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 .
Election/Restrictions
Claims 20-21 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on October 28, 2025.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-8, 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by GHIOTTI et al. (WO 2017/051350).
Ghiotti teaches a modular apparatus (see figure 2) for performing a sequence of assembly operations on components of an inhalation device, the apparatus comprises a set of workstations (FS, WRS, FRS, CDS, CS), each workstation being configured to perform a different assembly operation of the sequence of operations; wherein each workstation comprises a machine tray support (12, 14, 17, 21 in figure 2) to locate a machine tray (20 in figure 2) in which components for assembly are received, the machine tray support being configured to guide the machine tray located in the machine tray support into a predetermined position in the workstation (see figure 2).
Regarding claim 2, figure 2 shows each workstation further comprises a platform (23) slidably mounted relative to the machine tray support for movement into an engaged position in which an assembly operation is carried out on components received in the machine tray located in the predetermined position; wherein the platform of each workstation is configured to mount a different assembly mechanism so that, when the platform is in said engaged position in a workstation, the assembly mechanism of that workstation performs one of the assembly operations of the sequence on the components received in the machine tray located in the predetermined position in that workstation (abstract).
Regarding claim 3, Ghiotti teaches the platform of each workstation is configured to slide between the engaged position and a disengaged position, in which a machine tray is insertable into, or is removable from, the machine tray support of the workstation (page 6 lines 27-33).
Regarding claim 4, Ghiotti teaches the platform of each workstation is mounted on a pillar for linear movement between the engaged and disengaged positions (page 6 lines 27-33).
Regarding claim 5, figure 7 shows the platform of each workstation is supported by four pillars (46) arranged around the machine tray support.
Regarding claim 6, figure 14 shows each machine tray support comprises one or more rails (21) configured to support opposing sides of a machine tray so that the machine tray can be inserted into the predetermined position by sliding the machine tray along said rails.
Regarding claim 7, Ghiotti teaches each machine tray support includes a stop against which a machine tray abuts when inserted into the predetermined position (page 6 lines 1-2).
Regarding claim 8, Ghiotti teaches at least one workstation of the set of workstations comprises an actuator configured to move the movable shelf between the engaged and disengaged positions (page 13 lines 5-15).
Regarding claim 10, Ghiotti teaches each workstation comprises an interface unit and wherein the modular apparatus further comprises a controller configured to control each workstation via said interface units (page 13 lines 18-19).
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.
Claim(s) 9, 11, 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over GHIOTTI et al. (WO 2017/051350) in view of WEIS et al. (US 2018/0317375).
Ghiotti teaches a modular apparatus (see figure 2) for performing a sequence of assembly operations on components of an inhalation device, the apparatus comprises a set of workstations (FS, WRS, FRS, CDS, CS), each workstation being configured to perform a different assembly operation of the sequence of operations; wherein each workstation comprises a machine tray support (12, 14, 17, 21 in figure 2) to locate a machine tray (20 in figure 2) in which components for assembly are received, the machine tray support being configured to guide the machine tray located in the machine tray support into a predetermined position in the workstation (see figure 2).
Weiss teaches a modular apparatus for performing a sequence of assembly operations. Weiss teaches that the apparatus comprises a set of workstations (22, 26), each workstation being configured to perform a different assembly operation of the sequence of operations; wherein each workstation comprises a machine tray support (18) to locate a machine tray (14) in which components for assembly are received, the machine tray support being configured to guide the machine tray located in the machine tray support into a predetermined position in the workstation (see figure 1).
Regarding clam 9, Weiss teaches each machine tray support further comprises a proximity switch to determine if a machine tray is located in the predetermined position (para. 0059). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the modular apparatus of Ghiotti to include the proximity switch of Weis because Weis teaches that this allows the control system to monitor and system the location of each tray as each tray is transported along the conveyor system (para. 0059).
Regarding claim 11, Weis teaches each workstation comprises a wireless tag reader to detect information identifying a unique wireless tag associated with a machine tray inserted into the workstation, wherein said information is communicated to the controller by the interface unit (para. 0059). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the modular apparatus of Ghiotti to include the wireless tag of Weis because Weis teaches that this allows the control system to monitor and system the location of each tray as each tray is transported along the conveyor system (para. 0059).
Regarding claim 16, Weis teaches the wireless tag comprises an RFID tag (para. 0059).
Claim(s) 17-19, 22-23 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over GHIOTTI et al. (WO 2017/051350).
Ghiotti teaches a modular apparatus (see figure 2) for performing a sequence of assembly operations on components of an inhalation device, the apparatus comprises a set of workstations (FS, WRS, FRS, CDS, CS), each workstation being configured to perform a different assembly operation of the sequence of operations; wherein each workstation comprises a machine tray support (12, 14, 17, 21 in figure 2) to locate a machine tray (20 in figure 2) in which components for assembly are received, the machine tray support being configured to guide the machine tray located in the machine tray support into a predetermined position in the workstation (see figure 2).
Regarding claim 17, Ghiotti teaches that in order to increase the productivity, it is possible to increase the number of seats on the tray (page 21 lines 30-33) which implies switching out the trays with different trays having more seats, which reads on the set of workstations can be reconfigured to perform a second sequence of assembly operations, different to the first sequence of operations, to assemble a second type of component for an inhalation device.
Regarding claim 18, as discussed above, Ghiotti teaches that in order to increase the productivity, it is possible to increase the number of seats on the tray (page 21 lines 30-33), which would require the removal of workstations having trays with 10 seats as shown in the figures, and replacing the workstations with trays having more seats.
Regarding claim 19, see the discussion of claims 17 and 18 above.
Regarding claim 22, Ghiotti teaches that in order to increase the productivity, it is possible to increase the number of seats on the tray (page 21 lines 30-33). As discussed above, this implies a step of repositioning workstations relative to one another and/or removing one or more workstations and/or adding one or more further workstations.
Regarding claim 23, figures 1-15 show workstations having trays with 10 seats, which reads on a first assembly operation on components of an inhalation device. As discussed above, Ghiotti teaches that in order to increase the productivity, it is possible to increase the number of seats on the tray (page 21 lines 30-33) which reads on a different assembly mechanism configured to carry out a second assembly operation on components of an inhalation device, different from the first assembly operation.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 12-15 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.
The prior art does not teach or suggest each workstation comprises a set of stop/go lights to indicate to an operator of the workstation whether to proceed to perform an assembly operation on components received in a machine tray inserted into the workstation, wherein said stop/go lights are configured to provide said indication to the operator on receipt of instructions from the controller.
Conclusion
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/CYNTHIA SZEWCZYK/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1741