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 .
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.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Claim Objections
Claim 5 is objected to because of the following informalities: the claim contains typographical errors. The limitation “concentration of polynucleotide” should recite “concentration of the polynucleotide” and the limitation "about 0.1 m/gmL" should recite "0.1 g/mL".
Appropriate correction is required.
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 2, 5, 7, 11-12, and 15 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 Claim 2, the limitation “a change in dielectric permittivity of the biosensing module due to degradation of the biosensing module” fails to further limit the recited limitation “change in dielectric permittivity of the biosensing module” in Claim 1. A degradation of a biosensing module would inherently result in a change in dielectric permittivity of the biosensing module and therefore, there is no further limitation provided to the system.
Regarding Claim 5, the limitation “about” is a relative term that makes the claim indefinite. The examiner notes that the specification fails to provide a range or interpretation for the term "about" and therefore an appropriate interpretation of the relative term is not clear.
Regarding Claim 7, the limitation “about” is a relative term that makes the claim indefinite. The examiner notes that the specification fails to provide a range or interpretation for the term "about" and therefore an appropriate interpretation of the relative term is not clear.
Regarding Claim 11, the limitation “about” is a relative term that makes the claim indefinite. The examiner notes that the specification fails to provide a range or interpretation for the term "about" and therefore an appropriate interpretation of the relative term is not clear.
Regarding Claim 12, the limitation “about” is a relative term that makes the claim indefinite. The examiner notes that the specification fails to provide a range or interpretation for the term "about" and therefore an appropriate interpretation of the relative term is not clear.
Regarding Claim 15, the limitation “about” is a relative term that makes the claim indefinite. The examiner notes that the specification fails to provide a range or interpretation for the term "about" and therefore an appropriate interpretation of the relative term is not clear.
Claims not explicitly rejected above are rejected due to their dependence on the above claims.
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.
Claims 1-2, 9-13, 16, and 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by O'Mahony et. al.'571 (U.S. Patent Publication 20190365571).
Regarding Claim 1, O'Mahony et. al.'571 discloses system for monitoring a bacterial infection at a wound site (Paragraph [0040] - Alternatively, the wound data comprises bacterial data), comprising:
a biosensing module that is configured to be in contact with the wound site, the biosensing module being configured to output a signal indicative of presence of at least one biomolecule released by bacterial cells at the wound site (Paragraph [0036] - communicating the detected wound data via an electronic circuit in the dressing system to a base station; Paragraph [0037] displaying the data at the base station or associated handheld device);
readout circuitry coupled to the biosensing module for wirelessly transmitting the signal to an external device (Paragraph [0099] - More particularly, data can be transferred to the downloaded app on a handheld device to provide clinicians with continuous data for monitoring and analysis of wounds);
wherein the signal is produced by a change in dielectric permittivity of the biosensing module (Paragraph [0049] - A primary wicking or absorbent pad provides a rapid capillary action response to quickly distribute absorbed exudate throughout the dressing and create a sustained movement of fluid away from wound beds; Paragraph [0075] - Since the relative dielectric permittivity of the pores in the foam will vary from approximately 1 (when dry and air filled) to approximately 80 (when exudate saturated), the capacitance between the electrodes will vary accordingly).
Regarding Claim 2, O'Mahony et. al.'571 discloses the system outlined in Claim 1 above. As addressed above, O’Mahony et. al.’571 discloses changes in dielectric permittivity (Paragraph [0049] - A primary wicking or absorbent pad provides a rapid capillary action response to quickly distribute absorbed exudate throughout the dressing and create a sustained movement of fluid away from wound beds; Paragraph [0075] - Since the relative dielectric permittivity of the pores in the foam will vary from approximately 1 (when dry and air filled) to approximately 80 (when exudate saturated), the capacitance between the electrodes will vary accordingly). It is to be noted that degradation of a biosensing module would result in an observed change in dielectric permittivity of the biosensing module.
Regarding Claims 16 and 20, the sections of O'Mahony et. al.'571 cited above disclose methods comprising the elements set forth in the claims.
Regarding Claim 9, O'Mahony et. al.'571 discloses the system outlined in Claim 1 above as well as wherein the at least one biomolecule is capable of being a nuclease (Paragraph [0087] - Moreover, the primary absorbent pad 2 achieves a rapid capillary action response to quickly distribute absorbed exudate throughout the dressing 1 and create a sustained movement of exudate away from the wound bed. If desired, anti-bacterial silver nanoparticles can be incorporated into the primary absorbent pad 2).
