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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Response to Amendment
Applicant's preliminary amendment filed on 2/28/2024 has been entered [p. 14: “By this paper, the Abstract and Specification have been amended. Claims 1-9 are cancelled. Claims 10-15 are new. No new matter has been entered as a result of the amendments.”]. However, the amendment to the specification has introduced an objection, see below.
Claims 10-15 are pending in this application, with claims 10-11 being independent.
Specification
The amendment filed 2/28/2024 is objected to under 35 U.S.C. 132(a) because it introduces new matter into the disclosure. 35 U.S.C. 132(a) states that no amendment shall introduce new matter into the disclosure of the invention. The added material which is not supported by the original disclosure is as follows: The incorporation by reference of International Patent Application No. PCT/BR2022/050191, Brazilian Application No. 1020220085099, and Brazilian Application No. 1020210109319 is ineffective as it was added on the date of entry into the national phase, which is after the filing date of the instant application. The filing date of this national stage application is the filing date of the associated PCT, in this case 6/1/2022, see MPEP 1893.03(b). Therefore the specification amendment of 12/1/2023 to include the incorporation by reference is new matter, per MPEP 608.01(p). For the purposes of this office action, Examiner will interpret the disclosure as reciting “This application claims priority to PCT Application No. PCT/BR2022/050191, having a filing date of June 01, 2022, which is based on Brazilian Application No. 1020220085099, having a filing date of May 3, 2022, and Brazilian Application No. 1020210109319, having a filing date of June 4, 2021[[, the entire contents all of which are hereby incorporated by reference]].” in para. 0001. Applicant is required to cancel the new matter in the reply to this Office Action.
Furthermore, although it is conventional in the art to follow known industry standards so as to satisfy operational and/or regulatory requirements, the listing of references in the specification [para. 0023: “…These conditions are described in standards such as EN 13432 (European industrial composting standard for plastic packaging) or ASTM D6400 (North American standard)…”] is not a proper information disclosure statement. 37 CFR 1.98(b) requires a list of all patents, publications, or other information submitted for consideration by the Office, and MPEP § 609.04(a) states, "the list may not be incorporated into the specification but must be submitted in a separate paper." Therefore, unless the references have been cited by the examiner on form PTO-892, they have not been considered.
Claim Objections
Claim 10 is objected to because of the following informalities: “structureand” in line 15 should be “structure and”. Appropriate correction is required.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they do not include the following reference sign mentioned in the description: filter mouth 09 [para. 0033]. 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. 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.
Claims 10-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
Claim 10:
the recitation of limitation “a second state” in line 14 renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear if this is intended to be distinct from “a second state” recited in line 11. Line 14 will be interpreted as reciting “[[a]]the second state”
the limitation “the product” lack sufficient antecedent basis, which renders the claim indefinite. The claim will be interpreted as reciting “[[the]]a product”
Claim 11:
the recitation of limitation “a second state” in line 14 renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear if this is intended to be distinct from “a second state” recited in line 11. Line 14 will be interpreted as reciting “[[a]]the second state”
the limitation “the straining and beverage preparation process” lacks sufficient antecedent basis, which renders the claim indefinite. The claim will be interpreted as reciting “[[the]]a straining and beverage preparation process”
Claim 12:
the recitation of “a support handle” renders the claim indefinite because although para. 0030 recites “a support handle 04 with a domed region 04a” [see figs. 5-9], para. 0029 also recites “The supporting tab 04 can be made of cardboard, covered with PLA laminate”], thus it is unclear if “a support handle” is intended to be distinct from the “one or more supporting tabs”. The claim will be interpreted as reciting “…the single-serve sachet according to claim 10, wherein [[a support handle]]the one or more supporting tabs being made of recyclable cardboard, with polylactic acid lamination”
Claim 13:
the x2 recitations of limitation “the device” lack sufficient antecedent basis, which renders the claim indefinite. The claim will be interpreted as reciting “the [[device]]filter bag” since claim 1 recites “one or more supporting tabs being welded in a central region of the filter bag”
the recitation of “a receptacle” renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear if this is intended to be distinct from the receptacle recited in claim 10. The claim will be interpreted as reciting “[[a]]the receptacle”.
Claim 15:
the recitation of “wherein the single-serve sachet is used to prepare coffee or tea” renders the claim indefinite because the limitation is not directed towards the sachet or towards additional limitations which focus on the capabilities of the sachet, but to the specific action of using the sachet to prepare coffee or tea, i.e., it is unclear if a sachet that meets claim 1 (which recites the sachet is “for preparing beverages”), but is instead used to prepare a different food product [e.g., filter used cooking oil, clarify stocks/broths, strain citrus juice, herbal medicine] is to be considered infringing on claim 15 or not [see MPEP 2173.05(p)(II)].
