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
Claims 9-18 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Species B, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 06/10/2026.
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species A, claims 1-8 in the reply filed on 06/10/2026 is acknowledged.
Status of Claims
Claims 1-18 are pending. Claims 9-18 are withdrawn. Claims 1-8 are ready for examination.
Claim Objections
Claim 8 is objected to because of the following informalities: Claim 8 should recite … “and electrically connected to the vaporizer.” See present Specification ([0049]. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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.
Claim(s) 1-7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hepworth et al. (US 2018/0256834 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Hepworth discloses:
A power supply apparatus, ([0016] a battery section for housing a battery), for an aerosol generation apparatus comprising a vaporizer, ([0016] a vapor provision system comprising an aerosol delivery component), the power supply apparatus, ([0016] a battery section), comprising: a housing having a first end and a second end opposite the first end, (Fig 1 see annotations below), an accommodating portion configured to accommodate the vaporizer being formed in the housing, ([0035] see annotated Fig 1), the accommodating portion comprising a side wall and running through from the first end to the second end, ([0035] see annotated Fig 1), the vaporizer being mounted in the accommodating portion, ([0035]-[0036], see annotated Fig 1); and a regulating valve configured to adjust an air inflow, ([0043]-[0045] Fig 2, disclosing an adjuster that may be rotated to reduce or increase airflow depending on the degree of overlap between the apertures and the openings). Hepworth further discloses another embodiment where the regulating valve comprising an elongated toggle member extending along a direction parallel to an axis of the vaporizer to facilitate rotation of the adjuster, ([0063] Fig 9, disclosing a protrusion on a rotatable portion of the regulating valve to facilitate rotating a shutter, reasonably considered to meet the limitation of an elongated toggle member).
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It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have modified the embodiment of Hepworth depicted in claim 1, to further comprise a toggle portion extending a direction parallel to the axis of the vaporizer, to facilitate rotation of the adjuster element reference 25. Providing the protrusion in the form of an elongated toggle extending in the direction parallel is considered an obvious orientation, because providing the protrusion parallel to the axis of the vaporizer would naturally aid its function to facilitate rotation of the adjuster perpendicular to the axis of the vaporizer.
Regarding claim 2-3, modified Hepworth discloses the power supply apparatus of claim 1, wherein the regulating valve is rotatable between a first position and a second position to adjust a magnitude of the air inflow, and where the adjuster gradually decreases airflow when the adjuster rotates from a first position to a second position, ([0044]-[0045] the adjuster may be rotated between a position where the apertures and opening are fully aligned, for maximum airflow, and to a position where the alignment is reduced, reducing the airflow, to allow a user to alter the level of airflow as desired).
Regarding claim 4, modified Hepworth discloses the power supply apparatus of claim 1, wherein the regulating valve comprises a cylindrical body (Fig 1 refs 24, 25, 20) having a first air inlet, (Fig 1 ref 29), that extends along a circumference of the cylindrical body and is in air communication with an outside, ([0039]Fig 1 ref 29, where the air inlet is formed as a hole in the sidewall of the aerosol provision section, and where the hole necessarily extends along the circumference of the cylindrical body).
Regarding claim 5, modified Hepworth discloses the power supply apparatus of claim 1, wherein the side wall is provided with an opening, and wherein the regulating valve is arranged corresponding to the opening, ([0041]-[0045] Fig 2, the opening corresponding to 29, 32, and 34, where the adjuster 25 is arranged to correspond to the opening such that openings 42 will rotate from full alignment to partial alignment, to gradually decrease the magnitude of airflow).
Regarding claim 6, modified Hepworth discloses the power supply apparatus of claim 1, wherein the housing comprises a mounting portion arranged side by side with the accommodating portion, and wherein the mounting portion runs through from the first end to the second end, ([0035] Fig 1 ref 26 a battery accommodated in a portion that extends from the first end to the second end).
Regarding claim 7, modified Hepworth discloses the power supply apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first end is provided with a switch component, and wherein the switch component is arranged in the mounting portion, ([0035] Fig 1 ref 30, disclosing switches operable by a user to deliver electrical power to one or more components in the aerosol delivery section).
Claim(s) 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hepworth et al. (US 2018/0256834 A1) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Verleur et al. (US 2015/0305409 A1).
Regarding claim 8, modified Hepworth discloses the power supply apparatus of claim 1. Hepworth discloses the battery section comprises connecting portions, where the lower connecting portions make necessary electrical connections from the battery to the aerosol delivery section. Hepworth does not disclose an elastic pin assembly arranged in the accommodating portion.
Verleur teaches a vaporizer with a battery segment and a cartomizer segment, ([0005]), and is thus within the inventor’s field of endeavor. Verleur teaches an electrical connection method between the battery segment and the incerted cartomizer may comprise a plurality of pogo pins, where the pogo pins take the form of a cylinder containing one or more spring loaded pins, retractable upon compression by the cartomizer when it is inserted into the cartomizer, ([0040] the spring loaded pins considered to meet the limitation of an elastic pin).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have further modified Hepworth according to the teachigs of Verleur. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been able to modify Hepworth, incorporating the pogo pin style elastic electrical pin connector of Verleur to make the electrical connection in modified Hepworth. Modified Hepworth is considered to comprise a base device upon which the claimed invention, adding the elastic pin arranged in the accommodating portion and connected [to] the vaporizer, can be seen as an improvement. The prior art contained a comparable device according to Verleur that had been improved in the same way as the claimed invention, where Verleur comprises an elastic pin that provides an electrical connection between the power supply and the vaporizer. One of ordinary skill in the art could have applied the known improvement technique in the same way to the base device of modified Hepworth, to provide a specific electrical connection type between the battery and the aerosol delivery system, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have been a predictable and reliable electrical connection between the vaporizer and battery.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DANIEL E VAKILI whose telephone number is (571)272-5171. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 7:30 am - 4:30 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Michael H. Wilson can be reached at (571) 270-3882. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/D.E.V./Examiner, Art Unit 1747
/Michael H. Wilson/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1747
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