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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant's election with traverse of Group I, claims 1-14, in the reply filed on May 14, 2026 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that the finding of lack of unity of invention is premature as a full search of the prior art has not been submitted. This is not found persuasive because claim 1 does not contribute over the prior art, specifically as outlined in the restriction mailed April 27, 2026 and US Pub. No. 2017/0314191 to Visscher as detailed below, and therefore the invention lack unity.
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
Claim 15 has been withdrawn from consideration as being directed towards a non-elected invention.
Claim Interpretation
The term “same polymer family” has been defined to mean monomers comprised in a certain polymer and monomers comprised in a further polymer are connected by the same type of chemical bond (see para 0016 in the published application. The term “different polymer family” in claim 1 is interpreted as the polymer having a certain polymer and monomers comprised in a further polymer are connected by a different type of chemical bond.
The term “major component” is defined as more than 50 wt% of the component being the specified thermoplastic, aligned with para 0009 and 0011 of the published application.
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 7-11 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.
Claim 7 recites the limitation “wherein the nonwoven fabric comprises a first layer of fiber comprising first bicomponent core/sheath fibers, and a second layer of fibers comprising second bicomponent core/sheath fibers.” It is unclear if the referenced first bicomponent core/sheath fibers and second bicomponent core/sheath fibers of claim 7 is the same or different from the first bicomponent core/sheath fibers and the second bicomponent core/sheath fibers of claim 1. The first bicomponent core/sheath fibers and the second bicomponent core/sheath fibers of claim 1 require certain claimed components relative material relationships.
Similarly, claim 8 recites the limitation “wherein the nonwoven fabric comprises a third layer of fiber comprising first bicomponent core/sheath fibers, and a fourth layer of fibers comprising second bicomponent core/sheath fibers.” It is unclear if the referenced first bicomponent core/sheath fibers and second bicomponent core/sheath fibers of claim 8 is the same or different from the first bicomponent core/sheath fibers and the second bicomponent core/sheath fibers of claim 1 and/or claim 7.
The remaining claims are rejected based on their dependency on rejected claim(s).
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, 5, 7-8, and 12-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US Pub. No. 2017/0314191 to Visscher.
Regarding claims 1, 5, 7-8, and 12-14, Visscher teaches a primary carpet backing comprising a first nonwoven layer of fibers (first layer of fibers, claim 7) comprising core-sheath filaments (first bicomponent core/sheath fibers) having a polyamide-6 core component (first thermoplastic polymer) and a copolyamide sheath component (second thermoplastic polymer, polyamide- claim 5) and a second nonwoven layer of fibers (second layer of fibers, claim 7) comprising core-sheath filament (second bicomponent core/sheath fibers) having a polyethylene terephthalate (polyester) core component (third thermoplastic polymer) and a polyamide-6 sheath component (fourth thermoplastic polymer, polyamide- claim 5) (Visscher, abstract, para 0112-0115), reading on the first thermoplastic polymer, second thermoplastic polymer, and the fourth thermoplastic polymer being polymers of the same polymer family, specifically polyamide (claim 5), and the first thermoplastic polymer being of a different polymer family.
Regarding claims 8, Visscher teaches a primary carpet backing consisting of a first nonwoven layer of fibers, a second nonwoven layer of fibers, a third nonwoven layer of fibers, and a fourth nonwoven layer of fibers, wherein the fibers of the first nonwoven layer (second layer of fibers comprising second bicomponent core/sheath fibers) and the fourth nonwoven layer (fourth layer of fibers comprising second bicomponent core/sheath fibers) are formed of a mixture of a first type (second bicomponent core/sheath fibers) and a second type (first bicomponent core/sheath fibers) of bicomponent core-sheath filaments and the fiber of the second nonwoven layer (first layer of fiber comprising first bicomponent core-sheath fibers) and third nonwoven layer (third layer of fiber comprising first bicomponent core/sheath fibers) was formed completely of the first type bicomponent core-sheath filament (second bicomponent core/sheath fibers), wherein the core component of the first type is polyethylene terephthalate (third thermoplastic polymer), the sheath component of the first type is polyamide-6 (fourth thermoplastic polymer), the core component of the second type (first bicomponent core/sheath fibers) consisted of polyamide-6 (first thermoplastic polymer), and the sheath component of the second type consisted of copolyamide of polyamide-6 and polyamide-6,6 (second thermoplastic polymer) (Visscher, para 0128-0130).
