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 .
Status of the Claims
Claims 1-8 are pending and subject to this Office Action. Claim 1 has been amended. Claims 9-20 have been withdrawn.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 7-12, filed 12/26/2025, with respect to the rejection(s) of claims 1-8 under 35 USC § 103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of previously applied prior art and newly found prior art.
Applicant argues, page 10, the porous body is fully enwrapped by the sealing gasket and thus the smoke flowing through the sub-channels could not be absorbed.
The Examiner respectfully disagrees. The sealing gasket taught by Chen is located around the outside of the porous body. Chen teaches that the sub-channels flow through the porous body and as such all the porous channels would be located inside the gasket. It would be reasonable to conclude that as the atomized smoke travels through the sub-channels any liquid that is entrained in the atomized smoke would be able to be absorbed by the walls of the porous body.
Applicant argues, page 10, Chen fails to teach that the side walls of the air passage at the first included angle contact and absorb incompletely atomized e-liquid.
Chen teaches the airflow channel can include a plurality of sub-channels that are angled to each other and that the sub-channels are respectively located inside the porous body . [0020] While Chen does not explicitly teach that the angles are used to create a place in the porous body that would absorb liquid; however, the Courts have held that if the prior art structure is capable of performing the intended use, then it meets the claim. See MPEP § 2114.
Applicant argues, page 11, Huang teaches shows that the heating element is located under the airflow channel, rather than is arranged upwards along a peripheral of the airflow channel.
Huang is used to modify Chen and teaches a desire to locate the heating element in a passage that extends through the porous body. Huang teaches this allows the heating element to re-atomize the liquid that has been absorbed from the atomized smoke. The air inlet is located below the porous body that containing the heating element and that the heating element is located in a first passage.
The following is a modified rejection based on amendments made to the claims.
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.
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.
Claims 1-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen (US-20200120983- A1) and further in view of Huang, et al (WO-2020228343-A1) and Chen (WO2021189643A1, hereinafter referred to as Chen '643).
Regarding claim 1, Chen teaches an atomizing element that includes a porous body and a heating structure which includes a liquid conducting surface. ([0004], [0019]) Chen teaches that the airflow channel flows through the atomizing surface and is in communication with the inhalation channel. The airflow channel has multiple “sub-channels” and these sub-channels are located inside the porous body and are angled to each other. [0020] The airflow channels taught by Chen are in communication with one another and it would be obvious for a person having ordinary skill to select an angle for the sub-channels that is between 0 degrees and 180 degrees. Chen further teaches the porous body is comprised of a liquid absorbing portion, a liquid guiding portion, and an atomizing portion where the liquid absorbing portion is on the opposite side of the porous body from the atomizing portion. [0025]
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Annotated Figure 1.
Chen teaches that the heating member is external to the porous body, located adjacent to the air inlet of the porous body, but is silent as to the heating member being located in the first passage.
Huang, directed to the design of atomizers having porous atomizers, a porous atomizer body with a heating element is attached to the hollow inner wall of the porous body. ([0012], [0039])
Therefore, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would be obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art to modify Chen by moving the heating element into the hollow airflow channel of the porous body as taught by Huang because both Chen and Huang are directed to porous atomizer bodies containing heaters, Huang teaches this design allows for the heating element to re-atomize condensate and not leak condensate into the base of the unit. [0038], and this involves the use of known technique to improve similar devices in the same way.
Additionally or alternatively, Chen ‘643, directed to the design of porous atomizing assemblies, teaches a porous liquid conducting member that is part of an atomizing assembly. The atomizing body has an airflow holes/ channel that extends through the porous body. (Abstract) Chen ‘643 discloses a configuration where the heating element is arranged around the airflow holes through the porous liquid conducting member. ([0076], Fig. 8) Chen ‘643 teaches that the heating element would be arranged around the periphery of the airflow channel.
Therefore, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would be obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art to modify Chen by moving the heating element into the hollow airflow channel of the porous body as taught by Chen ‘643 because both Chen and Chen ‘643 are directed to porous atomizer bodies containing heaters, Chen ‘643 teaches this design allows for uniform heating, large atomization area, and large amount of vapor (Abstract), and this involves the use of known technique to improve similar devices in the same way.
Regarding claim 2, Chen discloses that the air inlet that is located on the bottom of the porous structure is perpendicular to the bottom surface of the porous body atomizer. The air flow enters the inlet, turns 90 , travels around a portion of the porous body that holds the heating element. Chen also discloses that the liquid outlet hole and liquid absorbing surface is located such at the liquid flows perpendicular to the second channel. (Figure 3, annotated figure 1 above)
Regarding claim 3, Chen teaches that the liquid reservoir has an outlet hole that allows the liquid to flow from the reservoir to the liquid absorbing surface of the porous body. [0040] This contact is on the top portion of the porous body as shown in annotated figure 1 above.
Regarding claim 4, as discussed above the liquid inlet of Chen is located on the upper surface of the porous body and allows liquid to flow down into the porous body in a direction parallel to the first passage (air inlet). The second passage is a lateral channel that is used to connect the first subchannel to the third subchannel and extends through he porous body. (Annotated figure 1)
Regarding claim 5, Chen teaches that the porous body has a liquid absorbing surface on the top surface of the porous body, a side surface, and a atomizing surface. [0019] Chen discloses that the second passageway (subchannel) is in contact with the top surface of the atomizing body. The second passageway (subchannel) is located at the top of the portion of the porous body that contains the atomizing surface as shown in annotated figure 2 below. (Fig 3 and Fig 8)
However, Chen is silent with respect to the possibility of the liquid inlet being perpendicular to the first passage.
Huang teaches that the oil guide hole extends from the oil storage reservoir, through the gasket/seat, and to the porous boss of the porous body. The porous boss extends radially around the porous body and connects the oil storage chamber and the air flow channel. [0007] Huang discloses that the oil transfer portion is perpendicular to the first passage of the porous body and the porous boss is considered to read on the inlet groove of the instant claim.
Therefore, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would be obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art to modify Chen by using an oil guide that extends perpendicular to the air inlet as taught by Huang because both Chen and Huang are directed to porous atomizer bodies containing heaters, Huang teaches this design allows for the liquid transfer portion (boss) to extend through the air flow channel and be in contact with the oil storage portion [0007], and this involves the use of known technique to improve similar devices in the same way.
Regarding claims 6 and 7, Chen discloses that the atomizing device has an air inlet passage that divides once it enters the atomizer surface area, traveling in two separate paths, and that the two paths reconverge before exiting the porous body structure. (Fig 3, annotated figure 1) The disclosed angles between the airways is 90°.
Regarding claim 8, Chen as modified by Huang teaches that the heating member is comprised of a heating element and an electrical contact portion (pin) that extends from the porous body to the electrode column of the atomizer. [0039]
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.
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/V.R.B./Examiner, Art Unit 1755 /PHILIP Y LOUIE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1755
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