Prosecution Insights
Prosecution Insights
Technology areas: Chemistry & Materials • Medical Devices & Mechanical Engineering
57 pending office actions • 25 art units • 49 examiners • 0 of 57 (0%) have an AI response strategy ready • 153 patents granted in the last 365 days
Altria Client Services LLC has 54 pending office actions within the Medical Devices & Mechanical Engineering technology area. These actions are distributed across 23 distinct art units, indicating a broad range of mechanical and medical innovations. The involvement of 46 distinct examiners suggests a decentralized prosecution environment with limited examiner overlap, requiring the applicant to manage a wide array of individual examiner preferences.
Russell E Sparks is the busiest examiner for this portfolio, currently managing 3 pending office actions. This represents a small fraction of the 54 pending office actions, as the remaining actions are handled by the other distinct examiners. The spread across 23 distinct art units means that Altria must navigate a wide variety of examination styles and technical standards to advance its pending cases, necessitating a flexible and comprehensive approach to its patent strategy.
Based on the USPTO statutory response window for each pending office action. 12 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. 12 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 + other | 3 (5%) |
| §103 only | 21 (37%) |
| §112 only | 4 (7%) |
| Double-patenting only | 3 (5%) |
| Double-patenting + other | 7 (12%) |
| Multi-statute (no §101) | 18 (32%) |
| No statute on record | 1 (2%) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| SPARKS, RUSSELL E | 3 | 63.7% | +14.3% |
| TRAVERS, MATTHEW P | 2 | 63.2% | +43.6% |
| JENNISON, BRIAN W | 2 | 71.9% | +22.0% |
| TRAN, THIEN S | 2 | 71.9% | +24.1% |
| DODSON, JUSTIN C | 2 | 46.8% | +35.6% |
| SAMUELS, LAWRENCE H | 2 | 56.3% | +37.7% |
| KHLOK, BONITA | 2 | 49.1% | +48.3% |
| WITTENSCHLAEGER, THOMAS M | 1 | 71.5% | +11.8% |
| MADAMBA, CLIFFORD B | 1 | 44.5% | +14.7% |
| COLLINS, CYNTHIA E | 1 | 82.2% | +9.0% |
Cases in front of an examiner with an allow rate of 80%+ where the difficulty is Easy or Medium. The top 1 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19027009 | COMPOSITIONS AND METHODS FOR PRODUCING TOBACCO PLANTS AND PRODUCTS HAVING ALTERED ALKALOID LEVELS | COLLINS, CYNTHIA E | — |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18808394 | METHODS, SYSTEMS, APPARATUSES, AND NON-TRANSITORY COMPUTER READABLE MEDIA FOR VALIDATING ENCODED INFORMATION | HAYLES, ASHFORD S | 25d overdue |
| 16826739 | ELECTRONIC CIGARETTE WITH VISIBLE LIQUID CONTAINER | KHLOK, BONITA | 15d |
| 18608007 | DEVICES, SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR PERFORMING AGE VERIFICATION | WELCH, DAVID T | 33d |
| 18620414 | SYSTEMS FOR GENERATING A LIQUID AEROSOL | VO, TU A | 40d |
| 18959984 | CONTAINER WITH FLEXIBLE WALL LOCKING MECHANISM | PAL, PRINCE | 42d |
| 18669148 | METHOD OF MAKING AEROSOL-GENERATING ARTICLE WITH POROUS BODY AND AEROSOL-FORMING SUBSTRATE | TRAN, THIEN S | 60d |
| 19307283 | METHOD OF FORMING ASSEMBLED PACKAGE WITH FIRST RIDGE OF FIRST TRAY FORMING PART OF OUTER SURFACE OF ASSEMBLED PACKAGE | WITTENSCHLAEGER, THOMAS M | — |
| 19208704 | AGE AND IDENTITY VERIFICATION SYSTEM | MADAMBA, CLIFFORD B | — |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16826739 | ELECTRONIC CIGARETTE WITH VISIBLE LIQUID CONTAINER | KHLOK, BONITA | 15d |
| 18669148 | METHOD OF MAKING AEROSOL-GENERATING ARTICLE WITH POROUS BODY AND AEROSOL-FORMING SUBSTRATE | TRAN, THIEN S | 60d |
