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 .
Specification
Applicant is reminded of the proper language and format for an abstract of the disclosure.
The abstract should be in narrative form and generally limited to a single paragraph on a separate sheet within the range of 50 to 150 words in length. The abstract should describe the disclosure sufficiently to assist readers in deciding whether there is a need for consulting the full patent text for details.
The language should be clear and concise and should not repeat information given in the title. It should avoid using phrases which can be implied, such as, “The disclosure concerns,” “The disclosure defined by this invention,” “The disclosure describes,” etc. In addition, the form and legal phraseology often used in patent claims, such as “means” and “said,” should be avoided.
The abstract of the disclosure is objected to because of at least the following reasons, it: 1) uses phrasing which can be implied (“The present application relates to”); 2) uses phrasing and construction reserved for claims; and 3) does not narratively and concisely describe the invention “…to enable the reader thereof, regardless of his or her degree of familiarity with patent documents, to determine quickly from a cursory inspection of the nature and gist of the technical disclosure and should include that which is new in the art to which the invention pertains.”. A corrected abstract of the disclosure is required and must be presented on a separate sheet, apart from any other text. See MPEP § 608.01(b).
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.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 13 & 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
The scope of each of claims 13 & 14 is unclear. Since they appear to cross the bounds into multiple statutory categories by pseudo-requiring the particulars of the claim it is dependent from, it is unclear whether the actual product is required or not.
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, 3, 4, 6, & 10-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhang et al. (CN117179197 A, hereinafter referred to as “Zhang”1) in view of Popa et al. (CA 3008934 A1, “Popa”) and Leo et al. (US 20210137137 A1, “Leo”).
For claim 1, Zhang discloses a feeding method for carotenoid-rich black soldier flies, comprising the following steps:
step 1, configuring feed for black soldier fly: mixing fat (implied by “crude fat” in at least the kitchen waste slurry and/or fish meal and/or probiotic liquid of the raw materials, discussed in the provided Abstract), plant-based materials (at least the alfalfa meal and/or wheat bran and/or constituents of the “kitchen sludge”) and compound feed2 (at least the other of alfalfa meal and/or wheat bran, if selected above) evenly to obtain configured feed for black soldier fly (obtained at least partially by the auger 16);
where the fat comprises one or more types of vegetable oil and animal fat (as provided in any one of the kitchen waste slurry and/or fish meal and/or probiotic liquid of the raw materials); and
step 2, feeding the black soldier flies with the configured feed (“so as to promote the growth of the black gadfly larvae.” Abstract).
Zhang is silent to where the plant-based materials comprise at least one of carrots, tomato powder and chili meal; and raising the BSF for 8-12 days to obtain the carotenoid-rich black soldier flies.
Popa, like prior art above, teaches a method of cultivating black solder flies (title, disclosure), further comprising the use of food scraps to feed black soldier flies ¶0050.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the claimed invention was effectively filed to modify the “kitchen sludge” of Zhang with tomato powder or carrot, as well-known vegetal scraps of kitchens, discussed by Popa in light of Zhang, in order to utilize well-known scraps which would be available in kitchens.
Leo, like prior art above, teaches an insect production method (title, disclosure), further raising the BSF for 8-12 days (¶0485-486) to obtain the carotenoid-rich insects (¶1453-1455).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the claimed invention was effectively filed to modify the method of cultivating the black soldier flies of Zhang with raising them for 8-12 days as taught by Leo, in order to raise them to sufficient maturation and mass, yielding predictable results.
For claim 3, Zhang in view of Popa and Leo teaches the feeding method for carotenoid-rich black soldier flies according to claim 1, and Leo further teaches wherein the animal fat is one or more types of lard, tallow from cattle and chicken fat (Leo teaches, in ¶0174, many sources of oil, including lard and tallow of beef, meeting the claim limitation).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the claimed invention was effectively filed to modify the feed of the BSF in Zhang in view of Popa and Leo with lard and/or beef tallow as the oil source as further taught by Leo, in order to utilize a readily available and inexpensive oil source, yielding predictable results.
For claim 4, Zhang in view of Popa and Leo teaches the feeding method for carotenoid-rich black soldier flies according to claim 3, and Leo further teaches wherein the vegetable oil3 is one or more types of soybean oil, sunflower seed oil, flaxseed oil, palm kernel oil and coconut oil (¶0174 discloses soybean, palm kernel, coconut oil as an oil source).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the claimed invention was effectively filed to modify the oil source of Zhang in view of Popa and Leo with one of soybean, palm kernel, coconut oil as an oil source as further taught by Leo, in order to utilize a readily available and inexpensive oil source, yielding predictable results.
