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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 08/25/2026 has been entered.
Response to Amendment
The amendment filed 08/25/2026 has been entered. Claims 1, 3-4, 7-11, 15, and 18-20 remain pending in the application. Claims 18-19 remain withdrawn. Claims 1, 3-4, 7-11, 15, and 20 remain rejected. Applicant’s amendments to the Claims have overcome each and every 112(b) rejection previously set forth in the Final Office Action mailed 06/16/2026, except where otherwise stated.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
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.
Claim(s) 1, 3-4, 7-11, 15, and 20 is/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.
Regarding claim 1, the Applicant’s Specification fails to disclose that the experimentally obtained relationship table is stored in a database. Paragraph 0080 of the Specification states “in an embodiment, in order to quickly determine the corresponding minimum irradiation intensity and shortest irradiation duration based on the type of food ingredient, a relationship table of type of fruit and vegetable - irradiation intensity - irradiation duration obtained through experiments can be pre-stored.” Paragraph 0089 states “a table similar to table 1 can be provided to the user” but does not say that the table comes from a database. Table 1 shows an example of a table with irradiation intensity, irradiation duration, anthocyanidin improvement rate, and recommended tasting period. However, the Specification does not state that the table is stored in a database, merely that it is pre-stored. Pre-storing could alternatively be storage on a physical medium such as paper, a photograph, etc. Therefore, claim 1 fails to comply with the written description requirement.
Claims 3-4, 7-11, 15, and 20 are rejected as a result of depending upon rejected claim 1.
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.
Claim(s) 1 and 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu (CN 106705566 A) in view of Zhong (CN 107467172 A), Liu (CN 106052296 A), Nicole (US 20180310578 A1), Unlu (US 20210186048 A1), Kim (US 20060042300 A1), Wang (CN 106839570 A), Barber (US 20180092308 A1), Bai (CN 106885441 A), FSANZ (Nutritional impact of phytosanitary irradiation of fruits and vegetables), Marchetti (IT 201800020068 A1), Fang (EP 2757334 A1), and Jeon (KR 20110055046 A).
Regarding claim 1, Liu (CN 106705566 A) teaches (Paragraph 0002, 0012, 0018) a method and device for controlling the freshness of refrigeration and freezing equipment, wherein the refrigeration and freezing device includes a cabinet, a storage compartment is defined therein, and a preservation space is arranged inside the storage compartment, and wherein a time recording module is configured to record the duration of the fresh-keeping space being closed after the fresh-keeping space is opened to place food inside and closed, and the humidity detection module is also configured to detect the humidity in the fresh keeping space when the duration is greater than or equal to a preset time length. Also, Liu (CN 106705566 A) teaches (Paragraph 0047) the preset time needs to be set because it takes a certain amount of time for the food to release moisture through transpiration and respiration after being placed in the fresh-keeping space (i.e., for the humidity of the storage room to stabilize). Liu (CN 106705566 A) further teaches (Paragraph 0016) determining a type of food according to the humidity by judging whether the humidity is greater than or equal to a preset humidity threshold; and if so, determining that the food is fruit or vegetable, and if not, determining that the food is meat (not fruit or vegetable).
Additionally, the claimed first preset duration of 20 minutes to 60 minutes would have been used during the course of normal experimentation and optimization procedures in the method of Liu (CN 106705566 A) based upon factors such as the size of the storage room, the humidity outside the storage room, the initial humidity in the storage room, the type of food ingredient placed in the storage room (where it takes a certain amount of time for the food to release moisture through transpiration and respiration after being placed in the fresh-keeping space, Liu (CN 106705566 A), Paragraph 0047), the target humidity, etc. Furthermore, the Applicant has neither demonstrated the criticality nor identified any unique or unexpected benefit of the claimed first preset duration of 20 minutes to 60 minutes that would render it non-obvious.
Liu (CN 106705566 A) is silent on controlling a light source to turn it on based on a closing signal of a storage room. Liu (CN 106705566 A) is further silent on, in response to determining that the food ingredient is fruit or vegetable, acquiring, by a camera provided in the storage room, an image of the food ingredient and identifying a type of the food ingredient based on the acquired image; obtaining a minimum irradiation intensity and shortest irradiation duration according to the type of the food ingredient from an experimentally obtained relationship table stored in a database, the relationship table associating each of a plurality of types of fruits and vegetables with a corresponding minimum irradiation intensity, shortest irradiation duration, nutrient improvement rate, and recommended tasting period; obtaining, from the relationship table, the nutrient improvement rate and the recommended tasting period corresponding to the identified type of the food ingredient; determining a target irradiation intensity and a target irradiation duration based on the minimum irradiation intensity and the shortest irradiation duration; and setting the target irradiation intensity as an irradiation intensity of the light source, and setting the target irradiation duration as a second preset duration; setting a minimum value of the recommended tasting period as a first preset storage duration and setting a maximum value of the recommended tasting period as a second preset storage duration; controlling a humidity control fan to operate, and turning off the light source after the second preset duration, determining a storage duration of the food ingredient in the storage room: when the storage duration is not less than the first preset storage duration, sending a tasting prompt instruction, wherein the first preset storage duration is not less than the target irradiation duration: and when the storage duration is equal to the second preset storage duration, sending a prompt instruction indicating expiration of a best tasting period, wherein the first preset storage duration is less than the second preset storage duration.
Zhong teaches (Paragraph 0006, Paragraph 0026) a light-saving cabinet which can effectively keep fruits, vegetables and other foods fresh, wherein a fresh-keeping cabinet (storage room) is provided with a closing door, a door lock sensor is provided between the closing door and the fresh-keeping cabinet, and the door lock sensor is connected to the central processing unit signal, wherein, when the door is closed, the door lock sensor senses that the closed door is in a closed state, and the light source starts to work to release light to preserve the fruits and vegetables.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A) to control a light source to turn it on based on a closing signal of a storage room as taught by Zhong since both are directed to methods of preserving food products in storage devices, since controlling a light source to turn it on based on a closing signal of a storage room is known in the art as shown by Zhong, since turning the light on when the door is closed will ensure that the user has added all the desired food to the storage room prior to treatment, since activating the light after the door closes will prevent the light from shining in and damaging a user’s eyes, since the light can preserve the fruits and vegetables, since activating the light due to a closing signal will simplify operation and be convenient to the user by preventing the need for manual activation, and since the light can include ultraviolet light which can maintain the shape, color and accumulated substances of vegetables (Zhong, Paragraph 0022), but which could have adverse effects on humans, so activation after closing the storage room would ensure human safety.
