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 in the reply filed on 2026 January 21 is acknowledged. A search of the entire scope of group I has been done because there is no prior art against the elected hydrocarbon solvent. Claims 1, 2, 8-10, 12, 13, 15, 21, 25, 27, 29, 30, 40-44, 46, and 48 are pending in the examined application.
Claims 29, 30, 40-44, 46, and 48 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 2026 January 21.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 2023 April 27 and 2024 July 8 were submitted in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
Claims 1, 2, 8-10, 12, 13, 15, 21, 25, and 27 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
The term “rich” in claims 1, 2, 8-10, 12, 13, 15, 21, 25, and 27 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “rich” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention. TURNER (Journal of Natural Products 1980, 43(2), 169-234) describes that cannabis sativa, the source biomass for THCA, contains 421 compounds (pages 172, paragraph 3 to page 173, paragraph 2). What is the baseline that the term “rich” is measured against?
Conclusion
Claims 1, 2, 8-10, 12, 13, 15, 21, 25, and 27 are not allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: CHANGOER (US 20160326130, published 2016 November 10, cited in IDS) describes a process of isolating THCA without the use acid when a hydrocarbon solvent is used *page 3, paragraph [0059] to page 4, paragraph [0079]). The use of acid in combination with a hydrocarbon is not explicitly stated or implicitly stated. Additionally, tetrabutylmethyl ether is used in a later step.
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/NOBLE E JARRELL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1699
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