For claim 6, Zhang in view of Popa and Leo teaches the feeding method for carotenoid-rich black soldier flies according to claim 1, and Zhang further teaches wherein the compound feed comprises at least one4 or a mixture of wheat bran, soybean meal and alfalfa powder (at least the other of alfalfa meal and/or wheat bran, if selected above).
For claim 10, Zhang in view of Popa and Leo further teaches the feeding method for carotenoid-rich black soldier flies according to claim 1, and Zhang further teaches wherein during the step 1, the fat, the plant-based materials, the compound feed, and water are mixed uniformly to achieve the configured feed for black soldier fly with a moisture content of 70-80% (Zhang discloses the water content of the feed being 60-70%, overlapping and thus anticipating the claimed range at 70%).
For claim 11, Zhang in view of Popa and Leo teaches the feeding method for carotenoid-rich black soldier flies according to claim 1, and Leo further teaches wherein the step 2 further comprises hatching black soldier fly eggs into larvae (in order to have the BSF of the above-modified reference, they must first be hatched), using nursery feed for nurturing the larvae till they grow into 4-6 days aged larvae, and then feeding the larvae with the configured feed for black soldier fly (as discussed in examples 1-3 of Popa, the BSF are cultured and grown for 10 or 12 days, and fed during that time period, thus meeting the claim).
For claim 12, Zhang in view of Popa and Leo teaches feeding method for carotenoid-rich black soldier flies according to claim 11, and Popa further teaches wherein the hatching black soldier fly eggs is at a temperature of 28±2°C (temperature is 25-32 degrees centigrade, overlapping and thus anticipating the claimed full claim range) with a hatching time of 2-4 days (this is a resultant, and thus is met by the combination of conditions).
Zhang in view of Popa and Leo is silent to step 2 comprising a humidity of 65±5%.
As humidity is a given in insect culture, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the claimed invention was effectively filed to adjust the of the method of Zhang in view of Popa and Leo to have a humidity of 65±5%, in order to provide sufficient conditions for optimal yield, and since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art. In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233.
For claim 13, Zhang in view of Popa and Leo teaches carotenoid-rich black soldier flies, obtained by using the feeding method for carotenoid- rich black soldier flies according to claim 1 (as discussed in the combination above).
For claim 14, Zhang in view of Popa and Leo teaches an application of the carotenoid-rich black soldier flies according to claim 13 in poultry feed (discussed explicitly in ¶0024 of Leo).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the claimed invention was effectively filed to modify the method of Zhang in view of Popa and Leo to further produce chicken feed in the manner further disclosed in ¶0024, Leo, in order to use the process to obtain a well-known product, yielding predictable results.
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhang in view of Popa and Leo as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Wang et al. (CN 109122594 A, “Wang”).
For claim 2, Zhang in view of Popa and Leo teaches the feeding method for carotenoid-rich black soldier flies according to claim 1.
Zhang in view of Popa and Leo is silent to wherein the animal fat is black soldier fly oil.
Wang, like prior art above, teaches a method of raising BSF (Hermitia Illucens, title, disclosure), further comprising using BSF as a source of oil (claim 8).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the claimed invention was effectively filed to modify the feed of the BSF in Zhang in view of Popa and Leo with BSF as the oil source as taught by Wang, in order to utilize a readily available and inexpensive oil source, yielding predictable results.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5 & 7-9 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.
Conclusion
The cited prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Special attention is drawn to the disclosures of US 20170325431 A1, CA 3008934 A1, and GB 2620587 A as disclosing an invention or aspects of the invention which are similar to those claimed and/or disclosed in the instant invention. The remaining reference cited establishes the state of the art.
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/MORGAN T JORDAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3643
1 Interpretation note: while Applicant provided the necessary translation of the Zhang document to meet the requirements of the IDS, the Office is providing a more substantial translation herewith.
2 Interpretation note: the instant specification notes that “compound feed” is at least one or a mixture of wheat bran, soybean meal and alfalfa powder, ¶0022.
3 Interpretation note: it is noted that “the vegetable oil” is one of the Markush group of claim 1. As claim 4 does not now require, e.g.,
4 Interpretation note: only one aspect is required due to the alternative construction triggered by the “or” limitation.
Prosecution Insights