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 without traverse of Group III, 16-20; and species A1: an aerosol in the reply filed on 08/18/2026 is acknowledged.
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 18-19 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 18 is unclear because the term “it” in L2 is ambiguous.
Claim 19 is rejected based on further claim dependency.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
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) 16-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1/a2 as being anticipated by Kendall et al. (WO 2021/062475 A1).
Regarding claim 16, Kendall teaches:
16. A device for virus detection, comprising:
an electrode (e.g., gold electrodes 2201 ¶ throughout the reference);
a functionalized aptamer anchored to the electrode (see Analyte Detection Examples -Aptamers ¶ 0581+); wherein an aptamer is functionalized on a first end with a redox couple (e.g., methylene blue (MB) ¶ 0025, 0597) and the aptamer is functionalized on a second end with a surface-reactive group (e.g., thiol group: The aptamers were immobilised to the gold electrode by forming thiol self assembled monolayers. ¶ 0583; e.g., aptamers include a thiol group 2202 ¶ 0584+); and
a binder molecule anchored to the electrode (e.g., MCH ¶ 0596).
Regarding claims 17-20, Kendall teaches:
17. The device for virus detection of claim 16, further comprising a wearable article upon which the electrode is disposed and the electrode is coupled to the electrode (see Figs. 3F-3G, ¶ 0040, 0455+).
18. The device for virus detection of claim 16, wherein the functionalized aptamer is functionalized such that it is specific to a virus (e.g., SARS-CoV-2 ¶ 0623).
19. The device for virus detection of claim 18, wherein the virus is SARS-COV-2 (¶ 0623).
20. The device for virus detection of claim 16, wherein: the redox couple is methylthioninium chloride (e.g., methylene blue (MB) ¶ 0025, 0597); and the binder molecule comprises mercapto-1-hexanol (e.g., MCH ¶ 0596).
Conclusion
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/DEAN KWAK/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1795
DEAN KWAK
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1795
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