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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of claims 65-81 in the reply filed on March 17, 2026 is acknowledged.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claim 65-71, 74, 76-77 and 79-81 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significantly more.
Claim 65 is a method that recites processing the sets of reference data for the M reference samples and their respective associated known quantity of nitrogen containing units to generate the calibrated mathematical function.
In the context of the claim and given the broadest reasonable interpretation in light of the specification, the claim limitation encompasses performing a regression analysis. That is the limitation can be performed by human with a pen and paper. Thus, it convers concepts that can be performed in the human mind including observation, evaluation, judgment and opinion and falls within the mental process grouping of abstract ideas. See MPEP 2106.04(a)(2) III. The claim recites an abstract idea.
This judicial exception is not integrated into a practical application. The claim recites the additional claim elements of providing a number M of reference samples with different and known quantity of nitrogen containing units, wherein the number M is at least 2; for each of the reference samples acquiring a set of reference data comprising at least one N isotope intensity selected from a 14N isotope NMR intensity and a 15N isotope NMR intensity and at least one isotope NMR relaxation time and wherein each set of reference data is associated to the respective known quantity of nitrogen containing units. The additional claim elements of providing and acquiring are generically recited without any level of specificity and amounts to no more than mere data gathering and outputting. Thus, they are insignificant extra-solution activity. See MPEP 2106.05(g). The claim is directed to an abstract idea.
The claim(s) does/do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception. As discussed above, the additional claim elements are insignificant extra-solution activity. Additionally, the prior art to Jensen in U.S. PGPub 2013/0272506 establishes that the additional claim elements are known in the art, see e.g., paragraphs [0096]-[0098], [0156], [0161]-[0167], [0173. [0190]-[0191] & Fig. 3. Therefore, the additional claim elements are well-understood, routine, conventional activity. See MPEP 2106.05(d). The claim is not patent eligible.
Claims 66-71 and 74, 76-77 and 79-81 depend from claim 65 and recite the same abstract idea as claim 1. The additional claim elements recited in claims 66-71, 74, 76-77 and 79-81 and serve merely adding additional details to the abstract idea (claims 66-68, 70, 74) or adding additional steps to the abstract idea (claims 69, 71, 76-77 and 79-81). The additional details added in claims 66-68, 70 and 74 do not add any specificity as to how the providing or acquiring is accomplished and thus does not add anything more to the additional claim elements. The limitations recited in claims 69, 71, 76-77 and 79-81 encompasses steps that can be performed in the human mind including observation, evaluation, judgment and opinion and falls within the mental process grouping of abstract ideas. See MPEP 2106.04(a)(2) III. The limitations recite an abstract idea. The additional claim elements neither integrate the abstract idea nor amount to significantly more. The claims are not patent eligible.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 65-81 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 101, set forth in this Office action.
Jensen teaches A method of generating a calibrated mathematical function for performing a quantitative determination of nitrogen containing units in a sample (see “determining the concentration of nitrogen atoms”, [0038]), the method comprising:
providing a number M of reference samples with different and known quantity of nitrogen containing units, wherein the number M is at least 2 (see “providing calibration data of…nitrogen”, [0156], [0191], Fig. 3); for each of the reference samples acquiring a set of reference data ([0156], see “…calibration map...pre-processed data set…” [0161]-[0167], [0173]) comprising at least one N isotope intensity selected from a 14N isotope NMR intensity (see “14N isotopes”, [0070], [0087]) and at least one isotope NMR relaxation time (see “ measuring relaxation times T1 and T2 are well known in the art.”, [0095]).
Regarding claim 65, the prior art fails to anticipate or rendered obvious a 15N isotope NMR intensity, wherein each set of reference data is associated to the respective known quantity of nitrogen containing units; and processing the sets of reference data for the M reference samples and their respective associated known quantity of nitrogen containing units to generate the calibrated mathematical function, in combination with all of the limitations as claimed by Applicant.
Claims 72-73, 75 and 78 are 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Takayangagi in Foreign Patent Document JP2021143889 A teaches “An isotope enrichment measurement method for measuring a target isotope enrichment of a stable isotope compound using a nuclear magnetic resonance device is provided, the method comprising a standard solution preparation step S1, a sample solution preparation step S2, and an isotope enrichment computation step S4.” (Abstract).
Duckett et al. in Foreign Patent Document WO2018162895 teaches “Under the right circumstance, the spin state of the parahydrogen molecule is preserved in the spins of the two hydrogen atoms which become part of the new molecule. If other NMR-active nuclei are within coupling distance of the hydrogen nuclei, spin polarization of those nuclei can be transferred spontaneously in an optimal magnetic field. In this way, the signals of heteronuclei such as 13C, 15N and 31P can be enhanced.” (pg. 4 lines 4-15).
Cistola et al. in Patent Publication 2017/0192069 teaches “analyzing the exponentially decaying NMR signal in the time domain using multi-exponential analysis, and comparing differences in the relaxation time constants for lipoprotein- or protein-specific elements within a single human subject, or between subjects, to assess normal and abnormal metabolism reflective of increased disease risk or active disease” (Abstract).
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/MI'SCHITA' HENSON/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2857
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