Regarding Claim 10, O'Mahony et. al.'571 discloses the system outlined in Claim 1 above as well as wherein the signal indicative of presence of at least one biomolecule released by bacterial cells at the wound site is a change in a dielectric permittivity of the biosensing module of about 0.1 F/m to about 20 F/m (Paragraph [0075] - Since the relative dielectric permittivity of the pores in the foam will vary from approximately 1 (when dry and air filled) to approximately 80 (when exudate saturated), the capacitance between the electrodes will vary accordingly, i.e. a desired moist condition can be defined as a range of capacitance located between a high and a low value).
Regarding Claim 11, O'Mahony et. al.'571 discloses the system outlined in Claim 1 above as well as the biosensing module comprises a capacitive sensor for converting the change in dielectric permittivity into a change in capacitance, wherein the capacitive sensor comprises interdigitated electrodes having an inter-electrode spacing between about 30 pm and about 400 pm (Paragraph [0075] - A suitable moisture detecting capacitance sensor 23 consists of a pair of planar electrodes, typically arranged in an interdigitated pattern and covered with a material to prevent an electrical short circuit).
Regarding Claim 12, O'Mahony et. al.'571 discloses the system outlined in Claim 1 above as well as the capacitance is of about 0.4 pF to about 2.5 pF (Paragraph [0072] - the sensor is a capacitive moisture sensor, the capacitance of which varies from a low value for a dry pad (e.g. 0.2 pF) to a high value for a wet pad (e.g. 200 pF)).
Regarding Claim 13, O'Mahony et. al.'571 discloses the system outlined in Claim 1 above as well as the change in capacitance is convertible into a change in voltage (Paragraph [0018] - [0018] - Preferably, the moisture sensor comprises an impedance sensor, capacitance sensor, resistance sensor or strain sensor). It is noted by the examiner that one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed would understand that readings of capacity and impedance are “convertible” to voltage.
Regarding Claim 19, O'Mahony et. al.'571 discloses the system outlined in Claim 1 above as well as the step of fabricating the biosensing module further comprises adhering a protection layer in between the hydrogel and interdigitated electrodes (Paragraph [0064] - an optional secondary polymeric foam absorption pad 3 having a flexible wound monitoring electronic circuit 4 printed thereon and an adhesive backing film 5 attached to the secondary absorption pad 3; Paragraph [0065] - The dressing 1 is further provided with a removable release film 7 on the primary absorbent pad 2 for protecting the dressing 1 prior to use….an upper face 13 disposed towards the secondary absorption pad 3; Paragraph [0071] - the electrodes that comprise this sensor may be printed directly on the absorption pad or backing layer).
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.
Claims 3-6 and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over O'Mahony et. al.'571 (U.S. Patent Publication 20190365571) as applied to Claim 1 above, in view of Luo et. al.'397 (U.S. Patent Publication 20120040397).
Regarding Claim 3, O'Mahony et. al.'571 discloses the device outlined in Claim 1 above but fails to disclose the biosensing module comprises a hydrogel, the hydrogel comprising polynucleotide crosslinked with poly(ethylene glycol) diglycidyl ether (PEGDE). Luo et. al.'397 teaches a hydrogel consisting of nucleic acids cross-linked to a poly(ethylene glycol) derivative such as PEGDE (Paragraph [0067] - The nucleic acids can also be linked, e.g., via photo-crosslinks, with one or more polymers. Non-limiting examples of useful polymers poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)… or a derivative of any thereof). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to have modified the device of O'Mahony et. al.'571 to include hydrogels comprising polynucleotide crosslinked with poly(ethylene glycol) diglycidyl ether (PEGDE) in order to promote wound healing as seen in Luo et. al.'397 (Paragraph [0063] - These photo-crosslinkable DNA hybrid hydrogels can be used to produce protein in specific micro-patterned regions; Paragraph [0281] - The nucleic acid matrixes or matrixes either without or further linked with additional polymers may be used for a variety of tissue engineering applications including, inter alia, to increase tissue tensile strength, improve wound healing, speed up wound healing, as templates for tissue formation, to guide tissue formation, to stimulate nerve growth, to improve vascularization in tissues, as a biodegradable adhesive, as device or implant coating, or to improve the function of a tissue or body part).
