DETAILED ACTION
Election/Restriction
Claims 11-12 of Group II and claims 17-23 of Group III are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to nonelected inventions, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election of claims 1-8, 10, 15-16 of Group I, was made without traverse in the reply filed on February 10, 2026.
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.
Claims 1-8, 10, 15-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor, regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 1, it is unclear what all is encompassed by the term “PUF” even though it has been defined as being short for “physical unclonable function” in Applicant’s specification (1st para of page 1) because it is unclear whether the physical function that is supposed to be unclonable, or irreproducible, being uniquely one of a kind, is a single physical function resulting from an artificial composite of physical functions, or a single physical function resulting from an artificial composite of compositions, or both. Furthermore, it is also unclear how the physical function is made to be unclonable or irreproducible.
Regarding claims 10 and 15, it is unclear what all is encompassed by the action of “combining”. The action of “mixing” in claims 6-7 appears to be separate and not synonymous with said action of “combining”. Accordingly, for the purposes of examination, the action of “combining” is interpreted as excluding mixing.
Claims 2-8, 10, 15-16 depend on and contain all the subject matter of claim 1, but all fail to provide any solutions to the indefinite issues described above.
Clarification and/or amendment, accompanied by relevant citation(s) from the specification are required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1, 3, 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a/1,2) as being anticipated by Zhou (US 2021/0091964).
Regarding claim 1, Zhou teaches a method of making an optically readable PUF coating composition (image … from an optical microscope, irregularly and randomly arranged micron-sized particles enabling … physically unclonable function (PFU) [0016]), the method comprising increasing the entropy of a coating composition (disordered optical structure formed [0018, 0036]) by adding a first optically readable material (silica microparticles distributed … in a disordered and random manner [0018], albumin microspheres distributed … in a disordered random manner [0036], images from the optical microscope were input into AI [0018, 0036]) to the coating composition (emulsion containing monodisperse polystyrene-polymethyl methacrylate-polyacrylic acid colloidal microspheres [0018], emulsion containing monodisperse gold colloidal microspheres [0036]).
Regarding claim 3, Zhou teaches that the method comprises the step of non-uniformly dispersing the first optically readable material in the coating composition (microparticles distributed … in a disordered and random manner [0018, 0036]).
Regarding claim 15, Zhou teaches the step of further increasing the entropy of the coating composition by adding an optically readable material (gelatin microspheres distributed … in a disordered and random manner [0019]) to at least two portions of the coating composition ((“H” and “N”, Fig. 1 [0019]); and combining the at least two portions of the coating composition (alphabets-pattern [0019], ((“H” and “N”, Fig. 1).
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 2, 6-7, 10, 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhou as applied to claims 1, 3, 15 above.
Zhou teaches a method of making an optically readable PUF coating composition, the method comprising increasing the entropy of a coating composition by adding a first optically readable material to the coating composition, as described above.
Regarding claim 2, although Zhou is silent regarding the coating composition being a lacquer, providing the coating composition as a clear-matrix lacquer is very suitable for the purpose of allowing the first optically readable material to be easily read with minimal optical interference.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time, to have provided the coating composition as a clear-matrix lacquer, in the method of making an optically readable PUR coating composition of Zhou, in order to allow the first optically readable material to be easily read with minimal optical interference.
Regarding claims 6-7, Zhou fails to teach a step of mixing a second optically readable material and a solvent to form a mixture and adding a mixture to the coating composition.
However, Zhou teaches a step of adding a second optically readable material gelatin microspheres distributed … in a disordered and random manner [0019]) to the coating composition by spraying followed by a step of drying (emulsion containing gelatin microspheres was sprayed [0019], “N” after “H”, Fig. 1, alphabets-pattern [0019]), where said drying step implies the presence of a solvent, such that the step of adding the second optically readable material to the coating composition by spraying, is anteceded by a step of mixing the second optically readable material with a solvent to form a mixture, prior to adding the mixture to the coating composition by spraying. Even a common layman at the time, would have known that the step of mixing the second optically readable material with the solvent, is best done by uniformly mixing the second optically readable material in the solvent, for the purpose of providing the desired smoothness of spray flow during the spraying step.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time, to have provided a step of uniformly mixing the second optically readable material with a solvent, in the method of making an optically readable PUF coating composition of Zhou, in order to obtain the desired smoothness of spray flow during the spraying step.
Regarding claim 10, Zhou teaches that the step of adding a first optically readable material to the coating composition, further includes providing a first portion and a second portion of the coating composition (emulsion containing gelatin microspheres was sprayed [0019], “N” after “H”, Fig. 1 [0019]), and combining the first portion and the second portion of the coating composition (“N” after “H”, Fig. 1, alphabets-pattern [0019]). Accordingly, Zhou teaches that the step of adding a first optically readable material to the coating composition, further includes adding the first optically readable material to the first portion of the coating composition, and adding the a second optically readable material to the second portion of the coating composition. Zhou fails to teach a step of adding a solvent to the second optically readable material to form a mixture, prior to adding the second optically readable material to the second portion of the coating composition.
