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 .
Response to Amendment
The office action is in response to Applicant’s amendment filed on 04/14/2026.
Claims 1-9, 11, and 14-15 are pending.
Claims 1, 11, and 14-15 are amended.
Claims 10 and 12-13 are cancelled.
Response to Arguments
Applicant' s arguments, see pages 4-6, filed 04/14/2026, with respect to the rejection(s) of claims 1-15 under 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103, respectively, have been fully considered and are persuasive. The Applicant has amended claim 1 to include limitations that were not previously presented. Specifically, the Applicant has introduced limitations regarding the heat transfer portion comprising a plurality of metal foil strips spaced apart from each other and disposed on an outer peripheral surface of the portion of the cooling portion. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground of rejection is made in view newly found prior art.
The following is a modified rejection based on amendments made to 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.
Claims 1-9, 11, and 14-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jin et al (WO-2020009454-A1, as cited in the IDS dated 05/28/2025 and hereinafter referring to the English Translation provided) and further in view of Lavanchy et al. (US-20220039458-A1).
In regards to claim 1, Jin directed to cigarette (i.e., aerosol-generating article) comprising:
A tobacco rod (i.e., tobacco medium portion) ([0008]);
A filter segment ([0008]);
A first filter segment 221 and cooling structure 222 (i.e., both form the cooling portion) disposed between the tobacco medium portion 210 and the filter portion 223 (Figure 2 and [0029]-[0031]); and
A first wrapper including aluminum foil (i.e., heat transfer portion) surrounding at least a portion of the cooling portion (i.e., located on an outer peripheral surface of the portion of the cooling portion) ([0033]).
Jin further discloses the heat transfer portion may include aluminum foil ([0033]) and the heat transfer portion comprises “metal flake paste” wherein the metal is ground into pieces (i.e., (plurality of metal pieces) ([0072]-[0076]). Jin does not explicitly disclose the metal flakes are metal foil strips spaced apart from each other and disposed on an outer peripheral surface of the portion of the cooling portion.
Lavanchy directed to an aerosol-generating article with a laminated wrapper discloses the laminated wrapper 20 (i.e., heat transfer portion) including a heat conductive layer 22 and a heat insulating layer 24 ([0086])-[0087]), wherein the heat conductive layer may comprise one or more aluminum, tin and copper ([0024]) and may have multiple annular rings (i.e., plurality of metal foil strips) ([0092]-[0093], Fig. 2).
Fig. 2 further shows that the plurality of metal foil strips 22 are spaced apart. Refer to Figure 2 provided below.
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Lavanchy further discloses the heat conductive layer 22 is arranged on the inside, which means directly adjacent the aerosol-forming substrate or the filter portion 18 (i.e., disposed on an outer peripheral surface of the portion of the cooling portion). The filter of Lavanchy is being interpreted as the portion of the cooling portion because the filter comprises cellulose acetate which is a material that forms the cooling portion as disclosed by the instant Application’s Specification ([35]).
Lavanchy further discloses the spaced apart metal strips allow for the article to have multiple heating areas ([0093]) and an annular shape of the heating area achieves a uniform surround heating of the aerosol-forming substrate ([0024]).
Therefore, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would be obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art to modify Lavanchy by making the heat transfer portions plurality of metal flakes a plurality of metal strips spaced apart from each other, as taught by Lavanchy, because both are directed to aerosol-generating articles comprising heat transfer portions, Lavanchy teaches the spaced apart metal strips allow for the article to have multiple heating areas ([0093]), and this merely involves applying a known technique of using metal strips spaced apart of a similar aerosol-generating article to yield predictable results.
In regards to claim 2, Jin discloses the heat transfer portion, including an edge of the heat transfer portion, surrounds a portion of the aerosol-generating article corresponding to an inlet of the cooling portion in contact with the tobacco medium portion (Figure 2).
In regards to claim 3, Jin discloses the cooling portion comprises:
A first cooling segment 221 in contact with the tobacco medium portion 210; and
A second cooling segment 222 disposed between the first cooling segment and the filter portion 223 (Figure 2 and [0037]-[0039]).
In regards to claims 4-5, Jin discloses the heat transfer portion 231 surrounds at least a portion of the first cooling segment and the second cooling segment (Figure 2 and [0033]).
In regards to claim 6, Jin discloses the first cooling segment includes cellulose acetate filter (i.e., cellulose acetate tow) ([0049]) and the second cooling segment includes a compressed polymer sheet that can be made of a material such as cellulose acetate ([0057]).
Jin does not explicitly disclose a paper material in the second cooling segment.
However, since Jin discloses cellulose acetate in the second cooling segment, and cellulose acetate is a known wood material, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art that cellulose acetate as a polymer sheet could include paper materials, and therefore it would be obvious to modify the second cooling segment to include a paper material because cellulose acetate comprises wood materials that are also used in paper.
In regards to claim 7, Jin discloses the cooling portion has a tubular shape (Figure 2 and [0049]).
In regards to claims 8-9, Jin discloses the tobacco medium portion comprises an aerosol-generating substrate, flavoring agents, humectants, and reconstituted tobacco sheet (i.e., plurality of segments) comprising tobacco leaves (i.e., plurality of segments includes a tobacco medium) ([0040]-[0044]).
In regards to claim 11, Jin discloses the heat transfer portion may include aluminum foil ([0033]).
In regards to claims 14, Modified Jin does not explicitly disclose the plurality of metal flakes/strips are arranged parallel to a lengthwise direction of the cooling portion, however Lavanchy teaches the heating area may have “any desired axial length and shape of one or more heating areas may be chosen” ([0062]).
While Modified Jin does not explicitly disclose the arrangement of metal strips claimed in claim 14, Lavanchy teaches the shape of the metal strips can be any shape and therefore it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to rearrange the organization of the metal foil strips in a patten as claimed because the rearrangement would have no change in expected results of heating the aerosol-generating article, would be an obvious matter of design choice, and an obvious change in shape of the heating areas. See MPEP (2144.04 VI.C.) and (2144.04 IV.B.).
In regards to claim 15, Modified Jin discloses the plurality of metal foil strips are arranged obliquely with respect to a lengthwise direction of the cooling portion (bottom of Lavanchy Fig. 2).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Shinozaki et al. (US-20180317560-A1), directed to smokeless flavor aerosol-generating article discloses the aerosol generating article comprising a cooling segment with a plurality of metal layers ([0086]).
Dittombée et al. (WO-2021063685-A1), directed to a method of providing metal strip sections for tobacco segments (abstract).
Hon et al. (US-20220218042-A1), directed to a smoking cartridge of a smoking article comprising a smoking body with a thermal conductive metal foil ([0054]).
Hon further discloses the metal foil is a plurality of small narrow strips mixed within the smoking body ([0056]).
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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MADELEINE PAULINA DELACRUZ whose telephone number is (703)756-4544. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8-5.
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/MADELEINE P DELACRUZ/Examiner, Art Unit 1755 /PHILIP Y LOUIE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1755
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