Liu (CN 106052296 A) teaches (Paragraph 0007) a control method for an intelligent preservation refrigerator, wherein 1) a pressure sensor detects the weight of the fruits and vegetables placed inside a preservation chamber, 2) a humidity sensor detects the humidity inside the preservation chamber, 3) a camera takes pictures of fruits and vegetables inside the preservation chamber and a CPU identifies fruits and vegetables by comparing color and shape feature values of captured images with the feature values stored in the data memory, and 4) based on the detection values of the pressure sensor and the fruit and vegetable identification results, the CPU individually controls the on/off and brightness of the seven-color preservation lights to apply different lighting treatments to different fruits and vegetables.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A) to acquire, by a camera provided in the storage room, an image of the food ingredient and identify a type of the food ingredient based on the acquired image in response to determining that the food ingredient is fruit or vegetable in view of Liu (CN 106052296 A), since identifying a type of the food ingredient based on the acquired image and irradiating the food ingredient after detecting humidity in the storage room, is known in the art as shown by Liu (CN 106052296 A), since Liu (CN 106705566 A) teaches (Paragraph 0050) a humidity greater than a target humidity indicates the presence of a fruit or vegetable in the storage chamber, while below the target humidity is indicative of the presence of meat, while Liu (CN 106052296 A) teaches (Paragraph 0007) using the type of fruit or vegetable determined from the image to apply different lighting treatments to different fruits and vegetables for preservation, so obtaining an image and determining the type of food followed by irradiation with light would be obvious to do after first determining if a fruit or vegetable is present, since meat products indicated by lower humidity do not photosynthesize and do not require light treatment for preservation like fruits and vegetables, since identification of the food ingredient type by a processor via an image would be convenient for users by removing the need for manual identification, since identification of the food ingredient type by a processor via an image would prevent human error in identification of a food, and since different lighting treatments can be applied to different fruits and vegetables based on the type determined form the image, ensuring the fruits and vegetables in the refrigerator can carry out normal photosynthesis according to their respective characteristics, thereby slowing down the decay rate of the fruits and vegetables and achieving the best preservation effect (Liu (CN 106052296 A), Paragraph 0008).
Nicole teaches (Paragraph 0001, 0017) a system and a method for post-harvest light treatment of vegetables and fruits, wherein at least part of the piece of fruit is irradiated with radiation with a predetermined minimum radiation intensity and during a predetermined radiation period.
Unlu teaches (Paragraph 0034, 0036) microbiologically stabilizing plant material such as strawberry, apple, blueberry, pear, peach, kiwi, pineapple, banana, cucumber or tomato by irradiating the plant material for the minimum amount of time and intensity necessary to assure microbial stability.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, to obtain a minimum irradiation intensity and shortest irradiation duration, to determine the target irradiation intensity and the target irradiation duration based on the minimum irradiation intensity and the shortest irradiation duration, to set the target irradiation intensity as an irradiation intensity of the light source, and to set the target irradiation duration as the second preset duration when the humidity in the storage room is greater than the target humidity in view of Nicole and Unlu, since each is directed to a method of preservation and treatment of food products, including fruits and vegetables, since a humidity greater than a target humidity corresponds to fruits and vegetables as shown by Liu (CN 106705566 A), since treating food ingredients with a minimum intensity (which requires obtaining the minimum irradiation intensity and determining and setting the target irradiation intensity based on the minimum irradiation intensity) is known in the art from Nicole, since treating food products with irradiation for the shortest duration (which requires obtaining the shortest irradiation duration and determining and setting the target irradiation duration based on the shortest irradiation duration) is known in the art from Unlu, since the minimum intensity and shortest duration would minimize the energy requirements of the treatment process, reducing costs, since the minimum intensity and the shortest duration would prevent overexposure to light that could excessively dry or damage the food ingredients, and since the minimum irradiation intensity and shortest treatment duration would preserve the lifespan of the light source.
Kim (US 20060042300 A1) teaches (Paragraph 0003, 0021) a method of operating a refrigerator which includes a separate vegetable storage chamber for storing vegetables, wherein a control unit selectively controls at least one type of the LEDs, intensities of lights emitted from the LEDs, and irradiation times of the LEDs, according to the types of the stored vegetables. Kim (US 20060042300 A1) further teaches (Paragraph 0019) a light-setting unit receives data corresponding to types of the stored vegetables from a user, and a control unit receives the data corresponding to the types of the stored vegetables through the light-setting unit and controls the LEDs so that the LEDs emit light, having characteristics corresponding to the types of the stored vegetables, onto the vegetables.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, to determine a target irradiation intensity and a target irradiation duration based on the type of the food ingredient in view of Kim (US 20060042300 A1) since both are directed to methods of preserving food products, including vegetables, in refrigerator storage devices, since selecting and setting irradiation intensities and durations (which requires determination of the intensities and durations) based on the type of food ingredient is known in the art as shown by Kim, since different types of food ingredients will have different properties (size, shape, density, composition, etc.) that require different intensities and lengths of treatment for optimal storage conditions, since, although the storage at the low temperature allows vegetables to maintain freshness for a long time, many nutrients of the vegetables, which were stored at the low temperature, are destroyed, and a time for maintaining the freshness of the vegetables is comparatively short, but the freshness of vegetables can be maintained for a long time, and the nutrient degradation can be minimized by irradiating light onto the vegetables stored in the vegetable storage chamber so that the vegetables photosynthesize (Kim, Paragraph 0007-0010), since too little light could cause some ingredients like vegetables to degrade more quickly while excess light for too long could dry out the food ingredients.
It is noted that Kim (US 20060042300 A1) does not explicitly state that irradiation intensity and duration according to the type of food ingredient are obtained from an experimentally obtained relationship table stored in a database. However, as stated above, Kim (US 20060042300 A1) teaches (Paragraph 0021) a control unit selectively controls intensities of lights emitted from the LEDs and irradiation times of the LEDs, according to the types of the stored vegetables (where it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art that, in order for the controller to accordingly adjust the intensity and duration based on the type of vegetables stored in the chamber, the data would need to be stored in some form of a database). Moreover, the Examiner notes that the Applicant’s Specification does not explicitly recite a table stored in a database, but merely indicates (Paragraph 0080) that a relationship table of type of fruit and vegetable - irradiation intensity - irradiation duration obtained through experiments can be pre-stored.
Wang teaches storing a recommended tasting period in a database, and obtaining the recommended tasting period corresponding to the identified type of the food ingredient setting a minimum value of the recommended tasting period as a first preset storage duration, and when the storage duration is not less than the first preset storage duration, sending a tasting prompt instruction. Specifically, Wang teaches (Paragraph 0002, 0024, 0029) a refrigerator with a food storage status reminder function and an operating method thereof, wherein when a user stores a food inside the refrigerator compartment, the food is entered into a system to create a new food storage event, and the shelf life (recommended tasting period) is determined based on matching food information entered by a user to data in a pre-stored database. Wang further teaches (Paragraph 0024, 0025) a food management APP monitors and manages the storage status of the food according to the entered food information and reminds the user when the food exceeds the shelf life (not less than a first preset storage duration), wherein, in some embodiments, the shelf life set in the present invention is generally shorter than the actual shelf life of the food, thereby ensuring that when the user receives an expiration reminder, he or she can generally continue to eat the corresponding food, and the main function of the refrigerator's expiration reminder is to inform the user that the food is about to expire and needs to be eaten immediately (tasting prompt instruction).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, to store a recommended tasting period in a database, obtain the recommended tasting period corresponding to the identified type of the food ingredient, set a minimum value of the recommended tasting period as a first preset storage duration, and when the storage duration is not less than the first preset storage duration, send a tasting prompt instruction as taught by Wang since both are directed to methods of preserving food products in refrigerator storage devices, since storing a recommended tasting period in a database, obtaining the recommended tasting period corresponding to the identified type of the food ingredient, setting a minimum value of the recommended tasting period as a first preset storage duration, and when the storage duration is not less than the first preset storage duration, sending a tasting prompt instruction, is known in the art as shown by Wang, since sending a prompt to indicate that that a food should be eaten before spoilage would prevent food waste, since suggesting a food to eat via a prompt would be convenient for a user by helping them choose what food ingredients to prepare and consumer, and since food ingredients that are about to expire should be removed and eaten before they contaminate other food ingredients.
