Technology area: Chemistry & Materials
18 pending office actions • 14 art units • 17 examiners • 0 of 18 (0%) have an AI response strategy ready • 49 patents granted in the last 365 days
The Swatch Group Research and Development Ltd. has 19 pending office actions in Chemistry & Materials. The matters involve 18 distinct examiners and 15 distinct art units, creating broad examiner and technical-unit dispersion across the portfolio.
HWANG, MATTHEW DANIEL is the busiest examiner, with 2 pending matters. That assignment is larger than the recorded share for any other named examiner, but it does not account for the portfolio as a whole. Counsel should use centralized docket and claim tracking, identify recurring chemistry and materials issues, and preserve a coordinated position while adapting responses to the varied examination settings.
Based on the USPTO statutory response window for each pending office action. 1 of the docket's apps have a known mailing date; the rest are excluded from the tile counts.
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 | 1 (6%) |
| §103 only | 7 (39%) |
| §112 only | 4 (22%) |
| Double-patenting + other | 1 (6%) |
| Multi-statute (no §101) | 5 (28%) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| HWANG, MATTHEW DANIEL | 2 | 84.8% | +6.7% |
| ROBITAILLE, JOHN P | 1 | 62.5% | +22.1% |
| TALBOT, BRIAN K | 1 | 59.2% | +30.9% |
| FERRE, ALEXANDRE F | 1 | 59.1% | +20.1% |
| WALKER, MICHAEL JAMES | 1 | 89.7% | -4.4% |
| KIM, YUNJU | 1 | 55.2% | +35.4% |
| OYER, ANDREW J | 1 | 79.2% | +16.8% |
| WEYDEMEYER, ALICIA JANE | 1 | 46.2% | +28.0% |
| HERNANDEZ-KENNEY, JOSE | 1 | 54.7% | +22.5% |
| HOTCHKISS, MICHAEL WAYNE | 1 | 69.6% | +47.8% |
Cases in front of an examiner with an allow rate of 80%+ where the difficulty is Easy or Medium. The top 3 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18934446 | HOROLOGICAL ASSEMBLY FOR A REGULATING MEMBER PROVIDED WITH RATE ADJUSTMENT MEANS | WALKER, MICHAEL JAMES | — |
| 17940470 | WATCH CASE COMPRISING AN EXTERNAL PART COMPONENT WHEREON A STACK OF THIN LAYERS IS DEPOSITED | HWANG, MATTHEW DANIEL | — |
| 17940216 | WATCH CASE COMPRISING AN EXTERNAL PART COMPONENT WHEREON A STACK OF THIN LAYERS IS DEPOSITED | HWANG, MATTHEW DANIEL | — |
Multi-statute / §101-driven matters, or cases in front of an examiner with an allow rate under 30%. The top 6 ordered by deadline are shown.
| App # | Title | Examiner | Due in |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18163919 | POLYMERISABLE COMPOSITION FOR A SOLID POLYMER ELECTROLYTE | KYLE, MADISON LEIGH | 22d |
| 18938891 | ITEM, SUCH AS A TIMEPIECE COMPONENT, COMPRISING A SUBSTRATE AND A VISIBLE LIGHT-ABSORBING COATING | FERRE, ALEXANDRE F | — |
| 18924387 | METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING AN EXTERNAL PART | KIM, YUNJU | — |
| 18809497 | METHOD FOR OBTAINING AN ITEM WITH A SPARKLING POLYCRYSTALLINE SURFACE | HOTCHKISS, MICHAEL WAYNE | — |
| 18017567 | ITEM MADE OF CERAMIC | UTECH, BENJAMIN L | — |
| 18051608 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR IDENTIFYING A TIMEPIECE | CHEN, BILL | — |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18948725 | PRODUCTION OF A COMPOSITE TIMEPIECE COMPONENT WITH WATERPROOF JOINT | ROBITAILLE, JOHN P | — |
| 18945903 | METHOD FOR DEPOSITING A VISIBLE LIGHT-ABSORBING COATING OVER A SUBSTRATE | TALBOT, BRIAN K | — |
| 18938891 | ITEM, SUCH AS A TIMEPIECE COMPONENT, COMPRISING A SUBSTRATE AND A VISIBLE LIGHT-ABSORBING COATING | FERRE, ALEXANDRE F | — |
| 18924387 | METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING AN EXTERNAL PART | KIM, YUNJU | — |
| 18915797 | DARK-COLOURED PHOTOLUMINESCENT MATERIAL | OYER, ANDREW J | — |
| 18890976 | TRIM COMPONENT COMPRISING A SUBSTRATE HAVING LOCAL VARIATIONS IN REFRACTIVE INDEX, AND METHOD OF PRODUCING SUCH A TRIM COMPONENT | WEYDEMEYER, ALICIA JANE | — |
| 18825070 | METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING AN ENAMELLED WATCH COMPONENT | HERNANDEZ-KENNEY, JOSE | — |
| 18809497 | METHOD FOR OBTAINING AN ITEM WITH A SPARKLING POLYCRYSTALLINE SURFACE | HOTCHKISS, MICHAEL WAYNE | — |
| Art Unit | Apps |
|---|---|
