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 1-20 are pending and subject to this Office Action. This is the First Action on the merits of the claims.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1-5 and 7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Benjamignan, et al (US20170099873A1) and further in view of Fernando, et al (US20200196662A1) and Singleton, et al (US20230117750A1).
Regarding claim 1 , Benjamignan teaches an aerosol generating device that is comprised of a housing containing a combustion unit and an electronics unit. Benjamignan teaches a device comprising a first and second section where the second section of the housing houses a combustion unit that contains a capsule holder and a heating unit. ([0032],[0036]) The housing taught by Benjamignan is the outer shell the combustion unit has a capsule holder that is considered to be the frame. The lid is part of the combustion unit and is considered a top door and the heating plate is located on the lid. [0042] The heater is designed to ignite the combustible material [0042] The heating element is located in the lid such that when the lid is closed the heating plate is located above the combustible material in a proximity to combust the material. The above features are shown in annotated figure 1 below.
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Annotated Figure 1.
Benjamignan fails to teach a front door that his pivotally connected to the frame and top door of the device or that the front door comprises the heating chamber that would receive a combustible smoking substance.
Fernando, directed to the design of aerosol generating devices, teaches the aerosol generating device comprises a receptacle that is configured to receive a cartridge (capsule) and the heating element for the cartridge can be located above the receptacle that holds the cartridge. ([0008] [0010]) Fernando teaches the receptacle can be formed of one or more parts and preferably two or more parts. The receptacle made of two parts has one part of the receptacle movable relative to the other part and allows access to the interior of the receptacle when separated. Fernando teaches that the two parts may attached via any suitable manner including a hinge. [0052] Fernando teaches that the receptacle is located above the aerosol outlet and travel through the conduit. [0067] The two part receptacle that has two parts that are connected and move relative to the frame/body which are considered to read on the limitation of the lid and the front door of the instant claim.
Therefore, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would be obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art to modify Benjamignan by using a two part capsule/cartridge holder as taught by Fernando because both Benjamignan and Fernando are directed to aerosol generating devices with cavities for capsule/cartridge, Fernando teaches the use of two the two part receptacle allows for the insertion of cartridge, and this involves the use of known technique of using a two part cartridge receptacle to improve similar devices in the same way
Benjamignan and Fernando do not explicitly teach a front door a pivotally connected to the frame and the top door.
Singleton, directed to the design of aerosol generating devices, teaches a cavity for an aerosol generating consumable formed between a upper portion and lower portion of a device where the upper and lower portions are joined by a hinge. [0074] The lower portion of the device which opens to allow the insertion of a consumable is considered to read on the pivotal front door of the instant claim.
Therefore, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would be obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art to modify Benjamignan and Fernando by using a movable top and secondary door/opening to access the cavity for the insertion of a consumable/capsule/cartridge as taught by Singleton because Benjamignan, Fernando and Singleton are directed to aerosol generating devices with cavities for consumable/capsule/cartridge, Singleton teaches the use of two openable doors allows the consumable to be inserted and removed and creates a cavity that allows air to flow around the aerosol consumable. ([0013],[0069]), and this involves the use of known technique of using a tilt out front portion to improve similar devices in the same way.
Regarding claims 2 and 3, Benjamignan teaches the electronics chamber is configured to house multiple control components. [0040] Benjamignan teaches there can be several input/output elements on the device including a button and goes on to teach that the device can be powered on through the push of a button. ([0066], [0070])
Regarding claim 4, Benjamignan teaches that the power unit, discussed in claim 3, of the device can comprise rechargeable batteries. [0041]
Regarding claim 5, Benjamignan teaches the housing (outer shell) has a smoke outlet [0033] that a hose is attached to the smoke outlet and the user inhales through the hose when in use. [0031]
Benjamignan discloses that the smoke outlet is located at the bottom of the housing the conduit extends past the smoke outlet of the container and is silent with respect to the conduit being proximate to the output portion of the device.
Regarding claim 6, Benjamignan teaches the conduit of the device extends into a vessel that contains water and that the water would extend into the conduit. The water extending into the conduit is considered to read on the limitation of the instant claim.
Regarding claim 7, As discussed in claim 1, Benjamignan in view of Fernando teaches a device that has a lid and a hinge for connecting the lid and the housing or receptacle.
While both Benjamignan and Fernando teach the use of a hinge for connecting the lid to the receptacle portion of the device neither describe the hinge. Neither Benjamignan nor Fernando teach that the hinge is configured with gears having teeth.