Furthermore, while Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above does not explicitly state that the first preset storage duration is not less than the target irradiation duration, it is known in the art to provide prompts/notifications after the completion of an irradiation treatment.
For example, Barber teaches (Paragraph 0030, 0031) a method of operating a lighting system that incorporates optimal irradiation settings to irradiate a surface of the light sensitive object under a variety of environmental conditions, wherein the light sensitive object can include vegetables. Barber further teaches (Paragraph 0061, 0107) in one embodiment, a visual display can provide status information on the irradiation of the object (e.g., time remaining, light intensity), status information including if the irradiation is over, and in another embodiment, a speaker can provide an alarm (e.g., an auditory signal), e.g., for signaling that the irradiation has finished.
Consequently, It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above to send an instruction to remind a user to eat the food ingredient after a first preset storage duration that is not less than the target irradiation duration in view of Barber, since both are directed to methods for treating food products, since sending a tasting prompt instruction after the completion of a first storage duration would be obvious for the reasons stated above, since sending a prompt/notification after completion of an irradiation process of a food item is known in the art from Barber, since waiting until completion of the irradiation process would ensure that the food has been completely treated for optimal nutrition and preservation, since waiting until completion of the irradiation process to send the prompt would prevent the user from accessing the storage chamber while the light was still on, protecting their eyes, and since waiting until completion of the irradiation process to send the prompt would make sure that the lighting process would not have to be redone after interruption, conserving energy.
Bai teaches setting a maximum value of the recommended tasting period as a second preset storage duration, and when the storage duration is equal to the second preset storage duration, sending a prompt instruction indicating expiration of a best tasting period, wherein the first preset storage duration is less than the second preset storage duration. Specifically, Bai teaches (Paragraph 0002, 0052, 0053) a method, device and system for smart food management, wherein the intelligent management device determines whether the food is expired based on the shelf life (storage duration) if the food is not expired, the intelligent management device detects the remaining validity period of the food based on the shelf life; if the remaining validity period is less than the preset validity period, the intelligent management device issues a prompt message to remind the user to consume the food as soon as possible (first present storage duration). Bai further teaches (Paragraph 0052, 0053) if the food is expired (second storage duration, where the expiration time will necessarily be a longer duration that the time where the first prompt is issued indicating that the food should be consumed) an alarm message is issued (prompt instruction indicating expiration of a best tasting period), which includes the name of the food, so that the user can clean up the food as soon as possible to avoid affecting other food and causing other food to rot and spoil.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, to set a maximum value of the recommended tasting period as a second preset storage duration, and when the storage duration is equal to the second preset storage duration, sending a prompt instruction indicating expiration of a best tasting period, wherein the first preset storage duration is less than the second preset storage duration in view of Bai, since both are directed to methods of storing food products, since sending a prompt indicating an expiration of a food product at a second duration longer than a first duration for sending a prompt to eat the food is known in the art as shown by Bai, since the prompt can remind the user to clean up the food so that the user does not eat the food accidentally and get ill and so that the user does not have to keep track of the food expiration date, and since the user can clean up the food as soon as possible to avoid affecting other food and causing other food to rot and spoil (Bai, Paragraph 0053).
It is noted that the nutrient improvement rate, as claimed is simply a value stored in a table in a database, that does not appear to be used in the claimed process. Therefore, it is unclear how the storage of the nutrient improvement rate in a table is pertinent to the patentability of the claim invention.
Regardless, Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) teaches (Section 6, Pages 19-39; Tables 6.1-6.8) effects of irradiation on carotenoids, vitamin C and other bioactive compounds (nutrients) in fruit and vegetable groups, wherein Tables 6.1-6.8 show the effect of irradiation on the nutrient content of fruits and vegetables including apples, apricots, cherries, peaches, tomatoes, corn, etc. including percentage increases after set times (nutrient improvement rates, e.g. +5% increase in vitamin C content in dried apricots after 12 months in Table 6.2).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu to provide a table of data of the nutrient improvement rate for different types of fruits and vegetables in view of FSANZ, since tabulated data of the nutrient improvement rate for different types of fruits and vegetables is known in the art as shown by FSANZ, and since the data could be used to inform users regarding the effects of irradiation on the different fruits and vegetables so that users can treat the food as desired and optimize the nutritional content of the food to suit their dietary needs and preferences.
Furthermore, it is known in the art from Marchetti (Paragraph 0005, 0103), in a method for pasteurizing food products, to set the value of a duration and intensity of the irradiated microwaves, by accessing a memory to determine the irradiation step setting parameters as a function of at least one or more characteristic chemical/physical parameters measured for a product, that may be a food product, wherein the memory contains an experimental database of product types, each product being uniquely associated with a correspondence table between values or ranges of values of at least one of the characteristic chemical/physical parameters of said product and the setting value of one or more of the irradiation step setting parameters.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above to minimum irradiation intensity, shortest irradiation duration, nutrient improvement rate, and recommended tasting period values for each of a plurality of types and fruits and vegetables from a relationship table stored in a database in view of Marchetti, since both are directed to methods of food preservation, since acquiring irradiation and intensity values for light according to a type of food ingredient is known from Kim (US 20060042300 A1), since storing values for a recommended tasting period for different types of food in a database is known from Wang, since storing nutrient improvement rate data for different types of fruits and vegetables in a table is known from Food Standards Australia New Zealand, since a table in a database comprising food parameter values, irradiation intensity and duration values for different types of food is known in the art as shown by Marchetti, since using values from a list in a database removes the need for manual determination or entry, providing user convenience and preventing human error, and since acquiring irradiation intensity, duration, nutrient improvement rate, and recommended tasting period values from a table stored in a database ensures that the intensity and treatment are specific to the food being treated, preventing random or undesired effects, like too little treatment or prolonged treatment that wastes energy or damages the food product.
Fang teaches (Paragraph 0001, 0009) a method of controlling humidity in a refrigerating chamber of a refrigerator, wherein a compressor and the fan are controlled to operate according to the moisture preservation mode, wherein, in the high moisture preservation mode, the humidity in the refrigerating chamber may be maintained at a high level, and in the normal moisture preservation mode, the humidity in the refrigerating chamber may be maintained at a low level. Fang further teaches (Paragraph 0012, 0038, 0040) operating the fan to humidify the refrigerating chamber during the high moisture preservation mode, and, in the normal moisture preservation mode, the fan is operated, but no defrostation water is transported into the refrigerating chamber by the fan, thus the humidity in the refrigerating chamber is lower than that in the high moisture preservation mode (controlling the humidity control fan to operate to maintain low humidity in the storage room). Also, Fang teaches (Paragraph 0005) fruits and vegetables require high humidity.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A) to control a humidity control fan to operate when the humidity of the storage room is greater than a target humidity in view of Fang since both are directed to methods of preserving food products in refrigerator storage devices, since Liu (CN 106705566 A) teaches a humidity above a target humidity is indicative of fruits and vegetables while below a target humidity is indicative of other foods like meat, since Fang teaches controlling a humidity control fan to operate in a high humidity mode that satisfies the humidity requirements of fruits and vegetables, since, when the humidity of a storage environment is too low, food is easy to be dehydrated and air-dried, which causes fruits and vegetables to wilt (Fang, Paragraph 0004), and since the method of controlling humidity of Fang is easy to implement and low in the cost of humidity control, and may be applicable to the refrigerator in the related art without complex structure modifications (Fang, Paragraph 0010).
