DETAILED ACTION
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 Amendment
Applicant’s amendment filed on 04/14/2026 is acknowledged. In light of persuasive arguments, new grounds of rejections are set forth below and this office action is non-final. Claims 1-7, 9-11 and 13-19 are examined on the merits in this office action.
Claim Objections
Claim 13 is objected to because of the following informalities: Claim 13, line 2 recites “as compared to”, which should be “in”. Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claim 11 is 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.
Claim 11 recites “(at standard temperature and pressure)”. In light of parentheses, it is not clear if the limitation inside the parentheses is required or optional.
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 1-7, 9-11, 13 and 15-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Priscal et al. (WO 2020/142068 A1 cited in IDS) in view of Yao et al. (WO 2018/094756 A1). It is noted that the disclosures of Yao et al. are based on a machine translation of the reference which is included in this action.
Regarding claims 1-4, 13 and 15, Priscal et al. disclose a second packaging component comprising a multilayer thermoplastic film comprising a first exterior layer 101 (first outer layer), a central core layer 103 and a second exterior layer 105 (second outer layer) (see Figure 4 and paragraph 0145). The exterior layer can be an abuse-resistant outer layer made of polyolefin (see paragraphs 0060, 0075). The polyolefin includes HDPE, LDPE, LLDPE, etc. (see paragraph 0065), which is similar to that utilized in present invention for outer layers (see paragraphs 0050, 0052, 0071 and 0074 of present specification). Accordingly, the exterior layers are identical to the outer layers utilized in the present invention. The core layer is a gas barrier layer that can comprises EVOH (see paragraph 0062). The gas barrier layer can be same compositionally as a product-contacting sealant layer (see paragraph 0072). The product-containing sealant layer comprises a blend of at least 95 wt% of EVOH and up to 5 wt% of processing aid, wherein EVOH has less than 38 mol% of ethylene content (see paragraphs 0059, 0050). The ethylene content of EVOH overlaps with that utilized in the present invention. Accordingly, EVOH reads on EVOH copolymer having a first crystallization temperature, a first DHc and a first DHm as presently claimed. Given that the gas barrier layer is same compositionally as the product-contacting sealant layer, the gas barrier layer comprises a blend of at least 95 wt% of EVOH and up to 5 wt% of processing aid, wherein EVOH has less than 38 mol% of ethylene content and EVOH reads on EVOH copolymer having a first crystallization temperature, a first DHc and a first DHm as presently claimed.
Accordingly, Priscal et al. disclose a second packaging component (multilayer film) comprising a first outer layer made of LLDPE, a gas barrier layer comprising blend of at least 95 wt% of EVOH and up to 5 wt% of processing aid and a second outer layer made of LLDPE.
Priscal et al. do not disclose a second crystallization temperature as presently claimed.
Yao et al. disclose triethyl citrate that is mainly used in food packaging industry (see Abstract). Triethyl citrate is non-toxic, antibacterial and has strong plasticizing capability as an environment-friendly plasticizer, high transparency and low-temperature resistance (see Abstract). While Yao et al. do not disclose triethyl citrate is a processing aid, given that triethyl citrate is identical to a processing aid in present claim 4, triethyl citrate of Yao et al. reads on processing aid.
In light of motivation for using triethyl citrate disclosed by Yao et al. as described above, it therefore would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use triethyl citrate as the processing aid blended with EVOH in the gas barrier layer of Priscal et al. in order to provide strong plasticizing capability, high transparency and low-temperature resistance as well as provide non-toxic, antibacterial and environment-friendly properties, and thereby arrive at the claimed invention.
Accordingly, Priscal et al. in view of Yao et al. disclose the blend comprising EVOH and processing aid identical to that presently claimed in amounts that overlap that presently claimed. Therefore, within the overlapping ranges, it is inherent that the blend has a second crystallization temperature lower than the first crystallization temperature as presently claimed, the blend has a second DHc as presently claimed and the blend has a second DHm as presently claimed.
Regarding claim 5, Priscal et al. in view of Yao et al. disclose a second packaging component (multilayer film) comprising a first outer layer made of LLDPE, a gas barrier layer comprising blend of at least 95 wt% of EVOH and up to 5 wt% of triethyl citrate and a second outer layer made of LLDPE. The second packaging component (multilayer film) including the first outer layer, the gas barrier layer and the second outer layer are identical to that presently claimed. Therefore, it is inherent that the second packaging component (multilayer film) is a heat shrinkable multilayer film as presently claimed.
