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 .
Examiner Notes
Claims 10-29 are currently pending of which claims 21-29 are newly added. Claims 1-9 have been cancelled and claims 19-28 are withdrawn.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group III, claims 10-18 and 29 in the reply filed on 07/17/2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 19-28 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 07/17/2026.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement(s) (IDS) submitted on 04/23/2026 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the IDS is being considered by the examiner.
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 10-18 and 29 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.
Claim 10 recites “the un-stitched one or more nonwoven sheet” which lacks antecedent basis. Furthermore, it is unclear if “the un-stitched one or more nonwoven sheet” if referring to a portion of the sheets which does not comprise the pattern of stitches. Alternatively, it is unclear if this is intending to recite a structure of the sheet after being de-stitched as disclosed in the specification (see paragraph 0031).
For sake of further examination, as the claims are directed to a gathered stitchbonded fabric which requires the pattern of stitches, the “un-stitched one or more non-woven sheet” will be examined as referring to a portion of the fabric which does not comprise the stitches.
Claims 11-18 and 29 are rejected as being dependent upon indefinite claim 10.
Claim 18 recites “the advancing shrinkable yarn,” “the first adjacent row,” and “the starting row” which lack antecedent basis.
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 10-12 and 16-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee et al. (US 2019/0315090) and further in view of Knowlson et al. (US 2014/0170402).
Regarding claim 10, Lee discloses a gathered stitchbonded fabric comprising a nonwoven sheet, and integrated nonwoven sheet (0043), the fabric necessarily having a machine direction and cross direction. Lee teaches the nonwoven sheet and integrated nonwoven sheet comprises cellulosic fibers (0015, 0017-0018).
Please note, the transitional phrase "consisting essentially of" limits the scope of a claim to the specified materials or steps "and those that do not materially affect the basic and novel characteristic(s)" of the claimed invention. Absent a clear indication in the specification or claims of what the basic and novel characteristics actually are, "consisting essentially of" will be construed as equivalent to "comprising." See, e.g., PPG, 156 F.3d at 1355, 48 USPQ2d at 1355 (MPEP 2111.03.III). As Lee discloses the fabric comprising a nonwoven and integrated nonwoven sheet the fabric consists essentially of one or more nonwoven sheets as claimed. As Lee teaches the nonwoven sheet comprising cellulosic fibers, and the integrated nonwoven sheet comprising wood pulp fibers and textile fibers which include lyocell fibers (0017-0018) Lee additionally teaches the one or more nonwoven sheets consisting essentially of a plurality of cellulosic fibers.
Lee teaches that the term “nonwoven sheet” means as web having a structure of individual fibers which are not in a regular or identifiable manner (0057), thus each the plurality of fibers being oriented multidirectionally within the one or more nonwoven sheets.
Lee teaches the fabric layers fixed and gathered together by a plurality of shrunken stitching yarns (0043) forming a plurality of yarn overlaps (50) over a technical front surface (16) and yarn underlaps (60) over a technical back surface (18) of the nonwoven and integrated nonwoven sheets (Fig. 1, 0061).
Lee does not expressly teach the content of cellulosic fibers or shrunken yarn by weight of the entire gathered stitchbonded fabric unit, however, Lee does disclose use of both the shrunken yarn and an amount of cellulosic fiber by weight of the total weight of the nonwoven layers (0029). It would not be inventive to discover the workable ranges by routine experimentation of the invention taught by Lee “[W]here the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, it is not inventive to discover the optimum or workable ranges by routine experimentation.” In re Aller, 220 F.2d 454, 456, 105 USPQ 233, 235 (CCPA 1955) (Claimed process which was performed at a temperature between 40°C and 80°C and an acid concentration between 25% and 70% was held to be prima facie obvious over a reference process which differed from the claims only in that the reference process was performed at a temperature of 100°C and an acid concentration of 10%.); see also Peterson, 315 F.3d at 1330, 65 USPQ2d at 1382 (“The normal desire of scientists or artisans to improve upon what is already generally known provides the motivation to determine where in a disclosed set of percentage ranges is the optimum combination of percentages.”)
