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 8-10 in the reply filed on 1/27/2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 1-7 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected claims, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 01/27/2026.
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) 8, 10-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Pulit-Prociak et al. (A phenol-formaldehyde resin loaded with in situ synthesised silver nanoparticles).
Regarding claims 8, 10-11 Pulit-Prociak discloses phenol-formaldehyde resins with silver nanoparticles embedded in their structure were performed in the study. Silver nanoparticles were formed in situ in the process of obtaining resole resins. The conditions of their formation allowed for effectively reducing silver ions and stabilising the creation of nanoparticles. Tannic acid was used as a reducing and stabilising substance and gelatin served as a supporting stabiliser. Thanks to the presence of silver nanoparticles, the product also exhibited antimicrobial activity which was confirmed against the Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain (abstract). The obtained product (mixture 3) was modified by embedding silver the nanoparticles in its structure. The criterion for discriminating the materials was the concentration of silver in the liquid product and the concentration of the used gelatin solution. In order to obtain a phenol formaldehyde resin modified with silver nanoparticles. The silver nanoparticles were obtained by chemical reduction method by a reduction of silver ions with tannic acid, which also has stabilising properties (page 7).
With respect to the limitation of microsphere, Change in size and shape is not patently distinct over the prior art absent persuasive evidence that the particular configuration of the claimed invention is significant. See In re Rose, 220 F.2d 459, 105 USPQ 237 (CCPA 1955); In re Rinehart, 531 F.2d 1048, 189 USPQ 143 (CCPA 1976); In re Dailey, 357 F.2d 669, 149 USPQ 47 (CCPA 1966). MPEP 2144.04[R-1].
Claim(s) 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Pulit-Prociak et al. (A phenol-formaldehyde resin loaded with in situ synthesised silver nanoparticles) as applied to claim 1, further in view of Martinez Martinez et al. (US 2010/0143183).
Regarding claim 9, Pulit-Prociak fails to disclose silver nanoparticles have a diameter of about 5 nm and a loading amount of the silver nanoparticles is greater than 60% by weight.
Whereas, Martinez Martinez discloses preparation by a wet reduction method of nanometric particles of metallic silver, with diameter ranging from 1 to 100 nm and an average diameter of 20 to 40 nm, with monodispersion characteristics, stabilities exceeding 12 months and in a wide range of concentrations. The process comprises 4 stages: a) preparation of the reducing agent solution, taken from the tannins group and preferably tannic acid (abstract).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to form silver nanoparticles of Pulit-Prociak having a diameter of 1-100 nm as taught by Martinez-Martinez motivated by the desire to have improved processability.
As Pulit-Prociak discloses phenol-formaldehyde resins with silver nanoparticles embedded in their structure and the use of silver nanoparticles without the presence of any other component, it therefore would be obvious that amount would intrinsically be 100% by weight.
Conclusion
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/RONAK C PATEL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1788
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