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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 6/24/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
While Fu and Gao are related to work machines, the fact that they spend time discussing battery compartments means they are also generally related to battery storage and protection. The examiner has presented the reference Tanaka which is “reasonably pertinent” to the problem Applicant was trying to solve and is considered analogous art (MPEP 2141.01(a) section I). The examiner understands the problem Applicant was trying to solve to be preventing battery damage from snow or melted water (Applicant’s specification para [0005]).
Further, the recessed groove of the combination is sloped to decline from the front of the machine to the back of the machine (Gao; see Annotated Figure 2; the recessed groove is sloped to decline along multiple planes non-perpendicular to the horizontal plane).
The new limitations of claims 24 and 27 can still be interpreted in multiple ways. One way is “a total perimeter of the battery cavity being in one horizontal plane” which Gao is considered to disclose with the recessed groove 2040 coinciding with the one horizontal plane. The limitation can also be interpreted as “the total distance of the perimeter of the battery cavity [projected onto] a horizontal plane; in this case, the recessed groove of Gao still extends all the way around the horizontal perimeter of the battery cavity and meets the claim language interpretation.
To overcome this rejection, the examiner suggests presenting arguments as to why a person having ordinary skill in the art would not look to outside battery compartment art for the purposes of securing and protecting a battery. All the cited art as well as the Applicant (specification; para [0005]) state the same purpose of protecting a battery from water/snow.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claim(s) 11-21, 24, 27 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fu et al. (US 20170152638) in view of Gao et al. (US 20200267903) and Tanaka et al. (US 9543551).
Regarding claim 11, Fu discloses a snow thrower comprising:
a body frame defining a body inlet and a body outlet (body 20 with inlet 202 and outlet 231);
a handle attached to the body frame (handle 11);
a chute attached to the body frame to direct snow therefrom (chute 41 directs snow);
a battery compartment defining a battery cavity to receive a battery therein (Fig 8; compartment 26 with cavities 261a-b to receive battery 300); and
a compartment lid attached to the body frame and movable between an open position permitting access to the battery cavity and a closed position restricting access to the battery cavity, the compartment lid comprising an inner lip (Fig 8 depicts the compartment lid 25 with a lip that moves from an open to closed position).
It is unclear if Fu discloses the battery compartment comprising an inner rim and an outer rim extending about at least a portion of the battery cavity, and wherein a recessed groove is defined between the inner rim and the outer rim radially outward from the battery cavity. Similarly, it is unclear if Fu discloses the lip of the lid received within the recessed groove in the closed position.
However, Gao discloses a similar working device with a battery compartment and lid (Fig 13; lid 230 and compartment 201) and teaches the compartment having an inner rim and outer rim and a recessed groove between the rims (the lid has lip 231; compartment inner rim 2041 and outer rim of surface 2040; the recessed groove surface 2042 is considered recessed from inner rim 2041 and the outer rim of surface 2040; para [0248], lines 42-44) as well as the lip of the lid received within the recessed groove in the closed position (Figs 12-13 depict the cover in the closed position and the lip of the lid is received in the groove 2042; the lower portion of the lock 250 as depicted in Fig 13 is considered to be part of the lip which fits in the recessed groove that is below both the inner rim and outer rim).
Fu and Gao are considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of endeavor of covering the electronics of a working device. Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Fu to incorporate the teachings of Gao and combined the use of the inner and outer rims with the recessed groove. One would have made this combination to prevent water from flowing into the battery compartment when water drops on the groove surface 2040 (Gao; para [0248], lines 65-68).
While Fu and Gao fail to specifically disclose the now-claimed structure of the battery compartment including a bottom groove wall with the inner lip supported on the bottom groove wall, they both disclose significant structure of the battery compartment itself. The fact that the references discuss the battery compartment in detail leads the examiner to believe the inventions of Fu and Gao are drawn to general battery storage and protection of work machines. Further, the claimed apparatuses in independent claims 11 and 19 are drawn to the details of the snow thrower battery compartment to generally protect and secure the battery. Different battery compartment systems would be concerned with the same problem. To illustrate this, Tanaka discloses a similar battery compartment (Tanaka; Fig 2) that relates to the same problem of protecting and securing a battery. Further, Tanaka teaches the battery compartment further comprising a bottom groove wall extending radially and continuously from the inner rim to the outer rim to further define a bottom extreme of the recessed groove, and wherein the inner lip is supported on the bottom groove wall within the recessed groove in the closed position (see Annotated Figure 1).
