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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The references cited in the PCT international search report by the Chinese National Intellectual Property Administration have been considered, but will not be listed on any patent resulting from this application because they were not provided on a separate list in compliance with 37 CFR 1.98(a)(1). In order to have the references printed on such resulting patent, a separate listing, preferably on a PTO/SB/08 form, must be filed within the set period for reply to this Office action.
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 following must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s):
Claims 1-2: “Wing element unit(s)”. There are no figure reference numbers provided for “wing element units” in the disclosure. More, “wing element units” are defined by the disclosure as comprising a wing leading edge unit, trailing edge unit, and middle unit in some embodiments. Claims 1-2 fail to claim any of those limitations thereby bringing to question whether the claim is an alternative embodiment for which a figure is not presented.
Claims 2, 4-5, 10: “Wing connecting member(s)”. There are no figure reference numbers provided for “wing connecting members” in the disclosure. More, “wing connecting members” are not defined by the disclosure.
Claims 6-8: “wing element unit support member”. There are no figure reference numbers provided for “wing element unit support member” in the disclosure. More, “wing element unit support members” are not defined by the disclosure.
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 § 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 2, 4-8, and 12 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 3-14 which are dependent upon the rejected claims are similarly rejected. Claims 2, 4-8, and 12 will be examined as best understood.
The phrasing “wherein the wing element unit further comprises wing connecting members, and the wing support rod connecting member connected to the support rod structure is connected to the wing connecting members by the hydraulic units, or a plurality of the wing connecting members are connected by the hydraulic units” in claim 2 fails to adequately define the metes and bounds of the invention which renders the claim indefinite. The cited phrase generates confusion, 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. Examiner is unclear whether or not the claim should be read as “the wing element unit comprises (wing connecting member and the wing support rod connecting member connected to the support rod structure is connected to the wing connecting members by the hydraulic units), or (a plurality of the wing connecting members are connected by the hydraulic units)” or the claim should read “the wing element unit comprises (wing connecting member) and (the wing support rod connecting member connected to the support rod structure is connected to the wing connecting members by the hydraulic units or a plurality of the wing connecting members are connected by the hydraulic units)”.
Claim 5 recites the limitation "a third hydraulic unit" in line 5 of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim as only one hydraulic unit is claimed in the preceding claims for which claim 5 is dependent.
Claim 5 recites the limitation "the wing connecting member in the wing element trailing edge unit" in line 7 of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 5 recites the limitation "a fourth hydraulic unit" in the final line of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim as only one hydraulic unit is claimed in the preceding claims for which claim 5 is dependent.
Claim 6 recites the limitation "eighth wing element edge member" in lines 3-4 of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation as the preceding claims for which claim 6 is dependent fail to claim the previous seven wing element edge members.
Claim 6 recites the limitation "sixth rolling bearing" in lines 9-10 of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation as the preceding claims for which claim 6 is dependent fail to claim the second, third, and fourth rolling bearings.
Claim 7 recites the limitation(s) "fourth wing element edge member" and "fifth wing element edge member" in line 3 of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation as the preceding claims for which claim 7 is dependent fail to claim the previous three wing element edge members.
Claim 7 recites the limitation "third rolling bearing and fourth rolling bearing" in lines 9-10 of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation as the preceding claims for which claim 7 is dependent fail to claim the first and second rolling bearings.
Claim 8 recites the limitation(s) "second wing element edge member" and "third wing element edge member" and “sixth wing element edge member” and “seventh wing element edge member” in lines 2-4 of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation as the preceding claims for which claim 8 is dependent fail to claim first, fourth, and fifth wing element edge members.
Claim 12 recites the limitation "the lever group" in line 2 of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and (a)(2) as being anticipated by Grip et al. (US 20160009372 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Grip teaches a wing element structure for an aircraft, comprising a plurality of wing element units, wherein adjacent wing element units are connected by airfoil control units (Figures 27-28 depict spanwise incorporation of shape control mechanism, element 400 among spanwise stiffeners 420, comprising a leading edge 200, with leading edge skin 214), hydraulic units (¶ [0052] teaches that shape control mechanism 400 may additionally include a main actuator, wherein the main actuator may be a hydraulic actuator. ¶ [0083] teaches that locking mechanism 418 may include a piston, which is a hydraulic actuator) and wing element outer edge connecting members (Figures 4-8 and 23-26, elements 224, 410, 416), each of the wing element units comprises a plurality of wing element edge members connected to one another and a wing support rod connecting member (as depicted in Figures 4-8), and the wing support rod connecting member located in a wing leading edge in the wing element unit is connected to a support rod structure on an aircraft main body (all of the support rods found in Figures 4-8, and 23-26 connect to the front wing spar via the actuator and unlabeled linkages).
