CTNF 18/532,934 CTNF 83296 Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA. Information Disclosure Statement The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 1/26/26;1/14/25;9/25/24;8/12/24;3/11/24 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97(b). Accordingly, the IDSs are being considered by the Examiner. Allowable Subject Matter 12-151-08 AIA 07-43 12-51-08 Claim 5 is 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. 07-43 Claim 6 is 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. Claim 7 is further objected to based on dependency. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 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. 07-07-aia AIA 07-07 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 – 07-12-aia AIA (a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. 07-15-03-aia AIA Claim 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Anderson et al. (US 2020/0197686) (“Anderson”) . Anderson discloses: a reservoir comprising: a housing 30 comprising an opening (at bottom {nearer side where 90 is located Fig. 2B} and a gas impermeable wall (plastic parts [0079]), the opening is configured to couple to a vascular access device 100, Fig. 2D; and a molecular precursor to a gaseous agent suspended in a hydrogel 80 [0093] disposed within the housing, the gaseous agent is antimicrobial, antithrombogenic or both [0075] . Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 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 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. 07-20-aia AIA 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. 07-23-aia AIA 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. 07-21-aia AIA Claim s 2-4,8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Anderson in view of Fine et al. (US 2003/0064028) (“Fine”) further in view of Felt (US 2008/0132876) . Anderson discloses the invention as substantially claimed but does not directly disclose the opening further comprises a membrane, wherein the membrane is gas-permeable and hydrophobic. Fine, in the analogous art, teaches a hydrogel matrix in the shape of a film [0009 Fine] as taught by Fine to allow for passage of a gaseous agent from the reservoir for more controlled release of the antimicrobial [0008 Fine]. The reservoir of Anderson (Fig. 2A) teaches a housing 30, comprising an opening (bottom of 30). Felt, in the analogous art, teaches a membrane or seal 500 on the opening of the housing. Felt is instructive on where a film would be disposed from Fine. Thus, the combination is to add the membrane (with the qualities of a gas-permeable and hydrophobic membrane from Fine) to the bottom of the housing 30 of Anderson (the housing opening). This combination would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to allow for a more controlled release of the antimicrobial [0008 Fine]. The seal in Felt is pierceable or removable, Fig. 3. The gaseous agent from Fine is nitric oxide [0003] and the molecular precursor to a gaseous agent is a design consideration which is well known in the art [0025,0040] Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DEANNA K HALL whose telephone number is (571)272-2819. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30am- 4:30pm EST. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Kevin Sirmons can be reached at 571-272-4965. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /DEANNA K HALL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3783 Application/Control Number: 18/532,934 Page 2 Art Unit: 3783 Application/Control Number: 18/532,934 Page 3 Art Unit: 3783 Application/Control Number: 18/532,934 Page 4 Art Unit: 3783 Application/Control Number: 18/532,934 Page 5 Art Unit: 3783 Application/Control Number: 18/532,934 Page 6 Art Unit: 3783
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