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Annotated Figure 1
Because Fu, Gao, and Tanaka are all drawn to battery compartments to solve the problem of protecting and securing a battery, they are considered reasonably pertinent to the problem the Applicant was trying to solve (MPEP 2141.01(a) section I). The examiner understands the problem Applicant was trying to solve to be preventing battery damage from snow or melted water (Applicant’s specification para [0005]). Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the combination of Fu and Gao to incorporate the teachings of Tanaka and modified the structure of the battery compartment to include the bottom groove wall and inner lip. One would have made this modification to create a liquid tight seal between the inner lip and recessed groove (Tanaka; col 9, lines 11-18).
Regarding claim 12, Fu further discloses the snow thrower further comprising:
a collar attached to the body frame about the body outlet, wherein the chute comprises a base flange extending radially toward the collar, and wherein the collar comprises a resilient release tab selectively engaged with the base flange (Fig 20; the tab of the collar is considered to be resilient as the claim language is broad).
Regarding claim 13, Fu further discloses the snow thrower further comprising:
a chute actuator assembly comprising a hand grip attached to the handle in mechanical communication with the chute, wherein the chute is selectively rotatable about a chute axis according to a relative position of the hand grip (Fig 19; hand grip 61 is connected to the handle and is connected to the collar through gears and cables 66/68; the collar is rotatable about the axis of the outlet relative to the hand grip).
Regarding claim 14, Fu further discloses the snow thrower wherein the chute actuator assembly further comprises
an actuator pulley in mechanical communication between the hand grip and the collar (pulley 63 is between the hand grip and collar),
an intermediate gear mounted to the actuator pulley (intermediate gear 67), and
a grip gear mounted to the hand grip, the grip gear being enmeshed in mechanical communication with the intermediate gear (there is considered to be a grip gear as part of the hand grip and it enmeshes in mechanical communication with the intermediate gear 67).
Regarding claim 15, Fu further discloses the snow thrower further comprising:
an auger rotatably mounted to the body frame to rotate about an auger axis beneath the body outlet (auger 30 rotates about axis 103);
a variable speed motor mounted to the body frame to motivate the auger about the auger axis (motor 50); and
a linear displacement switch attached to the handle in operable communication with the variable speed motor, wherein the linear displacement switch is configured to direct rotation speed at the variable speed motor according to a linear position of the linear displacement switch (switch 192; para [0062], lines 10-12).
Regarding claim 16, Fu further discloses the snow thrower further comprising a lighting assembly mounted to the body frame above the body inlet (lighting device 80).
Regarding claim 17, Fu further discloses the snow thrower wherein the handle comprises an upper segment and a lower segment attached to the upper segment at a segment collar, and wherein a segment collar defines a lateral handle axis about which the upper segment is rotatable relative to the lower segment (upper segment 12/13 rotates about axis 102 relative to lower segment 14; Fig 3).
Regarding claim 18, Fu further discloses the snow thrower further comprising:
an auger rotatably mounted to the body frame to rotate about an auger axis beneath the body outlet (auger 30 rotates about axis 103);
a motor mounted to the body frame to motivate the auger about the auger axis (motor 50);
a plurality of batteries attached to the body frame in electrical communication with the motor to supply power thereto (batteries 300); and
a controller in operable communication with the motor and the plurality of batteries, the controller being configured to selectively direct a voltage to the motor from a single battery of the plurality of batteries (para [0068], lines 5-12).
Regarding claim 19, Fu discloses a snow thrower comprising:
a body frame defining a body inlet and a body outlet (body 20 with inlet 202 and outlet 231);
a chute attached to the body frame to direct snow therefrom (chute 41 directs snow);
a battery compartment defining a battery cavity to receive a battery therein (Fig 8; compartment 26 with cavities 261a-b to receive battery 300); and
a compartment lid attached to the body frame and movable between an open position permitting access to the battery cavity and a closed position restricting access to the battery cavity, the compartment lid comprising an inner lip (Fig 8 depicts the compartment lid 25 open with a lip).
