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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Response to Amendment
The Amendment filed 12/17/25 has been entered. Claims 11-12, 15, 17, and 19-28 are pending in the application. Application’s amendments to the Drawings, Specification, and Claims have overcome each and every objection and 112(b) rejection previously set forth in the Non-Final Office Action mailed 10/23/25.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 11-12, 15, 17, and 19-28 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.
Drawings
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 “an output opening coupled to an environment outside the motor vehicle”, “wherein the output opening is configured to release the captured at least part of the air curtain to the environment outside the motor vehicle”, “wherein the capture opening is part of door cladding of the motor vehicle”, and “wherein the capture opening is part of door cladding of the motor vehicle”. These features are claimed in claims 11, 19-21, 25, and 28.
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 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 11-12, 17, 19-20, 22, 24, and 26-27 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over JP6370083 (083) in view of GB2397116 to Smith et al. (Smith).
Regarding claims 11 and 20, 083 teaches the device comprising: at least one outflow opening (outlet of 61, Figure 15); and at least one fan configured to deliver air through the at least one outflow opening to form an air curtain in front of a mouth and nose region of a person that removes droplets or particles in front of the mouth and the nose region of the person (61, Figure 15); and at least one collection element having at least one capture opening opposite the at least one outflow opening (inlet of 64, Figure 15) and an output opening coupled to an environment outside the motor vehicle (windows of vehicle which would be present in the normal implementation of the vehicle shown in the Figures), wherein the at least one capture opening is configured to capture in a targeted manner at least part of the air curtain, containing at least part of the droplets or particles in front of the mouth and the nose region of the person, and wherein the output opening is configured to release the captured at least part of the air curtain to the environment outside the motor vehicle (windows of vehicle which would be present in the normal implementation of the vehicle shown in the Figures), wherein the at least part of the air curtain has an air flow direction from the at least one outflow opening to the at least one capture opening that is transverse to a direction of travel of a motor vehicle, and wherein the air curtain runs alonq a plane stretched through the direction transverse to the direction of travel of the motor vehicle and through a vertical direction of the motor vehicle (shown in Figure 15 and disclosed as an air curtain in paragraph 0103-0105 of the translation) wherein the at least one outflow opening and the at least one capture opening are arranged in an interior of the motor vehicle (shown in at least Figure 15).
083 is silent on wherein the air flow direction that is transverse to the direction of travel of the motor vehicle runs alonq a width of the motor vehicle.
Smith teaches wherein the air flow direction is along a width of the device (Figure 5). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of 083 with the teachings of Smith to provide wherein the air flow direction that is transverse to the direction of travel of the motor vehicle runs alonq a width of the motor vehicle. Doing so would be and equivalent alternative and/or a simple substitution of parts.
Regarding claim 12, 083 teaches wherein the at least one collection element has a further fan, which is configured to deliver at least part of the air curtain, and at least part of droplets or particles in front of the mouth and the nose region of the person, to the at least one capture opening (64, Figure 15).
Regarding claim 17, 083 teaches wherein the at least one outflow opening or the at least one capture opening is arranged on a seat arrangement arranged in the interior of the motor vehicle or on a roof liner at least partially delimiting the interior upwards in a vertical direction of the vehicle (shown in Figure 15).
Regarding claim 19, 083 teaches claim 11 above and an interior; at least one seat for one person arranged in the interior of the motor vehicle (Figure 15).
Regarding claim 22, 083 teaches wherein the at least one collection element has a further fan, which is configured to deliver at least part of the air curtain, and at least part of droplets or particles in front of the mouth and the nose region of the person, to the at least one capture opening (flowpath shown in Figure 15 which dependent on the positioning of the person would go in front of the mouth and nose region of the person).
Regarding claim 24, 083 teaches wherein the at least one outflow opening or the at least one capture opening is arranged on a seat arrangement arranged in the interior of the motor vehicle (Figure 15 shows the capture opening on a seat arrangement).
Regarding claim 26, 083 teaches wherein the at least one collection element has a further fan, which is configured to deliver at least part of the air curtain, and at least part of droplets or particles in front of the mouth and the nose region of the person, to the at least one capture opening (64 includes a fan).
Regarding claim 27, 083 teaches wherein the at least one outflow opening or the at least one capture opening is arranged on a seat arrangement arranged in the interior of the motor vehicle (Figure 15 shows the capture opening on a seat arrangement).
Claim(s) 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over 083 in view of Smith and U.S. PGPUB 20140102442 to Wilson (Wilson).
Regarding claim 14, 083 is silent on wherein the filter element is configured to retain droplets or particles having a diameter of less than five micrometers and filter the droplets or particles having a diameter of less than five micrometers from a captured part of the air curtain.
Wilson teaches wherein the filter element is configured to retain droplets or particles having a diameter of less than five micrometers and filter the droplets or particles having a diameter of less than five micrometers from a captured part of the air curtain (Paragraph 0073 which cites U.S. Patent 6321637 which provides a filter that filters to less than 1 micron). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of 083 with the teachings of Wilson to provide wherein the filter element is configured to retain droplets or particles having a diameter of less than five micrometers and filter the droplets or particles having a diameter of less than five micrometers from a captured part of the air curtain. Doing so would allow for filtering of substances as desired.
Claim(s) 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over 083 in view of Smith and EP 0543289 to Inoue et al. (Inoue).
Regarding claim 15, 083 silent on wherein the at least one outflow opening is formed by a conduit element, the device has at least one air guidance element that is pivotable relative to the conduit element to vary a flow direction of the air flowing through the at least one outflow opening.
Inoue teaches wherein the at least one outflow opening is formed by a conduit element, the device has at least one air guidance element that is pivotable relative to the conduit element to vary a flow direction of the air flowing through the at least one outflow opening (70, Figure 9a). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of 083 with the teachings of Inoue to provide wherein the at least one outflow opening is formed by a conduit element, the device has at least one air guidance element that is pivotable relative to the conduit element to vary a flow direction of the air flowing through the at least one outflow opening. Doing so would allow the direction of the airflow to be adjusted as desired.
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 STEVEN S ANDERSON II whose telephone number is (571)272-2055. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8-5.
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, Michael Hoang can be reached at 574-272-6460. 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.
/STEVEN S ANDERSON II/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3762
Prosecution Insights