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 CFR 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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 12/01/2025 has been entered.
Amendments of Claims 1, 19, 24 and 26 are acknowledged.
Cancelation of Claims 25 and 27 is acknowledged.
New Claim 30 is acknowledged.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 06/18/2025, 08/13/2025, 09/30/2025 and 10/16/2025 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner.
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.
Claims 1 to 3, 6, 7, 9, 17, 18, 24, 26, 29 and 30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kuhnle (DE 102018210189) in view of Bram (US 2008/0196913).
Regarding Claims 1, 2 and 6:
Kuhnle discloses a striking tool comprising:
an elongated main housing (i) having a longitudinal axis extending in a first direction, which defines an up-down direction of the striking tool, and (ii) including a tool holder at a lower end of the main housing, the tool holder being configured to detachably hold an end tool (Figure 5a, machine tool 10d extending along axis 20d, that will be considered the first direction, Figure 1, tool holder 34 holding tool 36);
a pair of handles each extending in a second direction crossing the first direction (Figure 5a, handles 22d and 24d will be considered the handles, extending along grip axis 25d that will be considered the second direction);
a drive mechanism which drives the end tool in the first direction; a motor having an output shaft to drive the drive mechanism (Figure 1a, percussion unit 16 will be considered the drive mechanism driven by motor 18); and
a slide guide that is slidably engageable with a battery for supplying electricity to the motor (Figures 5a and 5b, bottom surface of battery interfaces 50d and 52d engage battery interface 110 of batteries 100), wherein:
the slide guide is provided at a portion that protrudes from the main housing in the second direction and at a position where the slide guide is spaced apart from the pair of handles (Figures 5a and 5b, battery interfaces 50d and 52d are provided on a portion that protrudes from housing 12d and the surfaces where the battery slide are spaced from the handles); and
the battery is engageable with the slide guide so as to be disposed at a lower side of the slide guide and so that a topmost surface of the battery (i) is parallel to a virtual plane formed by the second and third directions, (ii) faces the slide guide, and (iii) is parallel to an extension direction of the pair of handles (Paragraph 0037 the direction of connection 124 extends crossing to the working axis 20d and crossing to the handle axis 25d the machine tool 10d, on a direction that will be considered the third direction, Figures 5a and 5b show the batteries 100 connected at a lower side of the slide guides 50d and 52d, so the topmost surface of the battery is on a plane parallel to a plane formed by the second and third directions, details of the battery topmost surface are on Figure 1b including direction of insertion 124). .
Kuhnle does not disclose if the output shaft of the motor extends in a third direction crossing both the first direction and the second direction.
Bram teaches making the output shaft of the motor extends in a third direction which is defined by a thickness direction to cross both with the first direction and the second direction (Figure 5, the rotation axis r of the drive motor 22 extends in the third direction), providing cooling and cleaning advantages, (Paragraphs 0005, 00222, The orientation of the motor provides a tighter enclosure so the motor cooling fan can be used to accomplish clean blowing of the working area of the breaker tool and for cooling the control box 30 a motor control).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to incorporate to Kuhnle the teachings of Bram and have the output shaft of the motor extends in a third direction as claimed, since that direction is known in the art and can provide advantages for cooling electronics and cleaning the tool.
Regarding Claim 3:
Kuhnle discloses that an outer shape of the battery is inside a virtual line which connects a free end region of one of the pair of handles and the lower end of the main housing in a state that the battery is engaged with the slide guide (Figure 5a annotated below, the batteries are completely inside a virtual line as claimed).
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Regarding Claim 7:
Kuhnle discloses that the drive mechanism comprises a motion converting mechanism which converts a rotational movement of the output shaft to a linear movement in the first direction (Figure 1a, percussion unit 16 considered the drive mechanism that converts rotation of the motor into linear movement of the tool and includes an eccentric unit 28, that will be considered the motion converting mechanism, connected to the piston 32 on hammer tube 30),
wherein a straight line extending in the second direction intersects the slide guide and the motion converting mechanism (Annotated Figure 1 below show the approximate position of the slide guides and how a line will intersect the slide guides and eccentric unit 28).
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and wherein the motion converting mechanism is disposed in the main housing on an opposite side of the longitudinal axis of the main housing in the third direction from a user of the striking tool who holds the pair of handles (Figure 1a shows that the motion converting mechanism is disposed in the main housing and at least a portion of it is an opposite side of the longitudinal axis of the main housing in the third direction from a user of the striking tool who holds the pair of handles).
