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 .
Rejections
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
2. Claims 1, 5-12, 17-20, and 23-26 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US Pat. Application Publication No. 2018/0171141 Thomas et al.
Thomas discloses a composition containing 50.6 wt% PA 6T/66, which falls within the scope of the instantly claimed first polyamide, 16.9 wt% of PA 6, which falls within the scope of the second polyamide, 0.2 wt% of lanthanum trihydroxide, which falls within the scope of the instantly claimed lanthanum-based compound, and 0.035 wt% of copper iodide, which falls within the scope of both the first and second stabilizers of the instant claims which do not require that the first and second stabilizers be different copper-based compounds, and 30 wt% of glass fibers which falls within the scope of the instantly claimed filler. These compounds fall within the scope of the instant claims 10-12.
See Thomas, Table 2, Composition E3.
Thomas’ abstract encompasses the instant claim 5.
Thomas’ abstract encompasses the instant claim 26.
The polyamides of the prior art are those of the instant claims and are therefore expected to necessarily and inherently give the properties of the instant claim 17. See MPEP 2112.
The polyamide compositions of the prior art contain the instantly claimed ingredients and amounts thereof and are therefore expected to necessarily and inherently give the properties of the instant claims 23-25. See MPEP 2112.
3. Claims 1, 6, 9-10, and 17-26 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US Pat. Application Publication No. 2020/0247994 Sparks et al.
Sparks discloses polyamide compositions containing 50.24 wt% of PA 66, which falls within the scope of the instantly claimed first polyamide, 12.0 wt% of an additional polyamide, which falls within the scope of the instantly claimed second polyamide, 0.50 wt% of lanthanoid heat stabilizer, 0.60 wt% of copper heat stabilizer which falls within the scope of the instantly claimed first and second stabilizers containing copper-based compounds because the instant claims do not require the copper-based compounds to be different, and 35 wt% of glass fibers.
0.60 of copper heat stabilizer compounds up to 1 wt% thereof of the instant claims 21-22 within the decimal accuracy and precision of 1 wt% of the instant claims 21-22.
See Sparks, Table 1, Example 1.
The polyamides of the prior art are those of the instant claims and are therefore expected to necessarily and inherently give the properties of the instant claim 17. See MPEP 2112.
The polyamide compositions of the prior art contain the instantly claimed ingredients and amounts thereof and are therefore expected to necessarily and inherently give the properties of the instant claims 23-25. See MPEP 2112.
The panels made from the exemplified composition discussed above fall within the scope of the instant claim 26 because panels can be used as some of the articles claimed therein.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
4. 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.
5. Claims 1 and 5-26 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US Pat. Application Publication No. 2018/0171141 Thomas et al.
Thomas discloses a composition containing 50.6 wt% PA 6T/66, which falls within the scope of the instantly claimed first polyamide, 16.9 wt% of PA 6, which falls within the scope of the second polyamide, 0.2 wt% of lanthanum trihydroxide, which falls within the scope of the instantly claimed lanthanum-based compound, and 0.035 wt% of copper iodide, which falls within the scope of both the first and second stabilizers of the instant claims which do not require that the first and second stabilizers be different copper-based compounds, and 30 wt% of glass fibers which falls within the scope of the instantly claimed filler. These compounds fall within the scope of the instant claims 10-12.
See Thomas, Table 2, Composition E3.
Thomas’ abstract encompasses the instant claim 5.
Thomas’ abstract encompasses the instant claim 26.
The example of Thomas, Table 2, Composition E3 contains copper iodide and KI which is analogous to the instant claim 13 except that it uses KI instead of the instantly claimed KBr.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the instantly claimed invention to use the instantly claimed KBr in place of Thomas’ exemplified KI because they are analogous compounds containing adjacent halogens which are expected to behave similarly to each other from the teachings of undergraduate chemistry which is taken to be understood by the ordinary skilled artisans in this art. See MPEP 2144.09 Close Structural Similarity Between Chemical Compounds (Homologs, Analogues, Isomers) [R-01.2024].
The polyamides of the prior art are those of the instant claims and are therefore expected to necessarily and inherently give the properties of the instant claim 17. See MPEP 2112.
The polyamide compositions of the prior art contain the instantly claimed ingredients and amounts thereof and are therefore expected to necessarily and inherently give the properties of the instant claims 23-25. See MPEP 2112.
The amounts of Thomas, paragraphs [0015]-[0016] fall within the scope of the instant claims 21-22.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the instantly claimed invention to use the instantly claimed amounts of ingredients of the instant claims 21-22 because they are encompassed by Thomas and would have been expected to give polyamide compositions having the properties of those of Thomas, including the properties explicitly discussed by Thomas and the properties inherent to the compositions of Thomas.
6. Claims 1-26 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US Pat. Application Publication No. 2020/0247994 Sparks et al.
Sparks discloses polyamide compositions containing 50.24 wt% of PA 66, which falls within the scope of the instantly claimed first polyamide, 12.0 wt% of an additional polyamide, which falls within the scope of the instantly claimed second polyamide, 0.50 wt% of lanthanoid heat stabilizer, 0.60 wt% of copper heat stabilizer which falls within the scope of the instantly claimed first and second stabilizers containing copper-based compounds because the instant claims do not require the copper-based compounds to be different, and 35 wt% of glass fibers.
0.60 of copper heat stabilizer compounds up to 1 wt% thereof of the instant claims 21-22 within the decimal accuracy and precision of 1 wt% of the instant claims 21-22.
See Sparks, Table 1, Example 1.
The polyamides of the prior art are those of the instant claims and are therefore expected to necessarily and inherently give the properties of the instant claim 17. See MPEP 2112.
The polyamide compositions of the prior art contain the instantly claimed ingredients and amounts thereof and are therefore expected to necessarily and inherently give the properties of the instant claims 23-25. See MPEP 2112.
The panels made from the exemplified composition discussed above fall within the scope of the instant claim 26 because panels can be used as some of the articles claimed therein.
Sparks does not specify the polyamides of the instant claims 2-5, 7-9, and 14-16 in their exemplified compositions discussed above. Sparks discloses compositions containing any number of known polyamides at paragraph [0035] and paragraphs [0030]-[0048].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the instantly claimed invention to use the instantly claimed polyamide combinations and amounts because they are encompassed by Sparks, the polyamide nomenclature of the instant claims shows that they are known polyamides, and the combinations of known polyamides and amounts thereof would have been expected to give only predictable results to the ordinary skilled artisan. Therefore, the instant claims 2-5, 7-9, and 14-16 are obvious over Sparks.
Sparks discloses the compounds of the instant claims 10-12.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the instantly claimed invention to use the instantly claimed compounds of the instant claims 10-12 in the above discussed exemplified compositions of Sparks because they are disclosed by Sparks and would have been expected to contribute their stabilization to the compositions of Sparks.
Conclusion
7. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PATRICK D NILAND whose telephone number is (571)272-1121. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday to Friday from 10 to 5.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Robert S Jones, can be reached at telephone number 571-270-7733. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/PATRICK D NILAND/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1762
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