Technology area: Semiconductors, Circuits & Optics
1,547 pending office actions • 114 art units • 599 examiners • 1 of 1,547 (0%) have an AI response strategy ready • 3,101 patents granted in the last 365 days
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd. has 1582 pending office actions in Semiconductors, Circuits & Optics. The matters span 604 examiners and 115 art units, reflecting a highly distributed prosecution operation across the technical area. The scale supports centralized docket controls, consistent claim strategy, and systematic monitoring of examiner-specific developments.
KOO, LAMONT B is the busiest examiner, with 25 pending matters. That concentration is meaningful within the portfolio, but it remains one part of a much wider examiner network. Counsel should distinguish recurring issues at that examiner from patterns that appear across the broader art-unit landscape.
The difference between the pending-action volume and the examiner and art-unit counts indicates that some examination relationships contain multiple matters while many others involve more limited activity. Portfolio reporting should therefore combine aggregate workload views with examiner-level detail, especially when prioritizing response resources or identifying opportunities for consistent arguments.
Based on the USPTO statutory response window for each pending office action. 226 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. 226 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 | 1 (0%) |
| §101 + other | 13 (1%) |
| §103 only | 446 (29%) |
| §102 only | 120 (8%) |
| §112 only | 56 (4%) |
| Double-patenting only | 86 (6%) |
| Double-patenting + other | 62 (4%) |
| Multi-statute (no §101) | 733 (47%) |
| No statute on record | 30 (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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| KOO, LAMONT B | 24 | 80.6% | +5.2% |
| KIM, TONG-HO | 22 | 95.3% | +0.7% |
| BOWEN, ADAM S | 13 | 96.5% | +2.3% |
| DINKE, BITEW A | 12 | 73.0% | +12.2% |
| VALENZUELA, PATRICIA D | 12 | 90.3% | +2.0% |
| PARKER, JOHN M | 12 | 92.0% | +0.4% |
| GREEN, TELLY D | 11 | 82.0% | +4.0% |
| HOANG, TUAN A | 11 | 74.5% | +11.3% |
| ISAAC, STANETTA D | 11 | 85.8% | -36.0% |
| BELOUSOV, ALEXANDER | 10 | 76.6% | +16.3% |
Cases in front of an examiner with an allow rate of 80%+ where the difficulty is Easy or Medium. The top 8 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18219259 | Surface Profile Control Of Passivation Layers In Integrated Circuit Chips | VALENZUELA, PATRICIA D | 56d overdue |
| 18502297 | SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE STRUCTURE WITH CONDUCTIVE VIA STRUCTURE | KOO, LAMONT B | 50d overdue |
| 18358662 | SEMICONDUCTOR PACKAGE REDISTRIBUTION STRUCTURE AND FABRICATION METHOD THEREOF | VALENZUELA, PATRICIA D | 46d overdue |
| 17818785 | Semiconductor Device and Method | KOO, LAMONT B | 46d overdue |
| 18505632 | GATE ISOLATION FEATURES | KOO, LAMONT B | 10d overdue |
| 18361569 | BENT FIN DEVICES | KOO, LAMONT B | 10d overdue |
| 18357251 | CAVITY IN METAL INTERCONNECT STRUCTURE | PARKER, JOHN M | 3d overdue |
| 18360178 | SEMICONDUCTOR DIE AND METHOD FOR FORMING THE SAME | VALENZUELA, PATRICIA D | 5d |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17819381 | Semiconductor Device and Method of Manufacture | ISAAC, STANETTA D | 295d overdue |
| 18232719 | METHOD OF FORMING BIOLOGICAL FIELD EFFECT TRANSISTORS INTEGRATED WITH HEATERS | BAUMAN, SCOTT E | 146d overdue |
| 17875206 | HARDENED INTERLAYER DIELECTRIC LAYER | CRITE, ANTONIO B | 100d overdue |
| 18498369 | INTEGRATED CIRCUIT, SYSTEM AND METHOD OF FORMING THE SAME | WELLS, JAMES STEVEN | 77d overdue |
| 17393619 | VIA RAIL SOLUTION FOR HIGH POWER ELECTROMIGRATION | LIN, JOHN | 72d overdue |
| 18366073 | Gate Structure of Semiconductor Device and Method of Forming Same | KOO, LAMONT B | 66d overdue |
| 17220269 | INTEGRATED CIRCUIT STRUCTURE | LIN, ARIC | 58d overdue |
| 18323179 | DIODE-CONTAINING COMPONENT AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING THE SAME | BERRY, PAUL ANTHONY | 53d 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18475965 | STACKED MULTI-GATE DEVICE WITH AN INSULATING LAYER BETWEEN TOP AND BOTTOM SOURCE/DRAIN FEATURES | DINKE, BITEW A | 28d overdue |
| 18346544 | MULTIPLE WAVELENGTH BAND LIGHT SENSOR DEVICE | BELOUSOV, ALEXANDER | 14d |
| 18325699 | OPTICAL BLOCKING REGIONS FOR PIXEL SENSORS | BELOUSOV, ALEXANDER | 28d |
| 18350429 | SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES WITH IMPROVED GATE CONTROL | HOANG, TUAN A | 61d |
| 18099405 | SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE STRUCTURE AND METHODS OF FORMING THE SAME | HOANG, TUAN A | 69d |
