DETAILED ACTION
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) 1-7 and 9-14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen et al. (2008/0081710) in view of Jin et al. (2017/0145277). Claim 1, Chen discloses a golf ball comprising a golf ball component which includes a material that contains a phase-change material (PCM) (abstract). Chen does not disclose a supercooling inhibitor. Jin teaches a latent heat storage material (aka PCM) comprising a supercooling preventing agent (abstract). One of ordinary skill in the art would have included the supercooling inhibitor to control the temperature. Claims 2 and 5, Chen discloses the PCM is a paraffin described in 2006/0124892 [0039]. The ‘892 paraffins have a melting point of between 5°C and 40°C (table 1). Claims 3-4, the ‘892 paraffins are Rubitherm RT20 [0004], which are available in plastic microcapsules (see Rubitherm sheet). Claim 6, the ‘892 paraffins are normal paraffin, tetradecane, pentadecane, hexadecane (table1). Claim 7, the ‘892 paraffins are normal paraffin, tetradecane, pentadecane, hexadecane with 14 to 20 carbon atoms (table 1). Note: Table 1 in the instant application discloses tetradecane, pentadecane, hexadecane with 14, 15, and 16 carbon atoms. Claim 9, the PCM-containing material is included in one or more golf ball component selected from the group consisting of a coating layer, a cover layer, an intermediate layer and a core [0091]. Claim 10, the PCM containing material is included in the golf ball component in a weight ratio of 5 wt% or more [0091]. Claim 11, Jin teaches the supercooling inhibitor is an n- paraffin derivative selected from the group consisting of an n-alkyl alcohol and an n-alkyl amine (abstract). Claim 12, Jin teaches the PCM is normal paraffin having from 14 to 18 carbon atoms [0001]. Claim 13, the ‘892 paraffins are Rubitherm RT20 [0004], which are available in plastic microcapsules (see Rubitherm sheet) Note: most all membrane materials are made from melamine resin. Claim 14, Chen discloses wherein the PCM-containing material is included in a cover layer formed of polyurethane resin as the chief material and the weight ratio of the PCM-containing material based on the total weight of the cover is from 10 to 20 wt% [0080, 0091]. One of ordinary skill in the art would have included the supercooling inhibitor to control the temperature.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, filed 8/11/2025, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 8 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection, Chen et al. (2008/0081710) in view of Jin et al. (2017/0145277).
Conclusion
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/RAEANN GORDEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3711
November 13, 2025