Claims 12-15 are also rejected due to dependence on a rejected claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 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, 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.
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.
Claim 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Saitoh (US 20160318705 A1).
Regarding claim 11,
Saitoh discloses:
A single-serve filter sachet for preparing beverages [fig. 1A, fig. 3A; para. 0001: “The present invention relates to a drip bag which is hooked on the upper portion of a container such as cups, thereby allowing an extract such as coffee, tea, green tea, or Chinese herbal medicine to be readily provided by a drip method.”] comprising:
a filter bag [fig. 1A: bag body 2] comprising a cutting line in an upper part [fig. 1A: guide line 4; para. 0056: “In a method for using the drip bag 1A, the upper end of the bag body 2 is first cut away along the opening guide line 4 such as perforations to thereby open the bag body 2.”];
one or more supporting tabs [i.e., hook members 10; para. 0010: “…That is, the present invention provides a drip bag which has a bag body formed of a water permeable filtering sheet and having an upper end to be opened, and hook members formed of a thin plate-shaped material and provided on outer faces of two opposing surfaces of the bag body.”] being welded in a central region of the filter bag [see fig. 1A/3A, and fig. 5 showing a drip bag sheet used to manufacture the drip bag, the paper supporting tabs being heat sealed/adhered to a central region of the drip bag; para. 0043: “Here, the hook members 10 of the drip bag 1A are formed by punching a thin plate-shaped material such as a paper plate or a plastic sheet and then adhered to the bag body 2. In FIG. 1A, the areas shaded by fine dots are formed in such a manner that part or the entirety of the hook member 10 on the shaded areas is adhered to the outer face of the bag body 2 by heat sealing or adhesion and thus cannot be pulled off from the face of the bag body 2.”; welding of paper products being a conventional technique known in the art, para. 0062], the one or more supporting tabs further comprising [para. 0044: “…the hook member 10 including: an upper stuck part 12 to be adhered to the bag body 2 along the opening 3 of the bag body 2; a center part which is located below the upper stuck part 12 at the center in the width direction of the bag body 2 and formed so as not to be pulled out from the bag body 2; and the hook part 11 which is not adhered to the bag body 2…”]
a connecting frame [upper stuck part 12, first center stuck part 13, reinforcement parts 16],
an internal supporting structure [arm parts 14] and
an external supporting structure [hook parts 11],
the connecting frame being a thin upper edge [i.e., upper stuck part 12] and sides [reinforcement parts 16] of the one or more supporting tabs, and is a part that is welded, by means of paper welding [i.e., the conventional practice of adhering paper products together by, e.g., heat sealing, ultrasound], to the filter bag;
wherein the one or more supporting tabs are foldable, so that the one or more supporting start from
a first state in which the connecting frame, the internal supporting structure and the external supporting structure fit together in a juxtaposed manner when in a same plane [see figs. 1A and 5] and are folded to
a second state wherein the internal supporting structure detaches from the connecting frame and the external supporting structure detaches from the internal supporting structure, to form three non-parallel hollow planes joined when preparation of the beverage is desired [see figs. 3A/3B],
the sachet is taken to a second state through an opening of the filter bag by breaking the cutting line [para. 0042: “FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the state in which the upper end of the drip bag 1A is removed and opened along the opening guide line 4, and then hook parts 11 of the hook members 10 are being pulled out from the bag body 2.”],
forming a filter mouth [fig. 2: opening 3] and
the internal supporting structure and the external supporting structure of the one or more supporting tabs, previously coplanar, are folded so that three hollow planes are formed, joined in an 'N'-shaped lateral profile on each side [see fig. 3A, showing an N shape of the hook members],
wherein the connecting frame remains flush with the filter bag [see fig. 3A],
the internal supporting structure forms a tongue that presses the internal part of a receptacle and secures the filter bag by means of the weld that joins the two [see fig. 3A, showing arm part 14 as a tongue that presses on an internal part of receptacle cup 200],
while the external supporting structure presses the external part of the receptacle, in a neck region, forming a support for the filter bag, with the filter bag suspended under the receptacle, wherein the filter bag can receive hot water or other liquid for the straining and beverage preparation process [see fig. 3A, showing hook parts 11 pressing on the eternal neck region of the cup, forming a support for the filter bag, suspending the filter bag under a lip of the cup, so as to allow receiving of liquid];
wherein the filter bag
being made of biocompostable material, the biocompostable material being poly lactic acid [para. 0054: “Furthermore, from the view point of disposal of drip bags after use, it is preferable for the water permeable filtering sheet material and the thin plate-shaped material to contain biodegradable fiber. Biodegradable fibers may include polylactic acid, polybutylene succinate, and polyethylene succinate.”]
