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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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(s) 1-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Dzenis et al (US Patent 6,265,333) in view of Tojo et al (US 2011/0259518).
Dzenis discloses laminates formed by bonding two reinforcing fiber matrix resin layers to each other via a nanofiber membrane by sequential lamination using heat and pressure (claim 1, 4-7, 34; fig. 1; column 9, line 46-54). The resin can be a cross-linkable thermoset resin (claim 21, 49). The reinforcing fiber can be a carbon fiber (column 5, line 1-38). The nanofiber membrane is produced via electro-spinning from a solvent mixture containing PA6 and formic acid yielding nanofibers with a diameter of 5-5000 nm (column 8, line 18-58; table 1). It is explicitly mentioned that the nanofiber membrane can be spun separately and be then placed onto the prepreg (column 10, line 58-67).
Regarding the anti-sinking feature, Dzenis discloses that the thickness of the nanofiber layer is about 12% or less of the adjacent layer (claim 46) and that the spun nanofibers are treated with sulfuric acid and then dried (examples). Consequently, the polymer of the nanofiber (polybenzimidazole) is complexed by the acid what has to result in a higher hydrophilicity and consequently in a lower oleophilicity. Therefore, it is the examiner’s position that Dzenis teaches the anti-sinking feature claimed.
However, Dzenis does not disclose the direct electrospinning as claimed by the applicant. Regarding this difference, the applicant is directed to the reference of Tojo et al.
Tojo discloses nanofiber sheets comprising an adhesive nanofiber layer and a releasable base layer whereby the nanofiber layer is intended to be attached to an object (claims 1, 10, 15). The nanofiber layer is produced via electro-spinning (§ [0040]). The base-layer may be a paper which is siliconized in order to generate releasability (§ [0039], [0078]).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art to directly electrospin fibers on a backing layer, as taught by Tojo, in the method of Dzenis in order to provide the predictable result of improving the production speed of the composite being manufactured.
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 1-9 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 1, lines 5-6, “laminating said layers of reinforcing fibres by addition of pressure and/or heat, placing between said layers of reinforcing fibres an intermediate layer of polymer nanofibers” is indefinite and needs to be rephrased. In particular, the structure of the claim imparts a sequential order to the steps recited. The step of placing an intermediate layer between the layers of reinforcing fibers needs to be provided before the step of laminating the layers of reinforcing fibers.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JAMES D SELLS whose telephone number is (571)272-1237. The examiner can normally be reached M-Th 8:30-5.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Phillip Tucker can be reached at 571-272-1095. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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JAMES D. SELLS
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1745
/JAMES D SELLS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1745
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