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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I: claims 1-2 in the reply filed on 6/29/2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 3-10 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 6/29/2026.
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.
Claims 1-2 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.
The term “cold iron” in claim 1 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “cold iron” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention. It is unclear what temperature is considered “cold,” which renders the metes and bounds of the claim indefinite. Claim 2 is dependent on claim 1 and is thus also rejected for the same reason.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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) 1-2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miwa et al. (US 2019/0249922), as cited in the IDS dated 10/17/2024, hereinafter “Miwa.”
Regarding claim 1, Miwa teaches an electric furnace for melting iron scrap (i.e., room temperature iron scrap, which reads on “cold iron”) to produce molten iron, the electric furnace comprising a burner that is directed towards furnace contents (Abstract, [0012]-[0017], [0025], Figs. 1-4). Miwa teaches wherein the burner comprises a solid fuel injection tube, wherein the solid fuel may be pulverized coal ([0025], [0028]-[0029], [0032]-[0033], Fig. 1), which reads on a powder-feeding pipe. Miwa teaches wherein the burner further comprises a gas fuel injection tube ([0025]), 0032]-[0033], Fig. 1), which reads on a jet hole for jetting a fuel, and a combustion-supporting gas tube (([0025]), 0032]-[0033], Fig. 1), which reads on a jet hole for jetting combustion-supporting gas, wherein hydrogen gas may be used as the gas fuel for forming the burner flame ([0053]). Furthermore, Miwa depicts that the pulverized coal solid fuel (i.e., auxiliary material that is in powder form) is jetted through the solid fuel tube so that the pulverized coal solid fuel passes through the inside of the burner flame (Figs. 1-4, [0032]-[0060]).
Regarding claim 2, Miwa teaches wherein the electric furnace may be a DC type furnace (i.e., DC arc furnace) ([0069]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ANTHONY M LIANG whose telephone number is (571)272-0483. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 9:00am-5:00pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jonathan Johnson can be reached at (571)272-1177. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ANTHONY M LIANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1734
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