Jeon teaches (Page 1, 5) a refrigerator control method, and more particularly, to a refrigerator control method including a control step of controlling the on/off of an LED that irradiates light into a storage room according to time, thereby more effectively inducing photosynthesis of vegetables or fruits stored in the refrigerator to keep them fresh, wherein, after the LED is turned on, a timer detects the time for irradiating the storage room, and, after a set time has passed (such as 6 hours in an exemplary embodiment) the LED is turned OFF.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A) to include a light source that turns off after a preset duration when the humidity of the storage room is greater than a target humidity in view of Jeon since both are directed to methods of preserving food products, including fruits and vegetables, in refrigerator storage devices, since Liu (CN 106705566 A) teaches that obtaining a humidity greater than a target humidity indicates the presence of fruits or vegetables, since turning off a light source after a preset duration to induce photosynthesis in fruits and vegetables is known in the art as shown by Jeon, since irradiating fruits and vegetables for a minimum amount of time and intensity is known in the art as shown above by Unlu, since controlling the on/off of an LED that irradiates light into a storage room according to time, more effectively induces photosynthesis of vegetables or fruits stored in the refrigerator to keep them fresh (Jeon, Page 1), since turning the off the light after a set period would reduce energy consumption, lowering costs and improving operation efficiency, since refrigerators can keep vegetables fresh for a certain period of time by simply controlling the cold air to keep them at a low temperature, but they have the problem of losing freshness when stored for a long period of time, but inducing photosynthesis of vegetables or fruits stored in a refrigerator to keep them fresh (Jeon, Page 2), and since prolonged or excess light exposure could harm or adversely affect the food, and vegetables have reactions to both light and dark that help effectively synthesize glucose and the like (Jeon, Page 3).
Regarding claim 7, as shown above with regard to claim 1, it is known in the art from Nicole and Unlu to use the minimum irradiation intensity and the shortest irradiation duration when treating food products, and it is known from Kim (US 20060042300 A1) to select and set irradiation intensities and durations based on the type of food ingredient. Consequently, setting the minimum irradiation intensity as the target irradiation intensity corresponding to the one type of food ingredient, and setting the shortest irradiation duration as the target irradiation durations corresponding to the one type of food ingredient, when only one type of food ingredient is in the storage room would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art for the reasons stated above with regard to claim 1.
Furthermore, as shown above with regard to claim 1, it is known in the art from Kim (US 20060042300 A1) to set the irradiation intensity and duration according to the types of food ingredient.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, to set the maximum value of the minimum irradiation intensities corresponding to the plurality of types of food ingredients as the target irradiation intensity, and set the maximum value of the shortest irradiation durations corresponding to all of the plurality of types of food ingredients as the target irradiation duration when a plurality of types of food ingredients are in the storage room in view of Nicole, Unlu, and Kim (US 20060042300 A1) since each is directed to a method of preservation and treatment of food products, including fruits and vegetables, since treating food ingredients with a minimum intensity is known in the art from Nicole, since treating food products with irradiation for the shortest duration is known in the art from Unlu, since different types of food products requiring different intensities is known in the art as shown by Kim (US 20060042300 A1), since the minimum intensity and shortest duration would minimize the energy requirements of the treatment process, reducing costs, since the minimum intensity and the shortest duration would prevent overexposure to light that could excessively dry or damage the food ingredients, since the minimum irradiation intensity and shortest treatment duration would preserve the lifespan of the light source, since setting the maximum value of all the minimum irradiation intensities of the plurality of types of food ingredients as the target irradiation intensity, and setting the maximum value of all the shortest irradiation durations of all of the plurality of types of food ingredients as the target irradiation duration would ensure that each food product in the storage chamber received a sufficient irradiation intensity for a sufficient duration, since different types of food ingredients will have different properties (size, shape, density, composition, etc.) that require different intensities and lengths of treatment for optimal storage conditions, since, although the storage at the low temperature allows vegetables to maintain freshness for a long time, many nutrients of the vegetables, which were stored at the low temperature, are destroyed, and a time for maintaining the freshness of the vegetables is comparatively short, but the freshness of vegetables can be maintained for a long time, and the nutrient degradation can be minimized by irradiating light onto the vegetables stored in the vegetable storage chamber so that the vegetables photosynthesize (Kim, Paragraph 0007-0010), since too little light could cause some ingredients like vegetables to degrade more quickly.
Claim(s) 3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu (CN 106705566 A) in view of Zhong (CN 107467172 A), Liu (CN 106052296 A), Nicole (US 20180310578 A1), Unlu (US 20210186048 A1), Kim (US 20060042300 A1), Wang (CN 106839570 A), Barber (US 20180092308 A1), Bai (CN 106885441 A), FSANZ (Nutritional impact of phytosanitary irradiation of fruits and vegetables), Marchetti (IT 201800020068 A1), Fang (EP 2757334 A1), and Jeon (KR 20110055046 A), and further in view of Lee (KR 20200065616 A).
Regarding claim 3, Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, is silent on the target humidity being determined based on historical data or the humidity of the storage room prior to the turning-on step.
Lee teaches (Paragraph 0001, 0054, 0058) a method of operating a maturing room operating device according to setting status information received from a mobile terminal, wherein set data is transmitted from a communication module so that the temperature and humidity of the maturing room are maintained at the set temperature and set humidity, and a control module analyzes data on previous temperatures and previous humidity, and determines whether the temperature and humidity increase or decrease to the set temperature and set humidity as a result of the analysis.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, to determine the target humidity based on historical data in view of Lee, since both are directed to food storage devices with controlled humidity, since setting a humidity value based on historical data is known in the art as shown by Lee, since using historical data would improve the accuracy of the humidity setting by providing an evidentiary basis for a humidity value that provides desired results, since setting the humidity target based on data would simplify the process for a user by removing the need for manual determination and setting of the target value.
Claim(s) 4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu (CN 106705566 A) in view of Zhong (CN 107467172 A), Liu (CN 106052296 A), Nicole (US 20180310578 A1), Unlu (US 20210186048 A1), Kim (US 20060042300 A1), Wang (CN 106839570 A), Barber (US 20180092308 A1), Bai (CN 106885441 A), FSANZ (Nutritional impact of phytosanitary irradiation of fruits and vegetables), Marchetti (IT 201800020068 A1), Fang (EP 2757334 A1), and Jeon (KR 20110055046 A) , and further in view of Wetekamp (US 20060260333 A1).
Regarding claim 4, Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, is silent on the method further comprising controlling the light source to turn off after a third preset duration based on an opening signal of the storage room.
Wetekamp teaches (Paragraph 0007, 0045, 0155) a method of operating a refrigerator with a fresh food compartment, wherein a fresh food compartment light associated with the fresh food compartment is turned off after a set time period during which the fresh food compartment door is open, wherein intelligent control 512 also has a fresh food compartment door input 536 for monitoring whether the fresh food compartment door is open or closed.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, to controlling the light source to turn off after a preset duration based on an opening signal of the storage room in view of Wetekamp since both are directed to methods of preserving food products in refrigerator storage devices, since turning off a light in a refrigerator after a preset duration after a door is opened is known in the art as shown by Wetekamp, since waiting a preset duration before turning off the light would ensure the light stays on if the door is accidentally opened briefly, since turning off the light would conserve energy, since the opening the door will alter the humidity and other conditions in the refrigerator, so turning off the light would allow sensors to determine new conditions after closing to ensure that the light is operated in the desired conditions.
