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 .
Priority
The instant application is a 35 USC 371 National Stage filing of international application No. PCT/KR2022/005225, filed April 11, 2022, which claims foreign priority under 35 USC 119(a)-(d) from Chinese applications KR10-2022-0026836, filed March 2, 2022.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on August 30, 2024 was in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98. Accordingly, the IDS document was considered and a signed copy of the 1449 form is attached.
Status of Claims
Currently, claims 1-12 are pending in the instant application and are under consideration herein.
Specification
The specification is objected to for containing typographical errors. In particular, at least paragraphs [70] and [71] contain the typographical error “synthetized.” All instances should be replaced with “synthesized.”
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 5 and 11 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.
Claims 5 and 11 contain the trade name Pluronic. Where a trademark or trade name is used in a claim as a limitation to identify or describe a particular material or product, the claim does not comply with the requirements of 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph. See Ex parte Simpson, 218 USPQ 1020 (Bd. App. 1982). The claim scope is uncertain since the trademark or trade name cannot be used properly to identify any particular material or product. A trademark or trade name is used to identify a source of goods, and not the goods themselves. Thus, a trademark or trade name does not identify or describe the goods associated with the trademark or trade name. In the present case, the trademark/trade name is used to identify/describe the claimed gelling polymer agents and, accordingly, the identification/description is indefinite.
Conclusion
Claims 1-4, 6-10 and 12 are allowed.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Alicia L. Otton whose telephone number is (571)270-7683. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday - Thursday, 8:00-6:00.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Mr. Fereydoun Sajjadi can be reached on 571-272-0699. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ALICIA L OTTON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1699
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