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 .
This office action is in response to applicant’s claims filed on March 6, 2023. Claims 1-20 are pending.
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.
Claim 9 is 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.
A broad range or limitation together with a narrow range or limitation that falls within the broad range or limitation (in the same claim) may be considered indefinite if the resulting claim does not clearly set forth the metes and bounds of the patent protection desired. See MPEP § 2173.05(c). In the present instance, claim 9 recites the broad recitation “natural drying”, and the claim also recites “hanging” which is the narrower statement of the range/limitation. Claim 9 also recites the broad recitation “humidity control”, and the claim also recites “conditioning” which is the narrower statement of the range/limitation. The claim(s) are considered indefinite because there is a question or doubt as to whether the feature introduced by such narrower language is (a) merely exemplary of the remainder of the claim, and therefore not required, or (b) a required feature of the claims. Further the term natural is indefinite as natural can mean many things and is not defined as to the metes and bounds of what encompasses “natural”. For examination purposes the examiner interpreted natural drying to be any method of drying in air.
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.
Claims 1,3,5-8 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shin (KR20050103125A) in view of Duan (US 2017/0114424).
Shin teaches a method of manufacturing a leather fabric (leather sheet meets the claimed limitation of leather fabric) for vehicle seat covers (page 2, paragraph 5) comprising soaking fleshing, liming, reliming, band knifing to separate the skin and flesh, deliming and bating of leather, tanning with chrome, aluminum, vegetable oil or mimosa, shaving the leather to an accurate re-adjusted thickness, neutralizing to a pH of 4.5 to 6.5, retanning, dyeing, fatliquoring, drying by milling, toggling, moisture control using conditioning, placing in circulating air (natural drying), vacuum drying, and vibration (page 3, 1A,1B,1C,1F,2A, 2B, 2D,2F,2G, 2H,3A,3B,4A,4B,4C,4D; claim 1, example 1). Shin teaches additional finishing processes such as coating with a binder (page 3, paragraph 3-5; example 2. Claims last paragraph) and multiple coating stages (page 2, paragraph 7). Shin teaches shaving the leather to a uniform thickness of 1-1.2mm (example 1).
Shin does not teach flame retardant processing of the leather.
Duan teaches it is known to treat leather with flame retardants in tanning, rewet, retanning, greasing or coating steps wherein retanning, greasing or coating are performed after shaving (paragraphs 0017, 0020) and wherein drying steps include wet oscillating, vacuum drying and oscillating (vibrating).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to modify the methods of Shin by treating leather with a flame retardant as a finishing step after shaving and before retanning such as rewet and then fatliquoring and drying the flame retardant leather as Duan teaches that in automobile leathers it is desirable to provide flame retardancy before, during or after retanning for safety purposes and avoid the use of chrome tanning agents to avoid chrome pollution (paragraphs 0009,0010,0012, 0015). Shin invites the inclusion of leather manufacturing for automobile seats and teaches finishing process are performed. Using the known flame retardant treatments taught to be useful in Duan in the analogous automobile leather processing methods of Shin to provide additional vehicle safety from fires would be obvious to achieve the predictable result of providing a flame retardant dry leather for use in leather vehicle upholstery. Both Shin and Duan teach alternatives to chrome tanning agents and Duan specifies the advantages of avoiding chrome tanning for the benefit of reducing pollution from the tanning process. Using a more environmentally friendly non-chrome tanning agent to achieve the same tanning and preservation effect on leather is obvious.
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shin (KR20050103125A) in view of Duan (US 2017/0114424) and further in view of Gamarino (US 2012/0058357).
Shin and Duan are relied upon as set forth above.
Shin and Duan do not teach methods without pickling.
