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 .
The present application is a 371 of PCT/GB2021/051919 filed on July 26, 2021.
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 January 20, 2026 has been entered.
A response was filed by the applicant on January 20, 2026.
Claims 20-21 and 23-25 have been cancelled.
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.
Claims 1-13, 15-19 and 22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Basta (US 2006/0153643 A1) in view of Cunningham (US 2,795,257).
Basta discloses inflatable pontoons for a modular floating dock, as shown in Figures 1-5, which is comprised of a plurality of inflatable pontoons, each defined as Part #102, with an enclosed flexible membrane, as shown in Figure 1, a valve, defined as Part #103, for inflating or deflating said enclosed flexible membrane, which is thus capable of functioning as a pressure relief valve as is known in the art, and a plurality of connectors, each defined as Part #104, that are attached to said enclosed flexible membrane at various attachment points for connecting with an upper frame member, defined as Part #406, a lower frame member, defined as Part #408, and a plurality of supports that extend between said upper and lower frame members of a floating assembly with a platform or deck, defined as Part #502, for berthing boats, as shown in Figures 4-5.
Basta, as set forth above, discloses all of the features claimed except for the use of a rigid elongate member that extends within an interior of said enclosed flexible membrane and is attached to said enclosed flexible membrane at first and second attachment points.
Cunningham discloses a collapsible container, as shown in Figures 1-2, which is comprised of an enclosed flexible body portion, defined as Part #10, with a hollow interior, a rigid elongate tubular member, defined as Part #12, with first and second attachment points, defined as Part #13, with inner plates, defined as Part #13a, at first and second ends, and one or more outlet tubes, defined as Part #14, for emitting fluid from said rigid elongate tubular member beyond said first attachment point, as shown in Figure 1. First and second reinforcement connector rings, each defined as Part #13d, are also attached at outer ends of said first and second attachment points, as shown in Figure 1. Said rigid elongate tubular member extends through said enclosed flexible body portion at said first and second attachment points, also as shown in Figure 1.
Therefore, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to one of ordinary skill in the art, to utilize a rigid elongate tubular member having first and second attachment points with an enclosed flexible body portion, as taught by Cunningham, in combination with the inflatable pontoons for a modular floating dock as disclosed by Basta for the purpose of providing an inflatable vessel for a floating assembly with a rigid elongate tubular member and a fluid conduit to facilitate drainage of a fluid from said rigid elongate tubular member.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 14 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.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1-13, 15-19 and 22 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to LARS A OLSON whose telephone number is (571) 272-6685. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday 8:00am - 4:00pm.
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, MARC JIMENEZ can be reached at 571-272-4530. 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.
February 23, 2026
/LARS A OLSON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3615B
Prosecution Insights