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.
Claim(s) 1, 3, and 5-7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Meyers (US 3137435 A) in view of Saulas et al. (WO 2015/171376 A1; hereinafter Saulas).
Regarding claims 1 and 5-7, Meyers discloses a meat package and blank for making comprising first (39) and second panels (19) for placement in an overlapping position wherein the first and second panels are disposed, at least in part, in a face-contacting arrangement (see Figures 1-3); and a pair of locking elements (42/45) for locking engagement with each other to secure the first and second panels in the overlapping position, the pair of locking elements comprises a male locking element (42) and female locking element (45), the female locking element being formed in the second panel, the male locking element being connected to the first panel (see Fig. 5), wherein the female locking element includes a cut (45; see Fig. 5) formed in the second panel, the second panel comprising a corner defined by first (17) and second (30) peripheral edges of the second panel, the first peripheral edge being hingedly connected, at least in part, to a third panel (10), the second peripheral edge being hingedly connected, at least in part, to a fourth panel (26), the second panel further comprising first and second portions on the opposite sides of the cut, the first portion extending between the cut and the corner such that the first portion is brought into contact at an inside surface thereof with at least part of the male locking element when the male and female locking elements are in the locking engagement, and wherein the cut comprises first and second angled segments (45/48), the first segment being disposed obliquely with respect to each of the first and second peripheral edges, the second segment extending from the first segment away from the corner (48 extends obliquely away from the corner; see Fig. 5). Meyers lacks a hingedly connected retaining tab within the female locking unit.
Saulas teaches a panel interlocking device for a carton and blank for making wherein a female locking (F; see Fig. 6B) element further includes a retaining tab (222) hingedly connected to a panel (212) along a fold line (231), wherein an opening is defined in the panel when the retaining tab is folded about the fold line (see Page 10 lines 10-20) out of a plane of the panel, wherein the opening is defined in part by a cut (223). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of Applicant’s filing to modify Meyers’ female locking unit to include a retention tab in the female locking element in order to engage and brace the male locking unit held together in locking configuration (Saulas; Page 3 lines 5-25).
Regarding claim 3, Meyers, as modified above, discloses a package and blank for making wherein the female locking element further includes an opening formed in the second portion of the second panel, the opening being defined in part by part of the cut (Meyers; triangular opening between cuts 45 and 48; see Fig. 5).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 8 is 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.
Claims 9-10, 12, and 16-24 are allowed.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see Pages 8-9, filed 10/11/2025, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1-3 and 5-7 under USC 102(a)(1)—in view of Meyers have been fully considered and are persuasive. Meyers lacks a female locking unit retention tab. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of USC 103(a)—Meyers in view of Saulas.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHRISTOPHER R DEMEREE whose telephone number is (571)270-1982. The examiner can normally be reached 9:00 am - 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday.
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/CHRISTOPHER R DEMEREE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3734