| 19307283 | METHOD OF FORMING ASSEMBLED PACKAGE WITH FIRST RIDGE OF FIRST TRAY FORMING PART OF OUTER SURFACE OF ASSEMBLED PACKAGE | WITTENSCHLAEGER, THOMAS M | — |
| 19280597 | APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR ASSEMBLING A HEATER ASSEMBLY FOR A NICOTINE POD ASSEMBLY | TRAVERS, MATTHEW P | — |
| 19273799 | APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR ASSEMBLING A HEATER ASSEMBLY FOR A NON-NICOTINE POD ASSEMBLY | TRAVERS, MATTHEW P | — |
| 19208704 | AGE AND IDENTITY VERIFICATION SYSTEM | MADAMBA, CLIFFORD B | — |
| 18901351 | AEROSOL-GENERATING SYSTEM WITH PUMP | JENNISON, BRIAN W | — |
| 18731897 | ASSEMBLY WITH CAPILLARY MEDIUM DEFINING DUCT THAT ABUTS SURFACE OF AIR IMPINGEMENT STRUCTURE | TRAN, THIEN S | — |
| Art Unit | Apps |
|---|---|
| 3761 | 12 |
| 1747 | 5 |
| 1755 | 5 |
| 3731 | 3 |
| 3726 | 2 |
| 3735 | 2 |
| 1615 | 2 |
| 3692 | 1 |
| 1662 | 1 |
| 3736 | 1 |
| App # | Title | Examiner | Art Unit | Statutes | Status | Due in | AI | Filed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19307283 | METHOD OF FORMING ASSEMBLED PACKAGE WITH FIRST RIDGE OF FIRST TRAY FORMING PART OF OUTER SURFACE OF ASSEMBLED PACKAGE | WITTENSCHLAEGER, THOMAS M | 3731 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Aug 22, 2025 |
| 19280597 | APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR ASSEMBLING A HEATER ASSEMBLY FOR A NICOTINE POD ASSEMBLY | TRAVERS, MATTHEW P | 3726 | §102§103DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 25, 2025 |
| 19273799 | APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR ASSEMBLING A HEATER ASSEMBLY FOR A NON-NICOTINE POD ASSEMBLY | TRAVERS, MATTHEW P | 3726 | §102§103DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 18, 2025 |
| 19208704 | AGE AND IDENTITY VERIFICATION SYSTEM | MADAMBA, CLIFFORD B | 3692 | §101§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 15, 2025 |
| 19027009 | COMPOSITIONS AND METHODS FOR PRODUCING TOBACCO PLANTS AND PRODUCTS HAVING ALTERED ALKALOID LEVELS | COLLINS, CYNTHIA E | — | §102§103DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 17, 2025 |
| 19009709 | METHODS AND COMPOSITIONS FOR MODULATING TRICHOME DENSITY AND FLAVOR MOLECULE SECRETION | DELEO, VICTORIA LYNN | 1662 | §112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 03, 2025 |
| 18975172 | BEAD FEED UNIT AND METHOD | KUMAR, RAKESH | — | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 10, 2024 |
| 18973711 | APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR PACKAGING LOOSE PRODUCT | FERRERO, EDUARDO R | 3731 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 09, 2024 |
| 18971770 | INSERT WITH BASE AND UPPER BRIM | ORTIZ, RAFAEL ALFREDO | 3736 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 06, 2024 |
| 18959984 | CONTAINER WITH FLEXIBLE WALL LOCKING MECHANISM | PAL, PRINCE | 3735 | §102§103 | Final Rejection | 42d | Pending | Nov 26, 2024 |
| 18901351 | AEROSOL-GENERATING SYSTEM WITH PUMP | JENNISON, BRIAN W | — | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 30, 2024 |
| 18884334 | SOLUBLE FIBER LOZENGE | WEBB, WALTER E | 1612 | §103DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 13, 2024 |
| 18883015 | DEVICE AND METHOD FOR CHECKING FILL LEVEL OF A CARTRIDGE | SHABMAN, MARK A | — | DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 12, 2024 |
| 18808394 | METHODS, SYSTEMS, APPARATUSES, AND NON-TRANSITORY COMPUTER READABLE MEDIA FOR VALIDATING ENCODED INFORMATION | HAYLES, ASHFORD S | 3627 | §101§102§103Other | Final Rejection | 25d overdue | Pending | Aug 19, 2024 |
| 18799358 | AEROSOL-GENERATING SYSTEMS WITH USAGE DETERMINATION | ROSARIO-APONTE, ALBA T | 3761 | §112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Aug 09, 2024 |
