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 .
Status of the Claims
Claims 1-18 are pending.
Claims 6, 7, 11, 16 and 17 are withdrawn.
Election/Restrictions
Claims 6, 7, 11, 16 and 17 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected invention and species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 10/8/2025.
Applicant's election with traverse of Group I, Species 1A in the reply filed on 10/8/2025 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that the '243 Reference teaches a completely opposite arrangement in that the device of the '243 Reference uses magnets and electrodes to attract the aerosol substrate towards the electrodes of that device. The Applicant argues that the '243 Reference operates in a fundamentally distinct manner by providing a system which uses attractive forces to prevent against the deformation of an aerosol generation product (which will be deformed through use). Alternatively, the device of claims 1, 9, and 11 uses compression to ensure that adequate connection is maintained, providing a common special technical feature not taught by the '243 Reference. This is not found persuasive because the claims are directed to a product, and the courts have held that the manner in which a claimed apparatus is intended to be employed does not differentiate the claimed apparatus from a prior art apparatus if the prior art apparatus teaches all the structural limitations of the claim (see MPEP 2114 II).
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
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 1, 4, 9 and 14 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.
Claims 1 and 9 recite that “wherein the compression element is configured to undergo displacement according to a temperature of the heating chamber and a thermal response characteristic of a magnetic property of the thermally active material” and “wherein the compression element is displaced in response to a change in a magnetic force between the first and second magnetic materials”. These limitations appear to contradict each other, and it is unclear how both could be met simultaneously.
For purposes of examination, it is interpreted that “the compression element is configured to undergo displacement according to a temperature of the heating chamber and a thermal response characteristic of a magnetic property of the thermally active material” in claims 1 and 9.
Regarding claims 4 and 14, these claims recite “wherein the reaction surface is a second compression element”. However, it is unclear how a reaction surface can be a compression element.
For purposes of examination, it is interpreted that the reaction surface is also a thermally active material.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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) 1-5, 8-10, 12-15 and 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Chen (CN 110403243, cited in the IDS dated 04/07/2023).
A machine translation is applied to translate CN 110403243. All citations to ‘Chen’ refer to the machine translation.
Regarding claim 1, Chen teaches a heating chamber for an aerosol generation device (abstract), the heating chamber comprising:
a magnetic interaction element (222) comprising a first magnetic material (page 6, lines 5-6);
a compression element (122) comprising a thermally active material, wherein the thermally active material comprises a second magnetic material (page 6, lines 7-8); and
a reaction surface (see annotated Fig. 6, below);
wherein the heating chamber is adapted to receive an aerosol substrate (110) between the compression element and the reaction surface and the compression element is configured to compress the aerosol substrate against the reaction surface (see annotated Fig. 6, below),
wherein the compression element is configured to undergo displacement according to a temperature of the heating chamber and a thermal response characteristic of a magnetic property of the thermally active material (page 6, paragraph 1),
wherein at least one of the first and second magnetic materials has a threshold temperature at which the material undergoes a magnetic phase transition (“Curie temperature”), and wherein the heating chamber is configured to, during aerosol generation, raise the temperature of the heating chamber to an aerosol generation temperature above the threshold temperature (page 6, paragraph 4).
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Regarding claims 2 and 3, Chen teaches further comprising a heating element (120) arranged at the compression element (Fig. 6 and paragraph 7) and at the reaction surface (see annotated Fig. 6, above).
Regarding claim 4, Chen teaches that the reaction surface is a second compression element configured to undergo displacement according to a temperature of the heating chamber (see annotated Fig. 6 above).
Regarding claim 5, Chen teaches that the compression element is arranged between the magnetic interaction element and the reaction surface (see annotated Fig. 6 above), and one of the first and second magnetic materials is ferromagnetic up to a Curie temperature lower than the aerosol generation temperature, and the other of the first and second magnetic materials is paramagnetic above the Curie temperature (page 6, paragraph 4).
Regarding claim 8, Chen teaches further comprising a resilient element (250) configured to bias the compression element towards or away from the reaction surface (page 8, paragraph 5).
Regarding claim 9, Chen teaches an aerosol generation device (abstract), comprising:
a heating chamber (Fig. 6), wherein the heating chamber includes:
a magnetic interaction element (222) comprising a first magnetic material (page 6, lines 5-6);
a compression element (122) comprising a thermally active material, wherein the thermally active material comprises a second magnetic material (page 6, lines 7-8); and
a reaction surface (see annotated Fig. 6, below);
wherein the heating chamber is adapted to receive an aerosol substrate (110) between the compression element and the reaction surface, and the compression element is configured to compress the aerosol substrate against the reaction surface (see annotated Fig. 6, below),
wherein the compression element is configured to undergo displacement according to a temperature of the heating chamber and a thermal response characteristic of a magnetic property of the thermally active material (page 6, paragraph 1),
wherein at least one of the first and second magnetic materials has a threshold temperature at which the material undergoes a magnetic phase transition (“Curie temperature”), and wherein the heating chamber is configured to, during aerosol generation, raise the temperature of the heating chamber to an aerosol generation temperature above the threshold temperature (page 6, paragraph 4).
Regarding claim 10, Chen teaches an aerosol substrate (tobacco, 110, page 4, paragraph 8) arranged between the compression element and the reaction surface (see annotated Fig. 6, above).
Regarding claims 12 and 13, Chen teaches further comprising a heating element (120) arranged at the compression element (Fig. 6 and paragraph 7) and at the reaction surface (see annotated Fig. 6, above).
Regarding claim 14, Chen teaches that the reaction surface is a second compression element configured to undergo displacement according to a temperature of the heating chamber (see annotated Fig. 6 above).
Regarding claim 15, Chen teaches that the compression element is arranged between the magnetic interaction element and the reaction surface (see annotated Fig. 6 above), and one of the first and second magnetic materials is ferromagnetic up to a Curie temperature lower than the aerosol generation temperature, and the other of the first and second magnetic materials is paramagnetic above the Curie temperature (page 6, paragraph 4).
Regarding claim 18, Chen teaches further comprising a resilient element (250) configured to bias the compression element towards or away from the reaction surface (page 8, paragraph 5).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to YANA B KRINKER whose telephone number is (571)270-7662. The examiner can normally be reached Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
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YANA B. KRINKER
Examiner
Art Unit 1755
/YANA B KRINKER/Examiner, Art Unit 1755 /PHILIP Y LOUIE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1755