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 .
Specification
The use of the terms Lightning® and USB-C®, which are a trade name or a mark used in commerce, has been noted in this application (see paragraphs [007]-[010] and [034], of the specification, and claims 1-3). The term should be accompanied by the generic terminology; furthermore the term should be capitalized wherever it appears or, where appropriate, include a proper symbol indicating use in commerce such as ™, SM , or ® following the term.
Although the use of trade names and marks used in commerce (i.e., trademarks, service marks, certification marks, and collective marks) are permissible in patent applications, the proprietary nature of the marks should be respected and every effort made to prevent their use in any manner which might adversely affect their validity as commercial marks.
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 1-9 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 1 and 2 contains the trademark/trade name Lightning®.
Claim 3 contains the trademark/trade name USB-C®.
Where a trademark or trade name is used in a claim as a limitation to identify or describe a particular material or product, the claim does not comply with the requirements of 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph. See Ex parte Simpson, 218 USPQ 1020 (Bd. App. 1982). The claim scope is uncertain since the trademark or trade name cannot be used properly to identify any particular material or product. A trademark or trade name is used to identify a source of goods, and not the goods themselves. Thus, a trademark or trade name does not identify or describe the goods associated with the trademark or trade name. In the present case, the trademark/trade name is used to identify/describe a particular structure of charging connector and, accordingly, the identification/description is indefinite.
Claims 4-9 depend from claim 1 and inherit the same deficiency.
Claim 1 recites the limitation "the lightning connector" in line 13 (the last line of the claim). There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. It appears that applicant may have intended to refer to the charging connector previously recited in line 2. If this is correct, “lightning” should be replaced with “charging” in line 13. For examination purposes, the examiner will interpret line 13 as referring back to the charging connector recited in line 2.
Claims 2-9 depend from claim 1 and inherit the same deficiency.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-9 appear to be allowable over the prior art of record, if the rejections under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) above are overcome.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: The prior art of record, taken alone or in combination, fails to teach or fairly suggest the wireless mouse charging dock where the curved top surface has an indented receiving area having formed therein a pair of parallel grooves for interfacing with the mouse bottom, in combination with the other limitations as recited in claim 1.
The most pertinent references of record are: Tesier (US 11,307,680 B2) and Xu (CN-220064798-U).
Tesier (US 11,307,680 B2) teaches a computer mouse adapter (100) with a base (120) having a groove (122) designed to fit and hold the underside of mouse (110), the groove including a lens (160) and window (170) to align with the optical system (150) of mouse (110), a charging connector (140) that plugs in to charging port (130) of the mouse (110), and electrical connection (142) running to charging port (180) (see figures 1-3 and column 5, line 51 – column 6, line 53). Tesier does not teach that the base includes a pair of parallel grooves for interfacing with the mouse bottom.
Xu (CN-220064798-U) teaches an optical mouse adapter with a base (11) and an upper shell (12) having an enveloping surface (A) designed to fit and hold the underside of mouse (8), the adapter base including a first (113) and second (114) light passing ports to align with the optical module (81) of mouse (8), a charging interface (511) that plugs in to charging interface (83) of the mouse (8). Xu also teaches that the upper shell (12) enveloping surface (A) includes a pair of parallel grooves (121 and 122) for interfacing with supporting strips (85) on the mouse bottom (see figures 1, 2, 6 and 7). However, based on a publication date of November 21, 2023, Xu does not qualify as prior art.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Please see the additional references cited on the attached PTO-892, which are directed to various wireless mouse charging docks.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Jared Fureman whose telephone number is (571)272-2391. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30 am - 5:00 pm.
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, Drew Dunn can be reached at 571-272-2312. 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.
/JARED FUREMAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2859