| 18428230 | METHOD FOR FORMING FIN FIELD EFFECT TRANSISTOR (FINFET) DEVICE STRUCTURE | DINKE, BITEW A | 76d |
| 18791279 | INTEGRATED CIRCUIT HAVING STACKED PICK-UP REGIONS | DINKE, BITEW A | — |
| 18786614 | IMAGE SENSOR AND MANUFACTURING METHOD THEREOF | BELOUSOV, ALEXANDER | — |
| Art Unit | Apps |
|---|---|
| 2898 | 143 |
| 2893 | 129 |
| 2818 | 126 |
| 2812 | 120 |
| 2817 | 96 |
| 2897 | 84 |
| 2899 | 83 |
| 2811 | 53 |
| 2813 | 52 |
| 2891 | 47 |
| App # | Title | Examiner | Art Unit | Statutes | Status | Due in | AI | Filed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19290528 | SEMICONDUCTOR PROCESSING TOOL AND METHODS OF OPERATION | SAAD, ERIN BARRY | 1735 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Aug 05, 2025 |
| 19286970 | SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING THE SAME | RAMIREZ, ALEXANDRE XAVIER | 2812 | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 31, 2025 |
| 19283746 | INTEGRATED CIRCUIT AND METHOD OF FORMING THE SAME | PARTHASARATHY, ROHIT | 2899 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 29, 2025 |
| 19269489 | LATCH CIRCUITS AND METHODS FOR OPERATING THE SAME | O NEILL, PATRICK | — | §112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 15, 2025 |
| 19259508 | FLIP-FLOP CIRCUIT AND METHOD | O NEILL, PATRICK | 2836 | DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jul 03, 2025 |
| 19254164 | IMPEDANCE MATCHING CIRCUIT AND METHOD | CHEN, PATRICK C | 2836 | §102DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 30, 2025 |
| 19255872 | INTEGRATED CIRCUIT HAVING LATCH WITH TRANSISTORS OF DIFFERENT GATE WIDTHS | O NEILL, PATRICK | 2836 | §102§112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 30, 2025 |
| 19255856 | WAFER PROCESSING METHOD | RODRIGUEZ, MICHAEL P | 1715 | §102§103§112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 30, 2025 |
| 19253186 | DATA SEQUENCING CIRCUIT | VERBRUGGE, KEVIN | 2132 | Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 27, 2025 |
| 19252149 | IMAGE SENSOR PIXEL AND METAL SHIELDING OF CHARGE STORAGE DEVICE OF IMAGE SENSOR PIXEL FORMED BY ONE STEP PROCESS | HALIYUR, PADMA | 2637 | §103Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 27, 2025 |
| 19252413 | GATED TRI-STATE INVERTER, AND METHOD OF OPERATING SAME | JAGER, RYAN C | 2842 | §112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 27, 2025 |
| 19251693 | TEMPERATURE SENSOR CIRCUITS AND CONTROL CIRCUITS AND METHOD FOR TEMPERATURE SENSOR CIRCUITS | O NEILL, PATRICK | 2842 | §102DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 26, 2025 |
| 19247229 | SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE INCLUDING DECOUPLING SYSTEM | RETEBO, METASEBIA T | 2842 | DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 24, 2025 |
| 19245452 | ELECTRONIC CIRCUIT AND METHOD FOR OPERATING THE SAME | PEREZ, JAMES M | 2631 | §112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 23, 2025 |
| 19243074 | THERMAL BARRIER STRUCTURE IN PHASE CHANGE MATERIAL DEVICE | TAN, DAVE | 2897 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 19, 2025 |
| 19241406 | SHIFT REGISTER HAVING LOW POWER MODE | O NEILL, PATRICK | 2836 | §102§112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 18, 2025 |
| 19241088 | SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE HAVING HYSTERESIS BLOCK | WELLS, KENNETH B | 2836 | §102§103§112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jun 17, 2025 |
| 19237327 | METHOD FOR PROCESSING SEMICONDUCTOR WAFER | ROSTAMI, MOHAMMAD S | 2154 | §103Other | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Jun 13, 2025 |
| 19235541 | METHOD OF FORMING PACKAGE STRUCTURE HAVING THERMOELECTRIC COOLER | GOLDEN, ANDREW J | 1726 | §103 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Jun 11, 2025 |
| 19214788 | Pulse Width Control Apparatus and Method | JAGER, RYAN C | — | §102§103Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 21, 2025 |
| 19211749 | CHEMICAL DISPENSING SYSTEM | GARDNER, NICOLE | 3753 | §102§112Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 19, 2025 |
| 19206002 | DE-TAPE TOOL | CAILLOUET, CHRISTOPHER C | 1745 | §102DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 12, 2025 |
| 19200973 | SYSTEM AND SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE THEREIN | JAGER, RYAN C | 2842 | §102DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 07, 2025 |
| 19197279 | Level Shifter With Inside Self-Protection High Bias Generator | RETEBO, METASEBIA T | 2836 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | May 02, 2025 |
| 19194045 | MEMORY DEVICE, READ CLOCK GENERATION CIRCUIT, AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING READ OPERATION IN MEMORY DEVICE | HIDALGO, FERNANDO N | 2827 | DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 30, 2025 |
