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 .
Election/Restrictions
In the Response to Restriction Requirement of July 15, 2024, applicant elected apparatus claims over the method claims. Accordingly, since applicant has received an action on the merits for the originally presented invention, this invention has been constructively elected by original presentation for prosecution on the merits. Accordingly, method claims 49-51 are withdrawn from consideration as being directed to a non-elected invention. See 37 CFR 1.142(b) and MPEP § 821.03.
To preserve a right to petition, the reply to this action must distinctly and specifically point out supposed errors in the restriction requirement. Otherwise, the election shall be treated as a final election without traverse. Traversal must be timely. Failure to timely traverse the requirement will result in the loss of right to petition under 37 CFR 1.144. If claims are subsequently added, applicant must indicate which of the subsequently added claims are readable upon the elected invention.
Should applicant traverse on the ground that the inventions are not patentably distinct, applicant should submit evidence or identify such evidence now of record showing the inventions to be obvious variants or clearly admit on the record that this is the case. In either instance, if the examiner finds one of the inventions unpatentable over the prior art, the evidence or admission may be used in a rejection under 35 U.S.C. 103 or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) of the other invention.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the following features must be shown or canceled from the claims:
The climbing latch 32” configured to engage the climbing rail (claim 48), or retaining features (claim 26) or support elements (claim 43) on the climbing rail 18. Currently, it is not clear in the figures how or where climbing latches 32” would engage the climbing rail 18. (See also corresponding 112(a) rejections below)
The climbing rail 18 and the climbing lift rail 24 arranged side-by-side (claim 33). Currently only the arrangement where the climbing rail and climbing lift rail are arranged one inside the other is depicted in the figures, and as the alternative arrangement “side-by-side” would be a significant rearrangement (specifically with respect to engagement with the climbing shoe), the claimed embodiment needs to be shown or cancelled from the claim. (See also corresponding 112(a) rejections below).
Similarly, the arrangement where the lift device is a spindle drive or a rack and pinion drive (claim 29), is absent from the drawings, and would be a significant alteration from what is currently depicted.
No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Objections
Claim 43 is objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 43 recites the limitation "the support elements " in line 2. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 43 recites the limitation "the retaining recesses " in line 3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 26, 33, 35 43, 48 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
With respect to claims 26, 43, 48, the examiner does not see where in the original disclosure it is explained how climbing latches 32” engage the climbing rail 18, or features thereon. Specification [0051] states that “climbing latch 32” can engage both in the climbing lift rail 24 and in the climbing rail 18”. While details of climbing latches 32” are minimal in the figures, a connecting relationship between 32” and recesses 61 in 24 is generally depicted in figures 3b and 5. However it is not clear how where 32” engages lift rail 18.
With respect to claim 33, examiner does not see where in the original disclosure there are any structural details with respect to the arrangement where the climbing rail 18 and the climbing lift rail 24 are arranged side-by-side. It seems that such an arrangement would require a different climbing shoe and/or engagement and rearrangement of parts, not shown in the figures or detailed in the original disclosure.
With respect to claim 35, the new claim recites that the climbing rail (18) is “configured to pivot about a vertical axis” [emphasis added]. However, this limitation is not found in the original disclosure. The original specification recites that the climbing rail is designed to be pivotable “in relation to a vertical axis”, so it is suitable for working on non-vertical designs of a building. As the examiner does not see support in the original disclosure for the climbing rail to be pivotable about a vertical axis, examiner has treated the claim as if it claims that the climbing rail is configured to pivot quote in relation to a vertical axis”.
Appropriate correction is required
No new matter should be added.
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.
Claim(s) 44 - 48 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Panseri et al. (US 10,036,170). Panseri et al. disclose:
44. A lift drive for a rail-guided climbing system (figure 5), comprising:
a climbing rail (11, figure 8, see below);
a climbing lift rail (12, figure 8, see below) guided by and movable relative to the climbing rail (figure 11);
a climbing shoe (9, figure 5, note that 9 is segmented) configured to be fixed to a building (figure 5);
a climbing latch (20,30) associated with the climbing shoe (figs 22-26) and configured to selectively mount the climbing rail and the climbing lift rail (figs 22- 26); and
a lift device (15, figure 26) fixed between the climbing rail (11) and the climbing lift rail (12) and operable to produce relative movement therebetween with a stroke length (figures 8-10) sufficient, when the climbing lift rail is mounted by the climbing latch (figure 8), to mount the climbing rail by at least a mounting distance in another climbing shoe (sequence shown in figures 17-21).