Regarding Claim 4, O'Mahony et. al.'571 in view of Luo et. al.'397 discloses the device outlined in Claim 3 above but fails to disclose the polynucleotide is single stranded DNA and/or single stranded RNA. Luo et. al.'397 teaches a single stranded DNA as part of the hydrogel (Paragraph [0148] - illustrates a general schematic for synthesizing hydrogels using photo-crosslinkable DNA building blocks. FIG. 2 outlines two related embodiments of the synthesis method. In one embodiment (the rightmost path shown in FIG. 2), single stranded DNA (ssDNA) is conjugated to a photoreactive group and then hybridized to form DNA building blocks). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to have modified the device of O'Mahony et. al.'571 in view of Luo et. al.'397 to include a hydrogel with crosslinked polynucleotide containing single stranded DNA in order to construct a nano-material that limits degradation and promotes wound healing as seen in Luo et. al.’397 (Paragraph [0002] - Under proper conditions, DNA molecules self-assemble with complementary strands of nucleic acid (e.g., DNA, RNA, or Peptide Nucleic Acid, (PNA)). Furthermore, DNA molecules can be amplified exponentially and joined, e.g., ligated, specifically. Thus, DNA is an excellent candidate for constructing nano-material; Paragraph [0063] - These photo-crosslinkable DNA hybrid hydrogels can be used to produce protein in specific micro-patterned regions; Paragraph [0118] - Increased levels of crosslinking will generally slow degradation of nucleic acids).
Regarding Claim 5, O'Mahony et. al.'571 in view of Luo et. al.'397 discloses the device outlined in Claim 3 above but fails to disclose a concentration of polynucleotide in the hydrogel is about 0.02 g/mL to about 0.1 g/mL, and wherein a concentration of PEGDE in the hydrogel is about 0.01 g/mL to about 0.05 g/mL. Luo et. al.'397 teaches the concentration amounts of nucleic acids and PEGDE in a hydrogel are adjustable (Paragraph [0115] - In addition, fine tuning of the chemical and physical properties of these hydrogels can be easily accomplished by adjusting the concentrations and types of branched nucleic acid building blocks, thus allowing the hydrogels to comprise particular physical/chemical properties tailored for specific applications). It would have been an obvious matter of design choice to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to construct the hydrogel of various concentrations of nucleic acid and PEGDE. Generally, differences in concentration or temperature will not support the patentability of subject matter encompassed by the prior art unless there is evidence indicating such concentration or temperature is critical. Where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, it is not inventive to discover the optimum or workable ranges by routine experimentation. In re Aller, 220 F.2d 454, 456, 105 USPQ 233, 235 (CCPA 1955).
Regarding Claim 6, O'Mahony et. al.'571 in view of Luo et. al.'397 discloses the device outlined in Claim 3 above. O'Mahony et. al.'571 further discloses comprising a dopant selected from poly(3,4- ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS), Ti3C2Tx MXene, graphene oxide (GOx), single wall carbon nanotube (SWCNT), silver nanowire (AgNW), or a combination thereof (Paragraph [0087] - If desired, anti-bacterial silver nanoparticles can be incorporated into the primary absorbent pad 2 of the dressing 1 employing spinning techniques during manufacture or by coating the silver nanoparticles onto the primary absorbent pad 2 to aid in the prevention of infections and discourage the formation of biofilm development).
Regarding Claim 17, O'Mahony et. al.'571 discloses the device outlined in Claim 1 above, but fails to disclose comprising a step of fabricating the biosensing module, the step comprising crosslinking polynucleotide with poly(ethylene glycol) diglycidyl ether (PEGDE) in order to form a hydrogel for contacting with the wound site. Luo et. al.'397 teaches a hydrogel fabricated through an electrospinning coating process and consisting of nucleic acids cross-linked to a poly(ethylene glycol) derivative such as PEGDE (Paragraph [0024] - micro-electrospinning, or a combination thereof. The methods can also be used to coat the nucleic acid hydrogel on the surface of a substrate; Paragraph [0067] - The nucleic acids can also be linked, e.g., via photo-crosslinks, with one or more polymers. Non-limiting examples of useful polymers poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)… or a derivative of any thereof). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to have modified the device of O'Mahony et. al.'571 in view of Luo et. al.'397 to include a hydrogel with crosslinked polynucleotide containing single stranded DNA in order to construct a nano-material that limits degradation as seen in Luo et. al.’397 (Paragraph [0002] - Under proper conditions, DNA molecules self-assemble with complementary strands of nucleic acid (e.g., DNA, RNA, or Peptide Nucleic Acid, (PNA)). Furthermore, DNA molecules can be amplified exponentially and joined, e.g., ligated, specifically. Thus, DNA is an excellent candidate for constructing nano-material; Paragraph [0118] - Increased levels of crosslinking will generally slow degradation of nucleic acids).
