA JONIQUE | 58d overdue |
| 18542261 | METHODS AND APPARATUSES FOR MATCHING JAWS VIRTUAL DENTAL MODEL USING TEETH REFERENCE POINTS | WEBB LYTTLE, ADRIENA JONIQUE | 49d overdue |
| 18669345 | TREATMENT PLAN SPECIFIC BITE ADJUSTMENT STRUCTURES | SAUNDERS, MATTHEW P | 43d overdue |
| 18976167 | OPTIMIZING ORTHODONTIC TREATMENT BASED ON PATIENT PROGRESS | GEDRA, OLIVIA ROSE | 35d overdue |
| 19054762 | METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR ANALYZING DENTAL SCANS | PATEL, SHERYL GOPAL | 30d overdue |
| 18924976 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ORTHODONTIC TREATMENT PROGRESS TRACKING | NELSON, MATTHEW M | 26d overdue |
| 18050140 | PROSTHODONTIC AND ORTHODONTIC APPARATUS AND METHODS | GIRI, PURSOTTAM | 18d overdue |
Cases in front of an examiner whose interview lift is 10 percentage points or more — i.e. interviewed cases historically resolve more favorably than non-interviewed ones. The top 8 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18189102 | DIRECT FABRICATION OF ORTHODONTIC ALIGNERS | WEBB LYTTLE, ADRIENA JONIQUE | 58d overdue |
| 18542261 | METHODS AND APPARATUSES FOR MATCHING JAWS VIRTUAL DENTAL MODEL USING TEETH REFERENCE POINTS | WEBB LYTTLE, ADRIENA JONIQUE | 49d overdue |
| 18633717 | DENTAL APPLIANCES FOR CREATING OPPOSING COUNTER MOMENTS BETWEEN TEETH | APONTE, MIRAYDA ARLENE | 44d overdue |
| 18669345 | TREATMENT PLAN SPECIFIC BITE ADJUSTMENT STRUCTURES | SAUNDERS, MATTHEW P | 43d overdue |
| 18924976 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ORTHODONTIC TREATMENT PROGRESS TRACKING | NELSON, MATTHEW M | 26d overdue |
| 18497534 | OCCLUSAL BLOCKS FOR MANDIBULAR RELOCATION | HUYNH, COURTNEY NGUYEN | 23d overdue |
| 18068462 | CONVERSION APPLIANCE FOR ORTHODONTIC TREATMENT | FARAJ, LINA AHMAD | 6d |
| 17990160 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR OPTIMIZING DENTAL ALIGNER GEOMETRY | EIDE, HEIDI MARIE | 14d |
| Art Unit | Apps |
|---|---|
| 3772 | 45 |
| 1742 | 4 |
| 2663 | 4 |
| 2488 | 3 |
| 1763 | 3 |
| 2186 | 3 |
| 2676 | 2 |
| 2616 | 2 |
| 2614 | 2 |
| 3681 | 2 |
| App # | Title | Examiner | Art Unit | Statutes | Status | Due in | AI | Filed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19394623 | DENTAL APPLIANCES WITH INTERPROXIMAL ENGAGEMENT STRUCTURES | MORAN, EDWARD JOHN | 3772 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 19, 2025 |
| 19358353 | WIRE ATTACHMENT DENTAL APPLIANCES | MORAN, EDWARD JOHN | 3772 | §102§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Oct 14, 2025 |
| 19321085 | DENTAL APPLIANCE ETCH TEMPLATE | MAI, HAO D | 3772 | §103§112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 05, 2025 |
| 19318322 | AUTOMATED PALATAL EXPANSION BASED ON LOWER ARCH FINAL POSITION | RUIZ MARTIN, LUIS MIGUEL | 3772 | §101§102§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 03, 2025 |
| 19306812 | ORTHODONTIC SYSTEMS WITH VARIABLE ATTACHMENT AND WELL GEOMETRIES | MORAN, EDWARD JOHN | 3772 | Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Aug 21, 2025 |
| 19301633 | MULTIMODAL INTRAORAL SCANNING SYSTEMS | RETALLICK, KAITLIN A | 2482 | §103§112Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Aug 15, 2025 |
| 19276708 | METHODS FOR FABRICATING MOUTH GUARD SYSTEMS | MORAN, EDWARD JOHN | 3772 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 22, 2025 |
| 19270381 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR TREATMENT USING DOMAIN-SPECIFIC TREATMENT PROTOCOLS | MISIASZEK, AMBER ALTSCHUL | 3682 | §101§102 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 15, 2025 |
| 19259758 | METHODS FOR DETERMINING ATTACHMENT PLACEMENT APPLIANCE GEOMETRY | WIECZOREK, MICHAEL P | 1712 | DP | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Jul 03, 2025 |
