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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CRF 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 09/19/2025 has been entered.
Status
In response to the amendment filed on 09/19/2025, claims 1, 3, 4, 7, and 11 have been amended, and claims 12-15 are cancelled. Claims 2, 5, 6, 9, and 10 were previously cancelled, and claims 8 and 16-20 were previously withdrawn. Claims 1, 3, 4, 7, and 11 are pending and under examination.
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.
Claims 1, 3, 4, 7, and 11 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.
Claim 1 recites, inter alia, “a second compartment having a rinsing liquid therein …, wherein both the cleaning liquid and the rinsing liquid fall from the cooking grate into the second compartment when the cooking grate is cleaned within the chamber”. As set forth above, these limitations are not supported in the originally filed specification.
Specification discloses, in ¶ 0060, that at least one second sprayer 29 located before the exit opening 18 is provided as a rinsing sprayer, and as with the cleaning solution, the water supply may be housed in a separate compartment 40 below the chamber and fed to the sprayer 29. Therefore, the compartment 40 is the recited second compartment having a rinsing liquid. However, specification states both the cleaning solution/liquid and the rinsing liquid are housed in the compartment 40, and the compartment 40 is not used for collecting both the cleaning liquid and the rinsing liquid. Instead, specification discloses, in ¶ 0064, that debris and dirty solution may fall to a bottom collection chamber 242 and removed from the apparatus 200 via a plug 244. The chamber 242 is not used for housing the cleaning liquid or the rinsing liquid. Therefore, the recitation is considered to be New Matter.
Claims 3, 4, 7, and 11 inherit the above deficiency by nature of their dependency.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1, 3, 4, 7, and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee et al. (KR 101495007B1, hereinafter Lee), in view of Im (KR 20150112391A) and Peukert (CN 105744875A).
Regarding claim 1, Lee discloses, in figs. 1-3, an apparatus for cleaning a cooking grate of a barbeque grill (automatic grill washing apparatus) comprising:
a chamber for receiving a cooking grate through an entrance opening, the chamber having an interior space for receiving the cooking grate (Lee English translation, p. 3:27-29, a main body 1 [corresponds to the recited chamber] has an interior space for receiving a grill 2 through an inlet 110 [corresponds to the recited entrance opening]);
a first rotating cleaning brush within the chamber (Lee English translation, p. 4:36-38 and figs. 2-3, a lower brush 220 [corresponds to the recited first rotating cleaning brush] is disposed within the chamber and the lower brush rotates to remove foreign material by physical friction), wherein the first rotating cleaning brush is configured to be positioned adjacent to and contact and clean a first surface of the cooking grate within the chamber (see fig. 3, the lower brush 220 is positioned adjacent to a grill 2 and contacts a lower surface [corresponds to the recited first surface] of the grill 2; Lee English translation p. 3:21-26, a cleaning unit 200 includes the lower brush 220 used for cleaning the grill);
a second rotating cleaning brush within the chamber (Lee English translation, p. 4:36-38 and figs. 2-3, an upper brush 210 [corresponds to the recited second rotating cleaning brush] is disposed within the chamber and the upper brush rotates to remove foreign material by physical friction), wherein the second rotating cleaning brush is configured to be positioned adjacent to and contact and clean a second surface of the cooking grate within the chamber (see fig. 3, the upper brush 210 is positioned adjacent to the grill 2 and contacts an upper surface [corresponds to the recited second surface] of the grill 2; Lee English translation p. 3:21-26, a cleaning unit 200 includes the upper brush 210 used for cleaning the grill);
a roller that rotates to cause the cooking grate to move in a first direction to move the cooking grate from the entrance opening into the interior space of the chamber (figs. 2-3 and Lee English translation, p. 3:33-35 and 5:17-19, draw roller 130 and discharge roller 340 rotate to move the grill 2 in a first direction [corresponds to the recited first direction] through the interior space of the chamber),
a first compartment having a cleaning liquid therein and a first sprayer within the chamber, the first sprayer in communication with the first compartment (Lee English translation, p. 4:36-5:4 and figs. 2-3, the chamber includes a washing liquid tank 20 [corresponds to the recited first compartment] in the main body 1 [corresponds to the recited chamber] for storing washing liquid, and the washing liquid tank 20 is connected to a spray nozzle 230 [corresponds to the recited first sprayer] for spraying cleaning liquid onto the grill 2); but does not disclose the first and second rotating cleaning brushes each rotate in a direction that opposes the movement of the cooking grate in the first direction.
Im teaches, in an analogous grill cleaner field of endeavor, the first and second rotating cleaning brushes each rotate in a direction that opposes the movement of the cooking grate in the first direction (fig. 4, Im discloses an automatic grill washer that the grill is vertically introduced into the washer. As seen in fig. 4, a roller 150 rotates in a first direction [corresponds to the recited first direction] and brushes 160, 162 each rotate in a direction opposing the first direction of the roller 150; Im English translation, p. 4:6-8, although the brush 162 is a guide brush, the both brushes 160, 162 are made with a metal wire material to increase the friction force, therefore, the guide brush 162 can also work as a cleaning brush).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the cleaning apparatus of Lee to provide the roller and the brush rotating in opposite directions as taught by Im. The brush rotating in opposite to a moving direction of the grill applies physical force to the grill for effective cleaning (Im English translation, p. 6:1-3).
Lee as modified by Im does not disclose a second compartment having a rinsing liquid therein and a second sprayer in communication with the second compartment.
