DETAILED ACTION
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, 6-8, and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Burnett (US 4,391,285).
Regarding claim 1, Burnett teaches an elongated coherent mass 9 (cartridge) [Fig. 1 and 1a], comprising: a body portion 9 having two end surfaces (left end surface and right end surface) and an annular side surface connected to the two end surfaces [col. 6, l. 11-31], wherein the body portion is composed of a tobacco (smoke generating material) [col. 1, l. 53-64]; and a pressure drop 1.56 inches (40 millimeters) of water exists between the two end surfaces of the cartridge [col. 8, l. 34-35]. Burnett teaches a passage 2 (gas communication structure) formed on the body portion, and a plurality of openings (left end of passage 2 and right end of passage 2) in communication with the plurality of gas communication structures are formed on the two end surfaces. Although not shown in Fig. 1, Burnett teaches at least one passage is provided [col. 2, l. 40-43]. Thus, Burnett implicitly teaches a plurality of gas communication structures. The term “environment-friendly” does not impart and required structure or composition to the claimed cartridge to distinguish from the cartridge of Burnett.
Regarding claim 2, Burnett teaches the plurality of gas communication structures are in a linear shape [Fig. 1 and 5].
Regarding claim 6, as shown in Fig. 1 of Burnett, a diameter of either of the end surfaces of the body portion 9 is not greater than a height of the body portion. The instant specification discloses the body portion of Fig. 5 has an appearance in a shape of a strip. The body portion 9 of Fig. 1/1a of Burnett has the same shape and thus is interpreted to also have an appearance in a shape of a strip.
Regarding claims 7-8, Burnett teaches the diameter of either of the end surfaces of the body portion is 8 millimeters, and the height of the body portion is 85 mm [col. 8, l. 14-19]. Thus, a ratio of the diameter of either of the end surfaces of the body portion to the height of the body portion is 0.1.
Regarding claim 10, prior to being coupled to the filter in Fig. 1, the cartridge 9 comprises no filter and no cigarette paper. The limitations is applicable to a heat-not-burn cigarette device, is harmlessly degraded, and is environmentally friendly do not impart any required structure or composition to the cartridge to distinguish from the cartridge of Burnett. The cartridge of Burnett thereby reads on the present limitations.
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 3-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Burnett (US 4,391,285) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Fernando (US 2021/0169142).
In a separate embodiment, Burnett teaches truncated mass 19 (cartridge) [Fig. 4; col. 6, l. 56-63], comprising: a body portion 19 having two end surfaces (bottom end and top end) and an annular side surface connected to the two end surfaces, wherein the body portion is composed of tobacco (smoke generating material) [col. 1, l. 53-64], a plurality of passages 2 (gas communication structures) are formed on the body portion, and a plurality of openings (bottom and top open ends of passages 2) in communication with the plurality of gas communication structures are formed on the two end surfaces. In this embodiment, Burnett is silent to the pressure drop of the cartridge. Fernando teaches a tobacco cartridge for use with a shisha device, comprising a pressure drop between 10 millimeters of water and 50 millimeters of water [0055, 0069]. As this is a conventional tobacco cartridge pressure drop known in the art, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to apply to the cartridge of Burnett to achieve predictable results. In the case where the claimed ranges "overlap or lie inside ranges disclosed by the prior art" a prima facie case of obviousness exists. In re Wertheim, 541 F.2d 257, 191 USPQ 90 (CCPA 1976).
The term “ingot” is defined as “a mass of metal cast into a convenient shape for storage or transportation to be later processed” (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ingot). The body portion of Burnett is interpreted to have “an appearance in a shape of an ingot” as claimed. Burnett appears to show a diameter of either of the end surfaces of the body portion is slightly less than a height of the body portion as shown in Fig. 4. Burnett does not teach a diameter of either of the end surfaces of the body portion is not less than a height of the body portion or the remaining limitations regarding diameter and height. However, Burnett teaches the cartridge is shaped and sized for reception in the bowl of pipe [col. 6, l. 56-63]. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the shape and size of the cartridge in accordance with the shape and size of any pipe bowl into which it may be desired to insert the cartridge. Changes in size and proportion have been held to be insufficient to patentably distinguish over the prior art where the only difference between the prior art and the claims was a recitation of relative dimensions of the claimed device and a device having the claimed relative dimensions would not perform differently than the prior art device. See In re Rose, 220 F.2d 459, 105 USPQ 237 (CCPA 1955), In re Rinehart, 531 F.2d 1048, 189 USPQ 143, In Gardner v. TEC Syst., Inc., 725 F.2d 1338, 220 USPQ 777 (Fed. Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 830, 225 USPQ 232 (1984).
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Burnett as applied to claim 6 above, and further in view of McMurtrie (US 5,016,656).
Burnett does not teach the annular side surface of the body portion has an appearance in a shape of a gear. McMurtrie teaches a cigarette wherein the annular side surface of the tobacco tube 12 (body portion) has an appearance in a shape of a gear [Fig. 1-3] (corrugated as corresponding to instant Fig. 6-7). As this is a conventional shape of an annular side surface of a tobacco body portion known in the art, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to apply to the body portion of Burnett to achieve predictable results.
Conclusion
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/ERIC YAARY/Examiner, Art Unit 1755
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