Technology area: Chemistry & Materials
38 pending office actions • 17 art units • 29 examiners • 0 of 38 (0%) have an AI response strategy ready • 37 patents granted in the last 365 days
Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. has 40 pending office actions in Chemistry & Materials. The matters involve 31 distinct examiners across 18 distinct art units, creating a large and widely distributed prosecution docket. The difference between the pending-action total and the examiner total means some examiners handle more than one matter, while the art-unit spread shows that the portfolio reaches multiple technical examination settings. Counsel needs centralized status control, but substantive review should remain segmented by technology and examiner.
PIRO, NICHOLAS ANTHONY is the busiest examiner, with 5 pending matters. Those matters offer the strongest concentrated source for identifying examiner-specific treatment, yet they represent only one portion of the docket. Portfolio managers should compare recurring rejection grounds and amendment strategies across the eighteen art units before treating any pattern as general. Examiner histories can guide negotiation planning, while claim scope and disclosure support should remain application-specific. This approach preserves consistency in Chemistry & Materials practice without assuming uniformity across the full portfolio.
Based on the USPTO statutory response window for each pending office action. 14 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. 14 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 |
|---|---|
| §103 only | 18 (47%) |
| §102 only | 2 (5%) |
| §112 only | 2 (5%) |
| Double-patenting + other | 2 (5%) |
| Multi-statute (no §101) | 14 (37%) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| PIRO, NICHOLAS ANTHONY | 6 | 47.5% | +41.3% |
| WALCK, BRIAN D | 3 | 58.9% | +26.7% |
| CARDA, DANIELLE MARIE | 2 | 83.4% | +12.8% |
| SMOOT, MORIAH SIMONE MCMIL | 2 | 64.2% | +7.5% |
| CHOI, PETER Y | 1 | 20.4% | +32.5% |
| NGUYEN, KHANH TUAN | 1 | 74.5% | +18.7% |
| FLORES, JAVIER | 1 | 0.0% | +0.0% |
| MCKINNON, LASHAWNDA T | 1 | 54.0% | +30.2% |
| DANG, KET D | 1 | 61.6% | +37.9% |
| LE, HOA T | 1 | 72.7% | +11.9% |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18575891 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING VALUABLE METAL | CARDA, DANIELLE MARIE | — |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18681709 | ANTIMOLD EMULSION COATING MATERIAL, ANTIMOLD FINE PARTICLE DISPERSION, AND ARTICLE WITH ANTIMOLD FINE PARTICLE DISPERSION | DICUS, TAMRA | 8d |
| 18691381 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING LITHIUM HYDROXIDE | PIRO, NICHOLAS ANTHONY | 14d |
| 17912998 | ALLOY TREATMENT METHOD | SMOOT, MORIAH SIMONE MCMIL | 40d |
| 16976979 | LITHIUM METAL COMPOSITE OXIDE, LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL, POSITIVE ELECTRODE, AND LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY | BILLIET, AMANDA JUNE | 69d |
| 17777097 | MAGNETOSTRICTIVE MEMBER AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING MAGNETOSTRICTIVE MEMBER | WALCK, BRIAN D | 77d |
| 19116313 | INFARED SHIELDING FIBER STRUCTURE AND CLOTHING EMPLOYING SAME | CHOI, PETER Y | — |
| 18690282 | METHOD FOR PROCESSING ALLOY | FLORES, JAVIER | — |
| 18687846 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING VALUABLE METAL | WALCK, BRIAN D | — |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18267054 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING LITHIUM HYDROXIDE | PIRO, NICHOLAS ANTHONY | 67d overdue |
| 18691381 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING LITHIUM HYDROXIDE | PIRO, NICHOLAS ANTHONY | 14d |
| 18698146 | INFRARED ABSORBING FIBER AND FIBER PRODUCT | MCKINNON, LASHAWNDA T | 16d |
| 17777097 | MAGNETOSTRICTIVE MEMBER AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING MAGNETOSTRICTIVE MEMBER | WALCK, BRIAN D | 77d |
| 19116313 | INFARED SHIELDING FIBER STRUCTURE AND CLOTHING EMPLOYING SAME | CHOI, PETER Y | — |
| 18997902 | NEGATIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL FOR LITHIUM ION SECONDARY BATTERY, METHOD OF MANUFACTURING NEGATIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL FOR LITHIUM ION SECONDARY BATTERY, AND LITHIUM ION SECONDARY BATTERY | NGUYEN, KHANH TUAN | — |
| 18696560 | ALLOY TREATMENT METHOD | WALCK, BRIAN D | — |
| 18687846 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING VALUABLE METAL | WALCK, BRIAN D | — |
| Art Unit | Apps |
|---|---|
| 1738 | 11 |
| 1788 | 3 |
| 1729 | 3 |
| 1751 | 3 |
| 1735 | 2 |
| 1722 | 2 |
| 1733 | 2 |
| 1752 | 2 |
| 1786 | 1 |
| 1761 | 1 |
| App # | Title | Examiner | Art Unit | Statutes | Status | Due in | AI | Filed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19116313 | INFARED SHIELDING FIBER STRUCTURE AND CLOTHING EMPLOYING SAME | CHOI, PETER Y | 1786 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 27, 2025 |