with a grammage between 27g/m2 and 50g/m2 [Although Saitoh does not explicitly disclose a weight/grammage of each filter bag, fig. 5 shows each filter bag having a predetermined size, and thus weight, and given the typical sizes of conventional cups and given the known grammage of conventional materials used in the art, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the claimed invention was made to select a size of each filter bag such that each bag has a grammage between 27g/m2 and 50g/m2, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art [e.g., sizing the filters so as to: fit in differently sized/shaped cups (see fig. 4A: cup 200a, and para. 0060), accommodate different extraction times for coffee/tea/medicine (para. 0001), manage manufacturing costs (para. 0004: “Among other things, now available is a drip bag in a simple structure that can be manufactured at low costs.”), discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only ordinary skill in the art [see MPEP 2144.05(II)(B)],
whose biodegradation is aerobic by microorganisms [Examiner notes that this seems to be a recitation of known feature of conventional biodegradable/compostable (i.e., “biocompostable”) material, and thus is not being given patentable weight]; and
wherein a supporting tab [see figs. 15-17, showing a supporting tab for a drip bag 1D] has a domed region [see figs. 15-17, showing a domed shape reinforcement part 16] so that, in the first state, the sachet is closed, with a product for preparing the beverage inside the filter bag and the sachet is in a flattened form; the connecting frame, the internal supporting structure and the external supporting structure are in the same plane juxtaposed, fixed by the connecting frame flush with a lateral surface of the filter bag and the domed region increases a welding area of the supporting tab, reducing a filtering area and increasing a time of the straining process [i.e., the supporting tab, formed of impermeable plastic, reducing a filtering area and increasing a welding area corresponding to the size of the portion of the supporting tab adhered to the filter bag].
Claims 10, 13-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Saitoh (US 20160318705 A1) in view of Biesheuvel (US 20200140188 A1).
Regarding claim 10,
Saitoh discloses:
A single-serve filter sachet for preparing beverages [fig. 1A, fig. 3A; para. 0001: “The present invention relates to a drip bag which is hooked on the upper portion of a container such as cups, thereby allowing an extract such as coffee, tea, green tea, or Chinese herbal medicine to be readily provided by a drip method.”], comprising:
a filter bag [fig. 1A: bag body 2] comprising a cutting line in an upper part [fig. 1A: guide line 4; para. 0056: “In a method for using the drip bag 1A, the upper end of the bag body 2 is first cut away along the opening guide line 4 such as perforations to thereby open the bag body 2.”];
one or more supporting tabs [i.e., hook members 10; para. 0010: “…That is, the present invention provides a drip bag which has a bag body formed of a water permeable filtering sheet and having an upper end to be opened, and hook members formed of a thin plate-shaped material and provided on outer faces of two opposing surfaces of the bag body.”] being welded in a central region of the filter bag [see fig. 1A/3A, and fig. 5 showing a drip bag sheet used to manufacture the drip bag, the paper supporting tabs being heat sealed/adhered to a central region of the drip bag; para. 0043: “Here, the hook members 10 of the drip bag 1A are formed by punching a thin plate-shaped material such as a paper plate or a plastic sheet and then adhered to the bag body 2. In FIG. 1A, the areas shaded by fine dots are formed in such a manner that part or the entirety of the hook member 10 on the shaded areas is adhered to the outer face of the bag body 2 by heat sealing or adhesion and thus cannot be pulled off from the face of the bag body 2.”; welding of paper products being a conventional technique known in the art, para. 0062], wherein the one or more supporting tabs further comprise [para. 0044: “…the hook member 10 including: an upper stuck part 12 to be adhered to the bag body 2 along the opening 3 of the bag body 2; a center part which is located below the upper stuck part 12 at the center in the width direction of the bag body 2 and formed so as not to be pulled out from the bag body 2; and the hook part 11 which is not adhered to the bag body 2…”]
a connecting frame [upper stuck part 12, first center stuck part 13, reinforcement parts 16],
an internal supporting structure [arm parts 14], and
an external supporting structure [hook parts 11],
the connecting frame being a thin upper edge [i.e., upper stuck part 12] and sides [reinforcement parts 16] of the one or more supporting tabs, and is a part that is welded, by means of paper welding [i.e., the conventional practice of adhering paper products together by, e.g., heat sealing, ultrasound], to the filter bag;
