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 .
Claim amendments filed 5/28/2026 are acknowledged and entered. Claims 1, 6-11, 14, 15, 17-21, and 23-29 are pending.
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 5/28/2026 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
No new arguments are filed. The arguments have been previously considered.
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 8, 10, 11, and 25 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.
With regards to claim 8, the claim is unclear what is required for the one or more regular nonionic surfactants. Claim 1 requires the one or more regular nonionic surfaces to comprise a linear C9-11 ethoxylated alcohol. Claim 8 depends on claim 1 through claim 6 but is broader requiring any ethoxylated alcohol or ethylene oxide.
Claims 10 and 11 depend from claim 8 and are rejected for the same reasons.
With regards to claim 25, it is unclear how the composition in claim 1 recites a low foam nonionic surfactant but then claim 25, which depends from claim 1, uses consisting of language to list exclusive active ingredients including surfactants but excluding the presence of low foam nonionic surfactants. It is unclear how what appears to be an active ingredient, low foam nonionic surfactants, are both there and not there.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(d):
(d) REFERENCE IN DEPENDENT FORMS.—Subject to subsection (e), a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, fourth paragraph:
Subject to the following paragraph [i.e., the fifth paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112], a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
Claims 8, 10, 11, and 25 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(d) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, 4th paragraph, as being of improper dependent form for failing to further limit the subject matter of the claim upon which it depends, or for failing to include all the limitations of the claim upon which it depends.
Claim 8 fails to include all the limitations of claim 1. Claim 1 requires the one or more regular nonionic surfaces to comprise a linear C9-11 ethoxylated alcohol. Claim 8 depends on claim 1 through claim 6 but is broader requiring any ethoxylated alcohol or ethylene oxide.
Claims 10 and 11 depend from claim 8 and are rejected for the same reasons.
Claim 25 uses consisting of language to list exclusive active ingredients including surfactants but excluding the presence of low foam nonionic surfactants. Claim 1 from which claim 25 depends, however, requires low foam nonionic surfactants to be present.
Applicant may cancel the claim(s), amend the claim(s) to place the claim(s) in proper dependent form, rewrite the claim(s) in independent form, or present a sufficient showing that the dependent claim(s) complies with the statutory requirements.
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) 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Simpson et al. (US 2012/0219480) in view of Sun et al. (Treatment of Waste Gases by Humic Acid) (cited by applicant)
With regards to claim 20, Simpson et al. teaches a treatment composition for cleaning (and reducing odors) in a wet air scrubber (title and abstract; para [0024]). The composition is made of at least one of components A, B, C, and D (abstract and para [0024]). For mapping to the present claims a composition of component B is used. Component B includes at least one surfactant including a combination of different surfactants (abstract and para [0044]). Component B can include examples of surfactants from component A (para [0044]). This includes amphoteric surfactants (para [0025] and [0032]). Component B can also include nonionic surfactants including regular non-ionic surfactants and low foam surfactants (para [0044]- [0046]).
A person having ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to have selected from the taught combinations of surfactants for component B motivated by an expectation of successfully cleaning and deodorizing the wet scrubber.
Simpson et al. teaches optionally adding fragrances or odor counteractants (para [0051]) but does not specify a source of humic acid or specifically using humic acid as an odor counteractant. Coughlin also teaches that H2S can be present in scrubbers and undesirable (para [0004]). Sun et al. teaches that humic substances including humic acid act as a natural adsorber and can be used to adsorb odorous chemicals such as SO2, NO2, and H2S (abstract and introduction). A person having ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to have added humic substances including humic acid in order to provide a natural adsorber and deodorizer.
As to being premixed in a single container Simpson teaches “[0050] As discussed above, the air scrubber composition may comprise at least one of components A, B, C, and D. The components may be pre-mixed or added individually or in any combination.” If they are pre-mixed before adding them, then they are in a single container prior to being added. Further, a person having ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to have held the premixed components in a container so that they may be easily held and transported to the scrubber for future use.
A person having ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to have optimized the amount of each surfactant and organic peat humus in order to achieve the desired surfactant/cleaning action and deodorization
The combined treatment composition is added to the volume of water at amounts that are inside or overlap the claimed range (para [0054]-[0055]). Further, a person having ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to have optimized the amount of the treatment composition used in order to get the desired cleaning/deodorization achieved.
Simpson et al. teaches the composition and teaches enzymes as optional (are part of possible component A but the composition can be one of A, B, C, or D or combination).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 21 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claims 1, 6, 7, 9, 14, 15, 17-19, 23, 24, and 26-29 are allowed.
While the prior art recognizes the existence of benzyl capped ethoxylated alcohol surfactants and the existence of coco alkyldimethyl betaine and coco alkyldimethyl amine compounds, the prior art does not provide a teaching or suggestion to add them to the wet air scrubber treatment composition of modified Simpson et al.
The prior art does not provide a teaching or motivation to arrive at the claimed invention within the claim environment.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DONALD R SPAMER whose telephone number is (571)272-3197. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday from 9-5.
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/DONALD R SPAMER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1799