However, Zhou teaches that the step of adding the second optically readable material (gelatin microspheres distributed … in a disordered and random manner [0019]) to the second portion of the coating composition is done by spraying, followed by a step of drying (emulsion containing gelatin microspheres was sprayed [0019], “N” after “H”, Fig. 1, alphabets-pattern [0019]), where said drying step implies the presence of a solvent, such that the step of adding the second optically readable material to the second portion of the coating composition by spraying, is anteceded by a step of adding a solvent to the second optically readable material to form a mixture, and the step of adding the second optically readable material to the second portion of the coating composition, is more specifically a step of adding the mixture to the second portion of the coating composition.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time, to have further comprised a step of adding a solvent to the second optically readable material to form a mixture, and then adding the mixture to the second portion of the coating composition, in the step of adding the second optically readable material to the second portion of the coating composition, in the method of making an optically readable PUF coating composition of Zhou, in order to provide the step of adding the second optically readable material to the second portion of the coating composition, by spraying.
Regarding claim 16, Zhou teaches the step of further increasing the entropy of the coating composition by adding an optically readable material (gelatin microspheres distributed … in a disordered and random manner [0019]) to at least two portions of the coating composition ((“H” and “N”, Fig. 1 [0019]); and combining the at least two portions of the coating composition (alphabets-pattern [0019], ((“H” and “N”, Fig. 1). Zhou fails to teach a step of adding a solvent to each of the at least two portions of the coating composition.
However, Zhou teaches that the step of adding the optically readable material (gelatin microspheres distributed … in a disordered and random manner [0019]) to the at least two portions of the coating composition is done by spraying, followed by a step of drying (emulsion containing gelatin microspheres was sprayed [0019], “N” after “H”, Fig. 1, alphabets-pattern [0019]), where said drying step implies the presence of a solvent, such that the step of adding the optically readable material to the at least two portions of the coating composition by spraying, is anteceded by a step of adding a solvent to each of the at least two portions of the coating composition.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time, to have further comprised a step of adding a solvent to each of the at least two portions of the coating composition, in the method of making an optically readable PUF coating composition of Zhou, in order to provide the step of adding the optically readable material to the at least two portions of the coating composition, by spraying.
Claims 4, 8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhou as applied to claims 1-3, 6-7, 10, 15-16 above, and further in view of Gupta (US 2020/0082235).
Zhou teaches a method of making an optically readable PUF coating composition, the method comprising increasing the entropy of a coating composition by adding a first optically readable material to the coating composition, as described above.
Regarding claim 4, Zhou fails to teach that the first optically readable material includes a fluorescent compound.
However, Gupta teaches that in an optically readable PUF ([0064, 0060]) coating composition ([0025]), an optically readable material includes a fluorescent compound, for the purpose of providing the desired color-changing function (fluorescent … particles [0060]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time, to have included a fluorescent compound in the first optically readable material, in the method of making an optically readable PUF coating composition of Zhou, in order to obtain the desired color-changing function, as taught by Gupta.
Regarding claim 8, Zhou fails to teach a step of mixing a second optically readable material and a solvent to form a mixture and adding a mixture to the coating composition.
However, Zhou teaches a step of adding a second optically readable material gelatin microspheres distributed … in a disordered and random manner [0019]) to the coating composition by spraying, followed by a step of drying (emulsion containing gelatin microspheres was sprayed [0019], “N” after “H”, Fig. 1, alphabets-pattern [0019]), where said drying step implies the presence of a solvent, such that the step of adding the second optically readable material to the coating composition by spraying, is anteceded by a step of mixing the second optically readable material with a solvent to form a mixture, prior to adding the mixture to the coating composition by spraying, for the purpose of providing the desired spray flow during the spraying step.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time, to have provided a step of mixing the second optically readable material with a solvent to form a mixture, prior to adding the mixture to the coating composition by spraying, in the method of making an optically readable PUF coating composition of Zhou, in order to obtain the desired spray flow during the spraying step.
Zhou is silent regarding a type of the solvent, and hence fails to teach that the solvent includes at least a ketone.
However, Gupta teaches that in an optically readable PUF ([0064, 0060]) coating composition ([0025]), a good solvent is acetone ([0047]) which is a ketone, for the purpose of providing the desired coating functions ([0047]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time, to have included a ketone in the solvent used in the step of mixing the second optically readable material with a solvent to form a mixture, prior to adding the mixture to the coating composition, in the method of making an optically readable PUF coating composition of modified Zhou, in order to obtain the desired coating functions, as taught by Gupta.
Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhou in view of Gupta, as applied to claims 4, 8 above, and further in view of Baer (US 2020/0142128).
Zhou, as modified by Gupta, teaches a method of making an optically readable PUF coating composition, the method comprising increasing the entropy of a coating composition by adding a first optically readable material including a fluorescent compound, to the coating composition, as described above. Zhou, as modified by Gupta, is silent regarding a type of the fluorescent compound.
However, Baer teaches that in an optically readable PUF coating composition ([0019]), a fluorescent compound that is used is at least one of a cyanine dye, a phthalocyanine dye and a porphyrin dye, for the purpose of providing the desired nonlinear optical effect ([0091]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time, to have provided at least one of a cyanine dye, a phthalocyanine dye and a porphyrin dye, as the fluorescent compound of the first optically readable material in the method of making an optically readable PUF coating composition, of Zhou, as modified by Gupta, in order to obtain the desired nonlinear effect, as taught by Baer.
Any inquiry concerning this communication should be directed to Sow-Fun Hon whose telephone number is (571)272-1492. The examiner is on a flexible schedule but can usually be reached during a regular workweek between the hours of 10:00 AM and 6:00 PM.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner's supervisor, Aaron Austin, can be reached at (571)272-8935. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is (571)273-8300.
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/Sophie Hon/
Sow-Fun Hon
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1782
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