wherein the one or more supporting tabs are foldable, so that the one or more supporting tabs start from
a first state in which the connecting frame, the internal supporting structure, and the external supporting structure fit together in a juxtaposed manner when in a same plane [see figs. 1A and 5] and are folded to
a second state wherein the internal supporting structure detaches from the connecting frame and the external supporting structure detaches from the internal structure, to form three nonparallel hollow planes joined when preparation of the beverage is desired [see figs. 3A/3B],
wherein the sachet is taken to a second state through an opening of the filter bag by breaking the cutting line [para. 0042: “FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the state in which the upper end of the drip bag 1A is removed and opened along the opening guide line 4, and then hook parts 11 of the hook members 10 are being pulled out from the bag body 2.”],
forming a filter mouth [fig. 2: opening 3] and
the internal supporting structure and the external supporting structure of the one or more supporting tabs, previously coplanar, are folded so that three hollow planes are formed, joined in an 'N'-shaped lateral profile on each side [see fig. 3A, showing an N shape of the hook members],
wherein the connecting frame remains flush with the filter bag [see fig. 3A],
the internal supporting structure forms a tongue that presses the internal part of a receptacle and secures the filter bag by means of the weld that joins the two [see fig. 3A, showing arm part 14 as a tongue that presses on an internal part of receptacle cup 200],
while the external supporting structure presses the external part of the receptacle, in a neck region, forming a support for the filter bag, with the filter bag suspended under the receptacle, wherein the filter bag can receive hot water or other liquid for a straining and beverage preparation process [see fig. 3A, showing hook parts 11 pressing on the eternal neck region of the cup, forming a support for the filter bag, suspending the filter bag under a lip of the cup, so as to allow receiving of liquid];
wherein the filter bag
is made of biocompostable material, the biocompostable material being polylactic acid [para. 0054: “Furthermore, from the view point of disposal of drip bags after use, it is preferable for the water permeable filtering sheet material and the thin plate-shaped material to contain biodegradable fiber. Biodegradable fibers may include polylactic acid, polybutylene succinate, and polyethylene succinate.”]
with a grammage between 27g/m2 and 50g/m2 [Although Saitoh does not explicitly disclose a weight/grammage of each filter bag, fig. 5 shows each filter bag having a predetermined size, and thus weight, and given the typical sizes of conventional cups and given the known grammage of conventional materials used in the art, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the claimed invention was made to select a size of each filter bag such that each bag has a grammage between 27g/m2 and 50g/m2, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art [e.g., sizing the filters so as to: fit in differently sized/shaped cups (see fig. 4A: cup 200a, and para. 0060), accommodate different extraction times for coffee/tea/medicine (para. 0001), manage manufacturing costs (para. 0004: “Among other things, now available is a drip bag in a simple structure that can be manufactured at low costs.”), discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only ordinary skill in the art [see MPEP 2144.05(II)(B)],
whose biodegradation is aerobic by microorganisms [Examiner notes that this seems to be a recitation of known feature of conventional biodegradable/compostable (i.e., “biocompostable”) material, and thus is not being given patentable weight];
wherein the sachet additionally comprises retardant structures [i.e., the parts of hook member 10 that are adhered to the filter bag: upper stuck part 12, first center stuck part 13, reinforcement parts 16] so that, in the first state, the sachet is closed, with the product for preparing the beverage inside the filter bag and the sachet is in a flat shape; the connecting frame, the internal supporting structure and the external supporting structure are in the same plane juxtaposed, fixed by the connecting frame flush with a lateral surface of the filter bag and the retardant structures [see fig. 1A and para. 0013], [Saitoh discloses that the hook member 10 may be made of plastic material, plastic being impermeable to water, and thus reducing the filtering area, and increasing a time of the straining process].
However, although Saitoh at least discloses/suggests different beverages requiring different straining times [e.g., coffee vs. tea, or wherein tea/coffee is brewed to different strengths], Saitoh does not explicitly disclose attaching retardant structures to the bottom of the filter bag.