| 18757732 | AEROSOL-GENERATING SYSTEM COMPRISING A VIBRATABLE ELEMENT | TRAN, TIFFANY T | — | §103§112Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 28, 2024 |
| 18750207 | METHOD OF FORMING POUCH BY ADHERING OXYGEN SCAVENGER TO POUCH MATERIAL | IGBOKWE, NICHOLAS E | 3731 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 21, 2024 |
| 18743548 | ELECTRONIC SMOKING ARTICLE | DELACRUZ, MADELEINE PAULINA | 1747 | DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 14, 2024 |
| 18731897 | ASSEMBLY WITH CAPILLARY MEDIUM DEFINING DUCT THAT ABUTS SURFACE OF AIR IMPINGEMENT STRUCTURE | TRAN, THIEN S | 3761 | §103DP | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Jun 03, 2024 |
| 18669148 | METHOD OF MAKING AEROSOL-GENERATING ARTICLE WITH POROUS BODY AND AEROSOL-FORMING SUBSTRATE | TRAN, THIEN S | 3761 | §102§103 | Final Rejection | 60d | Pending | May 20, 2024 |
| 18648926 | FLUID PERMEABLE HEATER ASSEMBLY AND CARTRIDGE FOR AN AEROSOL-GENERATING SYSTEM | WILL, KATHERINE A | — | DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 29, 2024 |
| 18625427 | ELECTRONIC SMOKING ARTICLE | PAUDEL, PRADEEP | — | §103DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 03, 2024 |
| 18620414 | SYSTEMS FOR GENERATING A LIQUID AEROSOL | VO, TU A | 3785 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | 40d | Pending | Mar 28, 2024 |
| 18618735 | CAPSULE INCLUDING ONE OR MORE PORTIONS OF FILLER MATERIAL INFUSED WITH AT LEAST ONE FIRST SUBSTANCE | NGUYEN, PHU HOANG | 1747 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 27, 2024 |
| 18608007 | DEVICES, SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR PERFORMING AGE VERIFICATION | WELCH, DAVID T | 2613 | §102§103Other | Final Rejection | 33d | Pending | Mar 18, 2024 |
| 18588258 | AEROSOL-GENERATING SYSTEM | TANINGCO, MARCUS H | 2884 | §103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Feb 27, 2024 |
| 18432352 | SMOKING ARTICLE FILTER WITH FLAVORANT DELIVERY SYSTEM | YAARY, ERIC | 1755 | §103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Feb 05, 2024 |
| 18396145 | METHOD OF MAKING E-VAPING DEVICE WITH FIRST-SHAPED CAVITY AND SECOND-SHAPED CAVITY | CHABREYRIE, RODOLPHE ANDRE | — | §102§103Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 26, 2023 |
| 18572327 | HEAT-NOT-BURN CAPSULE, MATERIAL AND PREPARATION OF HEAT-NOT-BURN CAPSULE, DIPPING MOLD, AND PRODUCTION DEVICE | SPARKS, RUSSELL E | 1755 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 20, 2023 |
| 18538654 | SUSCEPTOR FOR USE WITH AN INDUCTIVELY HEATED AEROSOL-GENERATING DEVICE OR SYSTEM | DODSON, JUSTIN C | 3761 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 13, 2023 |
| 18533789 | SUPPORT BRACKET WITH AT LEAST ONE CENTER BRACKET SLIDEABLE ALONG FIRST SURFACE OF MAJOR BODY | WOOD, KIMBERLY T | 3631 | §102§112Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 08, 2023 |
| 18520932 | HOT-WIRE CONTROL FOR AN ELECTRONIC CIGARETTE | SCHNEIDER, THOMAS FRANK | 1749 | §101§103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Nov 28, 2023 |
| 18480639 | COMPRESSIBLE ROD FOR AN AEROSOL-GENERATING DEVICE | GRAY, LINDA LAMEY | 1745 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Oct 04, 2023 |
| 18466420 | E-VAPOR DEVICE INCLUDING PUNCTURE DEVICE AND SEALED PACKET OF PRE-VAPOR FORMULATION | SPARKS, RUSSELL E | 1755 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 13, 2023 |
| 18456763 | CHEWABLE DISSOLVABLE NICOTINE TABLET | TCHERKASSKAYA, OLGA V | 1615 | §103§112Other | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Aug 28, 2023 |
| 18348529 | METHOD FOR OPERATING DEVICE USING MULTI-STAGE HEATING | DODSON, JUSTIN C | 3761 | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 07, 2023 |
