DETAILED ACTION
Examiner’s Note
The Examiner acknowledges the cancelation of claim 1 and amending claim 3 to depend from claim 2 in the amendments filed 5/27/2026.
Response to Amendment
Applicant’s arguments, see the claim amendments and the remarks filed 5/27/2026, with respect to the rejection of claim 1 under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as set forth in paragraphs 3-4 of the action mailed 3/31/2026, have been fully considered and are persuasive. The rejection of claim 1 has been withdrawn.
Applicant’s arguments, see the claim amendments and the remarks filed 5/27/2026, with respect to the rejection of claim 2 under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as set forth in paragraphs 6-7 of the action mailed 3/31/2026, have been fully considered and are persuasive. The rejection of claim 2 has been withdrawn, EXCEPT as noted below.
Applicant’s arguments, see the claim amendments and the remarks filed 5/27/2026, with respect to the rejection of claims 1 and 3 over Creasy Jr. et al. in view of Shirotani et al. and in further view of Kosaka et al. under 35 U.S.C. 103 as set forth in paragraph 10 of the action mailed 3/31/2026, have been fully considered and are persuasive. The rejection of claims 1 and 3 has been withdrawn.
Rejections
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
Claims 2-3 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.
Regarding claim 2, it is unclear what is being claimed as there are no units (e.g., inches, microns) associated with the surface roughness (Ra).
Regarding claim 3, it is unclear from the claim limitations which of the fabric and/or layers are associated with the surface sides presently recited.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see the claim amendments and the remarks filed 5/27/2026, with respect to the rejections of claims 2-3 under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as set forth in paragraphs 5-6 of the action mailed 3/31/2026, have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
The claim amendments have not amended the noted claims to remove the ambiguity nor have the Applicant’s remarks addressed the merits of the rejections. Thus, the rejections are maintained and repeated above.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-3 are allowable over the prior art.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: see paragraphs 11-12 of the action mailed 3/31/2026.
Claims 2-3 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FRANK D DUCHENEAUX whose telephone number is (571)270-7053. The examiner can normally be reached 8:30 PM - 5:00 PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Alicia A Chevalier can be reached at 571-272-1490. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/FRANK D DUCHENEAUX/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1788 6/19/2026
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