Gamarino teaches leather tanning of outstanding quality can be achieved using non-metal tanning agents and tanning can be carried out directly on a bated substrate (paragraph 0007,0168, claim 2).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to modify the methods of Shin and Duan by incorporating leather tanning without pickling as Gamarino teaches using non-metal tanning agents can produce outstanding leather in the absence of a pickling step. Using known leather processing and tanning methods which omit pickling is obvious as Gamarino teaches outstanding leather can be produced. Shin teaches using non-metal tanning agents and Duan teaches adding flame retardants in steps other than pickling, therefore it would be obvious to use the tanning agents which require no picking and adding flame retardant in retanning, greasing or coating steps to still obtain outstanding leather
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shin (KR20050103125A) in view of Duan (US 2017/0114424) and Gamarino (US 2012/0058357) and further in view of Lipowski (US 3,106,541).
Shin, Duan and Gamarino are relied upon as set forth above.
Shin, Duan and Gamarino do not teach nitrogen-based syntans
Lipowski teaches nitrogen based synthetic tanning agents are effective for direct tanning of calfskin and sheepskin (column 1, lines 28-43).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to modify the methods of Shin, Duan and Gamarino by incorporating nitrogen based syntans in direct tanning methods as Lipowski teaches nitrogen based synthetic tanning agents are effective for direct tanning of calfskin and sheepskin. Using a known tanning agent well suited for tanning leather in the absence of pickling is obvious and known to produce outstanding leather. It is prima facie obvious to combine two compositions each of which is taught by the prior art to be useful for the same purpose, in order to form a third composition to be used for the very same purpose, see In re Kerkhoven, 626 F.2d 846,850,205 USPQ 1069, 1072 (CCPA 1980).
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shin (KR20050103125A) in view of Duan (US 2017/0114424) and further in view of Dahmen (US 5,575,939).
Shin and Duan are relied upon as set forth above.
Shin and Duan do not teach wet toggling.
Dahman teaches that in producing automobile leather that drying steps conventionally performed are horse up overnight, wet toggling, milling and toggling (column 6, table, after step 5; column 1, lines 26-43).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to modify the methods of Shin and Duan by incorporating wet toggling as Dahman teaches this is conventionally performed in drying leather after fatliquoring and rinsing in combination with milling and toggling. Using known conventional and effective drying and finishing techniques to prepare automobile leather with the benefits of softness, suppleness and eliminating the disadvantage of fogging behavior is obvious.
Claims 11-14,18 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shin (KR20050103125A) in view of Duan (US 2017/0114424) and further in view of Caldwell (WO 96/36758).
Shin and Duan are relied upon as set forth above.
Shin and Duan do not teach compositions comprising borax, aluminum hydroxide, magnesium hydroxide, titanium dioxide and silica.
Caldwell teaches coatings for natural leather (page 23, lines 22-25) comprise additives or modifiers which impart flame retardance such as borax, aluminum hydroxide and magnesium hydroxide (page 46, lines 9,10 and 21) , silicones (page 43, line 5), silica fillers or flattening agents (page 43, lines 5-7, page 46, lines 6-7; page 47, lines 13-14), dimethylpolysiloxane as a water repellent (page 49, line 26)and titanium dioxide as a UV absorber (page 40, lines 21-27; page 49, line 21). Caldwell teaches adding the flame retardants, fillers, aluminum hydroxide, flattening agents, agents in effective amounts typically at 0.1-20% by weight (page 54, lines 10-15). Caldwell teaches diluents may be added to the compositions including water (page 59, lines 29-33) and methyl ethyl ketone (butanone, page 60, line 2) as well as other diluents.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to modify the methods of Shin and Duan by incorporating the coatings comprising borax, aluminum hydroxide, magnesium hydroxide, titanium dioxide and silica into the leather treatment coatings as Caldwell teaches these components can be added in effective amounts to provide, flame retardance, filling or flattening effects, water repellence, UV absorption and dilution to the compositions and coatings. Using known conventional additives used to coat and finish leather in effective amounts to provide the respective benefits is obvious. It is prima facie obvious to combine two compositions each of which is taught by the prior art to be useful for the same purpose, in order to form a third composition to be used for the very same purpose, see In re Kerkhoven, 626 F.2d 846,850,205 USPQ 1069, 1072 (CCPA 1980).