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over O'Mahony et. al.'571 (U.S. Patent Publication 20190365571), in view of Luo et. al.'397 (U.S. Patent Publication 20120040397), as applied to Claim 6 above, and further in view of Heath'168 (U.S. Patent Publication 20170027168).
Regarding Claim 7, O'Mahony et. al.'571 in view of Luo et. al.'397 discloses the device outlined in Claim 6 above, but fails to disclose the dopant has a concentration of about 0.1 wt/wt% to about 1 wt/wt% relative to the hydrogel. Heath'168 teaches a 0.3 to 1 wt/wt% of a dopant (Paragraph [0361] - Highly flexible nanocomposite films of nanocrystalline cellulose acetate (NCCA) and graphene oxide (GO) were synthesized by combining NCCA and GO sheets in a well-controlled manner. By adjusting the GO content, various NCCA/GO nanocomposites with 0.3-1 wt % GO were obtained). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to have modified the device of O'Mahony et. al.'571 in view of Luo et. al.’397 to include a dopant of about 0.3 to 1 wt/wt% in order to produce a high-performance material as seen in Heath'168 (Paragraph [0361] - the composite films showed improved barrier properties against water vapor. This simple process for preparation of NCCA/GO films is attractive for potential development of high-performance films for electrical and electrochemical applications).
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over O'Mahony et. al.'571 (U.S. Patent Publication 20190365571) in view of Luo et. al.'397 (U.S. Patent Publication 20120040397), as applied to Claim 3 above, further in view of Zhang et. al.'909 (U.S. Patent Publication 20170079909), and further in view of Shin et. al.'354 (U.S. Patent Publication 20180214354).
Regarding Claim 8, O'Mahony et. al.'571 in view of Luo et. al.'397 discloses the device outlined in Claim 3 above, but fails to disclose the hydrogel retains more than 80% of its weight at 70% relative humidity after 24 hours, and/or wherein the hydrogel has a thickness of about 0.4 mm to about 10 mm. Zhang et. al.'909 teaches a hydrogel that retains up to 99.6 wt% of water (Paragraph [0010] - In some embodiments, incorporating toxin-neutralizing membrane coated nanoparticles with hydrogels enables the particles to retain their functionality, as hydrogels retain water molecules within its structures (up to 99.6 wt % of water). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to have modified the device of O'Mahony et. al.'571 in view of Luo et. al.'397 to include a hydrogel that retains up to 99.6 wt% in order to help retain the functionality of the particles within said hydrogel as seen in Zhang et. al.'909.
Shin et. al.'354 teaches a hydrogel with a thickness between 0.1 to 10 mm (Paragraph [0066] - Specifically, the deaerated hydrogel sheet composition solution may be casted to a thickness of 0.1 mm to 10.0 mm at room temperature to prepare a hydrogel sheet. When the thickness is less than 0.1 mm, a hydrogel sheet may be torn due to a low strength. On the other hand, when the thickness is greater than 10 mm, the sheet may weakly adhere to the skin and the delivery efficiency of an active ingredient may be low). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to have modified the device of O'Mahony et. al.'571 in view of Luo et. al.'397 to include a hydrogel with a thickness between 0.1 mm to 10 mm in order to control strength of the hydrogel when applies to a subject as seen in Shin et. al.'354.
Claim 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over O'Mahony et. al.'571 (U.S. Patent Publication 20190365571) as applied to Claim 1 above, in view of Schoess et. al.'814 (U.S. Patent Publication 20210267814).
