DETAILED CORRESPONDENCE
Summary
This is the initial Office Action based on the Berney, et al. application filed with the Office on 16 September 2024.
Claims 27-46 are currently pending and have been fully considered.
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
The preliminary amendments filed on 26 November 2024, and 20 December 2024, are acknowledged and have been entered.
Priority
The instant application is a continuation application of US Patent Application No. 16/613,584, field on 14 November 2019, which is a US National Stage Patent Application of an International Patent Application, PCT/EP2018/062505, filed on 15 May 2018, which claims priority to a US Provisional Patent Application, 62/506,318, filed on 15 May 2017. Thus, 15 May 2017 is the effective filing date of the instant application.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDSs) submitted regarding the present application filed on 14 July 2025, are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the IDSs have been considered by the Examiner.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they do not include the following reference sign(s) mentioned in the description: sensor 2700, mentioned at least on page 29, line 16 of the specification as filed. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they include the following reference character(s) not mentioned in the description: element 2100 shown in Figure 21; elements 2301, 2306, 2307, 2310, 2311, 2340, and 2341, shown in Figure 23; and elements 2800 and 2806, shown in Figure 28. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d), or amendment to the specification to add the reference character(s) in the description in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(b) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
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.
Claim 27 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by a US Patent Application Publication to Mansouri, et al. (US 2003/0000833 A1; hereinafter, “Mansouri”).
Regarding claim 27, Mansouri discloses an apparatus for sensing a concentration of a material ([0003] – “…electrochemical sensor systems which provide blood chemistry analysis…”), the apparatus comprising:
a substrate ([0054] – “…sensors are available as a bank of electrodes 10 fabricated in a plastic card 50…”);
a plurality of electrodes integrated with the substrate and configured to contact a solution and to detect a measurable electrical response when in contact with the solution ([0054] – “…sensors are available as a bank of electrodes 10 fabricated in a plastic card 50…”; [0045] – “The responses, i.e., signals, measured by the sensor, relative to the concentrations of the analyte in the two different reagent samples, serve as reference points for measurements of the analyte in samples having unknown concentrations of the analyte.”); and
a cavity configured to expose the solution to the plurality of electrodes, wherein the cavity comprises at least one channel configured to guide the solution to the plurality of electrodes (sensor channel 56, Figure 2);
a reference electrode structure integrated with the substrate ([0021] – “…an electrical potential is applied at a range of about 0.1 to 0.8 V versus the on-board reference electrode.”), the reference electrode structure configured to hold a reference material ([0145] – “…an internal Ag/AgCl reference electrode.”);
wherein the apparatus is configured to selectively activate or expose at least one electrode of the plurality of electrodes ([0054] – “…the electrical interface 38 between the sensors in the plastic card 50 and the microprocessor 40 through the analog board 45. The analog board 45 houses analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog converters. The signal from the electrode interface 38 passes through the analog-to-digital converter, converted into digital form for the processor 40 to store and display. Conversely, the digital signals from the processor 40, for example, the polarization voltage for oxygen sensor, go through the digital-to-analog converter, converted into an analog form and fed to the sensors for control, through the electrode interface 38.”).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 34-46 are allowed.
Claims 28-33 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: the cited Mansouri reference is considered the closest prior art to the instant claims. However, Mansouri does not anticipate nor render obvious: an integrated semiconductor substrate, as required by instant claims 34-38 and 43-46; conditioning elements to prevent or eliminate fouling of the one or more channels, as required by instant claims 39-42; a barrier, as required by instant claim 28; a heating element configured to selectively rupture a membrane, as required by instant claim 29; a conditioning element, as required by instant claim 30; active electronics configured to detect fouling by measuring an output impedance, as required by instant claim 31; one or more lateral channels and one or more vertical channels, as required by instant claim 32; or, a temperature sensor comprising two or more structures, as required by instant claim 33.
Interview with the Examiner
If at any point during the prosecution it is believe an interview with the Examiner would further the prosecution of an application, please consider this option.
The Automated Interview Request form (AIR) is available to request an interview to be scheduled with the Examiner. First, an authorization for internet communications regarding the case should be filed prior or with an AIR online request.
The internet communication authorization form (SB/0439), which authorizes or withdraws authorization for internet-based communication (e.g., video conferencing, email, etc.) for the application must be signed by the applicant or the attorney/agent for applicant. The form can be found at:
https://www.uspto.gov/sites/default/files/documents/sb0439.pdf
The AIR form can be filled out online, and is automatically forwarded to the Examiner, who will call to confirm a requested time and date, or set up a mutually convenient time for the interview. The form can be found at:
https://www.uspto.gov/patent/uspto-automated-interview-request-air-form.html
The Examiner encourages, but does not require, interviews by the USPTO Microsoft Teams video conferencing. This system allows for file-sharing along audio conferencing. Microsoft Teams can be used as an internet browser add-on in Microsoft IE, Google Chrome, or Mozilla Foxfire, or as a temporary Java-based application on these browsers. Steps for joining an Examiner setup Microsoft Teams can be found at the USPTO website:
https://www.uspto.gov/patents/laws/interview-practice#step3
Additionally, a blank email to the Examiner at the time of a telephonic interview can be used for a reply to easily allow for Microsoft Teams communication. Please note, policy guidelines regarding Internet communications are detailed at MPEP §500-502.3, and office policy regarding interviews are detailed at MPEP §713.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOHN C BALL whose telephone number is (571)270-5119. The examiner can normally be reached M - F, 9 am - 5:30 pm.
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, Luan Van can be reached at (571)272-8521. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/J. Christopher Ball/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1795
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