Regarding claim 2, Grip teaches the invention discussed in claim 1, wherein the wing element unit further comprises wing connecting members (Figures 4-8 and 23-26, points A-E), and the wing support rod connecting member connected to the support rod structure is connected to the wing connecting members by the hydraulic units (as depicted in Figures 4-8 and 23-26 as explained in the response to claim 1), or a plurality of the wing connecting members are connected by the hydraulic units (as depicted in Figures 4-8 and 23-26).
Regarding claim 3, Grip teaches the invention discussed in claim 2, wherein the plurality of wing element units comprise a wing element leading edge unit (Figure 3) and a wing element trailing edge unit (Figure 3), and at least one wing element middle unit is provided between the wing element leading edge unit and the wing element trailing edge unit (Figure 3).
Regarding claim 4, Grip teaches the invention discussed in claim 3, wherein the wing support rod connecting member in the wing element leading edge unit is connected to the support rod structure (all of the support rods found in Figures 4-8, and 23-26 connect to the front wing spar via the actuator and unlabeled linkages), the wing support rod connecting member in the wing element leading edge unit (support rod/linkages depicted in Figures 4-8 and 23-26) is connected to a wing connecting member (Figures 4-8 and 23-26, points A-E) in the wing element middle unit by a first hydraulic unit (as depicted in Figures 4-8 and 23-26), and the connecting member in the wing element middle unit is connected to a wing connecting member in the wing element trailing edge unit by a second hydraulic unit (Figures 4-8 and 23-26, points A-E are connected to wing element middle unit, defined between elements 154 and 156, via hydraulic units 414 and 418).
Regarding claim 5, Grip teaches the invention discussed in claim 3, wherein the wing support rod connecting member in the wing element leading edge unit is connected to the support rod structure (all of the support rods found in Figures 4-8, and 23-26 connect to the front wing spar via the actuator and unlabeled linkages), the wing support rod connecting member in the wing element leading edge unit is connected to the wing connecting member (Figures 4-8 and 23-26, points A-E) in the wing element middle unit (as depicted in Figures 4-8 and 23-26) by a hydraulic unit (elements 414 and 418 as explained in the response to claim 1), and the wing support rod connecting member in the wing element leading edge unit is connected to a wing connecting member in the wing element trailing edge unit by a separate hydraulic unit (hydraulic units 414 and 418 connect support rod connecting units to front spar 154 which is also connected to rear spar 156 via airfoil outer surface 172).
Regarding claim 6, Grip teaches the invention discussed in 3, wherein the wing element leading edge unit comprises a wing element leading edge arc-shaped member (as depicted in Figure 3), a first wing element edge member (Figures 4-8 and 23-26, elements 224, 410, 416), a separate wing element edge member (Figures 4-8 and 23-26, elements 224, 410, 416), and a wing leading edge support rod connecting member (Figures 4-8 and 23-26 depict a plurality of leading edge support rod connecting members); a first end of the first wing element edge member and a first end of the separate wing element edge member are respectively connected to a first end and a second end of the wing element leading edge arc-shaped member (as depicted in Figures 4-8 and 23-26); a second end of the first wing element edge element and a second end of the separate wing element edge member are respectively connected to a first rolling bearing and a separate rolling bearing (unlabeled bearings and journals that connect support rods to outer edge connect members 224); the first rolling bearing and the separate rolling bearing are connected by a first wing element unit support member (unlabeled bearings and journals that connect support rods to outer edge connect members 224), and the first wing element unit support member passes through and is connected to the wing leading edge support rod connecting member (unlabeled bearings and journals that connect support rods to outer edge connect members 224).
Examiner’s Note: Given the objections and antecedent rejections detailed above, there are no formal prior art rejections for claims 7-14 at this time. However, Examiner will conduct an updated search in view of Applicant’s amendments and there may be prior art rejections necessitated upon Applicant’s amendments to the claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Haslach (US 20160159456 A1)- Teaches a morphing wing comprising a plurality of connections, linkages, and bearings, of which some may be hydraulic.
Ho (US Patent No. 6481667): Teaches a morphing wing comprising a plurality of connections, linkages, and bearings, of which some may be hydraulic.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Timothy D Collins can be reached on 571-272-6886. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JUSTIN MICHAEL HESTON/Examiner, Art Unit 3644
/TYE WILLIAM ABELL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3644 13 August 2024