Biesheuvel, in the same field of endeavor [controlling fluid flow in a beverage preparation process, and materials/features of a filter bag/pouch; para. 0001: “The invention relates to a flexible pouch-like coffee pad having an improved homogeneous flow resistance, and to a method of preparing a beverage using such a pad.”], teaches a retardant structure attached to a bottom of an inlet sheet filter [i.e., exit filter; para. 0007: “The exit filter has a second fluid flow resistance that exceeds the first fluid flow resistance.”; para. 0008: “Optionally, the inlet sheet and the exit filter are connected to one another to form connected sheets defining an interior space in which the bed of coffee particles is enclosed.”] formed of environmentally sustainable paper material [para. 0041: “With the invention as described above it is possible to create a restriction with environmentally sustainable paper material, which creates a fluid flow restriction with the aid of filter restriction in the paper, and additionally increased restriction partly obtained by interaction of the paper material and the coffee particles.”; and paras. 0022-23: “…at least one of the first sheet and the second sheet can be made of a non-woven filter material. This non-woven filter material can be filtering paper…”].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the sachet of Saitoh to further control a straining process, wherein additional retardant structures are attached to a bottom of the filter bag, since Biesheuvel teaches “A benefit is that the fluid flow resistance at the downstream exit of a pad can thereby be increased without substantially varying the actual fluid flow resistance of an exit sheet or filter itself, while interactions causing the additional flow resistance are only generated when necessary, namely during use.” [para. 0007].
Regarding claim 13, Saitoh in view of Biesheuvel the single-serve sachet according to claim 10.
Saitoh further discloses:
wherein the one or more supporting tabs being fixed to a side of the device at various heights compatible with a receptacle that secures the device.
In this case, although Saitoh does not explicitly disclose a specific height or heights when attaching the supporting tabs to the filter bag, fig. 5 shows each filter bag attached at a predetermined height, and given the typical varying sizes of conventional cups, wherein Saitoh discloses the sachet configured so as to accommodate at least two different sized cups 200/200a, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the claimed invention was made to select a particular height of attaching the supporting tabs, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only ordinary skill in the art [see MPEP 2144.05(II)(B)].
Regarding claim 14, Saitoh in view of Biesheuvel the single-serve sachet according to claim 10.
Saitoh further discloses:
wherein the one or more supporting tabs having sizes between 36mm x 45mm and 51mm x 46mm, in order to be packaged in different receptacles.
In this case, although Saitoh does not explicitly disclose a specific size or sizes of the supporting, given the typical varying sizes of conventional cups, wherein Saitoh discloses the sachet configured so as to accommodate at least two different sized cups 200/200a, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the claimed invention was made to select a particular size of the supporting tabs, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only ordinary skill in the art [see MPEP 2144.05(II)(B)].
Regarding claim 15, Saitoh in view of Biesheuvel the single-serve sachet according to claim 10.
Saitoh further discloses:
wherein the single-serve sachet is used to prepare coffee or tea [para. 0001].
Claim 12 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Saitoh (US 20160318705 A1) in view of Biesheuvel (US 20200140188 A1) as applied to claim 10 above, and further in view of Takemoto (US 20140262049 A1).
Regarding claim 12, Saitoh in view of Biesheuvel the single-serve sachet according to claim 10.
However, although Saitoh discloses a support handle/the hook members [e.g., see figs. 15-17, showing a domed shape reinforcement part 16 as a support handle] may be made of a paper plate, the paper plate containing polylactic acid [para. 0054], and both Saitoh [para. 0054] and Biesheuvel [para. 0041] describe environmentally friendly features/motivations , Saitoh as modified by Biesheuvel does not explicitly disclose:
wherein a support handle being made of recyclable cardboard, with polylactic acid lamination.
Takemoto, in the same field of endeavor [B65D85/812], teaches PLA laminated paperboard/cardboard as a known material [para. 0067: “Note that the water filter sheet, the tag, and the thread material, which are the same as those in the conventional case, may be used when the thread material cutting device is incorporated into the extraction bag sheet manufacturing apparatus. However, in the viewpoint of enhancing the significance of the effect of the present invention in particular, it is preferable to use fabrics or nonwoven fabrics which are formed from biodegradable plastics, such as polylactic acid (PLA) and polybutylene succinate (PBS), with a weight basis of 10 to 30 g/m.sup.2, as the water filter sheet, it is preferably to use a paperboard laminated with biodegradable plastics, such as polylactic acid (PLA) and polybutylene succinate (PBS), as the tag, and it is preferable to use a thread made from biodegradable plastics, such as polylactic acid (PLA) and polybutylene succinate (PBS), and/or a thread formed by properly mixing a biodegradable plastic and cotton, as the thread material.”].
Therefore, it would have been obvious/obvious to try to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the sachet of Saitoh by including a support handle being made of recyclable cardboard, with polylactic acid lamination, since Takemoto teaches this as a preferred material [para. 0067].
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THEODORE J EVANGELISTA whose telephone number is (571)272-6093. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday, 9am - 5pm EST.
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/THEODORE J EVANGELISTA/Examiner, Art Unit 3761
/JIMMY CHOU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3761
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