DETAILED ACTION
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 1-17 in the reply filed on 5/20/2026 is acknowledged. Claims 18-20 withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.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 5/20/2026.
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) 1-7, 10-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Horold et al (US 2020/0277491).
Horold teaches a composition comprising 47.6 wt% of nylon 66, 16.4wt% of Depal aluminum diethylphosphinate and 3.6 wt% of Phopal aluminum salt of phosphorous acid, 30wt% of glass fiber HP3610 (i.e. a flame retardant synergist)(example C2). The composition has a V0 rating at 0.8mm, an elongation at break of 3.09%, a tensile strength of 144.11. HP 3610 has a fiber diameter of 10um.
Because Horold teaches the claimed composition, it is therefore inherent that the composition exhibit claimed property since such a property is evidently dependent upon the nature of the composition used, see MPEP 2112.01. Absent an objective showing to the contrary, the addition of the claimed physical properties to the claim language fails to provide patentable distinction over the prior art.
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 set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied 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 1-17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Horold et al (US 2020/0277491).
Horold teaches a composition comprising 30% to 71.6% by weight of component A), 5% to 20% by weight of component B), 5% to 20% by weight of component C), 0% to 10% by weight of component D), 3% to 10% by weight of component E), 15% to 35% by weight of component F), 0.3% to 10% by weight of component G), 0% to 2% by weight of component H), and 0.1% to 2% by weight of component I) [0090-0099, 0150]. Component A is nylon 6,6 [0195], component B is Depal aluminum diethylphosphinate [0207], component E is melamine polyphosphate [0210], component G is Lotader AX 8700 a random ethylene-butyl acrylate-glycidyl methacrylate terpolymer, component F is a glass fiber HP 3610 having a fiber diameter of 10um.
Horold is silent with respect to the claimed properties of the composition. However, the teachings from Horold have rendered obvious the instantly claimed ingredients and amounts thereof. Therefore, it is reasonable that one of ordinary skill in the art would expect the claimed physical properties to naturally arise.
For claim 2, the impact modifier is optional.
Claim 2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Horold et al (US 2020/0277491) in view of Yan et al (US 2023/0312920).
Horold teaches component G can be glycidyl methacrylate-ethylene copolymer, such as those under the trade name Lotader AX [0137].
Horold does not explicitly teaches it is an ethylene, methyl acrylate and glycidyl methacrylate terpolymer.
However, Yan discloses a similar composition and teaches Lotader AX 8900 a terpolymer of ethylene, methyl acrylate and glycidyl methacrylate can be used in the composition. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to recognize that the claimed terpolymer is suitable for the composition of Horold.
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/WENWEN CAI/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1763
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