DETAILED ACTION
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior office action.
All outstanding objections and rejections made in the previous Office Action, and not repeated below, are hereby withdrawn.
No new grounds of rejection are set forth below. Thus, the following action is properly made final.
Double Patenting
Claims 1-15 are provisionally rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 14, 1-5 and 7-13 of copending Application No. 18/845,154 (reference application). Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other.
As to claim 1, copending claim 14 is identical and therefore anticipates the instant claim.
As to claim 2, copending parent claim 1 discloses the claimed ratio.
As to claim 3, see copending claim 2.
As to claim 4, see copending parent claim 1 for the melt flow rate and copending claim 3 for the impact strength.
As to claim 5, see parent claim 1 discloses the claimed amounts and copending claim 4 for the viscosities.
As to claim 6, see parent claim 1 discloses the claimed amounts and copending claim 5 for the viscosities.
As to claim 7, see copending claim 6.
As to claim 8, see copending claim 7.
As to claim 9, see copending claim 9.
As to claim 10, see copending claim 10.
As to claim 11, see copending claim 11.
As to claim 12, see copending claim 13.
As to claims 13-14, see copending claim 12.
As to claim 15, see copending claims 13 and 7.
This is a provisional nonstatutory double patenting rejection because the patentably indistinct claims have not in fact been patented.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments
The 112 and 102/103 rejections are withdrawn in light of applicant’s amendments and arguments. Specifically, the 112 rejections are withdrawn in light of the amendments to removed Crystex QC. The rejections over Yasumoto are withdrawn in light of applicant’s arguments that the elastomer is not added to the masterbatch but the composition. Applicant shows, via the examples, that the energy required to process the compositions is reduced by having elastomer in the masterbatch.
Applicant's request for abeyance with respect to the ODP rejections is acknowledged to the extent that applicant's lack of response to the cited rejection will not be treated as non-responsive. However, since the rejection is proper it will be maintained until such time as a proper response to it is filed or conditions appropriate for removal of the rejection are present. Note that the instant application was later filed.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 MARK S KAUCHER whose telephone number is (571)270-7340. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8-6 PM EST.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Arrie Lanee Reuther can be reached at (571) 270-7026. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/MARK S KAUCHER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1764
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