Regarding claims 12-13, Visscher teaches tufting yarn (pile yarn), specifically consisting essentially of polyamide-6 (claim 13, polyamide polymer as a major component), into the primary carpet backing and teaches a tufted carpet comprising the primary backing (Visscher, abstract, para 0015, 0112-0119), reading on a tufted carpet comprising the material for a primary backing as a primary backing and pile yarns fixedly connected to the primary backing.
Regarding claim 14, Visscher teaches the tuft carpet being a carpet tile (Visscher, para 0006).
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 2-4, 6, and 9-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US Pub. No. 2017/0314191 to Visscher, remaining as applied to claims 1, 5, 7-8, and 12-14 above.
Regarding claim 2, Visscher teaches the sheath of the bicomponent core-sheath fibers consists of one or more of the lower melting polymer (Visscher, para 0042). Visscher teaches an embodiment wherein the first nonwoven layer of fiber comprises most preferably for 100 wt.% of one or more polyamide, in particular polyamide-6 and/or copolyamide of polyamide-6 and polyamide-66 and the second nonwoven layer of fibers comprises 70 to 80 wt. % and more preferably 20 to 30 wt. % one or more polyamide polymers, in particular polyamide-6 (PA6) and/or copolyamide of polyamide-6 and polyamide-6,6 (Id., para 0107). Therefore, the sheath of the fibers of the first nonwoven layer and the sheath of the fibers of the second nonwoven layer being the same, such as the copolyamide of polyamide-6 and polyamide-66, is within the totality of the scope of the invention of Visscher. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to form the primary carpet backing of Visscher, wherein the sheath of the first nonwoven layer of fibers and the sheath of the second nonwoven layer of fiber are both copolyamide of polyamide-6 and polyamide-66, motivated by the desire of using disclosed predictably suitable low melting material taught by Visscher and by the desire of practicing the invention of Visscher based on the totality of the teachings of Visscher.
Regarding claim 3, Visscher teaches the sheath being a lower melting polymer that selected from a polyamide, polyester, or polyolefin and the first polymer having the lower melting polymer being of the same polymer (Visscher, abstract, para 0015, 0020-0024, 0042, 0109), therefore encompassing polyolefin being a predictably suitable alternative to polyamide used in the bicomponent fibers. Visscher also teaches a carpet having a high content of polymer of the same polymer family makes recycling of the tufted carpet technically and economically feasible (Id., para 0111). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to form the primary carpet backing of Visscher, wherein polyolefin is used in place of the polyamides, motivated by the desire of using disclosed predictably suitable polymer material, by the desire of practicing the invention of Visscher based on the totality of the teachings of Visscher, and by the desire of using a high content of polymer of the same polymer family to make recycling of the tufted carpet technically and economically feasible.
Regarding claim 4, Visscher teaches the sheath being a lower melting polymer that selected from a polyamide, polyester, or polyolefin and the first polymer having the lower melting polymer being of the same polymer (Visscher, abstract, para 0015, 0020-0024, 0042, 0109), therefore encompassing polyester and polyamide being a predictably suitable alternatives used in the bicomponent fibers. Visscher also teaches a carpet having a high content of polymer of the same polymer family makes recycling of the tufted carpet technically and economically feasible (Id., para 0111). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to form the primary carpet backing of Visscher, wherein polyester is used in place of the polyamide in the fibers of the first nonwoven layer, motivated by the desire of using disclosed predictably suitable polymer material, by the desire of practicing the invention of Visscher based on the totality of the teachings of Visscher, and by the desire of using a high content of polymer of the same polymer family to make recycling of the tufted carpet technically and economically feasible.
