Claims 1-14 are pending in this application.
DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
1 The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
2 This application contains the following inventions or groups of inventions which are not so linked as to form a single general inventive concept under PCT Rule 13.1.
In accordance with 37 CFR 1.499, applicant is required, in reply to this action, to elect a single invention to which the claims must be restricted.
This application contains the following inventions or groups of inventions which are not so linked as to form a single general inventive concept under PCT Rule 13.1.
In accordance with 37 CFR 1.499, applicant is required, in reply to this action, to elect a single invention to which the claims must be restricted.
Group I, claims 1-6 , drawn to a hydratable concentrated surfactant composition.
Group II, claims 7-14, drawn to a method for making a wash composition comprising the steps of combining a hydratable concentrated surfactant composition, agitating and/or shearing the mix and producing the wash composition.
The groups of inventions listed above do not relate to a single general inventive concept under PCT Rule 13.1 because, under PCT Rule 13.2, they lack the same or corresponding special technical features for the following reasons:
The claims lack unity of invention because even though the inventions of these groups require the technical feature of a composition of group I, this technical feature is not a special technical feature as it does not make a contribution over the prior art in view of Zhou et al. (WO 2019000394 A1). Zhou et al. (WO’ 394 A1) teaches a sulfate-free cleaning composition comprising anionic surfactant, amphoteric or zwitterionic surfactant, water and alkanolamine of fatty acids, fatty acid ester (see abstract and pages 16-17, Examples).
A telephone call was made to Edward A. Squillante on February 19, 2026 to request an oral election to the above restriction requirement. The applicant elected Group 1, claims 1-6. Election of claims 1-6 is acknowledged. Claims 7-14 are withdrawn from further consideration by the examiner, 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a non-elected invention. Therefore, claims 1-6 are pending in this application.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
3 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.
4 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.
Claims 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)1 as being anticipated by Zhou et al. (WO 2019000394 A1).
Zhou et al. (WO’ 394 A1) teaches a cleaning composition comprising anionic surfactants include sodium lauroyl sarcosinate, amphoteric surfactants include coco-betaine, amide derivatives include cocamide in the amounts of 3% and 2.5% by wt., water in an amount of 81.45% and glyceryl oleate (glyceryl mono ester) in the amount of 1% and 2.5 % as claimed in claim 1 (see pages 16-17, Examples D and F and claim 1), wherein the weight percentage of oxygen in glyceryl oleate (C21H40O4) = 64/356 x 100 = 17.98% which is within the claimed range as claimed in claim 1 and wherein the composition is free of oil and sulfate based surfactants as claimed in claim 1 (see pages 16-17, Examples D and F and claim 1), and wherein the composition also comprises anionic surfactants include acyl isethionates, acyl taurates and acyl glycinates as claimed in claims 2-5 (see claim 3). Zhou et al. (WO’ 394 A1) teaches all the limitations of the instant claims. Hence, Zhou et al. (WO’ 394 A1) anticipates the claims.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
5 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.
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhou et al. (WO 2019000394 A1) in view of Guskey et al. (US 2014/0121268 A1).
Zhou et al. (WO’ 394 A1) teaches a cleaning composition comprising anionic surfactant amphoteric surfactant, amide derivatives include cocamide in the amounts of 3% and 2.5% by wt., water in an amount of 81.45% and glyceryl oleate (glyceryl mono ester) in the amount of 1% and 2.5 % as claimed (see pages 16-17, Examples D and F and claim 1).
The instant claims differ from the teaching of Zhou et al. (WO’ 394 A1) by reciting a composition comprising a resorcinol and niacinamide as claimed in claim 6.
Guskey et al. (US’ 268 A1) in analogous art of cleaning formulation, teaches a cleaning composition comprising resorcinol and niacinamide as claimed in claim 6 (see page 4, paragraph, 0042).
Therefore, in view of the teaching of Guskey et al. (US’ 268 A1), it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to be motivated to modify the cleaning composition of Zhou et al. (WO’ 394 A1) by incorporating resorcinol and niacinamide as taught by Guskey et al. (US’ 268 A1) to arrive at the claimed invention. Such a modification would be obvious because the person of the ordinary skill in the art would expect that the use of resorcinol and niacinamide as taught by Guskey et al. (US’ 268 A1) would be similarly useful and applicable to the analogous cleaning composition taught by Zhou et al. (WO’ 394 A1), absent unexpected result.
Conclusion
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/EISA B ELHILO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1761
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