Regarding Claims 9 and 18:
Kuhnle discloses a cover that partially covers the battery which is engaged with the slide guide, wherein: the cover protrudes from the main housing in the second direction; and the slide guide is integrated with the cover (Figure 5a, protective elements 64d will be considered covers, protrude from the main housing in the second direction and can be considered integral with the slide guide), wherein: the cover is below the pair of handles such that a gap is formed between the pair of handles and the cover in the up-down direction (Figure 5a show a gap between protective elements 64d and grips 21d and 23d).
Regarding Claim 17:
Kuhnle discloses that the slide guide is directly below one of the pair of handles in the up-down direction (Figure 5a, bottom surface of battery interfaces 50d and 52d are directly below the handles).
Regarding Claim 24:
Kuhnle discloses A striking tool comprising:
an elongated main housing (i) having a longitudinal axis extending in a first direction, which defines an up-down direction of the striking tool, and (ii) including a tool holder at a lower end of the main housing, the tool holder being configured to detachably hold an end tool (Figure 5a, machine tool 10d extending along axis 20d, that will be considered the first direction, Figure 1, tool holder 34 holding tool 36);
a pair of handles each extending in a second direction crossing the first direction (Figure 5a, handles 22d and 24d will be considered the handles, extending along grip axis 25d that will be considered the second direction);
a pair of handles each extending in a second direction crossing the first direction(Figure 5a, handles 22d and 24d will be considered the handles, extending along grip axis 25d that will be considered the second direction);
a drive mechanism which drives the end tool in the first direction; a motor having an output shaft to drive the drive mechanism (Figure 1a, percussion unit 16 will be considered the drive mechanism driven by motor 18); and
a slide guide that is slidably engageable with a battery for supplying electricity to the motor (Figures 5a and 5b, bottom surface of battery interfaces 50d and 52d engage battery interface 110 of batteries 100); and
a cover that partially covers the battery when the battery is engaged with the slide guide, wherein: the cover protrudes from the main housing in the second direction; the slide guide is integrated with the cover (Figure 5a, protective elements 64d will be considered covers that partially cover the batteries, protrude from the main housing in the second direction and can be considered integral with the slide guide); and
when the battery is engaged with the slide guide, the cover covers a surface of the battery opposite that which faces the slide guide (Figure 5a, the protective elements 64d cover the surface of the battery opposite to the one facing battery interfaces 50d and 52d);
the slide guide is configured to slidably engage with the battery that is slid in the third direction;
the cover has an opening such that the battery is slid in the third direction to be engaged with and disengaged from the slide guide through the opening (Paragraph 0037 the direction of connection 124 extends crossing to the working axis 20d and crossing to the handle axis 25d the machine tool 10d, on a direction that will be considered the third direction, Figure 5a, the protective elements 64d have an opening to slide the batteries in the claimed third direction); and
the cover and one of the pair of handles are spaced apart from each other in the up-down direction (Figure 5a, protective elements 64d are mostly spaced apart from the pair of handles).
Kuhnle does not disclose if the output shaft of the motor extends in a third direction crossing both the first direction and the second direction.
Bram teaches making the output shaft of the motor extends in a third direction which is defined by a thickness direction to cross both with the first direction and the second direction (Figure 5, the rotation axis r of the drive motor 22 extends in the third direction), providing cooling and cleaning advantages, (Paragraphs 0005, 00222, The orientation of the motor provides a tighter enclosure so the motor cooling fan can be used to accomplish clean blowing of the working area of the breaker tool and for cooling the control box 30 a motor control).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to incorporate to Kuhnle the teachings of Bram and have the output shaft of the motor extends in a third direction as claimed, since that direction is known in the art and can provide advantages for cooling electronics and cleaning the tool.
Regarding Claim 26:
Kuhnle discloses that the cover and the slide guide are directly below one of the pair of handles in the up-down direction (Figure 5a, protective elements 64d and lower surfaces of battery interfaces 50d, 52d are directly below one of the pair of handles in the up-down direction).
Regarding Claim 29:
Kuhnle discloses that two of the slide guides and two of the covers are provided at respective sides of the main housing in the second direction (Figure 5a, two protective elements 64d and lower surfaces of battery interfaces 50d, 52d are provided at respective sides of the main housing in the second direction).
