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 .
Application Status
Claims 1-8 are pending and have been examined in this application.
This communication is the first action on the merits.
As of the date of this action, an information disclosure statement (IDS) has been filed on 1/13/2026 and reviewed by the Examiner.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen et al. (CN 106069823) in view of Van Schilt (PGPub #2022/0411294), Zhang et al. (CN 219537199), and Norton (US #4,787,603).
Regarding claim 1, Chen teaches a crop-livestock circulation system, comprising: a planting greenhouse (The abstract of the provided translation); a fish pond (The abstract, and the first two paragraphs of page 3 of the provided translation); a fermentation treatment chamber (The abstract, and the first two paragraphs of page 3 of the provided translation); a conveying unit (The abstract, and the first two paragraphs of page 3 of the provided translation, this teaches that the produced fertilizer can be conveyed to the planting greenhouse for distribution which inherently requires a conveying unit to be present); a spraying device (The abstract, and the first two paragraphs of page 3 of the provided translation, this teaches that the fertilizer is distributed to plants by drop irrigation which requires a spraying device); and a livestock greenhouse (The abstract, and the first two paragraphs of page 3 of the provided translation, the pig styes function as the livestock greenhouse); the livestock greenhouse is provided with a collection port (The abstract, and the first two paragraphs of page 3 of the provided translation, this teaches that the manure is transported from the housing to the fermenting system which requires a collection port in the housing), and the manure collection trough is connected to the fermentation treatment chamber (The abstract, and the first two paragraphs of page 3 of the provided translation); and the fermentation treatment chamber is connected to the conveying unit (The abstract, and the first two paragraphs of page 3 of the provided translation); the conveying unit is connected to the spraying device (The abstract, and the first two paragraphs of page 3 of the provided translation); and the spraying device is provided in the planting greenhouse (The abstract, and the first two paragraphs of page 3 of the provided translation). But does not teach a sewage collection unit; that a rear portion of the livestock greenhouse is provided with a drinking trough; the livestock greenhouse comprises a bottom plate; a first side of the livestock greenhouse is provided with a scraper; a portion of the bottom plate close to a second side of the livestock greenhouse is provided with the collection port; wherein the second side of the livestock greenhouse is opposite to the first side of the livestock greenhouse; a bottom of the collection port is provided with a manure collection trough; a sewage discharge port of the fish pond is connected to the sewage collection unit; and the sewage collection unit is connected to the fermentation treatment chamber.
However, Van Schilt does teach the livestock greenhouse comprises a bottom plate (4); a first side of the livestock greenhouse is provided with a scraper (8 as seen in figure 2, and Paragraph 6, this teaches that the scraper can be located at one wall of the greenhouse); a portion of the bottom plate close to a second side of the livestock greenhouse is provided with the collection port (4, and 7 as seen in figure 2, and Paragraphs 60, and 61, this teaches that there can be an opening at one end away from the side of the scrapper to receive the scraped waste, and that the opening can collect and direct the manure towards a manure holding structure); wherein the second side of the livestock greenhouse is opposite to the first side of the livestock greenhouse (4, 7, and 8 as seen in figure 2, the scraper moves from one side away from the gutter to the gutter to scrape all of the waste into the gutter); a bottom of the collection port is provided with a manure collection trough (, and 7 as seen in figure 2, and Paragraphs 60, and 61). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the housing have a scraper on one side and a trough in a base that leads to the collection port on the other side because Chen and Van Schilt are both animal housing systems that remove waste from the housing. The motivation for having the housing have a scraper on one side and a trough in a base that leads to the collection port on the other side is that it allows all of the waste to be scraped into the collection port which helps keep the housing clean and maximize the collection. But Van Schilt does not teach a sewage collection unit; that a rear portion of the livestock greenhouse is provided with a drinking trough; a sewage discharge port of the fish pond is connected to the sewage collection unit; and the sewage collection unit is connected to the fermentation treatment chamber.