| 18997902 | NEGATIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL FOR LITHIUM ION SECONDARY BATTERY, METHOD OF MANUFACTURING NEGATIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL FOR LITHIUM ION SECONDARY BATTERY, AND LITHIUM ION SECONDARY BATTERY | NGUYEN, KHANH TUAN | 1761 | §102 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 23, 2025 |
| 18690282 | METHOD FOR PROCESSING ALLOY | FLORES, JAVIER | 1735 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Aug 16, 2024 |
| 18698146 | INFRARED ABSORBING FIBER AND FIBER PRODUCT | MCKINNON, LASHAWNDA T | 1789 | §103 | Non-Final OA | 16d | Pending | Apr 03, 2024 |
| 18696560 | ALLOY TREATMENT METHOD | WALCK, BRIAN D | 1738 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 28, 2024 |
| 18691381 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING LITHIUM HYDROXIDE | PIRO, NICHOLAS ANTHONY | 1738 | §102§103Other | Final Rejection | 14d | Pending | Mar 12, 2024 |
| 18687846 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING VALUABLE METAL | WALCK, BRIAN D | — | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 29, 2024 |
| 18588286 | ELECTRIC FURNACE AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING VALUABLE METAL | DANG, KET D | 3761 | §112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 27, 2024 |
| 18685250 | METHOD FOR RECOVERING VALUABLE METALS | CARDA, DANIELLE MARIE | 1738 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 21, 2024 |
| 18682231 | ORGANIC-INORGANIC HYBRID INFRARED ABSORBING PARTICLES, INFRARED ABSORBING PARTICLE DISPERSION, AND METHOD OF PRODUCING ORGANIC-INORGANIC HYBRID INFRARED ABSORBING PARTICLES | LE, HOA T | 1788 | §102 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Feb 08, 2024 |
| 18681709 | ANTIMOLD EMULSION COATING MATERIAL, ANTIMOLD FINE PARTICLE DISPERSION, AND ARTICLE WITH ANTIMOLD FINE PARTICLE DISPERSION | DICUS, TAMRA | 1787 | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | 8d | Pending | Feb 06, 2024 |
| 18681346 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING LITHIUM CONTAINING SOLUTION AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING LITHIUM HYDROXIDE | PIRO, NICHOLAS ANTHONY | 1738 | §103§112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 05, 2024 |
| 18293342 | POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL FOR LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY, POSITIVE ELECTRODE FOR LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY, AND LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY | TRAN, THU THI MINH | 1788 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 29, 2024 |
| 18579520 | METHOD FOR PROCESSING ALLOY | PIRO, NICHOLAS ANTHONY | 1738 | §103§112 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Jan 16, 2024 |
| 18575891 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING VALUABLE METAL | CARDA, DANIELLE MARIE | 1738 | §103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Jan 02, 2024 |
| 18401946 | NICKEL-CONTAINING COMPOSITE HYDROXIDE AND PRODUCTION PROCESS THEREFOR, POSITIVE-ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL FOR A NONAQUEOUS-ELECTROLYTE SECONDARY BATTERY AND PRODUCTION PROCESS THEREFOR, AND NONAQUEOUS-ELECTROLYTE SECONDARY BATTERY | PIRO, NICHOLAS ANTHONY | 1738 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 02, 2024 |
| 18572773 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING LITHIUM METAL COMPOSITE OXIDE | KYLE, MADISON LEIGH | 1722 | §103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Dec 20, 2023 |
| 18568471 | INFRARED ABSORBING COMPOSITE FINE PARTICLES, INFRARED ABSORBING FINE PARTICLE DISPERSION LIQUID, AND INFRARED ABSORBING FINE PARTICLE DISPERSION BODY | MANGOHIG, THOMAS A | 1788 | §103DP | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Dec 08, 2023 |
| 18567019 | POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL FOR LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY, POSITIVE ELECTRODE FOR LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY, AND LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY | KERNS, KEVIN P | 1735 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Dec 04, 2023 |
| 18258958 | HEAT RAY SHIELDING RESIN SHEET MATERIAL | WILSON, PAISLEY L | 2871 | §103 | Non-Final OA | 27d | Pending | Jun 22, 2023 |
| 18267113 | FLOTATION METHOD AND FLOTATION SYSTEM | PATEL, PRANAV N | 1777 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 14, 2023 |
| 18267054 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING LITHIUM HYDROXIDE | PIRO, NICHOLAS ANTHONY | 1738 | §103Other | Final Rejection | 67d overdue | Pending | Jun 13, 2023 |