Regarding Claim 14, O'Mahony et. al.'571 discloses the system outlined in Claim 1 above as well as a readout circuitry capable of reaching short to long ranges (Paragraph [0086] - In the base of Bluetooth or WiFi transmission, the strength of the signal received at the base station may be monitored. This signal strength will vary according to the placement of the dressing and the orientation of the patient, e.g. the signal strength will decrease when the patient is lying on the bandage and integrated antenna), but fails to disclose the readout circuitry comprises a near field communication (NFC) antenna. Schoess et. al.'814 teaches a near field communication antenna (Paragraph [0050] - the reader can be integral with a smartphone or other personal communications device equipped with near-field scanning capabilities). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to have modified the system of O'Mahony et. al.'571 to include an NFC antenna in order to limit control of the device by smart devices within near field range as seen in Schoess et. al.'814 (Paragraph [0050] - In such an embodiment, the smartphone can include a software interface for activating scanning functionality and sending, storing and displaying data associated with a moisture sensor scan).
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over O'Mahony et. al.'571 (U.S. Patent Publication 20190365571) as applied to Claim 1 above, in view of Deem et. al.'059 (U.S. Patent Publication 20100211059).
Regarding Claim 15, O'Mahony et. al.'571 discloses the system outlined in Claim 1 above as well as a readout circuitry capable of reaching short to long ranges (Paragraph [0086] - In the base of Bluetooth or WiFi transmission, the strength of the signal received at the base station may be monitored. This signal strength will vary according to the placement of the dressing and the orientation of the patient, e.g. the signal strength will decrease when the patient is lying on the bandage and integrated antenna), but fails to disclose the biosensing module is electrically connected with the readout circuitry, wherein a distance between the biosensing module and the readout circuitry is between about 2 mm to about 10 mm. Deem et. al.'059 teaches a readout circuitry distance between 2 mm and 10 mm (Paragraph [0094] - In embodiments of the invention illustrated in FIGS. 36 through 39 antenna 358 may be positioned at a distance A of, for example, between approximately 10 millimeters and approximately 2 millimeters from skin surface 1306). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to have modified the system of O'Mahony et. al.'571 to include a distance between a readout circuitry and biosensing module between 2 mm and 10 mm in order to optimize readouts within radiation fields as seen in Deem et. al.'059 (Paragraph [0155] - In one embodiment of the invention, a radiating near field region may be, for example, that the region of the field of an antenna between the reactive near field region and the far field region wherein radiation fields predominate. In one embodiment of the invention, an antenna may be located a maximum distance from a skin surface which may be approximately 2 times D.sup.2/Lambda, where D is the largest physical dimension of the antenna aperture and Lambda is the wavelength of the electromagnetic radiation transmitted by the antenna measured in the medium positioned between the antenna output and skin surface).
Claim 18 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over O'Mahony et. al.'571 (U.S. Patent Publication 20190365571), in view of Luo et. al.'397 (U.S. Patent Publication 20120040397), as applied to Claim 17 above, further in view of Andino et. al.'504 (U.S. Patent Publication 20090048504).
Regarding Claim 18, O'Mahony et. al.'571 in view of Luo et. al.'397 discloses the system outlined in Claim 17 above. O'Mahony et. al.'571 further discloses interdigitated electrodes fabricated by a printing or etching process (Paragraph [0075] - A suitable moisture detecting capacitance sensor 23 consists of a pair of planar electrodes, typically arranged in an interdigitated pattern and covered with a material to prevent an electrical short circuit; Paragraph [0081] - the printed electronic circuit can be constructed from a stack of single- or double-sided printed absorbent pads. Technologies such as screen printing, inkjet printing, roll-to-roll printing, laser patterning or photolithographic etching may be utilized to manufacture the circuit and the at least one sensor), but fails to disclose attaching interdigitated electrodes to the hydrogel. Andino et. al.'504 teaches electrodes attached to a hydrogel (Paragraph [0055] - Additionally, the electrode may be made from hydrogel or include a hydrogel layer, such that the hydrogel includes specific metals, chemicals, or compounds which react to produce a voltage gradient across the wound). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to have modified the system of O'Mahony et. al.'571 in view of Luo et. al.'397 to include the electrodes within the hydrogel in order for the hydrogel to assist the electrodes in obtaining proper measurements as seen in Andino et. al.'504.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Shimizu et. al.'324 (U.S. Patent Publication 20100033324) teaches observing dielectric parameters based on degradable responses to a coating on a module.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SARAH ANN WESTFALL whose telephone number is (571) 272-3845. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7:30am-4:30pm EST.
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.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jennifer Robertson can be reached at (571) 272-5001. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/SARAH ANN WESTFALL/Examiner, Art Unit 3791
/ETSUB D BERHANU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3791