It is unclear if Fu discloses the battery compartment comprising an inner rim and an outer rim extending about at least a portion of the battery cavity, and wherein a recessed groove is defined between the inner rim and the outer rim radially outward from the battery cavity with the recessed groove sloped to decline along a plane non-perpendicular to a horizontal plane. Similarly, it is unclear if Fu discloses the lip of the lid received within the recessed groove in the closed position.
However, Gao discloses a similar working device with a battery compartment and lid (Fig 13; lid 230 and compartment 201) and teaches the compartment having an inner rim and outer rim and a recessed groove between the rims (the lid has lip 231; compartment inner rim 2041 and outer rim of surface 2040; the groove 2042 is considered recessed from inner rim 2041 and outer rim of surface 2040) as well as the lip of the lid received within the recessed groove in the closed position (Figs 12-13 depict the cover in the closed position and the lip of the lid is received in the groove 2042; the lower portion of the lock 250 as depicted in Fig 13 is considered to be part of the lip which fits in the recessed groove that is below both the inner rim and outer rim). Further, the recessed groove of Gao is sloped to decline from the front of the machine to the back of the machine (see Annotated Figure 2; the recessed groove is sloped to decline along multiple planes non-perpendicular to the horizontal plane).
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Annotated Figure 2
Fu and Gao are considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of endeavor of covering the electronics of a working device. Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Fu to incorporate the teachings of Gao and combined the use of the inner and outer rims with the recessed groove. One would have made this combination to prevent water from flowing into the battery compartment when water drops on the groove surface 2040 (Gao; para [0248], lines 65-68).
While Fu and Gao fail to specifically disclose the now-claimed structure of the battery compartment including a bottom groove wall with the inner lip supported on the bottom groove wall, they both disclose significant structure of the battery compartment itself. The fact that the references discuss the battery compartment in detail leads the examiner to believe the inventions of Fu and Gao are drawn to general battery storage and protection of work machines. Further, the claimed apparatuses in independent claims 11 and 19 are drawn to the details of the snow thrower battery compartment to generally protect and secure the battery. Different battery compartment systems would be concerned with the same problem. To illustrate this, Tanaka discloses a similar battery compartment (Tanaka; Fig 2) that relates to the same problem of protecting and securing a battery. Further, Tanaka teaches the battery compartment further comprising a bottom groove wall extending radially and continuously from the inner rim to the outer rim to further define a bottom extreme of the recessed groove, and wherein the inner lip is supported on the bottom groove wall within the recessed groove in the closed position (see Annotated Figure 1).
Because Fu, Gao, and Tanaka are all drawn to battery compartments to solve the problem of protecting and securing a battery, they are considered reasonably pertinent to the problem the Applicant was trying to solve (MPEP 2141.01(a) section I). The examiner understands the problem Applicant was trying to solve to be preventing battery damage from snow or melted water (Applicant’s specification para [0005]). Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the combination of Fu and Gao to incorporate the teachings of Tanaka and modified the structure of the battery compartment to include the bottom groove wall and inner lip. One would have made this modification to create a liquid tight seal between the inner lip and recessed groove (Tanaka; col 9, lines 11-18).
Regarding claim 20, Fu further discloses the snow thrower further comprising:
a collar attached to the body frame about the body outlet (Fig 20 depicts a collar that attaches to the body frame);
wherein the chute is in selective rotatable engagement with the collar to direct snow from the body frame, the chute comprising a base flange extending radially toward the collar and one or more radial tabs vertically spaced apart from the base flange to define a vertical gap (chute 41 attaches to the body and is in rotatable engagement with the collar in Fig 20; the teeth on the collar and considered to be radial tabs that are vertically spaced apart from the base flange),
wherein the collar is received within the vertical gap and restricted between the base flange and the one or more radial tabs (Fig 17 and Fig 20 depict the collar received within the vertical gap and between the radial tabs and base flange), and
wherein the collar comprises a resilient release tab extending upward within the vertical gap in selective engagement with the base flange (the tab of the collar is considered to be resilient as the claim language is broad).