However, Zhang does teach a sewage collection unit (1, 5, and 7 as seen in figure 1, and the abstract from the applicant’s provided translation); a sewage discharge port of the fish pond is connected to the sewage collection unit (1, 5, and 7 as seen in figure 1, and the abstract from the applicant’s provided translation); and the sewage collection unit is connected to the fermentation treatment chamber (1, 5, and 7 as seen in figure 1, and the abstract from the applicant’s provided translation). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have a sewage collection unit that connects a discharge port of the pond to the fermentation chamber because Chen and Zhang are both systems that turn animal waste into fertilizers. But Zhang does not teach that a rear portion of the livestock greenhouse is provided with a drinking trough.
However, Norton does teach that a rear portion of the livestock greenhouse is provided with a drinking trough (14, and 40 as seen in figure 1). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have a water trough at the rear of the housing because Chen and Norton are both animal enclosures. The motivation for having a water trough at the rear of the housing is that it provides easy access to water for the animal in the housing while not obstructing the interior.
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen et al. (CN 106069823) as modified by Van Schilt (PGPub #2022/0411294), Zhang et al. (CN 219537199), and Norton (US #4,787,603) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Conover (US #3,726,254).
Regarding claim 2, Chen as modified by Van Schilt, Zhang and Norton teaches the crop-livestock circulation system according to claim 1, but does not teach that an inner side of a top of the livestock greenhouse is provided with a lamp; and a side wall of the livestock greenhouse is provided with a ventilation fan. However, Conover does teach that an inner side of a top of the livestock greenhouse is provided with a lamp (Column 6, line 66-Column 7, line 7); and a side wall of the livestock greenhouse is provided with a ventilation fan (Column 3, lines 9-23). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the housing have a lamp at the top and a fan on the wall because Chen and Conover are both animal enclosures that house animals. The motivation for having have the housing have a lamp at the top and a fan on the wall is that it helps to improve the quality of life for the animals in the housing by reducing odor build ups and providing consistent lighting.
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen et al. (CN 106069823) as modified by Van Schilt (PGPub #2022/0411294), Zhang et al. (CN 219537199), and Norton (US #4,787,603) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Efrati et al. (PGPub #2016/0137562).
Regarding claim 4, Chen as modified by Van Schilt, Zhang and Norton teaches the crop-livestock circulation system according to claim 1, wherein the fermentation treatment chamber is connected to the sewage collection unit and the manure collection trough (The abstract, and the first two paragraphs of page 3 of the provided translation of Chen, this teaches that the fermentation system receives the animal waste produced by the animals); and the fermentation treatment chamber is connected to the conveying unit (The abstract, and the first two paragraphs of page 3 of the provided translation of Chen, this teaches that the fermentation system sends the produced fertilizer to the greenhouse through the conveying unit). But does not teach that the fermentation treatment chamber comprises an aerobic treatment unit and an anaerobic fermentation tank connected in sequence; that the aerobic treatment unit initially receives the waste, the anaerobic fermentation tank is connected to a fertilizer storage tank; and that the fertilizer storage tank is connected to the conveying unit.
However, Efrati does teach that the fermentation treatment chamber comprises an aerobic treatment unit and an anaerobic fermentation tank connected in sequence (Paragraph 67); that the aerobic treatment unit initially receives the waste (Paragraph 67, this teaches that the aerobic system is the first system that initially acts on the received waste), the anaerobic fermentation tank is connected to a fertilizer storage tank (50A, and 94 as seen in figure 6B, and Paragraph 74); and that the fertilizer storage tank is connected to the conveying unit (34A, and 94 as seen in figure 6B, and Paragraph 74). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the fermentation system have an aerobic system that receives the waste, then an anaerobic system followed by a storage tank that sends the waste to the conveying unit because Chen and Efrati are both waste fermentation systems that generate useable gas and a fertilizer. The motivation for having the fermentation system have an aerobic system that receives the waste, then an anaerobic system followed by a storage tank that sends the waste to the conveying unit is that it allows the waste to be incrementally processed which helps to maximize the amount of useful material that can be generated by the system.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3, and 5-8 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
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to WILLIAM LAWRENCE GMOSER whose telephone number is (571)270-5083. The examiner can normally be reached Mon - Thu 7:00-5:00.
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/WILLIAM L GMOSER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3647
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