Regarding claims 6 and 7, Priscal et al. in view Yao et al. disclose a second packaging component (multilayer film) comprising a first outer layer made of LLDPE, a gas barrier layer comprising blend of at least 95 wt% of EVOH and up to 5 wt% of triethyl citrate and a second outer layer made of LLDPE as set forth above.
Further, Priscal et al. disclose one or more gas barrier layers and one or more tie layers can be used (see paragraph 0060). The tie layers can serve to aid in the adherence of one layer to another layer (see paragraph 0081). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skills in the art to dispose a tie layer between at least two barrier layers in Priscal et al.
Regarding claims 9 and 10, Priscal et al. in view of Yao et al. disclose a second packaging component (multilayer film) as set forth above. Given the present claim recites the gas barrier layer comprises less than 1.0 wt% of salts or 0.0 to 1.0 wt% of material, i.e. 0 wt%, Priscal et al. in view of Yao et al. meets present claims.
Regarding claim 11, Priscal et al. in view of Yao et al. disclose a second packaging component (multilayer film) as set forth above. The packaging component has an oxygen transmission rate (OTR) of less than or equal to 10 cc/m2/24h at 23 C, 0% RH and 1 atmosphere (see paragraph 0063). While Priscal et al. do not disclose OTR measured according to ASTM D-3985, absent criticality of method of measuring OTR, Priscal et al. meets OTR as presently claimed.
Alternatively, given that the second packaging component (multilayer film) including first outer layer identical to that used in the present invention, gas barrier layer made from EVOH and processing aid identical to that claimed in amounts that overlap that presently claimed, and second outer layer identical to that used in the present invention, within the overlapping ranges, it is inherent that the second packaging component (multilayer film) has OTR as presently claimed.
Regarding claims 16-19, Priscal et al. in view of Yao et al. disclose a second packaging component (multilayer film) as set forth above. Given that the second packaging component (multilayer film) including first outer layer identical to that used in the present invention, gas barrier layer made from EVOH and processing aid identical to that claimed in amounts that overlap that presently claimed, and second outer layer identical to that used in the present invention, within the overlapping ranges, it is inherent that the second packaging component (multilayer film) has properties as presently claimed.
Claim 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Priscal et al. (WO 2020/142068 A1 cited in IDS) in view of Yao et al. (WO 2018/094756 A1) as applied to claim 1 above, further in view of Dudenhoeffer et al. (5,302,402 cited in IDS).
Regarding claim 14, Priscal et al. in view of Yao et al. disclose the second packaging component (multilayer film) as set forth above. Priscal et al. in view of Yao et al. do not disclose at least a portion of the film is crosslinked.
Dudenhoeffer et al. disclose a packaging that is a bag, wherein the entire bag is crosslinked using irradiation with an electron beam in order to broaden the heat sealing range and enhance toughness properties (see Abstract and col. 11, lines 14-21).
Therefore, as taught by Dudenhoeffer et al., it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skills in the art to crosslink the second packaging component (multilayer film) of Priscal et al. in view of Yao et al. in order to broaden the heat sealing range and enhance toughness properties, and thereby arrive at the claimed invention.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 04/14/2026 have been fully considered. In light of persuasive arguments, new grounds of rejections are set forth above. All arguments except as set forth below are moot in light of new grounds of rejections.
Applicants argue that regarding claim 11, it is noted that the parenthetical "(at standard temperature and pressure)" modifies the cubic centimeter limitation as volume of a gas is dependent on temperature and pressure. The parenthetical usage is the common and customary approach when referring to oxygen transmission values. For example, see ASTM D-3985.
However, given that claim 11 recites volume of gas measured “at standard temperature and pressure” inside parentheses, it is not clear if the volume of gas is required to be measured “at standard temperature and pressure” or if the volume of gas is not required to be measured at standard temperature and pressure. Accordingly, 112(b) rejection of claim 11 is maintained. It is suggested that claim 11 is amended to remove parentheses.
In light of amendments, all claim objections except objection to claim 13 are withdrawn.
In light of amendments, all 112(b) rejections except 112(b) rejection of claim 11 are withdrawn.
Conclusion
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/KRUPA SHUKLA/Examiner, Art Unit 1787
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