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 .
The preliminary amendment fare received.
Claims 11, 21 and 23 are canceled by Applicant.
Claims 1-10, 12-20, 22, 24 and 25 are pending in this application and are being examined.
Regarding Requirement for the Deposit of Biological material
Applicant’s statement identifying the deposit of biological material made under Budapest Treaty, and that all restrictions on the availability to the public of the material so deposited will be irrevocably removed upon the granting of a patent, in this application as filed as noted on paragraph [0084] applicant’s specification are received.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
(Law of Nature or Natural Product)
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claims 24 and 25 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because;
The claimed invention is directed to a judicial exception, i.e., a natural product without significantly more. The claims do not include additional elements that are sufficient to amount to significantly more than the judicial exception.
According to Section I of the 2019 Revised Patent Subject Matter Eligibility Guidance, “the judicial exceptions are for subject matter that has been identified as the ‘‘basic tools of scientific and technological work,’’ which includes ‘‘abstract ideas’’ such as mathematical concepts, certain methods of organizing human activity, and mental processes; as well as laws of nature and natural phenomena”, and “the USPTO has set forth a revised procedure, rooted in Supreme Court caselaw, to determine whether a claim is ‘‘directed to’’ a judicial exception under the first step of the Alice/Mayo test (USPTO Step 2A).” (Also see “2019 Revised Patent Subject Matter Eligibility Guidance, Federal Register / Vol. 84, No. 4 / Monday, January 7, 2019 / Notices, p. 50-57”).
Step 2A asks: Is the claim directed to a law of nature, a natural phenomenon (product of nature) or an abstract idea? In the context of the flowchart in MPEP § 2106, subsection III, Step 2A determines whether:
• The claim as a whole is not directed to a judicial exception (Step 2A: NO) and thus is eligible at Pathway B, thereby concluding the eligibility analysis;
or
• The claim as a whole is directed to a judicial exception (Step 2A: YES) and thus requires further analysis at Step 2B to determine if the claim as a whole amounts to significantly more than the exception itself.
Step 2A is a two-prong inquiry, in which examiners determine in Prong One whether a claim recites a judicial exception, and if so, then determine in Prong Two if the recited judicial exception is integrated into a practical application of that exception.
In this case, claim 24 and 25 read:
24. An isolated Methylobacterium selected from the group consisting of NLS0665 (NRRL B-68194), NLS0754 (NRRL B-68197), NLS0672 (NRRL B-68196), NLS0729 (NRRL B-68195), NLS0049 (NRRL B-68236), NLS0591 (NRRL B-68215), NLSO439 (NRRL B- 68216), NLS1310, NLS1312, NLS0612 (NRRL B-68237), NLS0706 (NRRL B-68238), and NLS0725 (NRRL B-68239).
25. The isolated Methylobacterium of claim 24, selected from the group consisting of NLS0665 (NRRL B-68194), NLS0754 (NRRL B-68197), NLS0672 (NRRL B-68196),NLSYM7003.USN NLS0729 (NRRL B-68195), NLS0049 (NRRL B-68236), NLS0591 (NRRL B-68215), and NLSO439 (NRRL B-68216).
In this case, Methylobacterium is a naturally occurring bacteria commonly found in soil, water, and plants (See for example, Methylobacterium defines by Wikipedia page 1 first paragraph), and also Applicants specification (See Table 1 sources of Methylobacterium) Thus, the claim as a whole is directed to a judicial exception.
As indicated above, step 2A is a two-prong inquiry, in which examiners determine in Prong One whether a claim recites a judicial exception, and if so, then determine in Prong Two if the recited judicial exception is integrated into a practical application of that exception.
In this case, as explained above claim 1 is directed to a judicial exception, i.e., a naturally occurring strains of Methylobacterium bacteria.
Moreover, there is no evidence that the claimed strains of Methylobacterium bacteria have a function or property that is not associated with the inherent property of the Methylobacterium bacteria naturally, i.e., there is no evidence of any markedly different functional characteristic other than the inherent natural functions/properties. Therefore, claims 24 and 25 as a whole do not amount to significantly more than the exception itself (Answer to Step 2B: No).
In addition, isolating, depositing and obtaining an accession/registration number do not consider to improve the judicial exception or do not use the judicial exception in a particular technological environment such that the claim as a whole is more than a drafting effort designed to monopolize the exception. Therefore, claims 24 and 25 do not integrate the judicial exception into a practical application of that exception (Answer to Step 2A Prong Two: No).