Singleton teaches the hinge that is used to connect the two moving portions that hold an aerosol generating article. The hinged connection of the upper portion and the lower portion is formed by teeth of the upper gear and the lower gear and these two sets of teeth are designed to engage with each other in operation. ([0095], fig 30)
Therefore, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would be obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art to modify Benjamignan and Fernando by using a movable top and secondary door/opening to access the cavity for the insertion of a consumable/capsule/cartridge as taught by Singleton because Benjamignan, Fernando and Singleton are directed to aerosol generating devices with cavities for consumable/capsule/cartridge, Singleton teaches the use of a geared hinge system allows the cavity to be accessed when moving the device to or from an open position the upper portion and lower portion are moved together. [0098], and this involves and this involves the use of known technique of using a hinge with gear teeth that moves the top and front portion of the receptacle to improve similar devices in the same way.
Claims 8-9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Benjamignan, et al (US20170099873A1), Fernando, et al (US20200196662A1), and Singleton, et al (US20230117750A1) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Tracey (US20140251355A1) .
Regarding claim 8, Benjamignan teaches that the heating element is a heating plate. [0037, 0038, 0039, 0044-0046] The plate is comprised of resistive elements that are non-linear. ([0047], Fig 5)
Benjamignan does not specifically teach the heating element is a coil.
Tracey, directed to the design of an aerosol generating device, teaches that the heating element can be any sort of resistive heating element including a coil. [0035]
Therefore, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would be obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art to modify Benjamignan, Fernando, and Singleton by using a resistive coil as taught by Tracey because Benjamignan, Fernando, Singleton, and Tracey are directed to aerosol generating devices containing a water filtration element, Tracey teaches this type of heating element is known in the art when considering resistive heating elements [0035], and this involves and this involves a simple substitution of one known element for another to obtain predictable results.
Regarding claim 9, Benjamignan teaches that the heating plate/ heating element is fitted into a heating plate support and installed in the lid. [0044] Benjamignan discloses that the heating plate is sized to fit into the heating plate support and cover the capsule holder. (Fig 2) which reads on the heating element diameter being smaller than the heating chamber the capsule is inserted into.
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Benjamignan, et al (US20170099873A1), Fernando, et al (US20200196662A1), and Singleton, et al (US20230117750A1) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Bozkurt (US20210360964A1).
Regarding claim 10, Benjamignan, Fernando, and Singleton are silent with respect to the use of a lip or protrusion for moving the top door/ lid from a closed configuration to an open configuration.
Bozkurt, directed to an aerosol generating device, teaches the lid of a heat generator can comprise a handle portion that can be used for opening a hinged cover of the heat generator. [0034]
Therefore, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would be obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art to modify Benjamignan, Fernando, and Singleton by using protrusion/ handle by Bozkurt because Benjamignan, Fernando, Singleton, and Bozkurt are directed to aerosol generating devices containing a water filtration element, Bozkurt teaches this allows he heat generator to be handled without burning the user [0015], and this involves and this involves a simple substitution of one known element for another to obtain predictable results.
Claims 11-15 and 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Benjamignan, et al (US20170099873A1) as applied to claim 13 above, and further in view of Fernando, et al (US20200196662A1) .
Regarding claim 11, Benjamignan teaches an aerosol generating unit that is comprised of a housing having a first section and a second section. [0029] The second section of the housing has a combustion unit and an electronics unit. [0032] The electronics unit is comprised of a programable controller and is connected to the heating element. [0032]
Benjamignan teaches that the device has a removable lid that contains the heating plate such that the heating plate is supported above the capsule holder and capsule. [0044]
However, Benjamignan does not explicitly teach the button is part of an activation element.
Fernando teaches an activation element, that would include a button, which can be located anywhere on the device. The activation element is in communication with control electronics and is used to activate the heating element of the device. The activator element is used to cause the device to be operable by communicating with the control electronics to activate the heating element. [0082]
Fernando teaches that the activation element can be in wireless communication with the control electronics. A person having ordinary skill would reasonably surmise that the activator element would require some form of chip that would allow for the wireless communication. As such the wireless communication ability of the activator button is considered top read on the activator chip of the instant application.
Therefore, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would be obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art to modify Benjamignan by using an activation element and control device in the aerosol generating device as taught by Fernando because both Benjamignan and Fernando are directed to aerosol generating devices with cavities for capsule/cartridge, Fernando teaches the use of the activation element and control electronics can prevent overheating or unnecessary heating of the aerosol generating substrate. [0070] and this involves the use of a known technique of using an activating element to activate the device only when in needed for use to improve similar devices in the same way
Regarding claim 12, Benjamignan teaches an electric power unit is coupled to a heating unit and a programmable controller [0032] located in the electronics chamber. [0040]
Regarding claim 13, Benjamignan teaches the power unit comprises a battery and a protection circuit module. [0041] The protection circuit module is considered to read on the battery chip limitation.
Regarding claim 14 and 15 , Benjamignan teaches electronics control are located in the electronics chamber is configured to house multiple control components. [0040] Benjamignan teaches there can be several input/output elements on the device including a button. Benjamignan goes on to teach that the device can be powered on through the push of a button. ([0066], [0070])
However, Benjamignan does not explicitly teach that the button would be connected to a activator chip.
