NON-FINAL REJECTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1-18 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Double Patenting
A rejection based on double patenting of the “same invention” type finds its support in the language of 35 U.S.C. 101 which states that “whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process... may obtain a patent therefor...” (Emphasis added). Thus, the term “same invention,” in this context, means an invention drawn to identical subject matter. See Miller v. Eagle Mfg. Co., 151 U.S. 186 (1894); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Ockert, 245 F.2d 467, 114 USPQ 330 (CCPA 1957).
A statutory type (35 U.S.C. 101) double patenting rejection can be overcome by canceling or amending the claims that are directed to the same invention so they are no longer coextensive in scope. The filing of a terminal disclaimer cannot overcome a double patenting rejection based upon 35 U.S.C. 101.
Claims 1-3, 6, 7, and 9-18 are provisionally rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 as claiming the same invention as that of claims 31-46 of copending Application No. 18/448,044 (reference application). This is a provisional statutory double patenting rejection since the claims directed to the same invention have not in fact been patented.
The current claims are directed to the same invention in view of the copending claims as detailed below in the table:
Applications Claims
Copending Applications Claims
1
31, 34
2
32
3
33
6
35
7
36
9
37
10
38
11
39
12
40
13
41
14
42
15
43
16
44
17
45
18
46
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 1-3, 6, 9-13, and 15-17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Maboudian et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2019/0041352 in view Krauss et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2018/0194617 and further in view of Chang et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2018/03211172.
With respect to claims 1, 9, 13, and 15-17, Maboudian teaches a substrate (chip platform 100, figure 2C); a micro-heater disposed on the substrate (heater electrodes, figure 2C); and an electrically insulating layer disposed on the micro-heater (membrane 110), a gas sensor (gas sensor 100) comprising at least one gas-sensor element (oxide film 112, paragraph 44), wherein the at least one gas-sensor element comprising a nano-porous electrical conductor (highly porous and nanostructured metal oxide films for miniaturized gas sensor applications, paragraph 33), wherein the nano-porous electrical conductor comprising sintered nanoparticles (a liquid precursor was drop-cast onto the microheater surface and rapidly sintered to form a porous film of SnO2 nanoparticles thereon, paragraph 51); at least one first electrode electrically connected to a first end of the at least one gas-sensor element (sensing electrode 102, figure 2C); and at least one second electrode electrically connected to a second end of the at least one gas-sensor element (sensing electrode 104, figure 2C); wherein the at least one gas-sensor element has a corresponding first electrode and second electrode pair (interpreted as the electrode part created by the sensing electrodes 102,104 attached to opposing sides of the film 112, figure 2C), wherein the at least one first electrode and the at least one second electrode are disposed on the electrically insulating layer and the at least one gas-sensor element is disposed on the corresponding first electrode and second electrode pair (the electrodes are disposed on the membrane 110, figure 2C); and wherein an electrical characteristic of the at least one gas-sensor element measured by the at least one first electrode and the at least one second electrode changes in response to an ambient gas in contact with the nano-porous electrical conductor (paragraphs 63-64, figures 4A-4B).
Maboudian fails to teach wherein the microheater extends beyond the at least one gas sensor element in a horizonal direction parallel to the substrate, wherein the substrate incorporates at least one membrane, wherein the membrane has a thickness less than about 1 micron, wherein the at least one gas-sensor element has a height in the range of about 1 μm to about 20 μm, and a width in the range of about 1 μm to about 50 μm, wherein the ratio between an element height of the at least one gas-sensor element and an element width of the at least one gas-sensor element is no less than 2, wherein the ratio between an element height of the at least one gas-sensor element and an element width of the at least one gas-sensor element is no greater than 0.5, and wherein the ratio between a spacing between at least two adjacent gas sensor elements and an element width of the at least one gas-sensor element is no more than 4, and wherein the micro-heater comprises a plurality of micro-heater segments that are individually controllable to provide a different temperature in each of the plurality of micro-heater segments simultaneously.