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45. The lift drive of claim 44, wherein the climbing latch (20) is a pivotable climbing latch (figures 22-25) and the climbing lift rail (11) comprises retaining recesses (apertures in which 26 is mounted) that are engaged by the climbing latch (20) when mounting the climbing lift rail (figures 22-25).
46. The lift drive of claim 44, wherein the lift device (15, figure 26) is a hydraulic cylinder (col. 8, lines 37-39) and the stroke length is sufficient to successively (i) seat the climbing lift rail (12) in a first climbing shoe via the climbing latch (figures 11-13); and (ii) raise and mount the climbing rail (11) in a second climbing shoe by at least the mounting distance (figure 14).
47. The lift drive of claim 44, wherein the climbing rail (11) includes guide shoes (unnumbered plates on top of 11 that form guiding aperture for 12 to pass in and out of; figure 8 and 32) that guide the climbing lift rail (12) during the extension and retraction of the lift device (figures 8 and 32).
48. The lift drive of claim 44, wherein the climbing rail (11) and the climbing lift rail (12) are arranged one inside the other (see figure 8 above) and the climbing latch is configured to engage either the climbing rail or the climbing lift rail from a side facing an outer wall of the building (figure 26).
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(s) 24-34 and 36-43, is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Panseri et al. (US 10,036,170) in view of Blinn (US 9,528,285).
Panseri et al. disclose:
24. A rail-guided climbing system (10, figure 5) comprising:
a plurality of climbing shoes (9, figure 5, note that 9 is segmented) configured to be fixed to a building (figure 5);
at least one climbing rail (11, figure 8) coupled to the climbing shoes (figure 8) and secured to or integrated with a frame unit (7, figure 17);
at least one climbing lift rail (12, figure 8) guided by and movable relative to the at least one climbing rail (figures 11-13);
at least one climbing latch (20, 30) arranged to selectively mount and retain, in the climbing shoes, the at least one climbing rail and the at least one climbing lift rail at respective mounting positions (figures 8-10 and 26); and
a lift device (15, figure 26) having a first end fixed to the at least one climbing rail (figure 10) and a second end fixed to the at least one climbing lift rail (figure 9), the lift device (15) being configured to extend (figure 13) and retract (figure 16) such that a stroke of the lift device corresponds to a relative movement of the climbing lift rail with respect to the climbing rail (figures 11-16), and such that, when the climbing lift rail (12) is mounted by a climbing shoe via the at least one climbing latch, the stroke length is sufficient to lift and mount the climbing rail (11) in another climbing shoe by at least a mounting distance (sequence in figures 17-21).
While Panseri et al. Disclose the climbing rail coupled to climbing shoes (as advanced above), the climbing rail is not guided by the climbing shoes.
However, Blinn teaches: the at least one climbing rail (1, figure 16A) guided by the climbing shoes (140, figure 16A).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to provide the lift device of Panseri with climbing shoes like that of Blinn, which are constructed to receive the climbing rail within the shoe, so as to better guide the rail in its vertical transition, and steady the device in between the securing steps.
Panseri et al. further disclose:
25. The system of claim 24, wherein the at least one climbing latch (20, 30) is a movable latch (20) configured to pivot (@26, figures 22-25), fold, or translate between an engaged position and a disengaged position (figures 22-25).
26. The system of claim 25, wherein the at least one climbing latch (20,30) comprises a climbing latch (30) arranged on a climbing shoe (figure 26) and configured to alternately engage retaining features (20) on the climbing rail and on the climbing lift rail (figures 22-26).
27. The system of claim 24, wherein the climbing lift rail (11) comprises a series of retaining recesses (25) along at least one side configured to receive the at least one climbing latch (30), the retaining recesses defining a hook-in contour (figure 23).
28. The system of claim 27, wherein the retaining recesses are formed as teeth between openings or as completely edged holes (figure 23).
29. The system of claim 24, wherein the lift device (15) is a hydraulic cylinder, a spindle drive, a rack-and-pinion drive, an actuator, or a linear drive (col. 8, lines 37-39).
30. The system of claim 24, wherein the stroke of the lift device is further sufficient to cover a mounting stroke distance of the climbing lift rail before lifting the climbing rail by the mounting distance (as seen in the sequencing in figures 11-16 and 17-21).
31. The system of claim 24, wherein the climbing shoes (9) that guide the climbing rail during mounting of the climbing lift rail are arranged above or below the climbing shoe that mounts the climbing lift rail (figure 5).