| 19231329 | ORTHODONTIC ALIGNER WITH ISOLATED SEGMENTS | LUCCHESI, NICHOLAS D | 3772 | §112Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 06, 2025 |
| 19203728 | DENTAL APPLIANCES WITH AESTHETIC FEATURES | EIDE, HEIDI MARIE | 3772 | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 09, 2025 |
| 19204445 | MODULAR DENTAL DEVICES | FARAJ, LINA AHMAD | 3772 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 09, 2025 |
| 19190576 | ORTHODONTIC ATTACHMENT DEVICES | HUYNH, COURTNEY NGUYEN | 3772 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 25, 2025 |
| 19183270 | ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING WITH MATERIAL LAYERS | TENTONI, LEO B | 1742 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 18, 2025 |
| 19179909 | INTEGRATION OF VIDEO DATA INTO IMAGE-BASED DENTAL TREATMENT PLANNING AND CLIENT DEVICE PRESENTATION | USSERY, CAIDEN ALEXANDER | — | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 15, 2025 |
| 19095404 | AUTOMATED ORTHODONTIC ALIGNER MANUFACTURING AND ASSESSMENT | GROSSO, GREGORY CHAD | 1748 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 31, 2025 |
| 19096244 | DENTAL APPLIANCE DYNAMIC THERMOFORMING SYSTEMS | HUSON, MONICA ANNE | 1742 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 31, 2025 |
| 19072923 | CUSTOMER CONTACT MANAGEMENT IN ASSOCIATION WITH PROVISIONING PRODUCTS THROUGH A PROVIDER NETWORK OF AN ENTERPRISE | WAESCO, JOSEPH M | 3625 | §101§103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Mar 06, 2025 |
| 19069092 | PROCESSING 2D INTRAORAL IMAGES AND RENDERING NOVEL VIEWS OF PATIENTS | FATIMA, UROOJ | 2676 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 03, 2025 |
| 19054762 | METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR ANALYZING DENTAL SCANS | PATEL, SHERYL GOPAL | 3685 | §101§103§112 | Final Rejection | 30d overdue | Pending | Feb 14, 2025 |
| 19054769 | METHODS AND APPARATUSES FOR DIGITAL THREE-DIMENSIONAL MODELING OF DENTITION USING UN-PATTERNED ILLUMINATION IMAGES | YANG, YI | 2616 | §101§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 14, 2025 |
| 19048741 | INTRAORAL SCANNER INCLUDING PROJECTORS AND CAMERAS | JIANG, ZAIHAN | 2488 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 07, 2025 |
| 19030126 | TIMELAPSE VISUALIZATION ON COLORED 3D MODELS | HOANG, PHI | — | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 17, 2025 |
| 19024916 | ORTHODONTIC ALIGNMENT DEVICES WITH PALATAL CONTOUR ANCHORAGE FEATURES | EIDE, HEIDI MARIE | 3772 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 16, 2025 |
| 19023337 | INTRAORAL SCANNING USING MULTIPLE MODALITIES | SUN, JIANGENG | 2671 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 16, 2025 |
| 19026294 | DENTAL APPLIANCES WITH SHAPED MATERIAL COMPONENTS | GROUX, JENNIFER LILA | 3772 | §102§103§112Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 16, 2025 |
| 19025083 | DENTAL APPLIANCES WITH REINFORCED REPOSITIONING JAW ELEMENTS | NELSON, MATTHEW M | 3772 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 16, 2025 |
| 19025779 | ALIGNERS WITH ENHANCED GABLE BENDS | LEE, SARAH YEO | 3772 | §102§103Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 16, 2025 |
| 19025679 | DENTAL APPLIANCES FOR CREATING OPPOSING COUNTER MOMENTS BETWEEN TEETH | APONTE, MIRAYDA ARLENE | 3772 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 16, 2025 |
| 19026336 | METHODS FOR DIRECT FABRICATION OF APPLIANCES FOR PALATE EXPANSION | SAUNDERS, MATTHEW P | 3772 | §102§103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Jan 16, 2025 |
| 19014066 | BLOOD AND SALIVA HANDLING FOR INTRAORAL SCANNING | MANGIALASCHI, TRACY | 2668 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 08, 2025 |