Krauss teaches a micromechanical sensor wherein a microheater disposed in the substrate 1 and extends beyond gas sensors elements (S1, S2, S3) that are disposed on the substrate (figures 1 and 2) in a horizonal direction parallel to the substrate (the heating device HE extends horizontally pass the sensor elements S1, S2,S3, figures 1 and 2), having structured sensor layer areas 200, 300, 400 are porous gas sensor areas which are made of a metal oxide, wherein the substrate incorporates at least one membrane, wherein the membrane has a thickness less than about 1 micron (diaphragm above diaphragm area M, paragraph 32, figure 2), wherein the at least one gas-sensor element has a height in the range of about 1 μm to about 20 μm, and a width in the range of about 1 μm to about 50 μm (paragraph 38), and wherein the ratio between an element height of the at least one gas-sensor element and an element width of the at least one gas-sensor element is no less than 2 (the ratio between the height and width od sensor layers S1-S3 is interpreted as being less than 2, figure 2), wherein the ratio between an element height of the at least one gas-sensor element and an element width of the at least one gas-sensor element is no greater than 0.5 (the ratio between the height and width od sensor layers S1-S3 is interpreted as being greater than 0.5, figure 2), and wherein the ratio between a spacing between at least two adjacent gas sensor elements and an element width of the at least one gas-sensor element is no more than 4 (the spacing between sensor layers, figure 2).
Chang teaches a gas detector device is provided which includes at least one gas sensor having a plurality of fins, a conformal resistive heating element on the fins, a conformal barrier layer on the resistive heating element, a conformal sensing layer on the barrier layer (abstract) and where different sensors in the array can be operated at different temperatures (paragraph 45).
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to modify the gas sensor structure of Maboudian with sensor dimensions and structure as taught by Krauss in order to provide a sensing structure which is ideally sized for the measurement environment and operate the heating elements at different temperatures as taught by Change in order to provide array sensitive to a variety of different gases (paragraph 45).
With respect to claims 2, 3, Maboudian teaches a first gas-sensor element and a second gas-sensor element, wherein the first gas-sensor element comprises a first nanoparticle composition, and the second gas-sensor element comprises a second nanoparticle composition different or form factor from the first nanoparticle composition or form factor (an array of sensors with different metal oxide films can be constructed. Such an array can conduct simultaneous detections from a stream of feed gases and individual sensor responses can also be compared in real time to confirm results or to identify false positives, paragraph 45).
With respect to claim 6, Maboudian teaches a sensor controller electrically connected to the at least one first electrode and electrically connected to the at least one second electrode, wherein the sensor controller is operable to provide electrical current to, and measure the resistivity of, the at least one gas-sensor element (paragraphs 41 and 60).
With respect to claim 7, Maboudian teaches the at least one gas-sensor element is disposed on the corresponding first electrode and second electrode pair (figure 2C).
With respect to claims 10-12, Maboudian teaches wherein the nanoparticles are selected from the group consisting of metal nanoparticles, metal-oxide nanoparticles, and doped metal-oxide nanoparticles and is formed with the claimed materials (highly porous and nanostructured metal oxide films for miniaturized gas sensor applications, paragraphs 33-36).
Claim(s) 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Maboudian et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2019/0041352 in view of Krauss et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2018/0194617 further in view of Chang et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2018/03211172 and further in view of Ram et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2019/0076043.
With respect to claim 14, Maboudian as modified by Krauss and Chang teaches the claimed invention except wherein the at least one gas-sensor element has a surface roughness of less than about 100 nm RMS.
Ram teaches a gas sensor element having a surface roughness less than 100 nm (paragraphs 15 and 67)
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to further modify the invention of Maboudian as modified by Krauss and Chang with the gas sensing having a surface the roughness as taught by Ram in order to a more accurate sensing system.
Claim(s) 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Maboudian et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2019/0041352 in view of Krauss et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2018/0194617 further in view of Chang et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2018/03211172 and further in view of Sasaki U.S. Patent Application Publication 2011/0168573.
With respect to claim 18, Maboudian as modified by Krauss and Chang teaches the claimed invention except wherein at least one force electrode that injects current or voltage into the at least one gas-sensor element, and at least one sense electrode that measures a change in an electrical characteristic.
Sasaki teaches a gas sensing having that is connected to a gas sensor control apparatus 1 and operable to process the values measured by a the gas sensor 10 (paragraph 39, figure 1), and at least one force electrode that injects current or voltage into the at least one gas-sensor element, and at least one sense electrode that measures a change in an electrical characteristic (interpreted as current flowing between sensor electrodes, paragraph 46).
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to further modify the invention of Maboudian as modified by Krauss and Chang with the gas sensor controller and supplying current to the measurement electrodes as taught by Sasaki in order to accurately control the gas sensor (paragraph 30, Sasaki).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FREDDIE KIRKLAND III whose telephone number is (571)272-2232. The examiner can normally be reached 9am-5pm.
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FREDDIE KIRKLAND III
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2855
/Freddie Kirkland III/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2855 7/22/2026
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