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 .
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.
Claim(s) 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim et al. (US 2020/0288778), and further in view of Yilmaz (US 2020/0383379).
Regarding claim 1, Kim teaches an aerosol-generating device comprising:
an upper housing comprising a first outer wall elongated to provide an inner space and a first inner wall elongated in the inner space to define an insertion space (vaporizer housing 14000 including an outer housing wall and internal wall portions defining an internal space accommodating the aerosol generator 14200) (¶¶ [0077]–[0079]; FIGS. 4B, 6B);
a lower housing comprising a second outer wall coupled to the first outer wall of the upper housing and a second inner wall coupled to the first inner wall of the upper housing (lower structural housing portions of vaporizer 14000 coupled to upper housing portions and enclosing the aerosol generator 14200 and accommodating chamber 14230) (¶¶ [0092]–[0096]; FIG. 6B);
a container formed by the first outer wall of the upper housing, the first inner wall of the upper housing, the second outer wall of the lower housing, and the second inner wall of the lower housing, wherein the container is configured to store a liquid (liquid storage 14100 enclosed within the housing structure of vaporizer 14000) (¶¶ [0006], [0078]; FIGS. 4B, 6B);
a wick located at the lower housing, wherein the wick comprises a portion connected to an inside of the container (wick 14210 absorbing liquid from liquid storage 14100) (¶ [0079]; FIGS. 4B, 6B); and
a heater disposed near the wick for heating the wick (liquid heater 14220 disposed adjacent the wick 14210) (¶¶ [0079]–[0080]; FIGS. 4B, 6B).
Kim does not teach a first gasket interposed between the first inner wall of the upper housing and the second inner wall of the lower housing, nor a second gasket interposed between the first outer wall of the upper housing and the second outer wall of the lower housing.
Yilmaz discloses a first gasket interposed between adjacent inner structural walls of coupled aerosol-device components (seal 280 compressed between mating internal wall portions) (¶¶ [0073]–[0076]; FIGS. 2–4), and a second gasket interposed between adjacent outer structural walls of coupled aerosol-device components (seal 480 compressed between mating outer wall portions) (¶¶ [0075], [0081]–[0084]; FIGS. 3–5). Yilmaz further teaches that multiple gaskets may be used at different interfaces within a single aerosol-generating device to prevent leakage of liquid and/or aerosol.
Kim and Yilmaz are both directed to aerosol-generating devices, including liquid storage, wicks, heaters, and structural interfaces between coupled components, and are therefore in the same field of endeavor. Further, both references address the problem of preventing leakage of liquid and/or aerosol at interfaces between device components, making Yilmaz reasonably pertinent to the problem addressed by Kim.
Kim expressly recognizes leakage at interfaces between structural components as a known problem in aerosol-generating devices (¶¶ [0001]–[0004]). Yilmaz teaches that interposing gaskets between mating structural walls, including using multiple gaskets at different interfaces, is a known and effective technique for preventing such leakage (¶¶ [0073]–[0076], [0081]–[0084]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the aerosol-generating device of Kim to include a first gasket between the mating inner walls and a second gasket between the mating outer walls, as taught by Yilmaz, in order to further prevent leakage of liquid from the container. The modification involves the predictable use of known sealing elements for their established function at known housing interfaces and does not change the principle of operation of Kim (see MPEP §2143, Exemplary Rationales A and C).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim2-13 are allowed.
Claim 2 and 3 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
The prior art of record, including Kim et al. (US 2020/0288778 A1) and Yilmaz et al. (US 2021/0177056 A1), fails to teach or suggest the additional limitations recited in claims 2, 3, and 12, as explained below.
With respect to claim 2, Kim discloses a vaporizer housing enclosing a liquid storage (14100) and an aerosol generator (14200) within a housing (14000). However, Kim does not disclose a separate base having an outer side inserted into a gap between a first outer wall of an upper housing and a second outer wall of a lower housing, nor does Kim disclose the lower housing being accommodated within such a base. Kim’s housing structure is unitary or modular and does not include the claimed base-and-gap relationship.
Yilmaz similarly discloses cartridge assemblies and sealing interfaces, but does not disclose a base inserted into a gap between outer walls or a base accommodating the lower housing as recited. Accordingly, the prior art fails to teach or suggest the limitation of claim 2.
With respect to claim 3, Kim does not disclose a gasket positioned between inner walls of housing components, nor does Kim disclose a gasket having a compressed portion and an extension portion extending from the compressed portion.
Yilmaz discloses gaskets (280, 480) compressed between mating components; however, Yilmaz does not disclose or describe a gasket having a distinct compressed portion and a distinct extension portion extending therefrom, as expressly required by claim 3. Rather, the seals in Yilmaz are unitary sealing elements compressed between mating surfaces, without the claimed two-portion gasket geometry. Accordingly, the prior art fails to teach or suggest the limitation of claim 3.
With respect to claim 12, Kim discloses a wick (14210) positioned within an aerosol generator and adjacent housing structures, but does not disclose a notch formed in a second inner wall of a lower housing, nor does Kim disclose the wick being disposed inside such a notch.
Yilmaz is directed to sealing interfaces and similarly does not disclose or suggest a notch formed in an inner wall or a wick disposed within such a notch. The combination of Kim and Yilmaz therefore fails to teach or suggest the structural notch-and-wick relationship recited in claim 12.
Accordingly, claims 2, 3, and 12 are allowable over the prior art of record.
Further, claims 4–9 are allowable by virtue of their dependency on allowable claim 3, claim 10 is allowable by virtue of its dependency on allowable claim 2, and claim 13 is allowable by virtue of its dependency on allowable claim 12.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JENNIFER KESSIE whose telephone number is (571)272-7739. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Thursday 7:00am - 5:00pm.
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/JENNIFER A KESSIE/Examiner, Art Unit 1747