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
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim 2 has been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on the interpretations of the reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Applicants assert that Min fails to disclose the newly added features of claim 2. However, Hase teaches these features as detailed below. As such, the claims would have been rendered obvious as detailed below.
Thus, this action is hereby FINAL.
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.
Claims 2 and 4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hase (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015/0257205) in view of In view of South Korea Patent Document (KR10-0892908), copy attached Machine translation cited, hereafter, Min as evidenced by Arkema Pebax Elastomer Family, retrieved 9.17.2025, Published: https://www.arkema.com/usa/en/product-range/technicalpolymers/pebax-product-family/ (Year: 2025), hereafter Arkema.
Regarding claim 2.
Hase discloses:
A cord-shaped heater, comprising:
a conductive wire(5a);
an insulating layer(5b) formed of a resin (5b being a resin, see Hase Abstract, that 5b is formed of a resin) on an outer periphery of the conductive wire(5a); and
a heat fusion layer (7) formed on an outer periphery of the insulation layer (7 on outter periphery of 5b) so that the heat fusion layer is in contact with the outer periphery of the insulation layer(7 being in contact with outside of 5b), wherein
Hase does not discloses:
the heat fusion layer is a polyamide-based thermoplastic elastomer.
Hase does not discloses:
the heat fusion layer is polyamide-based thermoplastic elastomer.
Min discloses:
polyamide-based thermoplastic elastomer.(See Fig 7, 7, and abstract), disclosing that7 may be made of Pibax (Pebax) of Arkema. Min discloses that 7 provides the benefit of of providing excellent heat resistance, insulation and hardening resistance over other materials.
Arkema discloses that Pebax is a thermoplastic elastomer consisting of polyamide. As such, it would have been obvious to modify Hase by using the cladding material of Min for the obvious benefit of providing the benefits taught by Min. As such, it would have been obvious to modify the device of Hase to include the outer layer of Min to obtain the obvious benefit. Thus, the features of claim 2 would have been obvious prior to the effective filing date of this application.
Regarding claim 4. Hase Fig. 4 discloses:
A sheet-shaped heater, wherein the cord-shaped heater(10) according to claim 2 is arranged on a substrate(11).
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
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 ROBERT G BACHNER whose telephone number is (571)270-3888. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday, 10-6 EST.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Leonard Chang can be reached at (571) 270-3691. 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.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
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 ROBERT G BACHNER whose telephone number is (571)270-3888. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday, 10-6 EST.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Leonard Chang can be reached at (571) 270-3691. 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.
/ROBERT G BACHNER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2898