In Funk Brothers the Supreme court concluded that naturally-occurring bacteria, isolated from their natural surroundings, was not patent eligible: “[t]he qualities of these bacteria, like the heat of the sun, electricity, or the qualities of metals, are part of the storehouse of the knowledge of all men…manifestations of laws of nature, free to all…and reserved exclusively to none…” the qualities of the bacteria being “.. the work of nature…unaltered by the hand of man.”.
Therefore, the subject matter of claims 24 and 25 as a whole are not directed to patent eligible subject matter.
Double Patenting Rejection:
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The filing of a terminal disclaimer by itself is not a complete reply to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection. A complete reply requires that the terminal disclaimer be accompanied by a reply requesting reconsideration of the prior Office action. Even where the NSDP rejection is provisional the reply must be complete. See MPEP § 804, subsection I.B.1. For a reply to a non-final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.111(a). For a reply to final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.113(c). A request for reconsideration while not provided for in 37 CFR 1.113(c) may be filed after final for consideration. See MPEP §§ 706.07(e) and 714.13.
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The actual filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/applying-online/eterminal-disclaimer.
A)
Claims 1-4, 9 and 12-15 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-7 of U.S. Patent No. 12,471,598. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because claims 1-7 of U.S. Patent No. 12,471,598 disclose an isolated Methylobacterium selected from the group consisting of LGP2021 (NRRL B-68032), LGP2022 (NRRL B-68033), LGP2023 (NRRL B-68034), LGP2029 (NRRL B-68065), LGP2030 (NRRL B-68066), LGP2031 (NRRL B-68067), LGP2033 (NRRL B-68068), and LGP2034 (NRRL B-68069) (claim 1), a composition comprising a fermentation product comprising a Methylobacterium strain, wherein said fermentation product is essentially free of contaminating microorganisms, and wherein the Methylobacterium strain is selected from the group consisting of LGP2021 (NRRL B-68032), LGP2022 (NRRL B-68033), LGP2023 (NRRL B-68034), LGP2029 (NRRL B-68065), LGP2030 (NRRL B-68066), LGP2031 (NRRL B-68067), LGP2033 (NRRL B-68068), LGP2034 (NRRL B-68069), and variants thereof (claim 2), a method for enhancing plant production that comprises: (a) applying a composition of claim 2 to a plant, plant part, or seed; and, (b) growing the plant to at least a two leaf stage, thereby enhancing at least one plant trait selected from the group consisting of early plant growth, propagation and transplant vigor, nutrient uptake, stand establishment, stress tolerance, and nutrient utilization efficiency; wherein said trait is enhanced in comparison to an untreated control plant that had not received an application of the composition or in comparison to a control plant grown from an untreated seed that had not received an application of the composition (claim 3), wherein said composition further comprises at least one additional component selected from the group consisting of an additional active ingredient, an agriculturally acceptable adjuvant, and an agriculturally acceptable excipient (claim 6), a plant, plant part, or seed at least partially coated with the composition (claim 7), and method for enhancing plant production that comprises: (a) applying a composition of claim 2 to a plant, plant part, or seed; and, (b) growing the plant to at least a two leaf stage, thereby enhancing at least one plant trait selected from the group consisting of early plant growth, propagation and transplant vigor, nutrient uptake, stand establishment, stress tolerance, and nutrient utilization efficiency; wherein said trait is enhanced in comparison to an untreated control plant that had not received an application of the composition or in comparison to a control plant grown from an untreated seed that had not received an application of the composition, wherein the composition is applied to a seed (claim 4), said plant is a leafy green plant (claim 5).
Therefore, because of the above teachings claims 1-7 of U.S. Patent No. 12,471,598 anticipate or makes obvious the compositions and method of at least claims 1-4, 9 and 12-15 of instant application.
B)
Claims 16-20 and 24-25 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claim 1 of U.S. Patent No. 12,458,029 in view of Jones et al. (US 2016/0302423 which is cited in IDS filed on 1/9/2026).
Because, claim 1 of U.S. Patent No. 12,458,029, disclose/teach a method for improving soybean plant yield that comprises: (a) applying a composition to a soybean plant or part thereof wherein the composition comprises one or more Methylobacterium selected from the group consisting of … NLS0693 (NRRL B-67926), …, wherein said composition further comprises at least one additional component selected from the group consisting of an additional active ingredient, an agriculturally acceptable adjuvant, and an agriculturally acceptable excipient; and, (b) growing the soybean plant to maturity, thereby improving yield of the soybean plant.