32. The system of claim 24, wherein the climbing rail (11) and the climbing lift rail (12) are arranged one inside the other such that the climbing lift rail is guided within the climbing rail (figure 8).
33. The system of claim 24, wherein the climbing rail and the climbing lift rail are arranged side-by-side (11 and 12 can be considered side by side when nested, as their sides are adjacent one another), and guided relative to one another (figures 11-16).
34. The system of claim 24, wherein the climbing lift rail (12) has a rectangular (figure 13), L- shaped, T-shaped, or I-shaped cross-section.
36. The system of claim 24, wherein the frame unit (7) includes a working platform (figure 36), a formwork platform, or a trailing platform, and the at least one climbing rail (11) is fixed to or integrated with the frame unit (figure 1).
37. The system of claim 24, wherein the at least one climbing rail (11) has a total length sufficient to be simultaneously guided by at least two of the climbing shoes (figure 5) spaced apart by approximately a floor height of the building or a fraction thereof (figure 5).
38. The system of claim 24, further comprising guide shoes (unnumbered plates on top of 11 that form guiding aperture for 12 to pass in and out of; figure 8 and 32) on the climbing rail (11) that guide the climbing lift rail (12) during relative movement (figures 8 and 32).
39. The system of claim 24, wherein the at least one climbing latch on a climbing shoe is configured to alternately support vertical load transfer from the climbing lift rail to the climbing rail during extension and retraction of the lift device (as the system scales the building and 11 and 12 alternate engagement with 9 as the other is moved along vertically; figures 13-16).
40. The system of claim 27, wherein the retaining recesses (25) of the climbing lift rail (12) and the mounting features (20) of the climbing rail (20) are vertically spaced by respective distances such that the mounting stroke distance of the climbing lift rail (12) is less than the mounting distance of the climbing rail (figure 13) .
41. The system of claim 24, wherein the climbing rail (11) includes bores (apertures that receive 26) and support elements (20) spaced apart by the mounting distance and configured to cooperatively engage the climbing shoes during mounting and removal (figures 8-10).
42. The system of claim 24, wherein the lift device (15) remains fixed at one end to the climbing rail (figure 10) and at the other end to the climbing lift rail (figure 9) during both extension and retraction cycles to achieve step-by-step climbing (figures 8-10).
43. The system of claim 24, wherein the at least one climbing latch (30) on a climbing shoe (9) is configured to engage either the support elements of the climbing rail (figure 8) or the retaining recesses (25) of the climbing lift rail (figure 26) to selectively mount the climbing rail or the climbing lift rail, respectively (figure 26).
Claim(s) 35 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Panseri in view of Blinn as applied to claim 24 above, and further in view of Iturbe Beristain et al. (US 9,175,487). Neither Panseri nor Blinn disclose in which the climbing rail is designed to be pivotable by at least 4 degrees about a [as best understood, in relation to] a vertical axis. However, Iturbe Beristain et al. teach: in which the climbing rail (1; fig 2) is designed to be pivotable (@ 8; fig 5) by at least 4 degrees (col. 8, line 17) in relation to a vertical axis (fig 5).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, to design Panseri to be pivotable by at least 4 degrees in relation to a vertical axis, as taught by Iturbe Beristain et al., so as to accommodate for variation in floor projections in modern building design.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed December 18, 2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
In the reply, applicant canceled all previous claims, submitting new claims 24-51. As noted above, newly submitted method claims 49-51 were withdrawn due to election by original presentation.
In response to the drawing objections, applicant remarks that it is believed that the specification in tandem with figures 3a and 5 show how the climbing latch (32”) interfaces with mounting rail (18). It appears the applicant may have intended to reference figure 3b, as climbing latch 32”is not visible in figure 3a. While climbing latches 32” identified with a reference line and numeral in figures 3a and 5, any structural details or connecting relationship between 32” and how or where 32” engages lift rail 18 are not visible.
In response to the 112(a) and (b) rejections, applicant notes that new claims are presented to align more with typical US practice. Examiner notes that the numerous matters with respect to narrative and indefinite claim language are no longer an issue in the newly presented claims. However, some numeral 112(a) issues remain. Additionally, the newly presented claims are broader in scope than those previously presented, and as a result are rejected by prior art, as advanced above.
For at least these reasons the claims remain rejected.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to COLLEEN M CHAVCHAVADZE whose telephone number is (571)272-6289. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00AM-4:00PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Daniel Cahn can be reached at 571-270-5616. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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COLLEEN M. CHAVCHAVADZE
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3634
/COLLEEN M CHAVCHAVADZE/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3634