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
Claim16-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.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 July 28, 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.
Claim 13 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 13 recites “wherein the heater is configured to heat the smokable article to 200°C or higher and 400°C or lower”; it is unclear what structure is intended by the limitation and MPEP 2114 recites that the “manner of operating the device does not differentiate apparatus claim from the prior art”.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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) 1-5, 7-10, 13-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by SEKIYA et al. (WO 2020/084758, wherein EP 3871535 has been used as an English language equivalent) with evidence provided by MOST et al. (US 10,295,173).
Sekiya teaches a flavor inhaler (10) comprising a chamber (42a in figure 4) that accommodates a smokable article (see figures 1B); a heater (43 in figure 4) for heating the smokable article accommodated in the chamber; and a heat-insulating member (assembly of 42, 47, and 45) that suppresses dissipation of heat of the smokable article or the heater to an outside of a device (para. 0015), wherein the heat-insulating member has a first surface (42), a second surface (45) opposite to the first surface, and an end surface (37) that connects the first surface and the second surface and that has a smaller area than the first surface or the second surface (see figure 4), and wherein the heat-insulating member has a porous structure (para. 0021), and at least the end surface is sealed (para. 0012).
Regarding claim 2, Sekiya teaches the first surface and the second surface of the heat-insulating member is sealed with a support member (46).
Regarding claim 3, Sekiya teaches an entire surface of the heat-insulating member is sealed (para. 0020).
Regarding claim 4, Sekiya teaches an internal space of the porous structure is in a decompressed state at normal temperature (para. 0015).
Regarding claim 5, Sekiya teaches the end surface is sealed with a heat-resistant resin (para. 0012).
Regarding claim 7, Sekiya teaches the heat-resistant resin is a thermosetting adhesive (para. 0016).
Regarding claim 8, Sekiya teaches the adhesive, before being hardened by heat, has a property such that a viscosity thereof decreases when heated (para. 0018).
Regarding claim 9, Sekiya teaches that the porous structure may be made of aerogel (para. 0021); wherein Most teaches that aerogel is a continuous pore structure (col. 5 lines 14-15).
Regarding claim 10, Sekiya teaches the heat-insulating member includes an aerogel (para. 0021).
Regarding claim 13, Most teaches that aerogel material is thermally stable up to about 650°C (col. 5 lines 25-56) which incorporates the claimed range of 200°C or higher and 400°C or lower.
Regarding claim 14, Sekiya teaches the heater (43) is disposed on an outer circumference of the chamber (42a in figure 4).
Regarding claim 15, Sekiya teaches the end surface is positioned at an end portion in an insertion direction of the smokable article into the chamber (see figure 4).
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.
Claim(s) 11-12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over SEKIYA et al. (WO 2020/084758, wherein EP 3871535 has been used as an English language equivalent) in view of MOST et al. (US 10,295,173).
Sekiya teaches a flavor inhaler (10) comprising a chamber (42a in figure 4) that accommodates a smokable article (see figures 1B); a heater (43 in figure 4) for heating the smokable article accommodated in the chamber; and a heat-insulating member (assembly of 42, 47, and 45) that suppresses dissipation of heat of the smokable article or the heater to an outside of a device (para. 0015), and wherein the heat-insulating member is an aerogel (para. 0021).
Most teaches a flavor inhaler (10) comprising a chamber (40 in figure 1C) that accommodates a smokable material (col. 3 lines 7-8); a heater (100 in figure 1C) for heating the smokable article accommodated in the chamber; and a heat-insulating member (assembly of 46 and 48) that suppresses dissipation of heat of the smokable article or the heater to an outside of a device (col. 1 lines 60-64), and wherein the heat-insulating member is an aerogel (col. 1 lines 55-59).
Most teaches the heat-insulating member includes a radiation-suppressing agent (col. 7 lines 53-57). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the heat-insulating member of Sekiya to include a radiation-suppressing agent as taught by Most because Most teaches that it improves the thermal gradient between the interior of the herb chamber and its exterior surface (col. 7 lines 58-60).
Regarding claim 12, Most teaches that aerogel can be fabricated into a heat-insulating sheet that surrounds the chamber (col. 5 lines 27-28). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to try fabricating the aerogel of Sekiya into sheets because Most teaches that this is a known equivalent for aerogel pellets/granules (col. 5 lines 27-28) and Sekiya teaches using aerogel granules (para. 0021).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 5 is 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 prior art does not teach or suggest the porous structure of the heat insulating member is impregnated with the heat-resistant resin from the end surface.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CYNTHIA SZEWCZYK whose telephone number is (571)270-5130. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 10 am - 6 pm.
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/CYNTHIA SZEWCZYK/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1741
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