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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 5/26/2026 has been entered.
Claim Objections Withdrawn
The objection to claim 33, outlined in the previous Office Action, has been overcome by inventor’s amendment. The amendment corrects the claim text as appropriate.
112 Rejections Withdrawn
The rejection of claim 1 under 35 USC 112(b) or 35 USC 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, outlined in the previous Office Action, has been overcome by inventor’s amendment. The amendment clarifies the claim as appropriate.
The rejection of claim 8 under 35 USC 112(b) or 35 USC 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, outlined in the previous Office Action, has been overcome by inventor’s amendment. The amendment clarifies the claim as appropriate.
The rejection of claim 33 under 35 USC 112(b) or 35 USC 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, outlined in the previous Office Action, has been overcome by inventor’s amendment. The amendment clarifies the claim as appropriate.
The rejection of claim 55 under 35 USC 112(b) or 35 USC 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, outlined in the previous Office Action, has been overcome by inventor’s amendment. The amendment clarifies the claim as appropriate (by rewriting the claim as an independent claim).
The rejection of claims 3, 4, 34-36, 39-51, 53 and 54 under 35 USC 112(b) or 35 USC 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, outlined in the previous Office Action (indefinite from indefinite), is withdrawn. The rejection is moot.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112(b), MAINTAINED
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 9-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
It is unclear why definitions for variables R2 and R9 are recited in the claims when no such variables are present in the diagramed structures or their corresponding variable definitions.
Inventor states in the Remarks that the claims have been amended in order to overcome the rejection. However, the claims have not, in fact, been amended.
The examiner again respectfully suggests deleting the definitions. (As was done for claim 8.)
102 Rejections Withdrawn
The rejection of claim 8 under 35 USC 102(a)(1), outlined in the previous Office Action, has been overcome by inventor’s amendment. The amendment narrows the scope of the claim such that it no longer reads on the cited art.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1, 3, 4, 8, 12, 13, 15, 16, 19-26, 33-36, 39-51, 53-55 are allowed. The subject matter of the remaining claims would be allowable once the 112 rejection maintained above has been overcome. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
The closest prior art is the prior art of record. During the course of prosecution, inventor has narrowed the scope of the claimed subject matter such that it no longer reads on this cited art.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRIAN J DAVIS whose telephone number is (571)272-0638. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30-5:00 PM EDT.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Ali Soroush, can be reached at 571-272-9925. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BRIAN J DAVIS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1614 6/2/2026
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