CTNF 18/168,836 CTNF 87801 DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia 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 Election/Restrictions 08-05 AIA Claim s 1-8 are hereby withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected Group I , there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 5.26.2026, arguing that group I and group II may be classified in the same class/subclass and thus no serious burden exists . The Examiner disagrees. Group I and Group II are classified in two separate and distinct class/subclasses in which the Examiner is required to search which places as serious burden on the examiner. There is no evidence that Groups I and Groups II are Obvious varrients of each other. If applicants believe they are, they should admit that on the record. However, as detailed in the 3.26.2026 Office action, Group I and Group II are classified in two separate class/subclasses which places a serious burden on the examiner. For these reasons the restriction requirement is hereby maintained and made FINAL . Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 07-20-aia AIA 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. 07-21-aia AIA Claim s 9-12, 17 and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kestler (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2021/0129997) . Regarding claim 9 . Kestler discloses: A system for regulating ice formation at a platform, comprising: an electromagnetic source(84) at a first location on the platform configured to generate a radio frequency wave; ([0051]-[0058]) a waveguide(90) configured to propagate the radio frequency wave from the first location to a second location of the platform; and a processor configured (112, 114)to control operation of the electromagnetic source to generate the radio frequency wave to regulate the ice formation at a selected location along the waveguide([0069]). Kestler does not disclose: to control operation of the electromagnetic source to generate the radio frequency wave to regulate the ice formation at a selected location along the waveguide However, Kestler discloses that the device may detect the presence of ice and then perform the anti-icing process, and then turn off based on a sensed lack of ice, as such, it would have been obvious to program a process to perform this operation efficiently based on the sensed data. Thus, the features of claim 9 would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art. Regarding claim 10 . Kestler discloses: The system of claim 9, wherein the frequency of the radio frequency wave is in a range between about 20 GHz and about 200 GHz.([0052] disclosing that the device may generate frequencies above 2.6 GHZ, which includes the recited range.) Regarding claim 11 . Kestler discloses: The system of claim 9, wherein the selected location is at least one of: (i) a fan of an engine; (ii) a compressor of the engine; (ii) a turbine blade of the engine; (iv) a leading edge of an airplane wing; (v) a nacelle of an airplane; (vi) rotor blade of a helicopter.(see abstract and [0002], [0057]-[0060]) Regarding claim 12 . Kestler discloses: The system of claim 9, wherein the waveguide is a microwave stripline having a gap through which the radio frequency wave propagates and an energy of the radio frequency extends from the gap and the processor is further configured to control a vertical location of a focal point at which the energy of the radio frequency wave converges by selecting the frequency of the radio frequency wave.([0015][0057]-[0060]) Regarding claim 17. Kestler discloses: A de-icing system of an aircraft, comprising: an electromagnetic source (84) at a first location configured to generate a radio frequency wave; ([0051]-[0058]) a waveguide (90) configured to propagate the radio frequency wave from the first location to a second location of the aircraft; and a processor (112, 114)configured to control operation of the electromagnetic source to generate the radio frequency wave to regulate ice formation at a selected location along the waveguide. ([0069]). Kestler does not disclose: to control operation of the electromagnetic source to generate the radio frequency wave to regulate the ice formation at a selected location along the waveguide However, Kestler discloses that the device may detect the presence of ice and then perform the anti-icing process, and then turn off based on a sensed lack of ice, as such, it would have been obvious to program a process to perform this operation efficiently based on the sensed data. Thus, the features of claim 17 would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art. Regarding claim 18 . Kestler discloses: The de-icing system of claim 17, wherein the electromagnetic source is configured to generate the radio frequency wave within a frequency range between about 20 GHz and about 200 GHz. ([0052] disclosing that the device may generate frequencies above 2.6 GHZ, which includes the recited range.) Allowable Subject Matter Claims 13-16, 19 and 20 are hereby objected to as being dependent on a rejected base claim but would be allowed if rewritten in independent form. The following is the Examiner's Reasons for Allowance: the prior art fails to disclose and would not have rendered obvious: a sensor configured to measure a scattering parameter of the waveguide, and wherein the processor is further configured to monitor the scattering parameter of the radio frequency wave, detect a presence of a foreign object along the waveguide from the scattering parameter, and control the electromagnetic source when the foreign object is detected along the waveguide, as recited in claim 13; a rotating component at the selected location along the waveguide, wherein the radio frequency wave is transmitted from the waveguide through the rotating component, as recited in claim 14; the waveguide is a microwave stripline having a gap through which the radio frequency wave propagates and wherein an energy of the radio frequency wave extends from the gap, the processor being further configured to control a vertical location of a focal point at which the energy of the radio frequency wave converges by selecting the frequency of the radio frequency wave, as recited in claim 19; and a rotating component at the selected location along the waveguide, wherein the radio frequency wave is transmitted from the waveguide through the rotating component, as recited in claim 20. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ROBERT G BACHNER whose telephone number is (571)270-3888. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday, 10-6 EST. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Leonard Chang can be reached at (571) 270-3691. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /ROBERT G BACHNER/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2898 Application/Control Number: 18/168,836 Page 2 Art Unit: 2898 Application/Control Number: 18/168,836 Page 3 Art Unit: 2898 Application/Control Number: 18/168,836 Page 4 Art Unit: 2898 Application/Control Number: 18/168,836 Page 5 Art Unit: 2898 Application/Control Number: 18/168,836 Page 6 Art Unit: 2898 Application/Control Number: 18/168,836 Page 7 Art Unit: 2898 Application/Control Number: 18/168,836 Page 8 Art Unit: 2898
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