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 .
Priority
The instant application was filed 15 November 2023 and the Applicant claims priority to provisional application 63/383,825 filed 15 November 2022. Therefore, the effective filing date of the instant application is 15 November 2022.
Election/Restrictions
Claims 1-12 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 23 December 2025.
Applicant's election with traverse of Group II (claims 11-17) in the reply filed on 23 December 2025 is acknowledged. The Applicant has not made any arguments in regards to their election with traverse.
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
Claim Objections
Claims 7, 8, and 14 are objected to because of the following informalities: Claims 7, 8, and 14 are missing. The Applicant is recommended to correct and renumber most of the claims affected by the missing claims. Appropriate correction is required.
Examiner’s Note
The following rejection uses the claim numbers as written and filed by the Applicant (claims 13, 15-17) for clarity purposes. The Applicant should correct the claim numbers in their next response.
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.
Claim(s) 13, 15-17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Maupin et al. (US 6849266 B2) and Rheaume et al. (EP 0250908 A2).
Maupin teaches a device for controlling ectoparasites on small rodents (abs; entire teaching). The apparatus comprises an enclosure which is an opening to allow entry and exit of rodents. The device includes an applicator with an ectoparasiticide (col. 3, lns. 49-60). Acaricide in the instant claims is interpreted as a type of ectoparasiticide (substance to kill ticks and mites), partially addressing claim 13. The enclosure may include bait to lure the rodents (col. 8, lns. 37-53), partially addressing claim 13. The opening to allow entry and egress of rodents is interpreted as excluding larger animals, addressing claim 15. Parts of the enclosure of the device is made of plastic (col. 8, lns. 54-58), addressing claim 16. The ectoparasiticide in the enclosure may be applied using a fibrous material, such as strands of cotton wick (col. 8, ln. 66-col. 9, ln. 6), which is interpreted as a biodegradable material, addressing claim 17.
Maupin does not specifically teach electrostatically charged microspheres that are encapsulated with entomopathogenic acaricides in claim 13.
Rheaume teaches insecticides, such as microorganisms, bacteria, fungi, and viruses that are toxic to insects (pg. 4, lns. 30-34), such as mites (pg. 4, ln. 21), which is interpreted as an entomopathogenic acaricide in claim 13. The composition includes insecticides or pesticides that are entrapped by a charged polymer (pg. 2, lns. 27-28), where charged polymer is interpreted as addressing as electrostatically charged in claim 13. Rheaume provides an example of a bacteria that kills insects entrapped within a microsphere (Example 8), addressing the encapsulated microsphere comprising entomopathogenic acaricide in claim 13. The composition can be applied to the pests or to the pests’ habitat (claims 15 and 16).
Since Maupin does not specifically teach electrostatically charged microspheres that are encapsulated with entomopathogenic acaricides in claim 13, one of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to use Rheaume’s teaching with a reasonable expectation of success. A skilled artisan would have recognized the additional benefit of using an entrapped or encapsulated entomopathogenic acaricide for increased persistence and stability of the pesticides (Rheaume; pg. 2, lns. 22-23) in Maupin’s composition, which also prioritizes long-lasting and stable compositions (Maupin; col. 5, lns. 36-40).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Danielle Kim whose telephone number is (571)272-2035. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 9-5 p.m. PST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Brian-Yong Kwon can be reached at (571)272-0581. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/D.A.K./Examiner, Art Unit 1613
/ANDREW S ROSENTHAL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1613
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