| 18318196 | AEROSOL-GENERATING SYSTEM WITH ELECTRODES | RALIS, STEPHEN J | 3992 | Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 16, 2023 |
| 18178838 | CARTRIDGE WITH A CAPACITY SENSOR | SAMUELS, LAWRENCE H | 3761 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 06, 2023 |
| 17781797 | Compositions and Methods for Producing Tobacco Plants and Products Having Altered Alkaloid Levels | KALLIS, RUSSELL | 1663 | §112 | Final Rejection | 19d | Pending | Dec 12, 2022 |
| 18061044 | ELECTRONIC VAPING DEVICE AND COMPONENTS THEREOF | MULLEN, MICHAEL PATRICK | 1747 | §103Other | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Dec 02, 2022 |
| 17982138 | HEAT-NOT-BURN (HNB) AEROSOL-GENERATING DEVICES AND CAPSULES HAVING ELECTRICAL CONTACT PADS WITH SURFACE DISCONTINUITIES | MOORE, STEPHANIE LYNN | 1700 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 07, 2022 |
| 18053149 | ELECTRICAL CONTACT PADS WITH SURFACE DISCONTINUITIES AND POWER-RECEIVING UNITS AND ELECTRONIC DEVICES INCLUDING THE SAME | LOPEZ PAGAN, CARLOS EMILIO | 2834 | §103 | Final Rejection | 9d overdue | Pending | Nov 07, 2022 |
| 18053086 | BLANK WITH WIDE PANELS AND NARROW PANELS, AND PACKAGE WITH BLANK | ATTEL, NINA KAY | 3734 | §103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Nov 07, 2022 |
| 17947345 | POWER CONTROL SYSTEM | KHLOK, BONITA | 3761 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 19, 2022 |
| 17947436 | HEAT-NOT-BURN (HNB) AEROSOL-GENERATING DEVICES AND CAPSULES | DIYAN, OLUWATOSIN OLUWATUMININ | 1755 | §103 | Final Rejection | 35d overdue | Pending | Sep 19, 2022 |
| 17939428 | LABEL FOR PACK | NORDMEYER, PATRICIA L | 1788 | §103Other | Non-Final OA | 41d | Pending | Sep 07, 2022 |
| 17847676 | METHODS AND MACHINES FOR POUCHING SMOKELESS TOBACCO AND TOBACCO SUBSTITUTE PRODUCTS | CULBERT, COURTNEY GUENTHER | 1747 | §103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Jun 23, 2022 |
| 17537899 | INKS, COATINGS AND ADHESIVES AS CARRIERS FOR TAGGANTS FOR TOBACCO PRODUCT AUTHENTICATION AND COMPONENT DETECTION | FELTON, MICHAEL J | 1747 | §103 | Final Rejection | 14d | Pending | Nov 30, 2021 |
| 17520938 | CONTROL OF TOTAL PARTICULATE MATTER PRODUCTION | SAMUELS, LAWRENCE H | 3761 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 08, 2021 |
| 17466445 | UNITARY HEATING ELEMENT AND HEATER ASSEMBLIES, CARTRIDGES, AND E-VAPOR DEVICES INCLUDING A UNITARY HEATING ELEMENT | RHUE, ABIGAIL H | 3761 | §112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 03, 2021 |
| 17223773 | ORAL POUCH PRODUCT | SPARKS, RUSSELL E | 1755 | §103§112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 06, 2021 |
| 17223756 | SPRAY DRIED NICOTINE FOR INCLUSION IN ORAL PRODUCTS | TRAN, SUSAN T | 1615 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 06, 2021 |
| 17159600 | METHOD AND DEVICE FOR EXECUTING AN E-VAPING DEVICE OPERATING SYSTEM, E-VAPING PROGRAMMING LANGUAGE, AND E-VAPING APPLICATION PROGRAMMING INTERFACE | ISKRA, JOSEPH W | 3761 | §103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Jan 27, 2021 |
| 17086735 | LID WITH INTEGRATED STORAGE | BALDRIGHI, ERIC C | 3733 | §103§112 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Nov 02, 2020 |
| 16826739 | ELECTRONIC CIGARETTE WITH VISIBLE LIQUID CONTAINER | KHLOK, BONITA | 3761 | §102§103§112 | Final Rejection | 15d | Pending | Mar 23, 2020 |
| 16670199 | BOX-IN-BOX PACKAGE | NEWAY, BLAINE GIRMA | 3735 | §103 | Final Rejection | 51d overdue | Pending | Oct 31, 2019 |
| 16030255 | AEROSOL-GENERATING SYSTEM WITH FOUR CONTACTS | JENNISON, BRIAN W | 3761 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 09, 2018 |
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