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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 June 25, 2026 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1, 3, 4, 6, 9, and 10 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Applicant has amended independent claim 1 to recite a non-polar target molecule binding an imprinted polymer by hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interactions, ionic bonds, or covalent bonds, and argued that the combination of Warner et al., in view of Williams et al., and further in view of Tao et al., do not meet the limitations of amended claim 1. After reviewing references to Warner et al., Williams et al., and Tao et al., the Examiner agrees that the references do not meet the limitations of independent claim 1. However, the Examiner now contends that the claims are anticipated by reference to Belbruno (WO 2013/033383) under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1). Because reference to Belbruno is newly cited, the Examiner will not argue the merits of its teachings here, but will instead rely on the rejection detailed below. Therefore, in light of the teachings of the prior art, the Examiner contends that the limitations of the instant claims are taught by the reference cited below, thus the claims are not in condition for allowance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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, 3, 4, 6, 9, and 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Belbruno WO 2013/033383).
For claims 1, 3, and 4, Belbruno teaches a method of detecting a non-polar target molecule comprising exposing a polymer film (Summary paragraph 3, Detailed Description paragraphs 1, 2) to a gas (Detailed Description paragraph 2) wherein the polymer film contains cavities complementary in shape to the target molecule (Methods of Making MIP Films and Sensors paragraph 1), measuring a change in the polymer film caused by the target molecule binding the binding sites of the polymer (Detailed Description paragraph 2) wherein the target binds the polymer by hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interaction, ionic bonds, or covalent bonds (Detailed Description paragraph 1, Embodiments of MIP Films and Sensors paragraph 6), and wherein the template molecule can be xylene or toluene (Detailed Description paragraph 8).
For claim 6, Belbruno teaches measuring a change in resistance (Summary paragraph 4, Detailed Description paragraph 2).
For claim 9, Belbruno teaches the polymer film coated on carbon nanotubes (Summary paragraph 4) which are capacitive.
For claim 10, Belbruno teaches the polymer film coated on a resistive material (Summary paragraph 3, Detailed Description paragraph 12).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DWAN A GERIDO whose telephone number is (571)270-3714. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 10-6.
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, Lyle Alexander can be reached at (571) 272-1254. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/DWAN A GERIDO/Examiner, Art Unit 1797 /LYLE ALEXANDER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1797
Prosecution Insights