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 .
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.
Claims 22 and 25 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fahy US20170002854 (hereinafter, Fahy) in view of Bentrim US20040240961 (hereinafter, Bentrim).
Regarding claim 22, Fahy teaches a method (see claims 8-16) of mounting a floating fixing component (26, see Fig. 7a) to an object 4, the floating fixing component including an anti-rotation section 5, a stop section (SS, as indicated in annotated Fig. 7a below), an application section (AS, as indicated in annotated Fig. 7a below), and at least an engaging section 7, comprising the following steps:
aligning the anti-rotation section with a matching anti-rotation section provided on the object (see page 3, claim 8, column 2, lines 1-4), such that the anti-rotation section and the matching anti-rotation section are not rotatable relative to one another (page 3, claim 8, column 2, lines 5-11), and
wherein a floating space (FS, as indicated in annotated Figs. 6a & 6b) is existed between the anti-rotation section and the matching anti-rotation section after the floating fixing component has been mounted to the object, such that the floating fixing component can float and shift on and relative to the object (page 3, claim 8, column 2, lines 1-11).
Fahy fails to teach method step wherein, providing a stopping member having a through hole and disposing the stopping member on the anti-rotation section by passing the at least one engaging section through the through hole, then expanding the at least one engaging section under pressure of a force so as to form a material storage space for receiving a partial material of the stopping member, and bringing the at least one engaging section to engage the stopping member, the stopping member and the stop section thereby abutting against the object so as to prevent the floating fixing component from separating from the object.
However, Bentrim teaches similar Floating Captivated Wrenchable Nut, providing a stopping member 15 having a through hole (see inner wall 18 and central hole) and disposing the stopping member on the anti-rotation section by passing the at least one engaging section 14 through the through hole, then expanding the at least one engaging section under pressure of a force so as to form a material storage space (see joint 2 and tiny gap formed in Fig. 2) for receiving a partial material of the stopping member.
Therefore, Fahy in view of Bentrim is capable of meeting the structural limitation and functional method limitation as claimed here. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of claimed invention to have modified the assembly of Fahy to have a stopping member as taught by Bentrim to securely captivate the nut assembly to the panel for proper uniting (see para. [0012]).
PNG
media_image1.png
202
236
media_image1.png
Greyscale
Annotated Fig. 7a
PNG
media_image2.png
508
492
media_image2.png
Greyscale
Annotated Fig. 6a & 6b
Regarding claim 25, Fahy teaches a method (see claims 8-16) of mounting a floating fixing component 26 to an object 4, the floating fixing component including an anti-rotation section 5 and a stop section (SS, as indicated in annotated Fig. 7a), an application section (AS, as indicated in annotated Fig. 7a), and at least one engaging section 7, the at least one engaging section provides a material storage space (MSS, as indicated in annotated Fig. 7a), comprising the following steps:
aligning the anti-rotation section with a matching anti-rotation section provided on the object, such that the anti-rotation section and the matching anti-rotation section are not rotatable relative to one another, and
wherein a floating space (FS, as indicated in annotated Fig. 6a & 6b) is existed between the anti-rotation section and the matching anti-rotation section after the floating fixing component has been mounted to the object, such that the floating fixing component can float and shift on and relative to the object (see Figs. 6a, 6b and 8).
Fahy fails to teach a stopping member, providing a stopping member having a through hole and disposing the stopping member on the anti-rotation section by passing the at least engaging section through the through hole, the stopping member being sideward engaged with the material storage space of the at least one engaging section, and bringing the at least one engaging section to engage the stopping member, the stopping member and the stop section thereby abutting against the obect, so as to prevent the floating fixing component from separating from the object.
However, Bentrim teaches similar Floating Captivated Wrenchable Nut, providing a stopping member 15 having a through hole (see inner wall 18 and central hole) and disposing the stopping member on the anti-rotation section by passing the at least one engaging section 14 through the through hole, the stopping member being sideward engaged (see Figs. 2-3) with the material storage space of the at lest one engaging section (see Fig. 2), and bringing the at least one engaging section to engage the stopping member (see Fig. 3).
Therefore, Fahy in view of Bentrim is capable of meeting the structural limitation and functional method limitation as claimed here. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of claimed invention to have modified the assembly of Fahy to have a stopping member as taught by Bentrim to securely captivate the nut assembly to the panel for proper uniting (see para. [0012]).
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 03/27/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Rejection based on existing and newly found prior art has been set forth above.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DIL K MAGAR whose telephone number is (571)272-8180. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7:30-5:30.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Christine Mills can be reached at (571) 272-8322. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/DIL K. MAGAR/Examiner, Art Unit 3675
/CHRISTINE M MILLS/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3675