Regarding the amounts of each component and the first, second and third liquid, it is noted that these components are all combined by mixing into in a single composition. Caldwell teaches three diluents and all the claimed components combined in a single coating composition. Selecting the claimed additives and modifiers to be combined with the claimed diluents and applied to leather for the benefit of providing benefits to the leather is obvious. Since the first, second and third liquid are mixed into a single composition, applicant has not demonstrated the criticality that the components are mixed in the form of three separate liquid components as they all become a single composition with the same three diluents and additives. The end result composition is the same and the mixing can be done immediately at the time of use. Selecting the effective concentration of components to provide the claimed benefit at a desired level can be determined through routine experimentation.
Claims 15-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shin (KR20050103125A) in view of Duan (US 2017/0114424) and Caldwell (WO 96/36758) and further in view of Schaefer (US 2014/0101974).
Shin, Duan and Caldwell are relied upon as set forth above.
Shin, Duan and Caldwell do not teach ceramic and quartz.
Schaefer teaches adding fine particles ceramic powder and quartz powder at 0.3-10% to coatings of leather provides vapor permeability and temperature dissipation effects in vehicle seats (paragraph 0017-0121).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to modify the methods of Shin, Duan and Caldwell by incorporating ceramic and quartz into the leather coatings for vehicle seats as Schaefer teaches adding fine particles ceramic powder and quartz powder at 0.3-10% to coatings of leather provides vapor permeability and temperature dissipation effects in vehicle seats. It is prima facie obvious to combine two compositions each of which is taught by the prior art to be useful for the same purpose, in order to form a third composition to be used for the very same purpose, see In re Kerkhoven, 626 F.2d 846,850,205 USPQ 1069, 1072 (CCPA 1980). Regarding the amounts of each component, selecting the effective concentration of components to provide the claimed temperature dissipation and vapor permeability benefit at a desired level can be determined through routine experimentation.
Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shin (KR20050103125A) in view of Duan (US 2017/0114424) and Caldwell (WO 96/36758) and further in view of Li (CN104513874A).
Shin, Duan and Caldwell are relied upon as set forth above.
Shin, Duan and Caldwell do not teach dimethyl siloxane.
Li teaches adding dimethyl siloxane to leather coating compositions used for sun screen, burn protection, moisturizing and maintaining leather car seats (abstract).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to modify the methods of Shin, Duan and Caldwell by incorporating dimethyl siloxane as a softening agent into the leather coating compositions as Li teaches dimethyl siloxane is a conventional component in leather coating compositions used for sun protection. burn protection, moisturizing and maintaining leather car seats . It is prima facie obvious to combine two compositions each of which is taught by the prior art to be useful for the same purpose, in order to form a third composition to be used for the very same purpose, see In re Kerkhoven, 626 F.2d 846,850,205 USPQ 1069, 1072 (CCPA 1980). Regarding the amounts of each component, selecting the effective concentration of components to provide the claimed burn protection, moisturizing and maintenance benefits to leather car seats at a desired level can be determined through routine experimentation.
Double Patenting
A rejection based on double patenting of the “same invention” type finds its support in the language of 35 U.S.C. 101 which states that “whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process... may obtain a patent therefor...” (Emphasis added). Thus, the term “same invention,” in this context, means an invention drawn to identical subject matter. See Miller v. Eagle Mfg. Co., 151 U.S. 186 (1894); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Ockert, 245 F.2d 467, 114 USPQ 330 (CCPA 1957).
A statutory type (35 U.S.C. 101) double patenting rejection can be overcome by canceling or amending the claims that are directed to the same invention so they are no longer coextensive in scope. The filing of a terminal disclaimer cannot overcome a double patenting rejection based upon 35 U.S.C. 101.
Claims 1-7 are provisionally rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 as claiming the same invention as that of claims 14-20 of copending Application No.18/117676.This is a provisional statutory double patenting rejection since the claims directed to the same invention have not in fact been patented.
Conclusion
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/AMINA S KHAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1761