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 .
Drawings
The drawings were received on 15 July 2025. These drawings are approved.
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the rib section having “a curved shape which is a raised curved portion over” the bottom section, as set forth in claims 1, 3, and 11; must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Objections
Claims 1 and 3 are objected to because of the following informalities: It is unclear whether the end of line 16 of claim 1 and line 11 of claim 3 includes a period (.) or a comma (,).
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
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 of carrying out his invention.
Claim 10 is 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 10 has been amended to describe the rib parts as including “flank-like section” (as opposed to the originally filed “flange sections”). The limitation of “flank-like” section is significantly broader than the originally disclose and claimed “flank” sections, and furthermore lacks any inherent physical structure. Therefore, this limitation is considered to be new matter.
Claims 14, 16, and 18 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 enablement requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to enable one skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and/or use the invention.
Claims 14, 16, and 18 set forth the limitation of a clearance in “a distal direction with respect to the crawler belt”. However, neither the claims nor the specification provide any description of what actually constitutes the “distal direction”. Therefore, this limitation is not enabled.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-7 and 9-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claims 1, 3, and 11 are indefinite due to the fact that it is unclear what is being claimed by the limitation that the rib section has a “curved shape” which “is a raised curved portion over” the bottom sections. First, this limitation is not shown in the drawings. Second, the rib section appears to merge into, rather than being “curved over”, the bottom sections.
Claim 4 is indefinite due to the fact that it is incomplete. Namely, claim 4 states: “The device according to claim 1, comprising one or more traction elements protruding from the outer.”
Claims 6-7 are indefinite due to the fact that it is unclear what is actually being claimed by the term “realized”. This term seems to be the result of a literal translation of a foreign document (see section 12 below).
The term “flat” in claim 1 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “flat” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention. No quantitative or qualitative limitations have been set forth in the claims to clearly define this term.
Claim 3 recites the limitation "rib section side" in lines 21-22. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. This limitation has not been previously set forth in the claims.
The claims are generally narrative and indefinite, failing to conform with current U.S. practice. They appear to be a literal translation into English from a foreign document and are replete with grammatical and idiomatic errors.
Claim 10 recites the limitation "the flank sections" in line 6. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. This limitation has not been previously set forth in the claims.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-7 and 9-19, as best understood, would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) and/or (b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 1st and/or 2nd paragraphs, set forth in this Office action.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 15 July 2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. The Applicant argues that claim 1 now sets forth “rib section (R120 [sic. Presumably R12 given that no R120 exists in the drawings] having a curved shape”, and that Figure 2b shows rib R12 having “curved corners, such as at F1 and G1”. However, curved corners F1 and G1 are separated by upper part S0, which is planar. Therefore, one of ordinary skill in the art would not consider the rib sections to have a “curved shape”.
The Applicant argues that the term “flat” has a “common definition of ‘smooth and even; without marked lumps or indentations”. However, this definition references the surface finish of an item, and not the shape thereof. Therefore, the Applicant is using the term “flat” in a manner that is inconsistent with the above definition. The term “flat” should be replaced with the term - -planar- - or - -linear- - to more accurately define the invention.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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 JASON R BELLINGER whose telephone number is (571)272-6680. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9-4.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Samuel (Joe) Morano can be reached at (571)272-6684. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/JASON R BELLINGER/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3615