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 § 112
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 18-20 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.
In claim 18, line 4, “a manhole” should apparently be changed to --the manhole--, since the element was already introduced by language bridging lines 3 and 4 of the claim.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-7, and 9-12 are allowed.
The prior art of record fails to disclose or suggest the humidity adjustment device of independent claim 1, wherein a humidity sensor placed at a height above the floor of a manhole is used to acquire humidity information of the space part of the manhole, a temperature sensor being placed at a first position inside the manhole to acquire the space part temperature of the manhole, and another temperature sensor placed at a second position above the first position, on a ceiling surface of the manhole, to acquire an inner wall temperature of the manhole, and adjusting the humidity of the manhole by reducing the discharge of moisture within the manhole to prevent dew condensation from forming on the ceiling surface of the manhole by using the humidity and temperature information from the humidity and temperature sensors.
Claims 2-7, and 9-12 would be allowable based upon their dependency on allowable independent claim 1.
Claim Objections
Claims 18-20 are objected to under 37 CFR 1.75 as being a substantial duplicate of claims 1-3. When two claims in an application are duplicates or else are so close in content that they both cover the same thing, despite a slight difference in wording, it is proper after allowing one claim to object to the other as being a substantial duplicate of the allowed claim. See MPEP § 608.01(m).
In the instant application, the only difference between claims 1-3 and 18-20, respectively, is found in the introductory preamble of the claims, wherein claims 1-3 refer to a humidity adjustment device, and claims 18-20 refer to a system for adjusting humidity, while the claims are word for word identical after the introductory phrase. Wherein a device and a system are each interpreted as an apparatus, they are considered to be of identical scope, and would be rejected under 35 USC 101 under statutory double patenting, if filed in different applications.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 10-13 of the amendment, filed April 13, 2026, with respect to the prior art rejections under 35 USC 102 and 103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. The rejections of the claims under 35 USC 102 and 103, as presented in the previous Office action have been withdrawn.
Applicant's arguments filed April 13, 2026 pertaining to the duplicate claim objections have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. See paragraph 5 above.
The rejection of claims 18-20 under 35 USC 112(b) set forth herein were necessitated by applicant’s amendments to the claims as filed on April 13, 2026.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new grounds 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 CHARLES S BUSHEY whose telephone number is (571)272-1153. The examiner can normally be reached M-Th 6:30-5:00.
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/C.S.B/5-2-26
/CHARLES S BUSHEY/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1776
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