DETAILED ACTION
Status of Claims:
Claims 1-6 and 8-10 are pending.
Claims 1-6 and 8-10 are amended.
Claim 7 is canceled.
This Action is Made Final.
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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see Remarks, filed 12/29/2025, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1-6 and 8-10 under 35 USC 102 and 103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of 35 USC 112 (a) and (b). The applicant argues that Long does not teach the woven fabric “is disposed inside said holes”. This argument is persuasive.
Claim Objections
Claims 1-6 and 8-10 are objected to because of the following informalities: The claims are inconsistent with regard to the inclusion of reference numbers after a structural feature of the claim. For example claim 1 states “holes (6)” (line 4), “said holes” (line 4), and “the holes (6)” (line 13) . Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 1-6 and 8-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. Claim 1 states “said holes are configured for the formation of turbulence of liquid”. There is no support in the original disclosure for the holes being configured for the formation of turbulence, only that the device is for forming turbulence. Claim 1 states “a portion of said at least one woven fabric (7) is disposed inside said holes”. There is no supp[ort for this limitation within the original disclosure. Figure 3 of the instant application shows the woven fabric placed over the holes, not inside the holes. Paragraph 12 of the published application states that the “woven fabric, incorporated or embedded in the thickness of the perforated plastic material support” does not support the woven fabric inside the holes, only embedded within an unspecific thickness of the support. The remaining claims contain new matter as they depend from claim 1.
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 1-6 and 8-10 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.
Regarding Claim 1:
The claim states “said holes are configured for the formation of turbulence”. It is not clear what structure is intended by this limitation. Specifically it is not clear if “configured for the formation of turbulence” is intended to limit the size or shape of the holes, is referring to the addition of the woven fabric, or something else. The specification does not clarify this limitation.
Line 12 refers to “the woven fabric”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation within the claims. There is only support for “at least one woven fabric”.
The claim states “woven fabric (7) is disposed inside said holes…the woven fabric which are located in correspondence with the holes…” It is not clear if “disposed inside” and “in correspondence with” the holes are limited to the same portion of the woven fabric or not.
The claim refers to “the liquid filtrate”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation within the claims.
Regarding Claim 3:
The claim states “wherein said at least one support includes two supports (5) each of which is fixed on one face of said at least one woven fabric (7)”. It is not clear how the woven support can be inside the holes of one of the at least one supports and a second support of the two supports.
Regarding Claim 8:
The claim refers to “the meshes (8)”. There is insufficient support for this limitation within the claims. There is only support for “a mesh”
The remaining claims are indefinite because they depend from an indefinite claim.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/CLAIRE A NORRIS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1779 2/12/2026