| 2831 | 3 |
| 3726 | 2 |
| 1743 | 1 |
| 1712 | 1 |
| 1788 | 1 |
| 1742 | 1 |
| 1767 | 1 |
| 1717 | 1 |
| 3725 | 1 |
| 1784 | 1 |
| App # | Title | Examiner | Art Unit | Statutes | Status | Due in | AI | Filed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18948725 | PRODUCTION OF A COMPOSITE TIMEPIECE COMPONENT WITH WATERPROOF JOINT | ROBITAILLE, JOHN P | 1743 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 15, 2024 |
| 18945903 | METHOD FOR DEPOSITING A VISIBLE LIGHT-ABSORBING COATING OVER A SUBSTRATE | TALBOT, BRIAN K | 1712 | §112DP | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 13, 2024 |
| 18938891 | ITEM, SUCH AS A TIMEPIECE COMPONENT, COMPRISING A SUBSTRATE AND A VISIBLE LIGHT-ABSORBING COATING | FERRE, ALEXANDRE F | 1788 | §102§103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 06, 2024 |
| 18934446 | HOROLOGICAL ASSEMBLY FOR A REGULATING MEMBER PROVIDED WITH RATE ADJUSTMENT MEANS | WALKER, MICHAEL JAMES | 2831 | §112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 01, 2024 |
| 18924387 | METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING AN EXTERNAL PART | KIM, YUNJU | 1742 | §103§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Oct 23, 2024 |
| 18915797 | DARK-COLOURED PHOTOLUMINESCENT MATERIAL | OYER, ANDREW J | 1767 | §112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Oct 15, 2024 |
| 18890976 | TRIM COMPONENT COMPRISING A SUBSTRATE HAVING LOCAL VARIATIONS IN REFRACTIVE INDEX, AND METHOD OF PRODUCING SUCH A TRIM COMPONENT | WEYDEMEYER, ALICIA JANE | — | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 20, 2024 |
| 18825070 | METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING AN ENAMELLED WATCH COMPONENT | HERNANDEZ-KENNEY, JOSE | 1717 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Sep 05, 2024 |
| 18809497 | METHOD FOR OBTAINING AN ITEM WITH A SPARKLING POLYCRYSTALLINE SURFACE | HOTCHKISS, MICHAEL WAYNE | 3726 | §102§112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Aug 20, 2024 |
| 18801907 | STRUCTURE WITH AN INSERT AND ASSEMBLY METHOD | COZART, JERMIE E | 3725 | §112 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Aug 13, 2024 |
| 18641895 | METHOD FOR MACHINING RIBS OR GROOVES ON A SHAFT FOR AIR OR GAS BEARINGS OF A COMPRESSOR | COOK, KYLE A | 3726 | §112 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Apr 22, 2024 |
| 18611800 | EXTERNAL PART MADE OF CERAMIC MATERIAL COMPRISING A PROTECTIVE LAYER AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING SUCH AN EXTERNAL PART | SAMPLE, DAVID R | 1784 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Mar 21, 2024 |
| 18292160 | ELECTRONIC DEVICE COMPRISING A SOLAR CELL AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING SAID SOLAR CELL | SUN, MICHAEL Y | 1728 | §103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Jan 25, 2024 |
| 18163919 | POLYMERISABLE COMPOSITION FOR A SOLID POLYMER ELECTROLYTE | KYLE, MADISON LEIGH | 1722 | §103§112 | Final Rejection | 22d | Pending | Feb 03, 2023 |
| 18017567 | ITEM MADE OF CERAMIC | UTECH, BENJAMIN L | 1700 | §103§112 | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Jan 23, 2023 |
| 18051608 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR IDENTIFYING A TIMEPIECE | CHEN, BILL | 3626 | §101§103 | Non-Final OA | — | Pending | Nov 01, 2022 |
| 17940470 | WATCH CASE COMPRISING AN EXTERNAL PART COMPONENT WHEREON A STACK OF THIN LAYERS IS DEPOSITED | HWANG, MATTHEW DANIEL | 2831 | §103Other | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Sep 08, 2022 |
| 17940216 | WATCH CASE COMPRISING AN EXTERNAL PART COMPONENT WHEREON A STACK OF THIN LAYERS IS DEPOSITED | HWANG, MATTHEW DANIEL | 2831 | §103Other | Final Rejection | — | Pending | Sep 08, 2022 |
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Start Free TrialThe Swatch Group Research and Development Ltd. has 18 pending office actions as of October 2026, spread across 14 art units and 17 examiners.
Matthew Daniel Hwang has the most, with 2 of The Swatch Group Research and Development Ltd.'s pending office actions.
Mostly Chemistry & Materials (USPTO Tech Center 1700), based on where its pending office actions are examined.