Regarding claim 21, Fu further discloses the snow thrower further comprising:
a handle attached to the body frame rearward from the battery compartment (handle 11 appears to be rearward of the battery compartment in Fig 4);
a chute actuator assembly comprising a hand grip attached to the handle in mechanical communication with the collar, wherein the collar is selectively rotatable about a chute axis according to a relative position of the hand grip (Fig 19; hand grip 61 is connected to the handle and is connected to the collar through gears and cables 66/68; the collar is rotatable about the axis of the outlet relative to the hand grip), wherein the chute actuator assembly further comprises
an actuator pulley in mechanical communication between the hand grip and the collar (pulley 63 is between the hand grip and collar),
an intermediate gear mounted to the actuator pulley (intermediate gear 67), and
a grip gear mounted to the hand grip, the grip gear being enmeshed in mechanical communication with the intermediate gear (there is considered to be a grip gear as part of the hand grip and it enmeshes in mechanical communication with the intermediate gear 67).
Regarding claim 24, the combination of Fu, Gao, and Tanaka discloses the snow thrower wherein the recessed groove extends along 25% or more of a horizontal perimeter of the battery cavity, the horizontal perimeter comprising a total distance of a perimeter of the battery cavity in a horizontal plane (the recessed groove appears to extend over 50% of the horizontal length of the battery cavity; see Fig 13; groove 2040 is depicted in a horizontal plane with the rest of the recessed groove outside of this horizontal plane; claim language is broad). The limitation can also be interpreted as the total perimeter of the battery cavity projected onto a horizontal plane; in this case, the recessed groove of the combination of Fu, Gao, and Tanaka still extends all the way around the horizontal perimeter of the battery cavity.
For the sake of argument that the combination of Fu and Gao does not expressly disclose the recessed groove extending along 25% or more of a horizontal perimeter of the battery cavity, it does disclose that the groove is for the purpose of draining water away from the battery compartment (Gao; para [0248], lines 65-68). As a result of the length of the groove controlling the effectiveness of the water drainage, the length of the groove is considered to be a results effective variable in so far as the length of the groove may be adjusted in order to better drain water from around the battery compartment. Therefore, it would have been obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to optimize the length of the recessed groove to be 25% or more of the horizontal perimeter of the battery cavity, as it has been held that the optimization of a results effective variable would have been obvious so as to achieve an optimum or workable range (MPEP 2144.05, Subsection II, B).
Regarding claim 27, the combination of Fu, Gao, and Tanaka discloses the snow thrower wherein the recessed groove extends along 25% or more of a horizontal perimeter of the battery cavity, the horizontal perimeter comprising a total distance of a perimeter of the battery cavity in a horizontal plane (the recessed groove appears to extend over 50% of the horizontal length of the battery cavity; see Fig 13; groove 2040 is depicted in a horizontal plane with the rest of the recessed groove outside of this horizontal plane; claim language is broad). The limitation can also be interpreted as the total perimeter of the battery cavity projected onto a horizontal plane; in this case, the recessed groove of the combination of Fu, Gao, and Tanaka still extends all the way around the horizontal perimeter of the battery cavity.
For the sake of argument that the combination of Fu and Gao does not expressly disclose the recessed groove extending along 25% or more of a horizontal perimeter of the battery cavity, it does disclose that the groove is for the purpose of draining water away from the battery compartment (Gao; para [0248], lines 65-68). As a result of the length of the groove controlling the effectiveness of the water drainage, the length of the groove is considered to be a results effective variable in so far as the length of the groove may be adjusted in order to better drain water from around the battery compartment. Therefore, it would have been obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to optimize the length of the recessed groove to be 25% or more of the horizontal perimeter of the battery cavity, as it has been held that the optimization of a results effective variable would have been obvious so as to achieve an optimum or workable range (MPEP 2144.05, Subsection II, B).
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 BLAKE SCOVILLE whose telephone number is (571)270-7654. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 10:30-6 (ET).
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Christopher Sebesta can be reached on (571) 272-0547. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BLAKE E SCOVILLE/Examiner, Art Unit 3671 /CHRISTOPHER J SEBESTA/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3671
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