Regarding claim 6, Visscher teaches the sheath being a lower melting polymer that selected from a polyamide, polyester, or polyolefin and the first polymer having the lower melting polymer being of the same polymer (Visscher, abstract, para 0015, 0020-0024, 0042, 0109), therefore encompassing polyester and polyamide being a predictably suitable alternatives used in the bicomponent fiber. Visscher also teaches a carpet having a high content of polymer of the same polymer family makes recycling of the tufted carpet technically and economically feasible (Id., para 0111). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to form the primary carpet backing of Visscher, wherein polyester is used in place of the polyamide in the fibers of the first nonwoven layer, motivated by the desire of using disclosed predictably suitable polymer material, by the desire of practicing the invention of Visscher based on the totality of the teachings of Visscher, and by the desire of using a high content of polymer of the same polymer family to make recycling of the tufted carpet technically and economically feasible.
Regarding claim 9-11, Visscher teaches a primary carpet backing consisting of a first nonwoven layer of a mixture of the first type and second type bicomponent core-sheath filament, a second nonwoven layer of the first type bicomponent core-sheath filament, a third nonwoven layer of the first type bicomponent core-sheath filament, and a fourth nonwoven layer of a mixture of the first type and second type bicomponent core-sheath filament (Visscher, para 0128-0130). While Visscher does not explicitly teach the order of the nonwovens forming the primary carpet backing, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to form the backing chronically based on the disclosed order. As the sheath of both the first type and the sheath of the second type are both form the polyamide family and the core of the first type and the core of the second type are both different, the first type of bicomponent core-sheath filament of Visscher and the second type of bicomponent core-sheath filament of Visscher can map to either the first bicomponent core/sheath fiber or the second bicomponent core/sheath fiber.
Based on the first type of Visscher mapping to the first bicomponent core/sheath and the second type of Visscher mapping to the second bicomponent core/sheath fiber, the resulting primary backing would be the second layer of fibers comprising second bicomponent core/sheath fibers, the first layer of fiber comprising first bicomponent core-sheath fibers, the third layer of fiber comprising first bicomponent core/sheath fibers, and the fourth layer of fibers comprising second bicomponent core/sheath fibers and reads on the third layer of fiber comprising first bicomponent core/sheath fibers being located directly adjacent to the first layer of fiber comprising first bicomponent core-sheath fibers (claim 9) and the first layer of fiber comprising first bicomponent core-sheath fibers and/or the third layer of fiber comprising first bicomponent core/sheath fibers being located between the second layer of fibers comprising second bicomponent core/sheath fibers and the fourth layer of fibers comprising second bicomponent core/sheath fibers (claim 10).
Based on the second type of Visscher mapping to the first bicomponent core/sheath and the first type of Visscher mapping to the second bicomponent core/sheath fiber, the resulting primary backing would be the first layer of fibers comprising first bicomponent core-sheath fibers, the second layer of fibers comprising second bicomponent core/sheath fibers, the fourth layer of fibers comprising second bicomponent core/sheath fibers, and third layer of fibers comprising first bicomponent core/sheath fibers and reads on the second layer of fibers comprising second bicomponent core/sheath fibers and/or the fourth layer of fibers comprising second bicomponent core/sheath fibers being located between the first layer of fibers and the third layer of fibers (claim 11).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US Pub. No. 2008/0116129 to Oosterbroek teaches a tuft nonwoven comprising a nonwoven having a mixture of a plurality of bicomponent filaments with two different bicomponent filaments, including core-sheath. USPN 6,207,599 to Coolen teaches a nonwoven primary backing including thermoplastic polymer filaments or fibers bonded by means of a binder polymer that may be present as a sheath of the filament having pseudo layer formed from the same composition and having a higher breaking strength.
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/JENNIFER A GILLETT/Examiner, Art Unit 1789
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