Claims 8-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu (CN 106705566 A) in view of Zhong (CN 107467172 A), Liu (CN 106052296 A), Nicole (US 20180310578 A1), Unlu (US 20210186048 A1), Kim (US 20060042300 A1), Wang (CN 106839570 A), Barber (US 20180092308 A1), Bai (CN 106885441 A), FSANZ (Nutritional impact of phytosanitary irradiation of fruits and vegetables), Marchetti (IT 201800020068 A1), Fang (EP 2757334 A1), and Jeon (KR 20110055046 A), and further in view of Wu (CN 106705564 A) and Bogrash (US 20170363348 A1).
Regarding claim 8, Liu (CN 106705566 A) is silent on re-obtaining a current type of food ingredient in the storage room based on the closing signal of the storage room; when a total number of current types of food ingredients in the storage room is less than a total number of types of food ingredients in the storage room prior to the setting step, identifying a removed type of food ingredient and obtaining, from the relationship table the minimum irradiation intensity and the shortest irradiation duration corresponding to a removed type of food ingredient; when the minimum irradiation intensity required by the removed type of food ingredient is greater than the minimum irradiation intensity of each current type of food ingredient, updating the target irradiation intensity set in the setting step to the maximum value of all the minimum irradiation intensities corresponding to all the current types of food ingredients; when the shortest irradiation duration required by the removed type of food ingredient is greater than the shortest irradiation duration of each current type of food ingredient, obtaining a duration for which the light source has been turned on; and when the duration for which the light source has been turned on is less than the maximum value of all the shortest irradiation durations corresponding to all the current types of food ingredients, updating the target irradiation duration set in the setting step to the maximum value of all the shortest irradiation durations corresponding to all the current types of food ingredients.
Wu teaches (Paragraph 0002, 0014, 0015) a refrigerator control method, wherein, after detecting that the door is closed, the food inside the refrigerator and the area where each food is located is identified, wherein a door body opening and closing detection module is configured to detect the opening and closing state of the door body.
Bogrash teaches (Paragraph 0011) a method of operating a refrigerator, wherein the addition or removal of items will be detected before and after any changes to detect the item's addition or removal and distinguish it from the items merely being moved on a shelf or in a section, wherein the means of detection of items addition or removal will be connected to the computer processor for the purposes of updating the content list including the item location.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, to re-obtain a current type of food ingredient in the storage room based on the closing signal of the storage room and to identify a removed type of food ingredient in view of Wu and Bogrash since each of Liu, Wu, and Bogrash is directed to a method of preserving food products in refrigerator storage devices, since re-obtaining a current type of food ingredient in the storage room based on the closing signal of the storage room is known in the art as shown by Wu, since identifying a removed type of food ingredient is known in the art as shown by Bogrash, since users often add and remove food items to refrigerator devices, so identifying food items after the door closes would ensure that the refrigerator is treating the food products as intended, since, while the door is open, a user may continue to remove or add food items, so detection of the food items may be inaccurate if done partly into the removal/addition process, since identification of food items based on a door closing is convenient for the user by removing the need to manually identify food items, and since when an item is removed from the refrigerator and if subsequently the item is passed by the identification unit the item will be deleted from the stored items list and the artificial nose will check its status in terms of freshness/spoilage and if necessary a warning will be displayed possibly with special cooking instructions (Bogrash, Paragraph 0014).
Nicole teaches (Paragraph 0001, 0017) a system and a method for post-harvest light treatment of vegetables and fruits, wherein at least part of the piece of fruit is irradiated with radiation with a predetermined minimum radiation intensity and during a predetermined radiation period.
Unlu teaches (Paragraph 0034, 0036) microbiologically stabilizing plant material such as strawberry, apple, blueberry, pear, peach, kiwi, pineapple, banana, cucumber or tomato by irradiating the plant material for the minimum amount of time and intensity necessary to assure microbial stability.
Kim (US 20060042300 A1) teaches (Paragraph 0003, 0021) a method of operating a refrigerator which includes a separate vegetable storage chamber for storing vegetables, wherein a control unit selectively and adjustably controls at least one type of the LEDs, intensities of lights emitted from the LEDs, and irradiation times of the LEDs, according to the types of the stored vegetables. Kim (US 20060042300 A1) further teaches (Paragraph 0019) a light-setting unit receives data corresponding to types of the stored vegetables from a user, and a control unit receives the data corresponding to the types of the stored vegetables through the light-setting unit and controls the LEDs so that the LEDs emit light, having characteristics corresponding to the types of the stored vegetables, onto the vegetables.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, to, when a total number of current types of food ingredients in the storage room is less than a total number of types of food ingredients in the storage room prior to the setting step, obtain, from the relationship table, the minimum irradiation intensity and the shortest irradiation duration corresponding to a removed type of food ingredient; when the minimum irradiation intensity required by the removed type of food ingredient is greater than the minimum irradiation intensity of each current type of food ingredient, updating the target irradiation intensity set in the setting step to the maximum value of all the minimum irradiation intensities corresponding to all the current types of food ingredients; when the shortest irradiation duration required by the removed type of food ingredient is greater than the shortest irradiation duration of each current type of food ingredient, obtaining a duration for which the light source has been turned on; and when the duration for which the light source has been turned on is less than the maximum value of all the shortest irradiation durations corresponding to all the current types of food ingredients, updating the target irradiation duration set in the setting step to the maximum value of all the shortest irradiation durations corresponding to all the current types of food ingredients, in view of Nicole, Unlu, and Kim (US 20060042300 A1), and Wu, since each is directed to a method of preservation and treatment of food products, since it is known in the art from Kim (US 20060042300 A1) to determine the intensity of light and duration of light application based on the type of food ingredients in a storage chamber, since it is known in the art from Unlu and Nicole to use the minimum values of intensity and duration, since it is known in the art from Wu to identify food ingredients upon closure of a storage chamber door, since food ingredients are known to require different treatment intensities and durations, since swapping food ingredients in a refrigerator is a common occurrence, and since the updating to use a smaller intensity value and a shorter duration would minimize the energy requirements of the treatment process, reducing costs, since the minimum intensity and the shortest duration would prevent overexposure to light that could excessively dry or damage the food ingredients, and since the minimum irradiation intensity and shortest treatment duration would preserve the lifespan of the light source.
Regarding claim 9, Liu (CN 106705566 A) is silent on, when a total number of the current types of food ingredients in the storage room is more than a total number of the types of food ingredients in the storage room prior to the setting step, identifying an additional type of food ingredient and obtaining, from the relationship table, the minimum irradiation intensity and the shortest irradiation duration corresponding to an additional type of food ingredient; when the minimum irradiation intensity required by the additional type of food ingredient is greater than all the minimum irradiation intensities corresponding to all the types of food ingredients prior to the setting step, updating the target irradiation intensity in the setting step to the minimum irradiation intensity corresponding to the additional type of food ingredient; and when the shortest irradiation duration required by the additional type of food ingredient is greater than all the shortest irradiation durations corresponding to all the types of food ingredients prior to the setting step, restarting timing, and updating the target irradiation duration set in the setting step to the shortest irradiation duration corresponding to the additional type of food ingredient.