Regarding Claim 30:
Kuhnle discloses that the battery and the pair of handles at least partially overlap with each other as viewed in the first direction (Figure 5a, batteries 100 and handles 22d 24d overlap with each other in the direction of the working axis 20d).
Claims 12, 16, 19 to 21, 23 and 28 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kuhnle (DE 102018210189) in view of Bram (US 2008/0196913) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Miwa (US 2015/0090470).
Regarding Claim 12:
As discussed for Claim 1 above, the modified invention of Kuhnle discloses the invention as claimed.
The modified invention of Kuhnle does not specifically disclose a first housing and a second housing respectively defining component elements of the main housing, and an elastic member disposed between the first housing and the second housing.
Miwa teaches having the housing of a similar striking tool including features for improved vibration proofing structure of a handle comprising:
a first housing and a second housing respectively defining component elements of the main housing, and an elastic member disposed between the first housing and the second housing (Figures 5 and 6, upper region part 301 will be considered the second housing and lower region part 303, including body housing 103 will be considered the first housing, and coil spring 339 will be considered the elastic member),
wherein the drive mechanism and the motor are disposed at the first housing (Paragraph 0046 body housing 103 that houses an electric motor 110 and a motion converting mechanism 120, and a barrel 104 that houses a striking mechanism 140 and part of the tool holder 131), the pair of handles are disposed at the second housing (Figure 5, handgrip 350, that will be considered the handles, are disposed on upper region part 301), and the second housing is, together with the pair of handles, movable relative to the first housing by way of the elastic member (Paragraph 0055, slide guides 319, including coil springs 339 for guiding the upper region part 301 in the axial direction of the hammer bit 119), and
wherein slide guide members for guiding the relative movement between the first housing and the second housing are respectively disposed at a plurality of points in the first direction (Figure 6, slide bushes 331 will be considered the slide guide members disposed at two points in the axial direction of the hammer bit).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to incorporate to the modified invention of Kuhnle the teachings of Miwa and have the tool housing as a first housing and a second housing respectively defining component elements of the main housing, and an elastic member disposed between the first housing and the second housing, wherein the drive mechanism and the motor are disposed at the first housing, the pair of handles are disposed at the second housing and an elastic element and slide members as claimed allow for relative movement between the first housing and the second housing for improved vibration proofing structure of a handle, reducing probable injuries to the operators and also improving handling of the tool.
Regarding Claim 16:
As discussed for Claim 1 above, the modified invention of Kuhnle discloses the invention as claimed, including that the battery interfaces 50d and 52d, that comprise the slide guides are connected to the handles.
The modified invention of Kuhnle does not specifically disclose a first housing and a second housing respectively defining component elements of the main housing, and an elastic member disposed between the first housing and the second housing.
Miwa teaches having the housing of a similar striking tool including features for improved vibration proofing structure of a handle comprising:
a first housing and a second housing respectively defining component elements of the main housing, and an elastic member disposed between the first housing and the second housing (Figures 5 and 6, upper region part 301 will be considered the second housing and lower region part 303, including body housing 103 will be considered the first housing, and coil spring 339 will be considered the elastic member),
wherein the drive mechanism and the motor are disposed at the first housing (Paragraph 0046 body housing 103 that houses an electric motor 110 and a motion converting mechanism 120, and a barrel 104 that houses a striking mechanism 140 and part of the tool holder 131), the pair of handles are disposed at the second housing (Figure 5, handgrip 350, that will be considered the handles, are disposed on upper region part 301), and the second housing is, together with the pair of handles, movable relative to the first housing by way of the elastic member (Paragraph 0055, slide guides 319, including coil springs 339 for guiding the upper region part 301 in the axial direction of the hammer bit 119), and
wherein slide guide members for guiding the relative movement between the first housing and the second housing are respectively disposed at a plurality of points in the first direction (Figure 6, slide bushes 331 will be considered the slide guide members disposed at two points in the axial direction of the hammer bit).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to incorporate to the modified invention of Kuhnle the teachings of Miwa and have the tool housing as a first housing and a second housing respectively defining component elements of the main housing, and an elastic member disposed between the first housing and the second housing, wherein the drive mechanism and the motor are disposed at the first housing, the pair of handles are disposed at the second housing and an elastic element and slide members as claimed allow for relative movement between the first housing and the second housing for improved vibration proofing structure of a handle, having the slide guide protruding from the second housing, reducing probable injuries to the operators and also improving handling of the tool and also reducing the risk of accidental disconnection of the batteries from the tool due to excessive vibration.
