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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I, Claims 1-14 in the reply filed on May 19, 2026 is acknowledged.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1- is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Lavric et al. (US Patent No. 7,939,033 B2).
Regarding Claim 1, Lavric et al. reference discloses a microreactor, comprising: a fluid flow field having an inlet region, an outlet region, and a reaction region defined by a plurality of reaction region zones fluidically connected to the inlet region and the outlet region (Figure 3, A, B, numerals 26 – inlet region, 30, F1, F2 – reaction region zones and C – outlet region).
Regarding Claim 6, Lavric et al. reference discloses the microreactor of claim 1, wherein each reaction zone in the reaction region zones comprises a plurality of microchannels has spatially-varying third channel widths (Figure 3, numerals 34, 36, 38, 42, 44, and 46).
Regarding Claim 7, Lavric et al. reference discloses the microreactor of claim 6, wherein the third channel widths correspond to a predefined fluid flow resistance performance objective through the reaction region (Figure 3, numerals 34, 36, 38, 42, 44, and 46).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8-14 are allowed.
Claims 2-5 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding Claim 2, Lavric et al. (US Patent No. 7,939,033 B2) the microreactor of claim 1 except for the inlet region is defined by a first zone that comprises a plurality of microchannels having spatially-varying first channel widths. There is no motivation/suggestion to modify the microreactor with a plurality of microchannels having spatially-varying first channel widths in the inlet region.
Claim 3 directly depends on Claim 2.
Regarding Claim 4, Lavric et al. (US Patent No. 7,939,033 B2) the microreactor of claim 1 except for the outlet region is defined by a second zone that comprises a plurality of microchannels having spatially-varying second channel widths. There is no motivation/suggestion to modify the microreactor with a plurality of microchannels having spatially-varying first channel widths in the outlet region.
Claim 5 directly depends on Claim 4.
Regarding Claim 8, Lavric et al. (US Patent No. 7,939,033 B2) a microreactor, comprising: a fluid flow field having a plurality of zones that define an inlet region, an outlet region, and a reaction region (Figure 3, A, B, numerals 26 – inlet region, 30, F1, F2 – reaction region zones and C – outlet region). However, Lavric et al. does not disclose a first buffer region to facilitate a fluid flow transition at a fluidic interface between zones of different channel widths at the inlet region and the reaction region, and a second buffer region to facilitate a fluid flow transition at a fluidic interface between zones of different channel widths at the reaction region and the outlet region. There is no motivation/suggestion to modify the microreactor with the claimed first and second buffer regions.
Claims 9-14 directly or indirectly depend on Claim 8.
Conclusion
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/HUY TRAM NGUYEN/ Examiner, Art Unit 1774
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