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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 6/12/2026 has been entered.
Rejections and/or objections not reiterated from previous office actions are hereby withdrawn. The following rejections and/or objects are either reiterated or newly applied. They constitute the complete set presently being applied to the instant application.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-2 and 5-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as failing to set forth the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant regards as the invention. The recitation a method of producing nanofibers and/or microfibers made of poly(n-butyl cyanoacrylate) is indefinite because it’s unclear if the claim is directed to nanofibers that are made of poly(n-butyl cyanoacrylate) and/or microfibers made of poly(n-butyl cyanoacrylate), or if the claims are directed to nanofibers (of any kind) and/or microfibers made of poly(n-butyl cyanoacrylate). Further regarding claim 2, it’s unclear what is encompassed by “at least one non-poly(alkyl cyanoacrylate (PACA) polymer, as there is no closing parenthetical to the open parnethical in “non-poly(alk…” Further regarding claim 8, it’s unclear how the nanofibers and/or microfibers obtained in step (d) cannot be present on a support. All objects that have mass are supported by something, even if that something is a non-solid substance like air. It’s therefore unclear how or in what way the nanofibers and/or microfibers are not present on a support.
Closest Prior Art
The closest prior art is WO2013009010 (hereafter WO’010; IDS 6/11/2021; Translation in record and will be reference hereafter). Although WO’010 teaches a method of producing poly(alkyl cyanoacrylate) based nano or microfibers (abstract; page 1, first paragraph to page 2 eighth full paragraph), it fails to teach or fairly suggest the prsetn method of producing nanofibers and/or microfibers made of poly(n-butyl cyanoacrylate) using applicant’s method as presented in the claims.
Conclusion
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PAUL W DICKINSON whose telephone number is (571)270-3499. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F 9 AM to 7:30 PM.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Michael Hartley can be reached on 571-272-0616. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/PAUL W DICKINSON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1618
July 1, 2026
Prosecution Insights