Regarding Claim 19:
Kuhnle discloses a striking tool comprising:
an elongated main housing (i) having a longitudinal axis extending in a first direction, which defines an up-down direction of the striking tool, and (ii) including a tool holder at a lower end of the main housing, the tool holder being configured to detachably hold an end tool (Figure 5a, machine tool 10d extending along axis 20d, that will be considered the first direction, Figure 1, tool holder 34 holding tool 36);
a pair of handles each extending in a second direction crossing the first direction (Figure 5a, handles 22d and 24d will be considered the handles, extending along grip axis 25d that will be considered the second direction);
a drive mechanism which drives the end tool in the first direction; a motor having an output shaft to drive the drive mechanism (Figure 1a, percussion unit 16 will be considered the drive mechanism driven by motor 18); and
a slide guide that is slidably engageable with a battery for supplying electricity to the motor (Figures 5a and 5b, bottom surface of battery interfaces 50d and 52d engage battery interface 110 of batteries 100), wherein:
the slide guide is provided at a portion that protrudes from the main housing in the second direction and at a position where the slide guide is spaced apart from the pair of handles (Figures 5a and 5b, battery interfaces 50d and 52d are provided on a portion that protrudes from housing 12d and the surfaces where the battery slide are spaced from the handles); and
the battery is engageable with the slide guide so as to be disposed at a lower side of the slide guide and so that a topmost surface of the battery (i) is parallel to a virtual plane formed by the second and third directions, (ii) faces the slide guide, and (iii) is parallel to an extension direction of the pair of handles (Paragraph 0037 the direction of connection 124 extends crossing to the working axis 20d and crossing to the handle axis 25d the machine tool 10d, on a direction that will be considered the third direction, Figures 5a and 5b show the batteries 100 connected at a lower side of the slide guides 50d and 52d, so the topmost surface of the battery is on a plane parallel to a plane formed by the second and third directions, details of the battery topmost surface are on Figure 1b including direction of insertion 124).
Kuhnle does not disclose if the output shaft of the motor extends in a third direction crossing both the first direction and the second direction.
Bram teaches making the output shaft of the motor extends in a third direction which is defined by a thickness direction to cross both with the first direction and the second direction (Figure 5, the rotation axis r of the drive motor 22 extends in the third direction), providing cooling and cleaning advantages, (Paragraphs 0005, 00222, The orientation of the motor provides a tighter enclosure so the motor cooling fan can be used to accomplish clean blowing of the working area of the breaker tool and for cooling the control box 30 a motor control).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to incorporate to Kuhnle the teachings of Bram and have the output shaft of the motor extends in a third direction as claimed, since that direction is known in the art and can provide advantages for cooling electronics and cleaning the tool.
As discussed for Claim 1 above, the modified invention of Kuhnle discloses the invention as claimed, including that the battery interfaces 50d and 52d, that comprise the slide guides are connected to the handles.
The modified invention of Kuhnle does not specifically disclose a first housing and a second housing respectively defining component elements of the main housing, and an elastic member disposed between the first housing and the second housing.
Miwa teaches having the housing of a similar striking tool including features for improved vibration proofing structure of a handle comprising:
a first housing and a second housing respectively defining component elements of the main housing, and an elastic member disposed between the first housing and the second housing (Figures 5 and 6, upper region part 301 will be considered the second housing and lower region part 303, including body housing 103 will be considered the first housing, and coil spring 339 will be considered the elastic member),
wherein the drive mechanism and the motor are disposed at the first housing (Paragraph 0046 body housing 103 that houses an electric motor 110 and a motion converting mechanism 120, and a barrel 104 that houses a striking mechanism 140 and part of the tool holder 131), the pair of handles are disposed at the second housing (Figure 5, handgrip 350, that will be considered the handles, are disposed on upper region part 301), and the second housing is, together with the pair of handles, movable relative to the first housing by way of the elastic member (Paragraph 0055, slide guides 319, including coil springs 339 for guiding the upper region part 301 in the axial direction of the hammer bit 119), and
wherein slide guide members for guiding the relative movement between the first housing and the second housing are respectively disposed at a plurality of points in the first direction (Figure 6, slide bushes 331 will be considered the slide guide members disposed at two points in the axial direction of the hammer bit).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to incorporate to the modified invention of Kuhnle the teachings of Miwa and have the tool housing as a first housing and a second housing respectively defining component elements of the main housing, and an elastic member disposed between the first housing and the second housing, wherein the drive mechanism and the motor are disposed at the first housing, the pair of handles are disposed at the second housing and an elastic element and slide members as claimed allow for relative movement between the first housing and the second housing for improved vibration proofing structure of a handle, having the slide guide protruding from the second housing, reducing probable injuries to the operators and also improving handling of the tool and also reducing the risk of accidental disconnection of the batteries from the tool due to excessive vibration.
