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 .
1. Claims 1-20 have been presented for examination.
Information Disclosure Statement
2. Acknowledgement is made to the information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 4/17/2025 & 6/11/2025. The information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
3. Claims 1-13 & 17-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Bowen et al. (US 2018/0093054 A1), hereinafter Bowen.
Regarding claim 1, Bowen discloses an aerosol delivery system comprising:
a consumable (114 - cartridges), wherein the consumable is one of a plurality of consumables that are each assigned a unique identifier (138 - identifier) [0056 & 0057]; and
an aerosol delivery device (100, 200 - vaporizer) configured to:
couple with the consumable with a body of the aerosol delivery device [0049, 0051, 0056, & 0057];
obtain the unique identifier of the consumable from the consumable after being coupled with the body of the aerosol delivery device [0056 & 0057];
receive, as a communication, an authentication confirmation associated with the consumable based on:
(a) the aerosol delivery device being associated with a user of the aerosol delivery device in a stored user profile for the user [0065, 0068, 0077, 0122, & 0124], and
(b) an authentication of the consumable to the user, the authentication being based on a comparison of the unique identifier of the consumable with an approved list of consumables purchased by that user in a transaction that included an age verification [0043, 0046, 0065, 0068, 0077, 0122, & 0124]; and
permit generation of an aerosol from the consumable for inhalation by the user based on receipt of the authentication confirmation for the consumable [0077].
Regarding claim 2, Bowen discloses the system of claim 1, wherein each of the consumable comprises: an aerosol precursor composition; and a heating element configured to heat the aerosol precursor composition into an aerosol [0049, 0051, & 0065].
Regarding claim 3, Bowen discloses the system of claim 2, wherein the aerosol delivery device further comprises: a battery portion including a battery, the battery portion is configured to couple with the consumable to provide power to the heating element [0041 & 0050].
Regarding claim 4, Bowen discloses the system of claim 3, wherein the aerosol delivery device is configured to selectively provide the power to the heating element based on the consumable being authenticated using the unique identifier [0050-0054].
Regarding claim 5, Bowen discloses the system of claim 1, wherein the authentication comprises comparing the unique identifier with the approved list of unique identifiers [0065, 0068, 0077, 0122, & 0124].
Regarding claim 6, Bowen discloses the system of claim 1, wherein the authentication requires that the user be age-verified via a host device in communication with the aerosol delivery device [0046, 0047, 0065, 0068, 0077, 0122, & 0124].
Regarding claim 7, Bowen discloses the system of claim 1, wherein the authentication is required each time the consumable is replaced or refilled [0043, 0046, 0047, 0068, & 0077].
Regarding claim 8, Bowen discloses the system of claim 1, further comprising a host device coupled with the aerosol delivery device and coupled with an age verification system. [0046, 0047, & 0068]
Regarding claim 9, Bowen discloses the system of claim 8, wherein the host device is configured to access a user profile for the user that stores the approved list of unique identifiers [0077, 0122, & 0124].
Regarding claim 10, Bowen discloses the system of claim 9, wherein user profile is stored at a remote network device and accessed by the host device via a network [0068, 0077, 0122, & 0124].
Regarding claim 11, Bowen discloses the system of claim 8, wherein the host device comprises a mobile device and the user profile is accessed by an application on the mobile device [0046, 0047, & 0068].
Regarding claim 12, Bowen discloses the system of claim 8, wherein the host device communicates with the age verification system over a network [0068, 0077, 0122, & 0124].
Regarding claim 13, Bowen discloses a method for registering and authenticating a consumable (114 - cartridges) for use with an aerosol delivery device (100, 200 - vaporizer), the method comprising:
receiving a unique identifier (138 - identifier) associated with the consumable in response to an age verified purchase transaction of the consumable [0056 & 0057];
adding the unique identifier for the consumable to an approved list of consumables for the user in a user profile, the aerosol delivery device being indicated in the user profile [0077, 0122, & 0124];
receiving a request, in response to the consumable being installed in the aerosol delivery device, to compare the unique identifier of the consumable with the approved list of consumables to authenticate the consumable [0043, 0046, 0065, 0068, 0077, 0122, & 0124]; and
sending an authentication confirmation based on the comparison of the unique identifier of the consumable with the approved list of consumables to permit generation of an aerosol from the consumable for inhalation by the user from the aerosol delivery device [0043, 0046, 0065, 0068, 0077, 0122, & 0124].
Regarding claim 17, Bowen discloses the method of claim 13, wherein receiving the unique identifier occurs in response to a bar code associated with the consumable being scanned [0056 & 0057].
Regarding claim 18, Bowen discloses an aerosol delivery device (100, 200 - vaporizer) comprising:
a body (101 – vaporizer body) configured to couple with a consumable (114 - cartridges) [0049, 0051, 0056, & 0057]; and
a communications interface [0008, 0041, & 0044];
wherein the aerosol delivery device is configured to:
obtain a unique identifier (138 - identifier) of the consumable from the consumable after the consumable is coupled to the body of the aerosol delivery device [0056 & 0057];
receive, as a communication via the communications interface, an authentication confirmation associated with the consumable based on:
(a) the aerosol delivery device being associated with a user of the aerosol delivery device in a stored user profile for the user [0065, 0068, 0077, 0122, & 0124], and
(b) an authentication of the consumable to the user, the authentication being based on a comparison of the unique identifier of the consumable with an approved list of consumables purchased by that user in a transaction that included an age verification [0043, 0046, 0065, 0068, 0077, 0122, & 0124]; and
permit generation of an aerosol from the consumable for inhalation by the user based on receipt of the authentication confirmation for the consumable [0077].
Regarding claim 19, Bowen discloses the aerosol delivery device of claim 18 further comprising a battery portion including a battery, the battery portion being configured to couple with the consumable to provide power to a heating element of the consumable [0041 & 0050].
Regarding claim 20, Bowen discloses the aerosol delivery device of claim 19, wherein the aerosol delivery device is configured to selectively provide the power to the heating element based on the consumable being authenticated using the unique identifier [0065, 0068, 0077, 0122, & 0124].
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
4. Claims 14-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bowen in view of Moloney et al. (US 2021/0022407 A1), hereinafter Moloney.
With respect to claims 14-16, the teachings of Bowen have been discussed above.
Bowen is silent with respect to explicitly disclosing wherein the unique identifier is assigned to the consumable at manufacture of the consumable, as recited in claim 14, wherein the approved list of consumables is updated with new unique identifiers for each consumable that is purchased by the user, as recited in claim 15, and wherein, upon consumption of the consumable, the unique identifier for the consumable is removed from the approved list of consumables, as recited in claim 16.
Moloney teaches, regarding claim 14, wherein the unique identifier is assigned to the consumable at manufacture of the consumable [0038], regarding claim 15, wherein the approved list of consumables is updated with new unique identifiers for each consumable that is purchased by the user [0076], and, regarding claim 16, wherein, upon consumption of the consumable, the unique identifier for the consumable is removed from the approved list of consumables [0077 & 0078].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to further employ the identification tracking features of Moloney within the system of Bowen for at least the benefit of improving safety by reducing the ability to use or activate counterfeit or otherwise unauthorized consumable components [0082].
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PAULTEP SAVUSDIPHOL whose telephone number is (571)270-1301. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F,7-3 EST. If the examiner cannot be reached by telephone, he can be reached through the following email address: paultep.savusdiphol@uspto.gov
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone and email are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Michael G. Lee can be reached on (571) 272-2398. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/PAULTEP SAVUSDIPHOL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2876