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 .
Claims 1-20 are pending in the current application.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities: Paragraph [0031] line 5 refers to FIG. 6. The examiner believes this reference should be to FIG. 7 which shows the described features.
Appropriate correction is required.
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)(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.
Claims 1, 8, and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by DE 19815732C1. DE 19815732C1 discloses a swim fin device comprising:
a footwear element (sandal #18 considered a slip-on shoe element, See Fig. 3&4) for wear on a foot of a user, the footwear element including an opening to receive the foot of the user (the examiner considers any of the sandal straps #15 to be openings to receive the foot of the user), and ankle strap #16, a front side opposite a rear side relative to the user, and a toe portion at the front side, the toe portion including a first connector #6, and
a fin element #2 pivotably connected (see pivot axis at joint 3 in Figs 1 & 2) to the footwear element such that the fin element is movable between a swim position and a walking position (See abstract), the fin element including a substantially planar body (see Fig. 1 & 2) having a longitudinal axis defining a front end opposite a rear end, the body being hydrodynamically shaped to aid in movement of the user through water when in the swim position, the rear end of the fin element includes a corresponding second connector #8 configured to engage with the first connector to selectively lock the fin element in the swim position.
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.
Claims 2-7, 9, 10, 11-15 and 17-20, are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over DE 19815732C1 in view of Moyal, US 7462085. DE 19815732C1 discloses the invention set forth above and also discloses the swim fin device includes a pivot element #3 at opposing sides of the footwear element and a pair of arms # 17 integral to the fin element and connecting the fin element to the pivot element, wherein the pivot element can include a ratchet mechanism (see Column 3 lines 21-.37), where the fin element tapers from the rear end towards the front end.
DE 19815732C1 does not explicitly disclose an emarginate and truncate shape of the front end of the fin, where the pivot element includes a pair of circular elements at opposing sides of the footwear element, a gear and pawl in the ratchet mechanism or a pair of springs attached at opposing sides of the fin element which aid in movement of the fin element between the swim position and the walking position. While DE 19815732C1 does not disclose the ratchet mechanism includes a gear and pawl, such parts are well known and common in ratchet mechanisms and would be obvious in many ratchet designs.
Moyal discloses an emarginate and truncate forward end of a fin element (see Fig. 1), where the pivot element includes circular members (50, 52) at opposing sides of the footwear element, a pair of springs #54 attached at opposing sides of the fine element to aid in movement of the fin element between the swim position and the walking position. Moyal further discloses the term shoe as used includes any structural arrangement which permits the user to secure the swim fin to the foot. The examiner considers a boot element or slip on shoe to be encompassed in the disclosed term “shoe” of Moyal.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the swim fin device of DE 19815732C1 with the fin shape, pivot elements which include a pair of circular members and springs to assist movement of the fin between the swim and walking positions. Such features are well known in the art of pivoting swim fins and are easily substituted or incorporated into the swim fin device by an artisan.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US 7470164, US 6129601, US 5292272, US 5108327, US 4981454, US 3908213, US 3178738 and FR 2813534 each disclose pivoting swim fins with features of the current invention. Additionally, FR 2813534A1 discloses a boot element.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ANTHONY D WIEST whose telephone number is (571)270-5974. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 6:00 - 3:00.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Samuel Morano can be reached at 571 272 6684. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ANTHONY D WIEST/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3615