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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-2 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Wieckowski et al (US 11,772, 281).
As to claim 1, Wieckowski et al discloses a vacuum adsorption system (900A-900C), as illustrated in Figures 9A-9C, comprising a cylinder (901) including a cylinder block, a piston (905), and a piston rod mounted in the cylinder block (see annotated Figure 9A below); and a vacuum pressure control device (1100) controlling a vacuum pressure (the cylinder 901 may include a connection 903 to a vacuum or negative pressure source or line, via which negative pressure may be applied to an interior of the cylinder 901 – see col. 35, lines 35-40) in an inner cavity (907) of the cylinder block, the piston rod has a vacuum suction hole (see annotated Figure 9A below) communicating with the inner cavity, the vacuum pressure in the inner cavity is controlled so that a contact force applied by the piston rod on an object adsorbed by the vacuum suction hole of the piston rod is less than or equal to a predetermined contact force (see Figure 10).
With claim 2, a vacuum generating device (the cylinder 901 may include a connection 903 to a vacuum or negative pressure source or line – see col. 35, lines 35-40) having a negative pressure port connected via connection (903) to the cylinder block through a connecting pipeline to communicate with the inner cavity of the cylinder block.
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Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-20 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Bronowski, Leidenfrost, Capps, Polido, and Schneider are cited as being relevant art, because each prior art discloses a vacuum adsorption system comprising a cylinder and a vacuum pressure control device.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to STEPHEN VU whose telephone number is (571)272-1961. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Gene Crawford can be reached at (571) 272-6911. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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STEPHEN VU
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3651
/STEPHEN A VU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3651