Technology area: Chemistry & Materials
1 pending office actions • 1 art units • 1 examiners • 0 of 1 (0%) have an AI response strategy ready • 3 patents granted in the last 365 days
Ergon Asphalt & Emulsions Inc. currently faces 1 pending office action in the Chemistry & Materials technology area. This action is assigned to 1 distinct examiner and is located within 1 distinct art unit. This structure reflects a highly targeted prosecution effort within the materials sector. The presence of 1 distinct art unit indicates that the company's current active filings are concentrated within a single specialized group at the USPTO.
The busiest examiner for the firm is MERKLING, SALLY ANNE, who is handling 1 pending office action. With only 1 distinct examiner and 1 distinct art unit involved, the prosecution process is highly centralized. This single examiner, MERKLING, SALLY ANNE, is responsible for the 1 pending office action that makes up the company's entire active portfolio. Because MERKLING, SALLY ANNE is the sole examiner for the portfolio, the success of the current active matters depends on navigating the specific requirements of this individual. This 1 distinct examiner represents the entire point of contact for the firm's immediate prosecution needs.
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 |
|---|---|
| Double-patenting + other | 1 (100%) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| MERKLING, SALLY ANNE | 1 | 62.4% | +31.6% |
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 1 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18403262 | CRUDE STEROL AS AN ADDITIVE IN ASPHALT BINDER | MERKLING, SALLY ANNE | — |
| Art Unit | Apps |
|---|---|
| 1738 | 1 |
| App # | Title | Examiner | Art Unit | Statutes | Status | Due in | AI | Filed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18403262 | CRUDE STEROL AS AN ADDITIVE IN ASPHALT BINDER | MERKLING, SALLY ANNE | 1738 | §103§112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 03, 2024 |
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Start Free TrialErgon Asphalt & Emulsions Inc. has 1 pending office actions as of October 2026, spread across 1 art units and 1 examiners.
Sally Anne Merkling has the most, with 1 of Ergon Asphalt & Emulsions Inc.'s pending office actions.
Mostly Chemistry & Materials (USPTO Tech Center 1700), based on where its pending office actions are examined.