| 18042406 | POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL FOR LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY, POSITIVE ELECTRODE FOR LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY, AND LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY | TRAN, UYEN M | 1726 | §103 | Final Rejection | 53d | Pending | Feb 21, 2023 |
| 18018415 | METHOD FOR RECOVERING LITHIUM AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING LITHIUM CARBONATE | SMOOT, MORIAH SIMONE MCMIL | 1733 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 27, 2023 |
| 18005212 | METHOD OF PRODUCING NICKEL-CONTAINING HYDROXIDE, METHOD OF PRODUCING POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL FOR LITHIUM ION SECONDARY BATTERY, POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL FOR LITHIUM ION SECONDARY BATTERY, AND LITHIUM ION SECONDARY BATTERY | BLACKWELL-RUDASIL, RYAN KENZIE | 1722 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 12, 2023 |
| 17777097 | MAGNETOSTRICTIVE MEMBER AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING MAGNETOSTRICTIVE MEMBER | WALCK, BRIAN D | 1738 | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | 77d | Pending | Nov 16, 2022 |
| 17918489 | POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL PARTICLES FOR LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY, POSITIVE ELECTRODE FOR LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY, AND LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY | KASS-MULLET, BENJAMIN ELI | 1752 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Oct 12, 2022 |
| 17917312 | METHOD FOR RECOVERING VALUABLE METAL | MORALES, RICARDO D | 1738 | §103 | Final Rejection | 37d overdue | Pending | Oct 06, 2022 |
| 17912998 | ALLOY TREATMENT METHOD | SMOOT, MORIAH SIMONE MCMIL | 1733 | §103§112 | Final Rejection | 40d | Pending | Sep 20, 2022 |
| 17797212 | METHOD FOR TREATING ALLOY | PIRO, NICHOLAS ANTHONY | 1738 | §103Other | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Aug 03, 2022 |
| 17797397 | METHOD FOR PRODUCING LITHIUM HYDROXIDE | RIPA, BRYAN D | 1794 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Aug 03, 2022 |
| 17783802 | LITHIUM METAL COMPOSITE OXIDE, POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL FOR LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY, POSITIVE ELECTRODE FOR LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY, AND LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY | AMPONSAH, OSEI K | 1752 | §112 | Final Rejection | 14d | Pending | Jun 09, 2022 |
| 17601882 | LITHIUM COMPOSITE METAL OXIDE POWDER AND LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL | EGGERDING, ALIX ECHELMEYER | 1729 | §103 | Final Rejection | 8d overdue | Pending | Oct 06, 2021 |
| 17310805 | POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL FOR LITHIUM ION SECONDARY BATTERY, METHOD OF MANUFACTURING POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL FOR LITHIUM ION SECONDARY BATTERY, AND LITHIUM ION SECONDARY BATTERY | SON, TAEYOUNG | 1751 | §103 | Non-Final OA | 12d | Pending | Aug 25, 2021 |
| 17425102 | NICKEL COBALT ALUMINUM COMPOSITE HYDROXIDE, METHOD FOR PRODUCING NICKEL COBALT ALUMINUM COMPOSITE HYDROXIDE, LITHIUM NICKEL COBALT ALUMINUM COMPOSITE OXIDE, AND LITHIUM ION SECONDARY BATTERY | CARVALHO JR., ARMINDO | 1729 | §103 | Final Rejection | 9d | Pending | Jul 22, 2021 |
| 16976979 | LITHIUM METAL COMPOSITE OXIDE, LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL, POSITIVE ELECTRODE, AND LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY | BILLIET, AMANDA JUNE | 1729 | §103§112 | Final Rejection | 69d | Pending | Sep 29, 2020 |
| 16982001 | LITHIUM COMPOSITE METAL OXIDE, POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL FOR LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY, POSITIVE ELECTRODE FOR LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY, AND LITHIUM SECONDARY BATTERY | NEWMAN, DREW C | 1751 | §103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Sep 17, 2020 |
| 16629806 | METAL COMPOSITE HYDROXIDE, METHOD FOR PRODUCING SAME, POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL FOR NONAQUEOUS ELECTROLYTE SECONDARY BATTERIES, METHOD FOR PRODUCING SAID POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL, AND NONAQUEOUS ELECTROLYTE SECONDARY BATTERY USING SAID POSITIVE ELECTRODE ACTIVE MATERIAL | CHUO, TONY SHENG HSIANG | 1751 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 09, 2020 |
IP Author helps IP teams respond to office actions faster with AI-generated responses, examiner analytics, and prosecution intelligence.
Start Free TrialSumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. has 38 pending office actions as of October 2026, spread across 17 art units and 29 examiners.
Nicholas Anthony Piro has the most, with 6 of Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd.'s pending office actions.
Mostly Chemistry & Materials (USPTO Tech Center 1700), based on where its pending office actions are examined.