Lee teaches an un-stitched portion between the pattern of stitches (see e.g., the area between stitches in Fig. 1). Lee does not teach these portions having a ratio of a tensile strength in a machine direction to a tensile strength in a cross direction of about 3.0:1 or less.
Knowlson, in the analogous field of cellulosic containing nonwoven fabric webs (0010) discloses a nonwoven web having a ratio of tensile strength in a machine direction to tensile strength in a cross direction of less than 3 (0012).
A person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have found it obvious for the un-stitched portions of the nonwoven sheets of Lee to comprise a ratio of MD/CD of 3 or less, as taught by Knowlson, providing suitable strength for wiping (0009, 0030).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have selected the overlapping portion of the ranges disclosed by the reference because overlapping ranges have been held to be a prima facie case of obviousness, In re Wertheim, 191 USPQ 90, In re Woodruff, 16 USPQ2d 1934, and In re Peterson, 65 USPQ2d 1379. MPEP 2144.05.
Regarding claim 11, Lee does not teach the gathered fabric unit having a ratio of tensile strength in an MD to tensile strength in a CD of 4.0:1 or less.
Knowlson, in the analogous field of cellulosic containing nonwoven fabric webs (0010) discloses a nonwoven web having a ratio of tensile strength in a machine direction to tensile strength in a cross direction of less than 3 (0012).
A person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have found it obvious for the fabric unit of Lee to comprise a ratio of MD/CD of 3 or less, as taught by Knowlson, providing suitable strength for wiping (0009, 0030) (MPEP 2144.05).
Regarding claim 12, Lee teaches that the nonwoven sheet is a web having a structure of individual fibers interlaid but not in a regular or identifiable manner and which include carded/needle-punched webs thus teaching a multistrata nonwoven sheet as claimed.
Regarding claim 16, Lee teaches the one or more nonwoven sheets do not contain binding fibers or adhesive material (0026-0027).
Regarding claim 17, Lee teaches net area shrinkage of less than 8% (0090), overlapping the claimed progressive area shrinkage of 20% or less through 25 wash cycles (0090), overlapping the 5 cycles (MPEP 2144.05). While not teaching the testing according to AATCC 61, an overlapping range would still be expected as patentability is not based upon method of measurement but whether or not the property would have been obvious in view of the prior art.
Regarding claim 18, Lee teaches the plurality of yarn underlaps comprising stitches formed in a zig-zag stich pattern angled in the cross direction and extending diagonally form a starting row to an adjacent row, or across the first adjacent row to a next second row and then diagonally back to the starting row (Fig. 2, 0014)
Claims 13-15, and 29 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee in view of Knowlson as applied to claims 10 and 12 above and further in view of Luo et al. (US 2004/0207110).
Regarding claims 13 and 15, Lee in view of Knowlson disclose the limitations of claims 10 and 12 as discussed above. Lee teaches the cellulosic fibers of the nonwoven layer consisting of lyocell (0015), and the inner sublayer of the integrated nonwoven sheet having lyocell fibers (0018). Lee teaches the composite nonwoven sheet of the integrated nonwoven sheet having wood pulp fibers however does not teach the fibers are lyocell.
Luo, in the analogous field of cellulose containing textiles products (0001), teaches a lyocell product formed by unbleached wood pulp (0034).
A person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have found it obvious for the wood pulp fibers of Lee to consist of lyocell fibers as taught by Luo, providing desirable strength (0015).
Regarding claim 14, Lee teaches the one or more nonwoven sheets do not contain binding fibers or adhesive material (0026-0027).
Regarding claim 29, Lee teaches net area shrinkage of less than 8% (0090), overlapping the claimed progressive area shrinkage of 20% or less through 25 wash cycles (0090), overlapping the 5 cycles (MPEP 2144.05). While not teaching the testing according to AATCC 61, an overlapping range would still be expected as patentability is not based upon method of measurement but whether or not the property would have been obvious in view of the prior art.
Correspondence
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ALICIA WEYDEMEYER whose telephone number is (571)270-1727. The examiner can normally be reached M-Th 9-4.
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/ALICIA J WEYDEMEYER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1781
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