DETAILED ACTION
Notice of 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 .
Status of Application
Claims 1-17 are pending and subject to examination on the merits.
Priority
The instant application is a 371 of PCT/EP2023/071014 filed 28 July 2023 which claims benefit of foreign priority document FR 2207895 filed 29 July 2022 is acknowledged. Said document has been received.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 14 April 2026 and 23 January 2025 have been considered by the examiner. See initialed and signed PTO/SB/08’s.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112(b)
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 1-17 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.
Claim 1 has two separate issues which render the claim indefinite. Claims 2-17 are included in the rejection as they do not remedy the noted deficiencies.
Claim 1 recites “feeding a first, easily fermentable stream M2, and a second not easily fermentable stream M3”. It is unclear if the limitation “feeding” is to mean feeding the M2 and M3 into a machine/device. Or if “feeding” is meant as step of supplementing/feeding the M2 and M3 streams with supplements, microorganism, etc.
Claim 1 also recites two wherein clauses at the end (e.g. wherein mesophilic digestion of the first easily fermentable stream M2 at 35-40°C for 20 days reduces the organic matter present in said the first stream by more than 40% by weight, and wherein mesophilic digestion of the second not easily fermentable stream M3 at 35-40°C for 20 days does not enable more than 40% by weight of the organic matter present in the second stream to be converted into biogas.) It is unclear if the wherein clauses are actual method steps which necessarily are carried on both the M2 and the M3 feed streams. Or whether, they are limitations meant to somewhat define what is meant as “easily fermentable” and “not easily fermentable” but are not actually method steps required by the claims, in which case, they (the M2 and M3 streams) would be treated similarly to product by process limitations.
Clarification is requested for both A. and B.
Claim 17 is 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.
Claim 17 recites the limitation “wherein the cooling is implemented by heat exchange with the fraction of the second stream M3 which is not easily fermentable.”, in reference to claim 12 which introduces as cooling step to obtain a stream M3’. Claim 12 is, however, also dependent upon claim 1 which recites a second M3 stream as well. Thus, it is unclear if there is typographical error in claim 17 and the cooling step implemented by heat exchange is performed on the M3’ stream. Or if there is missing step, because claim 12 has already separated the M3 not easily fermentable fraction into two different streams, e.g. M4 enriched in inorganic matter and M3’ depleted inorganic matter. There is no mention of a cooling step to just the M3 stream prior to this step, rather only a cooling step of M3’ stream.
Clarification is requested.
Conclusion
No claim is allowed.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SUZANNE M NOAKES whose telephone number is (571)272-2924. The examiner can normally be reached M-F (7-4).
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/SUZANNE M NOAKES/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1656 17 September 2026