As shown above, with regard to claim 8, Wu teaches (Paragraph 0002, 0014, 0015) a refrigerator control method, wherein, after detecting that the door is closed, the food inside the refrigerator and the area where each food is located is identified, wherein a door body opening and closing detection module is configured to detect the opening and closing state of the door body.
As shown above, with regard to claim 8, Bogrash teaches (Paragraph 0011) a method of operating a refrigerator, wherein the addition or removal of items will be detected before and after any changes to detect the item's addition or removal and distinguish it from the items merely being moved on a shelf or in a section, wherein the means of detection of items addition or removal will be connected to the computer processor for the purposes of updating the content list including the item location.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, to re-obtain a current type of food ingredient in the storage room based on the closing signal of the storage room and to identify an additional type of food ingredient in view of Wu and Bogrash since each of Liu, Wu, and Bogrash is directed to a method of preserving food products in refrigerator storage devices, since re-obtaining a current type of food ingredient in the storage room based on the closing signal of the storage room is known in the art as shown by Wu, since identifying an additional type of food ingredient is known in the art as shown by Bogrash, since users often add and remove food items to refrigerator devices, so identifying food items after the door closes would ensure that the refrigerator is treating the food products as intended, since, while the door is open, a user may continue to remove or add food items, so detection of the food items may be inaccurate if done partly into the removal/addition process, since identification of food items based on a door closing is convenient for the user by removing the need to manually identify food items, and since when an item is added to the refrigerator an external database can be accessed to obtain information pertaining to its storage time and to check for user defined undesirable/unhealthy ingredients (Bogrash, Paragraph 0013).
Nicole teaches (Paragraph 0001, 0017) a system and a method for post-harvest light treatment of vegetables and fruits, wherein at least part of the piece of fruit is irradiated with radiation with a predetermined minimum radiation intensity and during a predetermined radiation period.
Unlu teaches (Paragraph 0034, 0036) microbiologically stabilizing plant material such as strawberry, apple, blueberry, pear, peach, kiwi, pineapple, banana, cucumber or tomato by irradiating the plant material for the minimum amount of time and intensity necessary to assure microbial stability.
Kim (US 20060042300 A1) teaches (Paragraph 0003, 0021) a method of operating a refrigerator which includes a separate vegetable storage chamber for storing vegetables, wherein a control unit selectively and adjustably controls at least one type of the LEDs, intensities of lights emitted from the LEDs, and irradiation times of the LEDs, according to the types of the stored vegetables. Kim (US 20060042300 A1) further teaches (Paragraph 0019) a light-setting unit receives data corresponding to types of the stored vegetables from a user, and a control unit receives the data corresponding to the types of the stored vegetables through the light-setting unit and controls the LEDs so that the LEDs emit light, having characteristics corresponding to the types of the stored vegetables, onto the vegetables.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, to, when a total number of the current types of food ingredients in the storage room are more than a total number of the types of food ingredients in the storage room prior to the setting step, obtain, from the relationship table, the minimum irradiation intensity and the shortest irradiation duration corresponding to an additional type of food ingredient; when the minimum irradiation intensity required by the additional type of food ingredients is greater than all the minimum irradiation intensities corresponding to all the types of food ingredients prior to the setting step, updating the target irradiation intensity in the setting step to the minimum irradiation intensity corresponding to the additional type of food ingredient; and when the shortest irradiation duration required by the additional type of food ingredient is greater than all the shortest irradiation durations corresponding to all the types of food ingredients prior to the setting step, restarting timing, and updating the target irradiation duration set in the setting step to the shortest irradiation duration corresponding to the additional type of food ingredient, in view of Nicole, Unlu, and Kim (US 20060042300 A1), and Wu, since each is directed to a method of preservation and treatment of food products, since it is known in the art from Kim (US 20060042300 A1) to determine the intensity of light and duration of light application based on the type of food ingredients in a storage chamber, since it is known in the art from Unlu and Nicole to use the minimum values of intensity and duration, since it is known in the art from Wu to identify food ingredients upon closure of a storage chamber door, since food ingredients are known to require different treatment intensities and durations, since swapping food ingredients in a refrigerator is a common occurrence, since a newly added ingredient would be untreated by irradiation, and, therefore, restarting timing and increasing the irradiation intensity for the new ingredient would ensure that all ingredients in the storage chamber received sufficient irradiation for preservation, preventing deterioration of the food, since different types of food ingredients will have different properties (size, shape, density, composition, etc.) that require different intensities and lengths of treatment for optimal storage conditions, since although the storage at the low temperature allows vegetables to maintain freshness for a long time, many nutrients of the vegetables, which were stored at the low temperature, are destroyed, and a time for maintaining the freshness of the vegetables is comparatively short, but the freshness of vegetables can be maintained for a long time, and the nutrient degradation can be minimized by irradiating light onto the vegetables stored in the vegetable storage chamber so that the vegetables photosynthesize (Kim (US 20060042300 A1), Paragraph 0007-0010), since too little light could cause some ingredients like vegetables to degrade more quickly.
Claim(s) 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu (CN 106705566 A) in view of Zhong (CN 107467172 A), Liu (CN 106052296 A), Nicole (US 20180310578 A1), Unlu (US 20210186048 A1), Kim (US 20060042300 A1), Wang (CN 106839570 A), Barber (US 20180092308 A1), Bai (CN 106885441 A), FSANZ (Nutritional impact of phytosanitary irradiation of fruits and vegetables), Marchetti (IT 201800020068 A1), Fang (EP 2757334 A1), and Jeon (KR 20110055046 A), and further in view of Park (KR 101700194 B1).
Regarding claim 10, Liu (CN 106705566 A) as modified above, is silent on the determination of the target irradiation intensity and the target irradiation duration for all the food ingredients in the storage room comprising: receiving an input irradiation intensity and an input irradiation duration manually input by a user, setting the input irradiation intensity as the target irradiation intensity, and setting the input irradiation duration as the target irradiation duration.
Park (KR 101700194 B1) teaches (Paragraph 0001, 0047, 0054; Fig. 1 #1, 100) a refrigerator and a control method thereof capable of effectively sterilizing food stored in a low-temperature storage space, wherein the refrigerator 1 may include a UV light source 100, and the light emission duration and light emission intensity may be input in advance by the user.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, to receive an input irradiation intensity and an input irradiation duration manually input by a user, set the input irradiation intensity as the target irradiation intensity, and set the input irradiation duration as the target irradiation duration as taught by Park (KR 101700194 B1), since both are directed to methods of preserving food products in refrigerator storage devices, since receiving an input irradiation intensity and an input irradiation duration manually input by a user, setting the input irradiation intensity as the target irradiation intensity, and setting the input irradiation duration as the target irradiation duration is known in the art as shown by Park (KR 101700194 B1), since letting the user input the irradiation intensity and duration will allow for precise control of the irradiation treatment, since users may wish to adjust the irradiation intensity and duration to control the treatment process so that the food product has desired properties or based on when the user intends to take the food items out of storage, since the user may only wish to operate the light source at certain times, and since some food items or ingredients may not have a pre-determined irradiation intensity or duration so the user will need to set it manually to ensure the food receives the intended preservative effect.
