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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
Claims 1, 2, and 7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Briscoe (6431216).
Briscoe discloses a core wire comprising: an inner conductor (15, col. 3, lines 28-38); and an insulating layer (10) covering the inner conductor, wherein the inner conductor is non-spliced, the insulating layer includes a first semi-insulating layer (12) and a second semi-insulating layer (14), each of the first semi-insulating layer and the second semi-insulating layer has a groove that matchingly accommodates the shape of the inner conductor, and the first semi-insulating layer and the second semi-insulating layer are combined together (re-claim 1). Briscoe also discloses that the first semi-insulating layer and the second semi-insulating layer are buckled together (Fig. 1) (re-claim 2); and the inner conductor is formed by twisting multiple conductors (Fig. 1) (re-claim 7).
It has been held that the patentability of a product claim is determined by the novelty and nonobviouness of the claimed product itself without consideration of the process for making it, 3D printing process, which is recited in the claim. In re Thorpe, 111 F. 2d 695, 698, 227 USPQ 964, 966; see also In re Nordt Development Co., LLC, [2017-1445] (February 8, 2018).
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.
Claims 3, 4, and 6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Briscoe in view of Brorein et al. (3693250).
Claims 3, 4, and 6 additionally recite the insulating layer being foamed PE and the air content in the insulating layer being between 35% and 80%. Brorein et al. discloses a core wire comprising an insulating layer (34), wherein the insulating layer is foamed PE, and the air content in the insulating layer is between 35% and 80% (col. 4, lines 16-19). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art to use foamed PE, as taught by Brorein et al., for the insulating layer of Briscoe to reduce dielectric constant around the conductor.
Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Briscoe.
Claim 5 additionally recites the inner conductor being copper conductor. It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art to use copper for the inner conductor of Briscoe since copper is well-known in the art for its highly conductivity.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim 1 have been considered but are moot in view of new ground of rejection.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Contact Information
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/CHAU N NGUYEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2841