DETAILED ACTION
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.
Claims 1-… are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Redd et al (US Publication 20210140114).
Redd discloses belts and fibrous structures may comprise discrete cells comprising one or more legs and/or concavities in certain pattern or cell groups (abs). The fibrous structures such as sanitary tissue products (paragraph 85) exhibit a pattern. The fibrous structure may include a plurality of cells that are formed in a shape that may include a saddle and at least one leg as well as a width, and height (paragraph 92). Each of these cells within a pattern may be all of the same size or the size other cell may vary within the pattern with cells of different sizes and the pattern can include 3 or more different sizes (paragraph 112). Redd is silent to the pattern of the sanitary tissue product.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to have modified Redd and formed the sanitary tissue product to have a cell group having a first cell with a first width, height, leg length and saddle height, a second cell with a second width, height, leg length and saddle height and a third cell with a third width, height, leg length and saddle height. Wherein the first cell has dimensions less than the second cell and the second cell has dimensions less than the third cell and wherein the first, second and third cell are disposed along an axis wherein a distance between saddles of each cell is different as one of ordinary skill in the art would known how to form this pattern as Redd discloses at least 3 different cell dimensions within the pattern and the distances between the cells being different. One of ordinary skill in the art would know how to adjust these patterns as they can improve desired properties such as feel, bulk, appearance and liquid uptake and Redd discloses the ability to change the desired pattern as it overlaps in scope.
As to claim 2-4, Redd discloses that the distance as well as the first and second leg separation distance between the first, second and third cell can be different. In the alternative it would have been obvious.
As to claim 5-9, Redd discloses that the cells may be discrete knuckles or pillows (abs), wherein the cells can comprise one or more concavities (abs).
As to claims 10-16, Redd discloses that the axis can be linear, non-linear, sine wave, x-direction, y-direction, MD-direction and CD-direction (paragraphs 99, 113, 115 and figures).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHRISTOPHER M POLLEY whose telephone number is (571)270-5734. The examiner can normally be reached Monday through Friday from 8am till 4:30 pm.
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/CHRISTOPHER M POLLEY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1785
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