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 .
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.
Claim(s) 1-11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu et al. (CN 11315858).
Regarding claims 1 and 8, Liu (‘858) teaches a preparation method for a mycoprotein biological feed and a feed produced by the method, comprising the following steps: inoculating Aspergillus niger microbial agent on a first fermentation substrate for first fermentation, to obtain a yeast seed; inoculating a compound microbial agent in a second fermentation substrate to perform second fermentation to obtain a mycoprotein biological feed (See Abs., p. 2, l. 33 to p. 3, l. 3, claims 1, 2.); wherein a corn-bran microbial-protein fermented feed and a preparation method therefor; adding a primary microbial inoculum to a fermentation material mainly composed of corn bran for fermentation; and adding a secondary microbial inoculum to the culture for fermentation, so as to obtain the product; wherein the primary microbial inoculum comprises Aspergillus niger, Bacillus subtilis and Saccharomyces cerevisiae CICC 32236, at a mass ratio of 10:100 relative to the fermentation material; wherein the secondary microbial inoculum is Lactobacillus buchneri, at a volume ratio of 2:100 relative to the fermentation material; wherein the fermentation material comprises corn bran, wheat bran, a sulfate, a phosphate, a magnesium salt, and a sodium salt with mass contents of 40-50%, 1.6-2.5%, 1.3-1.5%, 0.2-0.3%, 0.2-0.3%, and 0.1-0.2%; wherein the primary fermentation is performed at 25-35°C for 7-20 days; wherein the secondary fermentation is performed at 15-32°C for 7-30 days; wherein Aspergillus niger, Bacillus subtilis, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae have viable cell counts of (1.09-2.1 7)x109, (1.33-1.6)x1010, and (4.67-7)x1010 cfu/kg microbial inoculum; where the feed is used in the preparation of animal feed and for improving milk yield in dairy cows (See Abs., p. 2, l. 32- p. 3, l. 37 to p. 4, l. 17, p. 7, l. 32+, claims 1-6, 9.), however, fails to expressly disclose the raw materials and amounts thereof.
Applicant does not set forth any non-obvious unexpected results for selecting one raw material and amount thereof.
It would have been foreseeable and obvious prior to the earliest effective filing date to select routine raw materials like those set forth in the claims and amounts thereof to provide materials usable for animal feed. The selection of the raw materials and amounts thereof would have been within the skill set of a person having ordinary skill in the art.
Regarding claims 2-7 and 9-11, Liu (‘858) teaches the method discussed above, however, fails to expressly disclose the various parameters of the raw materials.
Applicant does not set forth any non-obvious unexpected results for selecting one raw material parameter over another.
Liu (‘858) teaches Saccharomyces cerevisiae CICC 32236 (See claims 1, 2.), wherein the remaining strains are conventional choices in the art.
It would have been foreseeable and obvious prior to the earliest effective filing date to select parameters like those set forth in the claims and amounts thereof to provide materials usable for animal feed. The selection of parameters would have been within the skill set of a person having ordinary skill in the art.
Conclusion
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/BRENT T O'HERN/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1793 July 15, 2026
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