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 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. (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. Claim s 1 , 3, and 4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(1) as being anticipated by Nagaoka (WO 2013/073579) . With respect to claim 1, Nagaoka discloses a resin sheet and molded vessel formed from a multilayered sheet wherein the outer layers (both most interior and most exterior) include a styrene-based resin but not a UV absorber (abstract). Table 1 includes Example 5 which includes outer layers ( ) prepared solely from 100 wt % of GPPS resin (see page 12 of original document). GPPS resin is Toyo Styrol G200C (paragraph 0028), which is the same as exemplified by Applicant in the specification as Example 10 (paragraph 0069; page 30, Table 1, Example 10). It is the examiner’s position that the container of Nagaoka exemplified in Example 5 inherently has the zeta-potential and surface free energy like claimed because such a property is evidently dependent upon the nature of the composition used. Case law holds that a material and its properties are inseparable. In re Spada , 911 F.2d 705, 709, 15 USPQ2d 1655, 1658 (Fed. Cir. 1990). With respect to claims 3 and 4, in Example 1, a vessel is made prepared with a multilayered sheet having an inner layer containing 0.3 phr UV stabilizer and 100 phr polystyrene resin. While the UV stabilizer is only in the inner layer, the instant claims allow for the addition of UV stabilizer in parts of the vessel other than the inner wall. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 /103 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 of this title, 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. Clai m s 1-4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102( a)(1 ) as anticipated by or, in the alternative, under 35 U.S.C. 103 as obvious over Sawaguchi (WO 2020/026926 – all citations below are to the English-language equivalent of WO ‘926, i.e., US 2021/0260297) . With respect to claims 1 and 2, Sawaguchi discloses a syringe (i.e., a vessel including a barrel that is an accommodating member for a plunger), where the barrel is formed of a resin containing a hydrogenated cycloolefin ring-opened polymer and/or a copolymer of a cycloolefin and a chain olefin (abstract). Exemplified Copolymer B is a copolymer of a cycloolefin and a chain olefin (paragraphs 0168-0169). Specifically, this is a copolymer of norbornene and ethylene having a Tg of 138°C, M w of 96000, and Mw/Mn of 2.4 (paragraph 0170). It is the examiner’s position that this exemplified Copolymer B is substantially similar to one exemplified by Applicant. When compared to a copolymer in Applicant’s specification as originally filed, a copolymer of cycloolefin and chain olefin is used which is a copolymer of norbornene and ethylene having a Tg of 138°C, Mw of 95,000, and Mw/Mn of 2.4 (Example 8, paragraphs 0067-0068 ). Tg is directly related to comonomer composition based on the Fox Equation which provides for a weight ratio of 90:10 of norbornene to ethylene. Because propert ies are evidently dependent upon the nature of the composition used , a molded syringe from the norbornene-ethylene copolymer inherently has claimed zeta-potential and surface free energy when formed into a syringe . Case law holds that a material and its properties are inseparable. In re Spada , 911 F.2d 705, 709, 15 USPQ2d 1655, 1658 (Fed. Cir. 1990). Alternatively, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to obtain the claimed zeta-potential and surface free energy properties because they comprise the same norbornene-ethylene copolymer and are used in the same syringe article which is in direct contact with protein solutions . With respect to claims 3 and 4, Sawaguchi teaches that Copolymer B is pelletized like Copolymer A (paragraph 0170), which includes 0.017 parts by weight of pentaerythritol tetrakis [3-(3,5-di-t-butyl-4-hydroxyphenyl)propionate] as an antioxidant per 100 parts by weight of the copolymer. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FILLIN "Examiner name" \* MERGEFORMAT VICKEY NERANGIS whose telephone number is FILLIN "Phone number" \* MERGEFORMAT (571)272-2701 . The examiner can normally be reached FILLIN "Work Schedule?" \* MERGEFORMAT 8:30 am - 5:00 pm EST, Monday - Friday . 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. 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If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /Vickey Nerangis/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1763 vn