Claim 1 of U.S. Patent No. 12,458,029, do not teach a fertilizer applied during growth of said plant, wherein said one or more nutrient components is selected from the group consisting of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and iron (claim 16), the Methylobacterium isolate is selected from the group consisting of NLS0665 (NRRL B-68194), NLS0754 (NRRL B- 68197), NLS0672 (NRRL B-68196), NLS0729 (NRRL B-68195), NLS0049 (NRRL B-68236), NLS0591 (NRRL B-68215), and NLSO439 (NRRL B-68216) (claim 17), fertilizer is applied at reduced rates as compared to standard application rates for said plant (claim 18), composition comprising said Methylobacterium and a fertilizer (claim 19), and an agricultural row crop plant grown in soil, a leafy green plant, a rice plant (claim 20), and hydroponic or aeroponic plant growth system (claim 22), an isolated Methylobacterium selected from the group consisting of NLS0665 (NRRL B-68194), NLS0754 (NRRL B-68197), NLS0672 (NRRL B-68196), NLS0729 (NRRL B-68195), NLS0049 (NRRL B-68236), NLS0591 (NRRL B-68215), NLSO439 (NRRL B- 68216), NLS1310, NLS1312, NLS0612 (NRRL B-68237), NLS0706 (NRRL B-68238), and NLS0725 (NRRL B-68239) (claim 24), and isolated Methylobacterium of claim 24, selected from the group consisting of NLS0665 (NRRL B-68194), NLS0754 (NRRL B-68197), NLS0672 (NRRL B-68196),NLSYM7003.USN NLS0729 (NRRL B-68195), NLS0049 (NRRL B-68236), NLS0591 (NRRL B-68215), and NLSO439 (NRRL B-68216) (claim 25).
However, US 2014/0287921 A1 teach applying a fertilizer consisting of nitrogen to a crop plant which can be applied to hydroponics or aeroponics to enhance plant growth, etc. (See for example, paragraphs [0035, [0034], and [0033]).
Moreover, although U.S. Patent No. 12,458,029 do not teach Methylobacterium isolate is selected from the group consisting of NLS0665 (NRRL B-68194), NLS0754 (NRRL B- 68197), NLS0672 (NRRL B-68196), NLS0729 (NRRL B-68195), NLS0049 (NRRL B-68236), NLS0591 (NRRL B-68215), and NLSO439 (NRRL B-68216), isolated Methylobacterium selected from the group consisting of NLS0665 (NRRL B-68194), NLS0754 (NRRL B-68197), NLS0672 (NRRL B-68196), NLS0729 (NRRL B-68195), NLS0049 (NRRL B-68236), NLS0591 (NRRL B-68215), NLSO439 (NRRL B- 68216), NLS1310, NLS1312, NLS0612 (NRRL B-68237), NLS0706 (NRRL B-68238), and NLS0725 (NRRL B-68239) (claim 24), and isolated Methylobacterium of claim 24, selected from the group consisting of NLS0665 (NRRL B-68194), NLS0754 (NRRL B-68197), NLS0672 (NRRL B-68196),NLSYM7003.USN NLS0729 (NRRL B-68195), NLS0049 (NRRL B-68236), NLS0591 (NRRL B-68215), and NLSO439 (NRRL B-68216) (claim 25), however, a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention knowing the beneficial effects of Methylobacterium on plant growth and yield and effects of fermentation products of Methylobacterium (See for example, paragraphs [0004]-[0006] and [0049] of Jones et al.) would have been capable of isolating Methylobacterium strains and deposited the strains by known and available techniques and provide the subject matter of claims 17, 24 and 25.
Therefore, a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention would have been motivated to apply the teachings of US 2014/0287921 A1 and add a nitrogen fertilizer to a crop plant which can be applied to hydroponics or aeroponics in the method taught by claim of U.S. Patent No. 12,458,029 to enhance plant growth and
In addition, the rate of application of fertilizer would have been optimized by a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention.
C)
Claims 1-4, 9, 10 and 12-15 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-7 of U.S. Patent No. 12,471,598 view of Berger (U.S. 8,181,388 B2).
The teachings of claims 1-7 of U.S. Patent No. 12,471,598 regarding claims 1-4, 9 and 12-15 were discussed above in details.
