DETAILED ACTION
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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
No IDS has been filed in this application. Applicant is reminded that each individual associated with the filing and prosecution of a patent application has a duty of candor and good faith in dealing with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, which includes a duty to disclose to the Office all information known to that individual to be material to patentability. 37 CFR 1.56.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I, claims 1-11 in the reply filed on 11/04/2025 is acknowledged.
Claims 12-19 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 11/04/2025.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the stepper motor (claims 3 and 5) the control panel (claim 7), controlled chip (claim 11) must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Objections
Claim 1 is objected to because of the following informalities: The word “comprises” in lines 3 and 8 should be “comprising” to be grammatically correct. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1-2, 4, 6 and 8-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hong et al. (hereinafter Hong) CN-105733942-A.
Regarding claim 1, Hong discloses a system for automatic nucleic acid extraction and qualitative analysis, comprising: a magnetic rotary mixer (mixing module 3), comprises: a plurality of magnetic rods (magnetic rods 206) for generating magnetism, configured to be retractable from the magnetic rotary mixer; a plurality of spin shaft (gear shaft 303) for mounting tips (isolation sleeve 5), and the plurality of magnetic rods extend therein as shown in at least Figs. 1, 2, 4 and 5; an auto stage, comprises: a plate holder (reaction material fixed seat/ reaction consumable 704), which allows a plate (reaction material 6) place thereon; a mixer holder (base 301) to hold the magnetic rotary mixer over the plate holder; and a heat plate for heating the plate, (In specific implementation process, the reaction material fixed seat is also provided with a heating block base, a heating block base is provided with a heat insulation block, heat insulation block is provided with a heating block, the reaction material 6 is fixed on the upper part of the heating block). See whole document.
Hong does not explicitly disclose that the heat plate is disposed under the plate holder.
However, Absent unexpected results, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide a heat plate under the plate holder, since it has been held that rearranging parts of an invention involves only routine skill in the art. See MPEP §2144.04 (VI-C).
Regarding claim 2, the plate holder is capable of moving horizontally via linear motor 702 as shown in at least Figs. 1, 7 and 9.
Regarding claim 4, wherein the mixer holder is vertically movable via linear motor 202 and rotary motor 302 as shown in at least Figs. 1, 7 and 9.
Regarding claim 6, Hong discloses wherein the magnetic rotary mixer comprises 8 spin shafts (gear shaft 303) as shown in Fig. 5.
Regarding claim 8, Hong discloses wherein the plate has 96 wells as shown in at least Fig. 7.
Regarding claim 9, Hong discloses a cover shell (motor mounting plate 401) as shown in at least Figs. 1 and 6.
Regarding claim 10, Hong discloses wherein the spin shaft is rotated by a motor (rotary motor 302) as shown in at least Figs. 2 and 5.
Claims 3, 5, 7 and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hong CN-105733942-A as applied above to claims 1-2, 4, 6 and 8-10, and in view of Corey et al. (hereinafter Corey) US 2016/0129445.
Regarding claim 3, Hong discloses wherein the plate holder is moved by a linear motor 702. However, Hong does not disclose that the linear motor is a stepper motor.
Corey discloses the use of a stepper motor as discussed in at least paragraph 259.
Absent unexpected results, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to make a simple substitution of one known element for another motivated by an expectation of success.
Regarding claim 5, Hong discloses wherein the mixer holder is moved linear motor 202 and rotary motor 302. However, Hong does not disclose that the linear and or rotary motor is a stepper motor.
Corey discloses the use of a stepper motor as discussed in at least paragraph 259.
Absent unexpected results, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to make a simple substitution of one known element for another motivated by an expectation of success.
Regarding claim 7, Hong does not explicitly disclose wherein the magnetic rotary mixer further comprises a control panel for controlling a condition of the nucleic acid extraction.
Corey discloses a control console 402, in one embodiment, includes a display panel 404 presenting a graphical user interface and comprising a touchscreen by which a user may input information to the control console 402 and/or by which information can be presented to the user as discussed in at least paragraph 266.
Absent unexpected results, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify Hong with a control panel as taught by Corey in order to perform and monitor one or more automated or semi-automated processes.
Regarding claim 11, Hong does not explicitly disclose a controlled chip.
Corey discloses a controlled chip (printed circuit board) with preset programs as discussed in at least paragraphs 257-258 and 365-366.
Absent unexpected results, it would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify Hong with a controlled chip as taught by Corey in order to perform one or more automated or semi-automated processes.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to LYDIA EDWARDS whose telephone number is (571)270-3242. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Thursday 6:30-5:30 EST.
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/LYDIA EDWARDS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1796