I. Generic Obviousness Rejection Showing that a prior art reference teach away from a particular combination suggested by an examiner is a way to show the non-obviousness of the invention. During patent prosecution, an examiner may cite two or more references, the combination of which in the examiner opinion makes the inventor’s claimed invention obvious, and thus … [Read more...]
How to disqualify non-analogous references cited in an office action
In an Office Action, the Examiner may cite to one or more patent references or other documents collectively known as the cited prior art. This is the body of prior art references that the Examiner is utilizing to say that the invention is not novel or is obvious in light of the cited prior art. Oftentimes, the cited prior art may contain one or more references which the … [Read more...]
Restriction requirement and potential responses to them
A restriction requirement is an assertion by the examiner that the claims of a patent application are directed to two or more independent and distinct inventions. See MPEP Section 803 for more information. A common restriction requirement is between claims for an apparatus and those claiming a method of using the apparatus. The examiner will suggest a group of claims that … [Read more...]