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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I. in the reply filed on 1/26/2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 12-19 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected grouping of invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 1/26/2026.
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 1-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim 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.
Claims are confusing as to intent because it cannot be definitively ascertained if the methods of the claims are intended to be defining and limiting the invention to methods for forming the sound-absorbing material block referred to in the preamble or are intended to be defining and limiting the invention to methods for forming an installation involving the placement of the sound-absorbing material block in a speaker rear cavity. Ambiguity in determining the actual process being defined by the claims is made evident due to the conflict between 1.) the recitations of both the preamble and the final words of claim 1, and 2.) the actual process operations that are set forth by the body of the claims (i.e. the filling of a speaker cavity).
Appropriate correction is required.
Claims are additionally confusing as to intent because without further definition of the functional roles of components being set forth by the claims, it cannot be definitively determined what materials may fulfill the various roles laid out by the recited component elements laid out by the claims. By way of example, without recitation of the crosslinking function being served by the recited “cross-linking” agent being set forth by the claims, it cannot be definitively ascertained what materials may or may not be considered “cross-linking” agents in the context of the instant invent, and this ambiguity is carried through the various other components that lack any definitive correlation with each other.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claims are further confusing as to intent because it cannot definitively be determined how or if the recited “sequential” operations set forth by the claims are intended to set forth a limitation to the performance of said operations, without further definition of the operations by the claims, since the recited operations “drying” and “dehydrating” fall in substantial overlap with each other. In that most, if not all operations, without further definition in the recitations of the claims, that would be “drying” would also be “dehydrating”, it cannot be ascertained what degree of limitation, if any, is intended through the recitation that these substantially duplicated operations are performed “sequentially”.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claims have been treated as if the “sequential” operations could be met by an individual operation meeting that is performed continually for any amount of time (i.e. multiple sequences in continuum).
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) 1-11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over CN-114495883 {previously cited} in view of Shackleford et al.(2020/0027436).
CN-114495883 discloses methods for preparing sound-absorbing material block by mixing raw materials constituting porous material as claimed [note, also, claim 4], gelling/thickening agent as claimed and in amounts as claimed[note, also, claim 2], binder as claimed and in amounts as claimed[note, also, claim 5], foaming agent as claimed and in amounts as claimed [note, also, claims 6 & 7], and water as a solvent [note, also, claim 8]{see page 3, Embodiments 1-5 and the claims of the provided translation}, applying the mixed material into the back cavity of a speaker {page 4 lines 7-9 of the provided translation}, and drying for time sufficient to meet both the “drying” and “dehydration” operations as defined by the claims {see page 4 lines 5 & 6 and Embodiments 1-5 of the provided translation}[note, also, claims 10 and 11] as well as the “sequential” nature of their performance {see, also, rejection above under 35USC112}.
CN-114495883 differs from applicants’ claims in that it does not particularly require the “cross-linking agent” as defined by applicants’ claims. However, Shackleford et al. discloses employment of calcium carbonate, which meets the requirements of applicants’ claims in this regard, in sound absorbing preparations for the purpose of imparting its recognized filling/bulking effect {see paras [0054], [0067], [0122], [0151] and Table 3}. Accordingly, it would have been obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art to have utilized the calcium carbonate of Shackleford et al. in the preparational processes of CN-114495883 for the purpose of imparting its recognized filling/bulking effect in order to arrive at the processes of applicants’ claims with the expectation of success in the absence of a showing of new or unexpected results.
Regarding claim 9, though specific order of mixing the raw materials as claimed is not specified by CN-114495883 taken in its combination with Shackleford et al., MPEP 2144.04 IV. C. holds that changes to the sequence of adding ingredients would have been obvious with the expectation of success in the absence of a showing of new or unexpected results.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to John Cooney whose telephone number is 571-272-1070. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F from 9 to 6. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner's supervisor, Heidi Riviere Kelley, can be reached on 571-270-1831. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/JOHN M COONEY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1765