| 19004847 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR TREATMENT PLANNING WITH TOOTH MASS ANALYSIS | NGUYEN, PHONG X | 2617 | DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 30, 2024 |
| 19000592 | DENTAL APPLIANCES HAVING A TOOTH-GRIPPING FEATURE | ROSEN, ERIC J | 3772 | §102§103 | Final Rejection | 76d | Pending | Dec 23, 2024 |
| 18991282 | 3D MODEL AUGMENTATION USING REFERENCE OBJECTS | JIA, XIN | 2663 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 20, 2024 |
| 18990964 | CONVERTIBLE DENTAL AUXILIARIES | CONNELL, JENNIFER PETSCHE | 3772 | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 20, 2024 |
| 18991286 | Visualization of Post-Treatment Outcomes for Medical Treatment | CHIN, MICHELLE | 2614 | §103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Dec 20, 2024 |
| 18980240 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS INCLUDING EXPANDABLE DENTAL APPLIANCES | PATEL, YOGESH P | 3772 | §103 | Non-Final OA | 30d | Pending | Dec 13, 2024 |
| 18977593 | ORTHODONTIC APPLIANCE MADE BY A THERMAL FORMING PROCESS | GRAHAM, ANDREW D | 1742 | §102§103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Dec 11, 2024 |
| 18976167 | OPTIMIZING ORTHODONTIC TREATMENT BASED ON PATIENT PROGRESS | GEDRA, OLIVIA ROSE | 3681 | §101§103 | Final Rejection | 35d overdue | Pending | Dec 10, 2024 |
| 18976258 | FULL-SCANNER BARRIER FOR AN INTRA-ORAL DEVICE | FAYE, MAMADOU | 2884 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 10, 2024 |
| 18971833 | SYSTEMS FOR FABRICATION OF DENTAL APPLIANCES WITH ELONGATE SHAFTS AND CONNECTORS | SAUNDERS, MATTHEW P | 3772 | DP | Final Rejection | 19d | Pending | Dec 06, 2024 |
| 18969243 | MULTI-DIMENSIONAL SKELETAL CORRECTION AND AIRWAY CORRECTION | APONTE, MIRAYDA ARLENE | 3772 | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 04, 2024 |
| 18961284 | INTRAORAL 3D SCANNER WITH HIGH GAIN FACTOR | NGUYEN, SANG H | 2877 | DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 26, 2024 |
| 18959402 | PROVIDING DISORDER TREATMENT ESTIMATES BASED ON DISORDER DATA | MORICE DE VARGAS, SARA JESSICA | 3681 | §101§103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Nov 25, 2024 |
| 18954503 | METHODS OF DESIGNING DENTAL ATTACHMENT FORMATION APPARATUSES | MAI, HAO D | 3772 | §101§103DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 20, 2024 |
| 18948374 | SYSTEMS, METHODS, AND APPARATUS FOR LIGHT CURING WITH AN INTRAORAL SCANNER | LEE, BENEDICT E | 2665 | §101§102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 14, 2024 |
| 18946783 | PALATAL EXPANDER DEVICES WITH SENSORS | NELSON, MATTHEW M | 3772 | §101§112 | Final Rejection | 34d | Pending | Nov 13, 2024 |
| 18942291 | AUTOMATIC CALIBRATION OF INTRAORAL 3D SCANNER | HILAIRE, CLIFFORD | 2488 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 08, 2024 |
| 18939465 | INTRAORAL SYSTEMS AND METHODS INCLUDING SENSOR ASSEMBLIES FOR DETECTING AIR FLOW | SAHAND, SANA | 3796 | §103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Nov 06, 2024 |
| 18935286 | DEVICES AND METHODS FOR POSITIONING DENTAL AUXILIARIES ON TEETH | NELSON, MATTHEW M | 3772 | §101 | Final Rejection | 22d | Pending | Nov 01, 2024 |
IP Author helps IP teams respond to office actions faster with AI-generated responses, examiner analytics, and prosecution intelligence.
Start Free TrialAlign Technology Inc. has 115 pending office actions as of October 2026, spread across 47 art units and 85 examiners.
Edward John Moran has the most, with 5 of Align Technology Inc.'s pending office actions.
Mostly Medical Devices & Mechanical Engineering (USPTO Tech Center 3700), based on where its pending office actions are examined.