Claim(s) 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu (CN 106705566 A) in view of Zhong (CN 107467172 A), Liu (CN 106052296 A), Nicole (US 20180310578 A1), Unlu (US 20210186048 A1), Kim (US 20060042300 A1), Wang (CN 106839570 A), Barber (US 20180092308 A1), Bai (CN 106885441 A), FSANZ (Nutritional impact of phytosanitary irradiation of fruits and vegetables), Marchetti (IT 201800020068 A1), Fang (EP 2757334 A1), and Jeon (KR 20110055046 A), and further in view of Nicole (US 20170135359 A1), and Kuai (CN 105918430 A).
Regarding claim 11, Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, is silent on the target irradiation intensity being not greater than 100 pmol-m-2-s-1, and the target irradiation duration being not greater than 120 h.
However, irradiation intensities and durations in the claimed range are known in the art.
For example, Nicole (US 20170135359 A1) teaches (Paragraph 0012; Claim 1, 4-6, 10) a system comprising a food storage facility for storage of fruit and/or vegetables, and a lamp arranged to illuminate the fruit and/or vegetables in the food storage facility, wherein a first light output has an intensity of 15 to 50 μmol/s/m2, a second light output has an intensity of 2 to 15 μmol/s/m2, a first light period lasts 1 to 2 hours, and a second light period lasts 2 to 4 hours (i.e., the total irradiation intensity is not greater than 100 μmol/·m-2·s-1 and the total time is not greater than 120 h).
Also, Kuai teaches (Paragraph 0002, 0011) a method for preserving green leafy vegetables, wherein the vegetables are irradiated with an LED light at an intensity of 10-35 μmol/m2.s for 6-10 hours.
Furthermore, the claimed target irradiation intensity not greater than 100 μmol/·m-2·s-1 and the target irradiation duration not greater than 120 h would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art since irradiation intensities and durations in those ranges for treating food ingredients are known in the art as shown above by Nicole (US 20170135359 A1) and Kuai since such ranges would have been used during the course of normal experimentation and optimization procedures in the method of Liu, as modified above, based upon factors such as the type of food product being irradiated (where different foods will require different intensities and durations of irradiation due to differences in composition), the since, shape, and number of the food ingredients (where a larger/denser food ingredient) may require a greater intensity of irradiation, the intended consumption time of the food, the desired shelf-life, the humidity level, etc. Furthermore, the Applicant does not appear to have identified any unique or unexpected benefit from the claimed target irradiation intensity not greater than 100 μmol/·m-2·s-1 and the target irradiation duration not greater than 120 h that would render it non-obvious.
Claim(s) 15 and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu (CN 106705566 A) in view of Zhong (CN 107467172 A), Liu (CN 106052296 A), Nicole (US 20180310578 A1), Unlu (US 20210186048 A1), Kim (US 20060042300 A1), Wang (CN 106839570 A), Barber (US 20180092308 A1), Bai (CN 106885441 A), FSANZ (Nutritional impact of phytosanitary irradiation of fruits and vegetables), Marchetti (IT 201800020068 A1), Fang (EP 2757334 A1), and Jeon (KR 20110055046 A) and further in view of Yamato (JP 2006266539 A).
Regarding claim 15, Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, is silent on the light source comprising a blue light source, and the blue light emitted by the blue light source having a wavelength of 440 nm to 460 nm.
Yamato teaches (Paragraph 0001, 0039) a method of operating a refrigerator having a vegetable compartment for storing vegetables and the like, wherein light is emitted from a light source 29 when the humidity is high and the light emission is stopped when the humidity is low. Yamato further teaches (Paragraph 0040) a light source 29 emitting light of a different wavelength may be provided, wherein, for example, if a blue light source with a wavelength of about 440 nm is provided, photomorphogenesis of vegetables can be promoted.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, for the light source to comprise a blue light source having a wavelength of 440 nm to 460 nm as taught Yamato since both are directed to methods of preserving food products in refrigerator storage devices, since providing a refrigerator with a blue light source having a wavelength of 440 nm to 460 nm is known in the art from Yamato, since if a blue light source with a wavelength of about 440 nm is provided, photomorphogenesis of vegetables can be promoted (Yamato, Paragraph 0040), since some consumers will prefer the appearance of a refrigerator interior and food products lit by a blue light source, and since some food ingredients will have a longer shelf-life when exposed to blue light.
Regarding claim 20, Liu (CN 106705566 A) teaches (Paragraph 0016) determining a type of food according to the humidity by judging whether the humidity is greater than or equal to a preset humidity threshold; and if so, determining that the food is fruit or vegetable, and if not, determining that the food is meat (not fruit or vegetable).
Liu (CN 106705566 A), as modified above, is silent on controlling the humidity control fan to operate to maintain humidity in the storage room lower than the target humidity, and turning off the light source when the humidity of the storage room is not greater than the target humidity.
Fang teaches (Paragraph 0001, 0009) a method of controlling humidity in a refrigerating chamber of a refrigerator, wherein a compressor and the fan are controlled to operate according to the moisture preservation mode, wherein, in the high moisture preservation mode, the humidity in the refrigerating chamber may be maintained at a high level, and in the normal moisture preservation mode, the humidity in the refrigerating chamber may be maintained at a low level. Fang further teaches (Paragraph 0012, 0038, 0040) operating the fan to humidify the refrigerating chamber during the high moisture preservation mode, and, in the normal moisture preservation mode, the fan is operated, but no defrostation water is transported into the refrigerating chamber by the fan, thus the humidity in the refrigerating chamber is lower than that in the high moisture preservation mode (controlling the humidity control fan to operate to maintain low humidity in the storage room).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A) to control the humidity control fan to operate to maintain humidity in the storage room lower than the target humidity when the humidity of the storage room is not greater than the target humidity in view of Fang since both are directed to methods of preserving food products in refrigerator storage devices, since Liu (CN 106705566 A) teaches a humidity above a target humidity is indicative of fruits and vegetables while below a target humidity is indicative of other foods like meat, since Fang teaches controlling a humidity control fan to operate in a normal humidity mode for maintaining a low humidity in the storage room, since the method of controlling humidity of Fang is easy to implement and low in the cost of humidity control, and may be applicable to the refrigerator in the related art without complex structure modifications (Fang, Paragraph 0010), and since maintaining a lower humidity for foods that do not need higher humidity will prevent the build-up of excess moisture that could cause mold or bacteria growth. The examiner notes that the limitation, “controlling the humidity control fan to operate to maintain low humidity,” has been construed to mean maintaining “low” humidity for any period of time.
Furthermore, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify Liu (CN 106705566 A) to turn off the light source when the humidity of the storage room is not greater than the target humidity, since Liu (CN 106705566 A) demonstrates that this humidity level indicates that the food ingredient in the storage room is not fruit or vegetable, and the light source has the effect of inducing photosynthesis in fruits and vegetables as shown above by Jeon. Non-fruit or non-vegetable food ingredients, such as meat or cheese, would not benefit from the light source since photosynthesis cannot occur, and one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that turning off the light source would save energy and reduce operational costs. Additionally, Yamato teaches (Paragraph 0039-0040) a method of operating a refrigerator having a vegetable compartment for storing vegetables and the like, wherein light is emitted from a light source 29 when the humidity is high and the light emission is stopped when the humidity is low because vegetables consume water in their bodies when they undergo photosynthesis and photomorphogenesis, and stopping light emission at low humidity can prevent vegetable from drying out due to photosynthesis. Thus, Yamato further demonstrates the obviousness of modifying Liu (CN 106705566 A) to turn off the light source when the humidity is below a target humidity.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 7-14, filed 08/25/2026, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1 under 35 USC 103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, these arguments have been made in view of amendments to claim 1, and, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made over Liu (CN 106705566 A) in view of Zhong (CN 107467172 A), Liu (CN 106052296 A), Nicole (US 20180310578 A1), Unlu (US 20210186048 A1), Kim (US 20060042300 A1), Wang (CN 106839570 A), Barber (US 20180092308 A1), Bai (CN 106885441 A), FSANZ (Nutritional impact of phytosanitary irradiation of fruits and vegetables), Marchetti (IT 201800020068 A1), Fang (EP 2757334 A1), and Jeon (KR 20110055046 A), as shown above.
