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 .
Response to Amendment
Claims 1-15 are cancelled. Claims 16, 20 and 30 are amended. Claim 31 is newly added. Claims 16-31 are presently examined.
Applicant’s arguments regarding the rejections under 35 USC 103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. The rejections of 12/29/2025 are overcome.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because they do not use the abbreviation “FIG.” as required by 37 CFR 1.84(u)(1) when multiple views are present. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 16-31 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding claims 16 and 30, the claim requires the vibratable transducer configured to aerosolize a liquid aerosol forming substrate. However, the claim also requires the aerosol generation zone to be at the membrane that is coupled to the transducer. It is therefore unclear whether the vibratable transducer by itself is configured to aerosolize a liquid aerosol forming substrate. For the purposes of this Office action, the limitation will be interpreted as if it did not require the vibratable transducer to be configured to aerosolize a liquid aerosol forming substrate.
The claim requires two actuators to be arranged circumferentially relative to each other. It is unclear what structure is required by the limitation “arranged circumferentially.” Does this mean that the actuators are stacked and have the same circumference, that one of the actuators is located inside the other such that their circumferences are in contact, or some other arrangement? The claim is therefore indefinite. For the purposes of this Office action, the limitation will be interpreted as if it required the actuators to have the same circumference and be stacked relative to each other. Claims 17-20, 24-29 and 31 are indefinite by dependence.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 16 and 30 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action. Claims 17-20, 24-29 and 31 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Humberstone (US 5,518,179) teaches a droplet dispensing apparatus having a perforate membrane (figure 1, reference numeral 5) that is vibrated by an actuator (column 7, lines 28-38, figure 1, reference numeral 7). However, Humberstone does not teach or suggest the perforate membrane being encircled by two annular actuators.
Gallem (US 2015/0034075) teaches an aerosol generator having a first casing part (figure 4, reference numeral 101) and a second casing part ([0026] figure 4, reference numeral 104), which together are considered to meet the claim limitation of an elongate housing, that contains aerosol generating means within it ([0025], figure 4, reference numeral 1), which is considered to meet the claim limitation of an aerosolization module. The two casing parts are separated at a separation point so that the aerosol generator can be inserted [0026], indicating that the aerosolization module is detachable. The aerosol generating means has an oscillation generator (figure 3, reference numeral 3) and a membrane ([0023], figure 3, reference numeral 3) that is caused to oscillate to generate an aerosol [0019]. Spring electrical contacts are in contact with both the membrane (figure 3, reference numeral 10a) and the oscillation generator ([0023], reference numeral 10b). However, Gallem does not teach or suggest a membrane that is encircled by two oscillation generators, and it is not clear how such an arrangement would also have a contact spring in contact with the membrane.
Miller (US 11,617,840) teaches an apparatus including at least one nebulizer having a perforated plate (figure 2B, reference numeral 210) that is vibrated by a top piezoelectric material (figure 2B, reference numeral 220a) and a bottom piezoelectric material that sandwich the plate (column 5, lines 41-48, figure 2B, reference numeral 220b). However, Miller does not teach or suggest the membrane having an electrically conductive contact.
The prior art does not teach or suggest a vibratable transducer configured to aerosolize a liquid aerosol-forming substrate, one or more electrically conductive contacts in electrical communication with the vibratable transducer, wherein the one or more electrically conductive contacts are configured for detachable electrical connection with corresponding electrically conductive contacts of the elongate housing, and a membrane comprising an aerosol generation zone, the vibratable transducer being operably coupled to the membrane so as to, in use, vibrate the membrane, wherein the membrane is formed of an electrically conductive material, and a portion of the membrane forms at least one of the one or more electrically conductive contacts of the aerosolization module, wherein the elongate housing is configured to detachably receive the aerosolization module so as to establish a detachable electrical connection between the corresponding electrically conductive contacts of the elongate housing and the aerosolization module such that the elongate housing is electrically coupled to the vibratable transducer, wherein a sidewall of the elongate housing comprises an aperture, the aperture defining an access opening to a cavity extending within the elongate housing, the one or more electrically conductive contacts of the elongate housing being located in the cavity, wherein the corresponding electrically conductive contacts of the elongate housing and the aerosolization module are configured such that insertion of the aerosolization module into the cavity results in electrical connection between the corresponding contacts of the elongate housing and the aerosolization module and wherein the vibratable transducer comprises an annular actuator assembly coupled to a surface of the membrane to encircle the aerosol generation zone, the annular actuator assembly comprising two or more actuators arranged circumferentially relative to each other to define an annulus encircling the aerosol generation zone.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to RUSSELL E SPARKS whose telephone number is (571)270-1426. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 9:00 am-5 pm.
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/RUSSELL E SPARKS/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1755
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