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 .
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.
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 19-20 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 19 recites the porous sheets extend from the notch but fails to adequately recite how the extension occurs or in relation to other features. The term ‘extends’ fails to provide a clear boundary regarding the extent of the porous liquid guide sheet which renders the metes and bounds of the extend limitation in the claim indefinite especially in light of the fact the porous sheet limitation is later recited with respect to the extension being outside the notch when there is no limitation positively reciting the sheet must be outside or extended outside.
Claim 20 is rejected based on its dependency to Claim 19.
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.
Claims 1-2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Qiu (US20180070638A1), in view of Qiu2 (US20180020738A1).
In regards to Claim 1, Qiu discloses an electronic cigarette that is able to generate electricity by itself during usage [0006].
Qiu electronic cigarette teaches a shell assembly, a power generation assembly (pathway A), and a storage battery, and an atomizing assembly (pathway B) [0007].
Qiu’s electronic cigarette further discloses a housing (11), mouthpiece (6) with a first through hole (61) and second through hole (62), a liquid storage tube (25), and an atomizing head (22). The mouthpiece reads over the recited suction nozzle of Claim 1 because the user will produce suction on the mouthpiece to inhale the produced vapor creating suction.
The shell assembly comprises a housing and a mouthpiece mounted on the housing [0016].
The atomizing assembly further comprises an atomizing passage, liquid storage tube and atomizer head. The atomizing passage comprises an air inlet passage and a smoke outlet passage. Both the air inlet passage and the smoke outlet passage communicate with the atomizer head [0012]. The atomizing head is located inside the liquid storage tube to atomize the tobacco liquid stored in the liquid storage tube [0048].
The liquid storage tube has a first sealing member (251) mounted on the upper end liquid storage tube and a second sealing member (252) mounted on the bottom end of the liquid storage tube [0048].
Qiu does not disclose an airflow sensor that is located in a mounting slot.
Qiu2 teaches an electronic cigarette with two airflow passage and a connection part (18) [0008 & 0011]]. The main body of the electronic cigarette includes a connection part provided at the upper end of the main body to which the mouthpiece is connected and the connection part is provided with two mounting holes which are separately formed. The atomizing assembly is mounted through one of the mounting holes and the sensor is mounted in the other mounting hole [0011].
Qiu2 teaches the sensor and sensor pathways (second airflow passage) in which the sensor is unaffected when the user inhales smoke from the smoke passage, the sensitivity of the sensor is not reduced and the smoking experience for the user is improved. ¶[0033].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one in ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify the electronic cigarette in Qiu to include the airflow sensor with the connection part of Qiu2 for the advantage of using a sensor is unaffected when the user inhales smoke from the smoke passage, the sensitivity of the sensor is not reduced and the smoking experience for the user is improved. ¶[0033].
One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to place the sensor of Qiu2 with the airflow passage of Qiu2 in Pathway A because Pathway A contains the atomizer (smoke producing portion) and placing Qiu2 in Pathway B of Qiu may interfere with the microgenerator portion of Qiu.
In regards to claim 2, Qiu2 discloses an electronic cigarette with an airflow sensor. The electronic cigarette has two pathways in order to preserve the longevity of the airflow sensor. The device includes a sensor and an atomizing assembly that is located in a housing. The atomizing assembly is provided with a first airflow passage and the sensor is provided with a second airflow passage [0008]. The housing includes a main body (i.e. shell) and a suction body (i.e. suction nozzle) connected at one end of the main body with a partition member formed in the suction body [0011]. The suction body contains a section that is located outside of the housing, which the user would use to inhale (i.e. first end of the sucking part) and a protruding rim (i.e. second end of sucking part) that comes in contact with the main body.
The suction body also contains a first and second matching part (i.e. covering part) located at the bottom end of the suction body and connects the suction body with the connection part of the main body [0026]. The first and second matching part comes in contact with connection part (i.e. elastic sealing seat) and the top end of the liquid storage sleeve is connected to a bottom end of the connection part by an interference fit (Figure 4, 10, & 14- see annotated below; [0070]).
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The reference also describes communication that is formed between the second air inlet, airflow sensor, and the suction body. The suction body has a second airflow passage and the passage can be in fluid communication with the airflow sensor (Figure 3 – see annotated below).
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Claims 18 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Qiu (US20180070638A1), in view of Qiu2 (US20180020738A1) in further view of Wang (CN-218073490-U; English Translation).
Qiu and Qiu2 are applied as above.
Qiu does not teach or suggest the atomizing core assembly as recited by Claim 18.
In regards to Claim 18, Wang discloses a multi-stage electronic atomizer for generating an aerosol comprising an atomizer module (i.e., atomizing core) with a double heating structure [abstract]. The atomizing core comprises a first-stage atomizing core (i.e. first heating element) and a second-stage atomizing core (i.e. second heating element) with an isolation component as the second sealing element (i.e. the connecting part). The first-stage atomizing core is set on the upper end of the isolation component and then second stage is located on the lower end of the connecting part (i.e. the second heating element is connected to the first heating element through the connecting part) (Figure 2- See annotation below; [0012]).
Wang teaches the atomizing arrangement is designed to capture leakage of the first heating/atomizing chamber so there is no waste. ¶[0002]/¶[0003].
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It would have been obvious to one in ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to have modify Qiu to use the atomizing core assembly discussed above of Wang for the advantage of using atomizing arrangement is designed to capture leakage of the first heating/atomizing chamber so there is no waste. ¶[0002]/¶[0003].
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-17, 19-20 are 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 following is a statement of reasons for the indication of the allowable subject matter:
The closest prior art of record is over Qiu (US20180070638A1), which discloses the electronic cigarette of Claim 1 as set forth above.
In regards to Claim 3, Qiu does not reasonably teach a covering part oriented as recited with respect to the equivalent of an elastic sealing seat.
In regards to Claim 4, Qiu does not reasonably suggest a condensate sheet as recited and it is unclear how one of ordinary skill in the art could modify Qiu to arrive at the claimed invention to include one without the benefit of hindsight.
In regards to Claim 8, the reference fails to disclose a shell body with a cover plate and that also contains a mounting mouth that is connected to a covering portion of a mouthpiece. No prior art has been found which can be reasonably combined to Qiu to address the deficiency without arriving at hindsight.
In regards to Claim 14/16, Qiu does not reasonably teach the slots and walls as recited by Claim 14/16 without the use of hindsight.
Similarly, Claim 19 recites an atomizing core requiring a metal tube and porous guide sheet in specific orientations with respect to each other. Wang (CN218073490) teaches diffusion of volatile liquid into the atomizing core but does not reasonably suggest the recited arrangement of metal tube and porous structures as recited by Claim 19. To arrive at the claimed invention with the atomizing assembly of Wang would require hindsight.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HANNAH C NNABUGWU whose telephone number is (571)272-8791. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri. 8:00am-5:00pm.
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/H.C.N./Examiner, Art Unit 1747
/Christopher M Rodd/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1766
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