Regarding Claim 20:
Kuhnle discloses that two of the slide guides are provided at respective sides of the main housing in the second direction (Figure 5a, slide guides corresponding to each battery 100).
Regarding Claim 21:
Kuhnle discloses that the batteries engaged with the slide guides are between virtual lines connecting respective free ends of the pair of handles and the lower end of the main housing (Figure 5a annotated below, the batteries are completely inside a virtual line as claimed).
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Regarding Claim 23:
Kuhnle discloses that the slide guide is directly below one of the pair of handles in the up-down direction (Figure 5a, bottom surface of battery interfaces 50d and 52d are directly below the handles).
Regarding Claim 28:
As discussed for Claim 24 above, the modified invention of Kuhnle discloses the invention as claimed, including that the battery interfaces 50d and 52d, that comprise the slide guides to support batteries that are connected to the handles and the batteries are protected by a cover.
The modified invention of Kuhnle does not specifically disclose a first housing and a second housing respectively defining component elements of the main housing, and an elastic member disposed between the first housing and the second housing.
Miwa teaches having the housing of a similar striking tool including features for improved vibration proofing structure of a handle comprising:
a first housing and a second housing respectively defining component elements of the main housing, and an elastic member disposed between the first housing and the second housing (Figures 5 and 6, upper region part 301 will be considered the second housing and lower region part 303, including body housing 103 will be considered the first housing, and coil spring 339 will be considered the elastic member),
wherein the drive mechanism and the motor are disposed at the first housing (Paragraph 0046 body housing 103 that houses an electric motor 110 and a motion converting mechanism 120, and a barrel 104 that houses a striking mechanism 140 and part of the tool holder 131), the pair of handles are disposed at the second housing (Figure 5, handgrip 350, that will be considered the handles, are disposed on upper region part 301), and the second housing is, together with the pair of handles, movable relative to the first housing by way of the elastic member (Paragraph 0055, slide guides 319, including coil springs 339 for guiding the upper region part 301 in the axial direction of the hammer bit 119), and
wherein slide guide members for guiding the relative movement between the first housing and the second housing are respectively disposed at a plurality of points in the first direction (Figure 6, slide bushes 331 will be considered the slide guide members disposed at two points in the axial direction of the hammer bit).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to incorporate to the modified invention of Kuhnle the teachings of Miwa and have the tool housing as a first housing and a second housing respectively defining component elements of the main housing, and an elastic member disposed between the first housing and the second housing, wherein the drive mechanism and the motor are disposed at the first housing, the pair of handles are disposed at the second housing and an elastic element and slide members as claimed allow for relative movement between the first housing and the second housing for improved vibration proofing structure of a handle, having the slide guides supporting the batteries protruding from the second housing and the corresponding covers to protect the batteries, reducing probable injuries to the operators and also improving handling of the tool and also reducing the risk of accidental disconnection of the batteries from the tool due to excessive vibration.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to the rejection of the claims over Tada (JP 2016/165783) in view of Buck (US 6996909) and Bram (US 2008/0196913) have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection required after amendment does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. in particular White (US 2016/0020443) and Sheeks (US 2019/006980) disclose several slide guides applicable to similar striking tools while Zawisza (US 2020/013016) and Wacker (DE 202012012149) disclose a first and a second housing and an elastic element disposed between them.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to EDUARDO R FERRERO whose telephone number is (571)272-9946. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:30-7:00.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, SHELLEY SELF can be reached at 571-272-4524. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/EDUARDO R FERRERO/Examiner, Art Unit 3731
/STEPHEN F. GERRITY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3731 22 December 2025