Peukert teaches, in an analogous cleaning apparatus field of endeavor, a second compartment having a rinsing liquid therein and a second sprayer in communication with the second compartment (Peukert English translation, p. 7:22-29, 23:14-24:3, a washer having at least one nozzle may provide cleaning liquid and final rinse liquid onto objects to be cleaned by different nozzles within a chamber of the washer. A final rinse tank 144 [corresponds to the recited second compartment] contains rinse liquid and supplies the rinse liquid to a rinse nozzle system 124).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the cleaning apparatus of Lee as modified by Im to spray the rinsing solution as taught by Peukert. The Peukert’s rinsing liquid has higher temperature than cleaning liquid, thus applying the rinsing liquid may help sanitizing the objects after cleaning.
Lee as modified by Im and Peukert does not disclose the first sprayer near the entrance opening within the chamber and a second sprayer near an exit opening of the chamber.
However, Lee discloses the spray nozzle 230 in the chamber for spraying the cleaning liquid and Peukert discloses the rinse nozzle 124 in the chamber for spraying the rinsing liquid. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the apparatus for cleaning a cooking grate of Lee as modified by Im and Peukert to dispose the first sprayer near an entrance opening for cleaning the grate as it enters the cleaning chamber and the second sprayer near an exit opening of the chamber for rinsing the grate before exiting the cleaning chamber. It has been held that shifting position of a part would be unpatentable unless it modifies the operation of the device. MPEP 2144.04(VI)(C).
Lee as modified by Im and Peukert still does not disclose the second compartment is disposed within the chamber.
Peukert discloses a cleaning box 132 [corresponds to the recited first compartment] at a bottom of a cleaning apparatus while the rinse tank 144 [corresponds to the recited second compartment] is disposed outside of the cleaning apparatus. However, both the cleaning box 132 and the rinse tank 144 are fluidly connected to spray liquid within the chamber of the cleaning apparatus. Therefore, Peukert teaches a compartment containing liquid can be disposed within the chamber of the cleaning apparatus, and the cleaning box can be duplicated to have two compartments within the chamber. One of the compartments can be used as the rinse tank so that the cleaning apparatus has one body for an easy installation. It has been held that mere duplication of parts has no patentable significance unless a new and unexpected result is produced. MPEP 2144.04(VI)(B).
Finally, Lee as modified by Im and Peukert teaches both the cleaning liquid and the rinsing liquid fall from the cooking grate into the second compartment when the cooking grate is cleaned within the chamber (Peukert English translation, p. 23:14-24:3 and fig. 1, the cleaning tank 132 can supply cleaning liquid through the cleaning spray system 122, supply liquid for a recycling operation, or drain the liquid through an outlet line 136. The nozzles of the Peukert’s cleaning apparatus spray the cleaning liquid and other nozzles spray the rinsing liquid. It means dispensed cleaning liquid and rinsing liquid can be collected in the tank 132 for recycling or draining. As discussed in 112(a) rejection, specification of the instant application discloses the compartment 40 stores both the cleaning liquid and the rinsing liquid. Thus, the Peukert’s tank 132 which stores the cleaning liquid can be used for collecting the used liquid.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the cleaning apparatus of Lee as modified by Im and Peukert to provide the chamber for collecting liquid as taught by Peukert so that the collected liquid may be used again through the recycling operation (Peukert English translation, p. 23:29-31).
Regarding claim 3, Lee as modified by Im and Peukert teaches the apparatus as in the rejection of claim 1, wherein the entrance opening is disposed on a first side of the chamber, wherein the cooking grate is configured to enter the chamber through the entrance opening (Lee English translation, p. 3:27-29 and fig. 3, one side [corresponds to the recited first side] of the main body 1 has an inlet 110 [corresponds to the recited entrance opening] through which the grill 2 is inserted).
Regarding claim 4, Lee as modified by Im and Peukert teaches the apparatus as in the rejection of claim 3, where the exit opening is disposed on a second side of the chamber opposite the first side of the chamber, wherein the cooking grate is configured to exit the chamber through the exit opening (Lee English translation, p. 5:11-13 and fig. 3, the other side [corresponds to the recited second side] of the main body 1 has an outlet or discharge port 310 [corresponds to the recited exit opening] from which the grill 2 is discharged).
Regarding claim 7, Lee as modified by Im and Peukert teaches the apparatus as in the rejection of claim 1, wherein the first cleaning brush is disposed beneath the cooking grate as the cooking grate is disposed within the chamber and wherein the second cleaning brush is disposed above the cooking grate as the cooking grate is disposed within the chamber (see Lee fig. 3, the lower brush 220 [corresponds to the recited first cleaning brush] is disposed beneath the grill 2 within the chamber and the upper brush 210 [corresponds to the second cleaning brush] is disposed above the grill 2 within the chamber).
Regarding claim 11, Lee as modified by Im and Peukert teaches the apparatus as in the rejection of claim 1, wherein the first sprayer is configured to discharge the cleaning liquid onto the grate as the cooking grate is disposed within the chamber (Lee English translation, p. 4:36-5:4 and figs. 2-3, the chamber includes a spray nozzle 230 [corresponds to the recited first sprayer] for spraying cleaning liquid onto the grill 2).
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 09/19/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues Lee and Im do not teach or suggest the amened claim limitations that a first compartment containing a cleaning liquid and a second compartment containing a rinsing liquid, where both the cleaning liquid and the rinsing liquid fall from the grate into the second compartment when the grate is cleaned within the chamber. Examiner respectfully disagrees.
Lee teaches the grill washing apparatus wherein the apparatus has the washing liquid tank at a bottom of the apparatus and Peukert teaches the washing apparatus wherein the apparatus has the rinse tank. Peukert further teaches the liquid tank at the bottom of the apparatus wherein the tank can collect used liquid for recycling or draining. Therefore, Lee and Peukert teach the amended claim limitations.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SUKWOO JAMES CHANG whose telephone number is (571)272-7402. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00a-5:00p.
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/S.J.C./Examiner, Art Unit 3723
/DAVID S POSIGIAN/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3723