Fernando teaches an activation element, that would include a button, which can be located anywhere on the device. The activation element is in communication with control electronics and is used to activate the heating element of the device. The activator element is used to because the device to be operable by communicating with the control electronics to activate the heating element. [0082]
Fernando teaches that the activation element can be in wireless communication with the control electronics. A person having ordinary skill would reasonably surmise that the activator element would require some form of chip that would allow for the wireless communication. As such the wireless communication ability of the activator button is considered top read on the activator chip of the instant application.
Therefore, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would be obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art to modify Benjamignan by using activation element and control electronics as taught by Fernando because both Benjamignan and Fernando are directed to aerosol generating devices with cavities for capsule/cartridge, Fernando teaches the use of the activation element and control electronics can prevent overheating or unnecessary heating of the aerosol generating substrate. [0070], and this involves the use of known technique of using an activation element to improve similar devices in the same way
Regarding claims 18 and 19, Benjamignan teaches that the device has a smoke outlet that is coupled to a hose used for inhaling the smoke generated by the combustion of the aerosol generating material. The art discloses that the hose is operably coupled to the housing. [0031]
Regarding claim 6, Benjamignan teaches the conduit of the device extends into a vessel that contains water and that the water would extend into the conduit. The water extending into the conduit is considered to read on the limitation of the instant claim.
Claim 16 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Benjamignan, et al (US20170099873A1) and Fernando, et al (US20200196662A1) as applied to claim 11 above, and further in view of and Singleton, et al (US20230117750A1)..
Regarding claim 16, Benjamignan teaches that the lid is coupled to the housing via a hinge connection.
Fernando, directed to the design of aerosol generating devices, teaches the aerosol generating device comprises a receptacle that is configured to receive a cartridge (capsule) and the heating element for the cartridge can be located above the receptacle that holds the cartridge. ([0008] [0010]) Fernando teaches the receptacle can be formed of one or more parts and preferably two or more parts. The receptacle made of two parts has one part of the receptacle movable relative to the other part and allows access to the interior of the receptacle when separated. Fernando teaches that the two parts may attached via any suitable manner including a hinge. [0052] Fernando teaches that the receptacle is located above the aerosol outlet and travel through the conduit. [0067]
Therefore, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would be obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art to modify Benjamignan by using a two part capsule/cartridge holder as taught by Fernando because both Benjamignan and Fernando are directed to aerosol generating devices with cavities for capsule/cartridge, Fernando teaches the use of two the two part receptacle allows for the insertion of cartridge, and this involves the use of known technique of using a two part cartridge receptacle to improve similar devices in the same way
While both Benjamignan teach the use of a hinge for connecting the lid to the receptacle portion of the device neither describe the hinge. Additionally, Fernando does not explicitly teach a pivotally connected to the frame and the top door
Singleton, directed to the design of aerosol generating devices, teaches a cavity for an aerosol generating consumable formed between a upper portion and lower portion of a device where the upper and lower portions are joined by a hinge. [0074] The lower portion of the device which opens to allow the insertion of a consumable is considered to read on the pivotal front door of the instant claim.
Therefore, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would be obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art to modify Benjamignan and Fernando by using a movable top and secondary door/opening to access the cavity for the insertion of a consumable/capsule/cartridge as taught by Singleton because Benjamignan, Fernando and Singleton are directed to aerosol generating devices with cavities for consumable/capsule/cartridge, Singleton teaches the use of two openable doors allows the consumable to be inserted and removed and creates a cavity that allows air to flow around the aerosol consumable. ([0013],[0069]), and this involves the use of known technique of using a tilt out front portion to improve similar devices in the same way.
Claim 17 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Benjamignan, et al (US20170099873A1) and Fernando, et al (US20200196662A1) as applied to claim 11 above, and further in view of Bozkurt (US20210360964A1) ..
Regarding claim 17, Benjamignan and Fernando are silent with respect to the use of a lip or protrusion for moving the top door/ lid from a closed configuration to an open configuration.
Bozkurt, directed to an aerosol generating device, teaches the lid of a heat generator can comprise a handle portion that can be used for opening a hinged cover of the heat generator. [0034]
Therefore, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would be obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art to modify Benjamignan, Fernando, and Singleton by using protrusion/ handle by Bozkurt because Benjamignan, Fernando, Singleton, and Bozkurt are directed to aerosol generating devices containing a water filtration element, Bozkurt teaches this allows he heat generator to be handled without burning the user [0015], and this involves and this involves a simple substitution of one known element for another to obtain predictable results.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to VIRGINIA R BIEGER whose telephone number is (703)756-1014. The examiner can normally be reached M-Th: 7:30-4:30.
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/V.R.B./Examiner, Art Unit 1755 /PHILIP Y LOUIE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1755