| 19176227 | AMMONIUM FLUORIDE PRE-CLEAN PROTECTION | LE, TUNG X | 2845 | Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 11, 2025 |
| 19176354 | Overdrive I/O ESD Protection Network | WELLS, KENNETH B | 2842 | §103§112 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Apr 11, 2025 |
| 19176327 | Device and Method for Diagnosis of the Same | BRADEN, GRACE VICTORIA | 2112 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 11, 2025 |
| 19171607 | ION EXPOSURE METHOD AND APPARATUS | ASFAW, MESFIN T | 2882 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 07, 2025 |
| 19169567 | EUV WAFER DEFECT IMPROVEMENT AND METHOD OF COLLECTING NONCONDUCTIVE PARTICLES | WHITESELL, STEVEN H | — | Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Apr 03, 2025 |
| 19089163 | Bio-Detector Device for Bio-Targets | BALL, JOHN C | 1795 | DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 25, 2025 |
| 19088255 | REDUCE MASK DEFECT IMPACT BY CONTAMINATION DECOMPOSE | WHITESELL, STEVEN H | 1759 | §102§103Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 24, 2025 |
| 19084896 | LITHOGRAPHY APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR OPERATING THE SAME | ASFAW, MESFIN T | 2882 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 20, 2025 |
| 19084239 | WIDTH ADJUSTMENT OF EUV RADIATION BEAM | PERSAUD, DEORAM | 2882 | §102§103Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 19, 2025 |
| 19081563 | MEMORY CIRCUITS WITH SHARED SELF-TRACKING REFERENCE CIRCUIT AND METHODS FOR OPERATING THE SAME | STORMES, JOSEPH FIDELIS | 2825 | §102 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 17, 2025 |
| 19075364 | LOW-DROPOUT (LDO) REGULATOR WITH A FEEDBACK CIRCUIT | GBLENDE, JEFFREY A | 2838 | DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 10, 2025 |
| 19070730 | Sub-Word Line Driver Placement For Memory Device | YANG, HAN | 2824 | §102 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 05, 2025 |
| 19069350 | Programmable Regulator Voltage Controlled Ring Oscillator | GANNON, LEVI | 2849 | §102Other | Non-Final OA | 14d | Pending | Mar 04, 2025 |
| 19068296 | METHOD OF USING WAFER STAGE | NGUYEN, HUNG | 2882 | §103DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 03, 2025 |
| 19069048 | ONE TIME PROGRAMMABLE MEMORY | CHEN, XIAOCHUN L | 2824 | §103§112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 03, 2025 |
| 19064895 | SEMICONDUCTOR STRUCTURE WITH REDUCED GATE CONTACT RESISTANCE AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING THE SAME | DEO, DUY VU NGUYEN | 1713 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 27, 2025 |
| 19064599 | LOW DROPOUT REGULATOR CIRCUITS, INPUT/OUTPUT DEVICE, AND METHODS FOR OPERATING A LOW DROPOUT REGULATOR | TIKU, SISAY G | 2838 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 26, 2025 |
| 19064203 | MEMORY DEVICES WITH IMPROVED BIT LINE LOADING | SIDDIQUE, MUSHFIQUE | 2825 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 26, 2025 |
| 19064089 | LOW-DROPOUT (LDO) VOLTAGE REGULATOR | QUDDUS, NUSRAT | 2838 | §103Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 26, 2025 |
| 19061365 | MEMORY CIRCUIT AND METHOD OF OPERATING SAME | HOANG, HUAN | — | Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 24, 2025 |
| 19059384 | MEMORY DEVICE WITH ADDITIONAL WRITE BIT LINES | CHO, SUNG IL | 2825 | §102§103Other | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 21, 2025 |
| 19056851 | MULTIPLE SEMICONDUCTOR DIE CONTAINER LOAD PORT | MCCLAIN, GERALD | 3652 | §102DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 19, 2025 |
| 19056022 | CHEMICAL VAPOR DEPOSITION FOR UNIFORM TUNGSTEN GROWTH | GAMBETTA, KELLY M | 1718 | §102§103§112 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Feb 18, 2025 |
| 19055771 | BUFFER CONTROL OF MULTIPLE MEMORY BANKS | HIDALGO, FERNANDO N | 2827 | §112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 18, 2025 |
| 19055872 | MERGED BIT LINES FOR HIGH DENSITY MEMORY ARRAY | TECHANE, MUNA A | 2827 | §102§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Feb 18, 2025 |
IP Author helps IP teams respond to office actions faster with AI-generated responses, examiner analytics, and prosecution intelligence.
Start Free TrialTaiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd. has 1,547 pending office actions as of October 2026, spread across 114 art units and 599 examiners.
Lamont B Koo has the most, with 24 of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.'s pending office actions.
Mostly Semiconductors, Circuits & Optics (USPTO Tech Center 2800), based on where its pending office actions are examined.
