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 § 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 2-8 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.
Claims 2-8 recites the limitation "an image upon food" in line 2. A similar phrase was introduced in claim 1 line 2. Is the second instance in respective claims 2-8 referring back to first instance in claim 1? If so, please clarify the claim language.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1 and 2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Schnoebelen et al. (US Pub. No.: 2005/0088693 A1) (hereinafter Schnoebelen).
Regarding claim 1, Schnoebelen anticipates a computer enabled food preparation and decoration system for positioning an image upon food (Abstract), comprising the steps of: creating a foodstuff database of individual respective edible foodstuffs (¶0056) where each respective edible foodstuff has a foodstuff color (¶0081-¶0088); using a digital image from a customer (¶0013) and matching image colors in portions of said digital image, to a respective individual foodstuff color (¶0081-¶0088); and on a determined image reproduction area of food to be produced, forming a food image of said digital image by placing individual respective foodstuffs having a respective foodstuff color onto respective positions in said reproduction area correlating to image colors of said digital image, whereby a rendition of said digital image is positioned upon said image reproduction area (Abstract, ¶0059-¶0072).
Regarding claim 2, Schnoebelen anticipates determining if any of said foodstuffs in said foodstuff database are disliked by said customer; and employing alternate said individual foodstuffs from said database of individual respective foodstuffs from those determined to be disliked by said customer for forming said food image (Fig. 2; ¶0056- customer can select and manipulate images from database).
Conclusion
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/VISHAL I PATEL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1746