Regarding the Applicant’s argument that none of Kim, Nicole, Unlu, and Marchetti discloses or suggests an experimentally established relationship table associating a food type with: a minimum irradiation intensity; a shortest irradiation duration; a nutrient improvement rate; and a recommended tasting period, the Examiner first notes, that in response to the Applicant’s amendments, the rejection now also relies upon FSANZ, which teaches a table comprising nutrient improvement rates for different food types. Furthermore, the test for obviousness is not whether the features of a secondary reference may be bodily incorporated into the structure of the primary reference; nor is it that the claimed invention must be expressly suggested in any one or all of the references. Rather, the test is what the combined teachings of the references would have suggested to those of ordinary skill in the art. See In re Keller, 642 F.2d 413, 208 USPQ 871 (CCPA 1981). In this case, treating food ingredients with a minimum intensity is known in the art and obvious in view of Nicole; treating food products with irradiation for the shortest duration is known in the art is known in the art and obvious in view of Unlu; setting irradiation intensities and durations based on the type of food ingredient is known in the art and obvious in view of Kim; a recommended tasting period for a food ingredient stored in a database is known and obvious from Wang, tabulated data of the nutrient improvement rate for different types of fruits and vegetables is known in the art and obvious in view of FSANZ, and a table in a database comprising food parameter values, irradiation intensity and duration values for different types of food is known in the art as shown by Marchetti. Thus, the individual parameters as claimed are known to be associated with food ingredients types in databases and tables, and one of ordinary skill in the art would find it obvious to provide a table for all the parameters together stored in a database for the purpose of providing a system and/or user with the parameters for treatment of the food ingredients in a storage container.
In response to the Applicant’s argument that the cited references do not disclose retrieving experimentally determined nutrient-improvement data associated with an identified type of fruit or vegetable, the Examiner notes that this limitation is a newly added amendment that is obvious in view of FSANZ for the reasons stated above with regard to claim 1.
Regarding the Applicant’s argument that Wang and Bai concern shelf-life monitoring, expiration management, and food-storage reminders, while, in contrast, amended claim 1 is directed to nutrient enhancement and post-treatment consumption management, wherein the claimed recommended tasting period is not a generic expiration period, but rather, it is associated with a nutrient-enhancement process and identifies a preferred consumption window following nutrient improvement, the Examiner respectfully disagrees and notes that neither the Applicant’s claims nor specification appear to define “recommended tasting period” as “a preferred consumption window following nutrient improvement”. Consequently, the set time in relation to shelf-life and expiration as disclosed in Wang and Bai falls within the broadest reasonable interpretation of a “recommended tasting period”.
In response to the Applicant’s argument that neither Wang, Bai, Barber, nor any other cited reference teaches or suggests “establishing a first preset storage duration based on a minimum value of the recommended tasting period; establishing a second preset storage duration based on a maximum value of the recommended tasting period; issuing a tasting prompt when the first preset storage duration is reached; and issuing a separate notification indicating expiration of the best tasting period when the second preset storage duration is reached” but merely determine whether food should be consumed before spoilage or discarded after expiration, the Examiner maintains that the test for obviousness is not whether the features of a secondary reference may be bodily incorporated into the structure of the primary reference; nor is it that the claimed invention must be expressly suggested in any one or all of the references. Rather, the test is what the combined teachings of the references would have suggested to those of ordinary skill in the art. See In re Keller, 642 F.2d 413, 208 USPQ 871 (CCPA 1981). In this case, Wang teaches sending a tasting prompt instruction based first preset storage duration that is shelf life shorter than the shelf life of the food (minimum value of the recommended tasting period ) determined according to the type of food; Barber teaches sending an alarm after irradiation is finished; and Bai teaches sending tasting prompts and expiration prompts based on reaching first and second storage durations. Consequently, in view of the prior art, one of ordinary skill in the art would find the claimed method obvious for the reasons stated above with regard to claim 1 (e.g., the tasting prompt can prevent food waste, the expiration prompt can alert the user to clean up the food as soon as possible to avoid affecting other food and causing other food to rot and spoil, etc.)
Regarding the Applicant’s argument that the rejection does not explain why a person of ordinary skill would have modified these systems to create an experimentally established database that links: food type - nutrient-improvement information - recommended tasting period - food- consumption management; that such a linkage originates from Applicant's disclosure rather than from the cited references; and that the proposed combination therefore relies upon impermissible hindsight reconstruction, the Examiner notes that it must be recognized that any judgment on obviousness is in a sense necessarily a reconstruction based upon hindsight reasoning. But so long as it takes into account only knowledge which was within the level of ordinary skill at the time the claimed invention was made, and does not include knowledge gleaned only from the applicant's disclosure, such a reconstruction is proper. See In re McLaughlin, 443 F.2d 1392, 170 USPQ 209 (CCPA 1971). Furthermore, the Applicant has not identified any unique benefit or unexpected result from the claimed combination of food type, nutrient-improvement information, recommended tasting period, and food-consumption management that would render it non-obvious. Furthermore, the nutrient improvement rate, as claimed is simply a value stored in a table in a database, that does not appear to be used in the claimed process. Therefore, it is unclear how the storage of the nutrient improvement rate in a table is pertinent to the patentability of the claim invention.
In response to the Applicant’s argument that the cited art fails to teach or suggest the claimed integrated process in which: 1. a food type is identified; 2. nutrient-improvement information and a recommended tasting period are obtained from an experimentally established relationship table; 3. nutrient-enhancement irradiation is performed using food-specific treatment parameters; and 4. user-consumption timing is subsequently managed according to the recommended tasting period associated with the nutrient-enhancement process, and, therefore, the Office Action therefore fails to establish a prima facie case of obviousness against amended Claim 1, the Examiner maintains that the test for obviousness is not whether the features of a secondary reference may be bodily incorporated into the structure of the primary reference; nor is it that the claimed invention must be expressly suggested in any one or all of the references. Rather, the test is what the combined teachings of the references would have suggested to those of ordinary skill in the art. See In re Keller, 642 F.2d 413, 208 USPQ 871 (CCPA 1981). For the reasons stated above with regard to claim 1, the Examiner maintains that the claimed process is obvious in view of the prior art.
Therefore, claim 1 and all dependent claims remain rejected under 35 USC 103.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Ayala (US 20160235080 A1) teaches methods for increasing the content of nutraceuticals and antioxidant capacity of perishable fruits, by combining irradiation with ultraviolet light (UV-C) and storage.
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/AUSTIN PARKER TAYLOR/Examiner, Art Unit 1792
/VIREN A THAKUR/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1792
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