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 .
Response to Amendment
Claims 1-2 and 11 are amended. Claim 13 is withdrawn. Claims 1-12 and 14-19 are presently examined. Claims 1-6, 9-12 and 14-19 are allowed.
Applicant’s arguments regarding the objection to the specification have been fully considered and are persuasive. The objection of 9/2/2025 is withdrawn.
Applicant’s arguments regarding the rejections under 35 USC 112(b) have been fully considered and are persuasive. The rejections of 9/2/2025 are overcome.
Applicant’s arguments regarding the rejections under 35 USC 102(a)(1) have been fully considered and are persuasive. The rejections of 9/2/2025 are overcome.
Applicant’s arguments regarding the rejections under 35 USC 103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. The rejections of 9/2/2025 are overcome.
Election/Restrictions
Claims 1-3, 5-6, 9-12 and 14-16 are allowable. The restriction requirement between groups I and II and species A, B and C, as set forth in the Office action mailed on 5/12/2025, has been reconsidered in view of the allowability of claims to the elected invention pursuant to MPEP § 821.04(a). The restriction requirement is hereby withdrawn as to any claim that requires all the limitations of an allowable claim. Specifically, the restriction requirement of 5/12/2025 is partially withdrawn. Claims 4, 7-8 and 17-19, which are directed to an aerosol generation device, no longer withdrawn from consideration because the claim(s) requires all the limitations of an allowable claim. However, claim 13, directed to an infrared heater, remains withdrawn from consideration because it does not require all the limitations of an allowable claim.
In view of the above noted withdrawal of the restriction requirement, applicant is advised that if any claim presented in a divisional application is anticipated by, or includes all the limitations of, a claim that is allowable in the present application, such claim may be subject to provisional statutory and/or nonstatutory double patenting rejections over the claims of the instant application.
Once a restriction requirement is withdrawn, the provisions of 35 U.S.C. 121 are no longer applicable. See In re Ziegler, 443 F.2d 1211, 1215, 170 USPQ 129, 131-32 (CCPA 1971). See also MPEP § 804.01.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because they use shading that is not uniformly thick as required by 37 CFR 1.84(l) (figure 8). Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
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 7 and 8 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.
Regarding claim 7, it is unclear whether the limitation “intervals” (line 4) refers to the intervals of claim 1 or to new intervals, rendering the claim indefinite. For the purposes of this Office action, the limitation will be interpreted as if it referred to the intervals of claim 1. Claim 8 is indefinite by dependence.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-6, 9-12 and 14-19 are allowed. Claims 7 and 8 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action. The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance:
Gaab (US 10,785,830) teaches an infrared emitter having a substrate made of an electrically insulating material that has a printed conductor on it that generates heat when electricity is run through it (abstract). The printed conductor is a single conductor that is connected together to form a single circuit (column 8, lines 12-15, figure 4, reference numeral 3). However, Gaab does not teach or suggest having a plurality of infrared heating regions.
Paprocki (US 11,039,644) teaches an apparatus to heat smokable material to volatilize a component (abstract) that defines a heating chamber (figure 2, reference numeral 4) that contains the smokable material while in use (column 5, lines 18-38, figure 2, reference numeral 5), which is considered to meet the claim limitation of a cavity. A plurality of heater elements are mounted within the device (column 6, lines 33-51, figure 3, reference numeral 20). The heater segments are infrared heater segments that emit infrared radiation (column 6, lines 52-59), which is considered to meet the claim limitation of emitting a ray. The heater segments are separated by mechanical isolators that suspend the heater segments in place by being rigid (column 7, lines 31-51, figure 3, reference numeral 30), which are considered to define a preset pitch. The heaters are activated simultaneously (column 6, lines 33-51), which is considered to meet the claim limitation of dependently. However, Paprocki does not teach or suggest a continuous surface extending without any discontinuation.
Wilke (US 11,924,930) teaches an article for use with an apparatus for heating smokable material including a smokable material (figure 1, reference numeral 20) and a cover around the smokable material (abstract, figure 1, reference numeral 10). The cover is considered to meet the claim limitation of a base body, and the interior of the cover where the smokeable material is located is considered to meet the claim limitation of a cavity. The cover has two ends (figure 3). The proximal end is open (figure 3), which is considered to meet the claim limitation of a first end for entry of the aerosol forming substrate. The cover is in the form of a wrapper (column 6, lines 12-23, figure 1, reference numeral 12). The wrapper has a series of tracks of heating material on it that are spaced apart by a specific distance (column 8, lines 22-37, figure 3, reference numeral 11), which is considered to meet the claim limitation of a preset pitch. The wrapper extends continuously along the length of the cavity (figure 3). However, Wilke teaches that the heater is for use with an article that is heatable by penetration with a variable magnetic field (abstract) rather than the claimed infrared heater, and it would not have been obvious to modify an infrared heater in light of Wilke since the teachings of Wilke are specific to induction heaters (column 12, lines 10-25).
The prior art does not teach or suggest an aerosol generation device configured to heat an aerosol forming substrate to generate an aerosol for inhalation comprising a cavity configured to receive the aerosol forming substrate and at least one infrared heater configured to radiate an infrared ray to the cavity to the heat the aerosol forming substrate, wherein the at least one infrared heater comprises a base body configured to surround the cavity, the base body comprises a first end for entry of the aerosol forming substrate and a second end disposed opposite to the first end, a surface extending continuously between the first end and the second end without any discontinuation therebetween is formed on the base body to surround the cavity, a plurality of infrared heating regions for heating different portions of the aerosol forming substrate are respectively directly defined on the surface, and a preset pitch is kept between adjacent infrared heating regions.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to RUSSELL E SPARKS whose telephone number is (571)270-1426. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 9:00 am-5 pm.
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, Philip Louie can be reached at 571-270-1241. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/RUSSELL E SPARKS/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1755