Regarding claim 10 of instant application, Berger (U.S. 8,181,388 B2) teach additional components (See for example, Specification paragraph 22), pesticide is an insecticide, a fungicide, an herbicide, a nematicide, or a combination thereof (See for example specification paragraph 20), the insecticide or nematicide is abamectin, aldicarb, aldoxycarb, bifenthrin, carbofuran, chlorantraniliporle, chlothianidin, cyfluthrin, cyhalothrin, cypermethrin, deltamethrin, dinotefuran, emamectin, ethiprole, fenamiphos, fipronil, flubendiamide, fosthiazate, imidacloprid, ivermectin, lambda-cyhalothrin, milbemectin, nitenpyram, oxamyl, permethrin, tioxazafen, spinetoram, spinosad, spirodichlofen, spirotetramat, tefluthrin, thiacloprid, thiamethoxam, or thiodicarb (See for example specification paragraph 20), the fungicide is acibenzolar-S-methyl, azoxystrobin, benalaxyl, bixafen, boscalid, carbendazim, cyproconazole, dimethomorph, epoxiconazole, fluopyram, fluoxastrobin, flutianil, flutolanil, fluxapyroxad, fosetyl-Al, ipconazole, isopyrazam, kresoxim-methyl, mefenoxam, metalaxyl, metconazole, myclobutanil, orysastrobin, penflufen, penthiopyrad, picoxystrobin, propiconazole, prothioconazole, pyraclostrobin, sedaxane, silthiofam, tebuconazole, thifluzamide, thiophanate, tolclofos-methyl, trifloxystrobin, or triticonazole (See for example specification paragraph 21), agriculturally acceptable adjuvant (film or adhesive agent) is a polyvinyl acetate, a polyvinyl acetate copolymer, a hydrolyzed polyvinyl acetate, a polyvinylpyrrolidone-vinyl acetate copolymer, a polyvinyl alcohol, a polyvinyl alcohol copolymer, a polyvinyl methyl ether, a polyvinyl methyl ether-maleic anhydride copolymer, a wax, a latex polymer, a cellulose, an ethylcellulose, a methylcellulose, a hydroxymethylcellulose, a hydroxypropylcellulose, a hydroxymethylpropylcellulose, a polyvinyl pyrrolidone, an alginate, a dextrin, a malto-dextrin, a polysaccharide, a fat, an oil, a protein, karaya gum, jaguar gum, tragacanth gum, polysaccharide gum, mucilage, gum arabic, shellac, a vinylidene chloride polymer, a vinylidene chloride copolymer, a soybean-based protein polymer, a soybean-based protein copolymer, a lignosulfonate, an acrylic copolymer, starch, polyvinylacrylate, zein, gelatin, carboxymethylcellulose, chitosan, polyethylene oxide, an acrylamide polymer, an acrylamide copolymer, a polyhydroxyethyl acrylate, a methylacrylamide monomer, alginate, polychloroprene, or a syrup or mixture thereof (See for example specification paragraph 28), and the agriculturally acceptable excipient (carrier agent, adherent, etc.) is woodflour, clay, activated carbon, diatomaceous earth, a fine-grain inorganic solid, calcium carbonate, calcium bentonite, kaolin, china clay, talc, perlite, mica, vermiculite, silica, quartz powder, montmorillonite, or a mixture thereof (See for example specification paragraph 27).
Therefore, a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention would have been motivated to apply the teachings of Berger (U.S. 8,181,388 B2) and use the known and available additional active ingredients/agriculturally acceptable adjuvants/agriculturally acceptable excipients including pesticide, insecticide, a fungicide, an herbicide, a nematicide, or a combination thereof, taught by the prior art to be useful as coating material, etc. with a reasonable expectation of success in providing the claimed composition(s) of claim 10 of instant application.
D)
Claims 1, 3-7 and 9-10 are provisionally rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over at least claims 1-5, 8, 10, 22 and 35-40 of copending U.S. Application No. 18/000,590 (reference application).
Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because claims 1-5, 8, 10, 22 and 35-40 of copending U.S. Application No. 18/000,590 disclose a method for enhancing early plant growth that comprises:(a) applying a composition to a plant, plant part or seed, wherein the composition comprises Methylobacterium LGP2022 (NRRL B-68033), LGP2023 (NRRL B-68034), LGP2021 (NRRL B-68032), or a variant thereof, and,(b) growing the plant to at least the two leaf stage, thereby enhancing early plant growth in comparison to an untreated control plant that had not received an application of the composition or in comparison to a control plant grown from an untreated seed that had not received an application of the composition, wherein the composition is applied to a seed, wherein said plant is a leafy green plant, wherein said leafy green plant is selected from the group consisting of spinach, lettuce, beets, swiss chard, watercress, kale, collards, escarole, arugula, endive, bok choy, and turnips, wherein said leafy green plant is cultivated for production of microgreens and/or herbs, a composition comprising a fermentation product comprising a Methylobacterium strain, wherein said fermentation product is essentially free of contaminating microorganisms, and wherein the Methylobacterium strain is selected from the group consisting of LGP2022 (NRRL B-68033), LGP2023 (NRRL B-68034), LGP2021 (NRRL B-68032), and variants thereof, and wherein said composition further comprises at least one additional component selected from the group consisting of an additional active ingredient, an agriculturally acceptable adjuvant, and an agriculturally acceptable excipient, a plant, plant part or seed at least partially coated with the composition of claim 8, wherein said enhanced growth results in a plant trait improvement to said plant selected from increased biomass production, decreased cycle time, increased rate of leaf growth, increased rate of root growth, and increased seed yield, wherein the additional active ingredient comprises a pesticide or a second biological agent, wherein the pesticide is an insecticide, a fungicide, an herbicide, a nematicide, or a combination thereof, wherein the insecticide or nematicide is abamectin, aldicarb, aldoxycarb, bifenthrin, carbofuran, chlorantraniliporle, chlothianidin, cyfluthrin, cyhalothrin, cypermethrin, deltamethrin, dinotefuran, emamectin, ethiprole, fenamiphos, fipronil, flubendiamide, fosthiazate, imidacloprid, ivermectin, lambda-cyhalothrin, milbemectin, nitenpyram, oxamyl, permethrin, tioxazafen, spinetoram, spinosad, spirodichlofen, spirotetramat, tefluthrin, thiacloprid, thiamethoxam, or thiodicarb, wherein the fungicide is acibenzolar-S-methyl, azoxystrobin, benalaxyl, bixafen, boscalid, carbendazim, cyproconazole, dimethomorph, epoxiconazole, fluopyram, fluoxastrobin, flutianil, flutolanil, fluxapyroxad, fosetyl-Al, ipconazole, isopyrazam, kresoxim-methyl, mefenoxam, metalaxyl, metconazole, myclobutanil, orysastrobin, penflufen, penthiopyrad, picoxystrobin, propiconazole, prothioconazole, pyraclostrobin, sedaxane, silthiofam, tebuconazole, thifluzamide, thiophanate, tolclofos-methyl, trifloxystrobin, or triticonazole, wherein the agriculturally acceptable adjuvant is a polyvinyl acetate, a polyvinyl acetate copolymer, a hydrolyzed polyvinyl acetate, a polyvinylpyrrolidone-vinyl acetate copolymer, a polyvinyl alcohol, a polyvinyl alcohol copolymer, a polyvinyl methyl ether, a polyvinyl methyl ether-maleic anhydride copolymer, a wax, a latex polymer, a cellulose, an ethylcellulose, a methylcellulose, a hydroxymethylcellulose, a hydroxypropylcellulose, a hydroxymethylpropylcellulose, a polyvinyl pyrrolidone, an alginate, a dextrin, a malto-dextrin, a polysaccharide, a fat, an oil, a protein, karaya gum, jaguar gum, tragacanth gum, polysaccharide gum, mucilage, gum arabic, shellac, a vinylidene chloride polymer, a vinylidene chloride copolymer, a soybean-based protein polymer, a soybean-based protein copolymer, a lignosulfonate, an acrylic copolymer, starch, polyvinylacrylate, zein, gelatin, carboxymethylcellulose, chitosan, polyethylene oxide, an acrylamide polymer, an acrylamide copolymer, a polyhydroxyethyl acrylate, a methylacrylamide monomer, alginate, polychloroprene, or a syrup or mixture thereof, and wherein the agriculturally acceptable excipient is woodflour, clay, activated carbon, diatomaceous earth, a fine-grain inorganic solid, calcium carbonate, calcium bentonite, kaolin, china clay, talc, perlite, mica, vermiculite, silica, quartz powder, montmorillonite, or a mixture thereof.
Therefore, claims 1-5, 8, 10, 22 and 35-40 of copending U.S. Application No. 18/000,590 anticipate or make obvious the claimed composition, the plant, plant part or seed and the method for enhancing early plant growth of claims 1, 3-7 and 9-10 of instant application.
This is a provisional nonstatutory double patenting rejection because the patentably indistinct claims have not in fact been patented.
Conclusion(s):
No claim(s) is allowed at this time.
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/KADE ARIANI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1651