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 .
Response to Amendment
In light of the amendments, claims 1-6 and 16-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a).
In light of the amendments, there are no 35 U.S.C. 101 rejections.
In light of the amendments, there are no 35 U.S.C. 103 rejections.
Notice to Applicant
In the amendment dated 08/27/2026, the following has occurred: claims 1-4 and 19 have been amended; claims 5-6 and 16-18 remain unchanged; claims 7-15 have been canceled; and claim 20 has been added.
Claims 1-6 and 16-19 are pending.
Effective Filing Date: 03/31/2020
Response to Arguments
35 U.S.C. 101 Rejections:
Applicant amended the claims to overcome the previous 101 rejections. The claims however were amended to now include subject matter not supported in the specification. If the claims are amended to overcome the 112(a) the 101 may be reapplied in view of removing the 112(a) matter.
35 U.S.C. 103 Rejections:
Examiner removes the previous art rejections in view of the amendments requiring an unreasonable combination of references in combination to reject these claims.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112(a)
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 1-6 and 16-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. Claims 1 and 4 recite that the dispensing device determines medicine information based on the gene-related information and dispenses medicine based on the medicine information. Claims 1, 4, and 19 also recite performing dispensing using a dispensing device. The specification however does not disclose the dispensing device performing such functions leading Examiner to question whether Applicant had possession over the claimed invention at the time of filing. Applicant must also be careful as the recitation of the “dispensing device” itself appears to be thin in the specification (the disclosure recites “dispensing terminal” as well).
Claims 2-3, 5-6, 16-18, and 20 are rejected based on their dependency on the independent claims.
No Art Rejections
Examiner has withdrawn the previous 103 art rejections in view of Applicant's amendments.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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 Steven G.S. Sanghera whose telephone number is (571)272-6873. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7:30-5:00 (alternating Fri).
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Shahid Merchant can be reached on 571-270-1360. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/STEVEN G.S. SANGHERA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3684
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