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 .
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 limitation “second percolation seal…between the shock strut cylinder and the shock strut piston” must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered. As best understood from fig. 2B of the instant published application, the second percolation seal 252 is shown to be between the retainer housing 226 and the metering pin 222. As best understood, the elements best shown to be between the shock strut cylinder 204 and the shock strut piston 206 are upper bearing 272 or rebound ring 274 but those elements are not within the orifice support tube which is also required by the recitations set forth in claim 1.
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(s) 1-4, 6, 8-12, 14, and 16-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US Patent Application 2022/0017212 to Bodki et al.
Re: claims 1-3, 6, 8-12, 14, and 16-20. Bodki et al. show in figure 2A and 2B a shock strut, comprising: a shock strut cylinder 202; a shock strut piston 206 slidably disposed within the shock strut cylinder; a rebound chamber 212 disposed within the shock strut cylinder and adjacent the shock strut piston; a first percolation seal 216 configured to restrict a first flow of fluid between the shock strut cylinder 202 and the rebound chamber, wherein the rebound chamber is defined on a first or lower side of the first percolation seal 216 and a mixed fluid chamber 214
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is defined on a second or upper side of the first percolation seal 216; a second percolation seal 250 configured to restrict a second flow of fluid between the shock strut cylinder and the shock strut piston, wherein a liquid chamber 212 is defined on a first or lower side of the second percolation seal 250 and the mixed fluid chamber 214 is further defined on a second or upper side of the second percolation seal 250; a fluid source 260 configured to inflate and deflate the second percolation seal 250, and the second percolation seal 250 restricting the second flow of fluid in response to being inflated and permitting the second flow of fluid in response to being deflated; a conduit 262 having a first end and a second end, the first end coupled to the fluid source 260, and the second end coupled to the second percolation seal 250; and an orifice support tube 228 disposed within the shock strut cylinder 202, wherein the conduit 262 is coupled to the orifice support tube 228 and wherein the first percolation seal 216 and second percolation seal 250 are disposed within the orifice support tube 228, but is silent with regard to the first percolation seal being configured to inflate and deflate from pressure from the fluid source with the first percolation seal restricting the first flow of fluid in response to being inflated and permitting the first flow of fluid in response to being deflated. With regard to claim 10, the landing gear is disclosed in paragraph [0009]. With regard to claim 17, the sensing of the state of the landing gear assembly is disclosed in paragraph [0011].
Bodki et al. teach the use of inflating/deflating a seal in paragraph [0009].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the first percolation seal of Bodki et al. to have been configured to be inflated and deflated, in view of the teachings of Bodki et al., in order to provide a means of changing the seal configuration to better adapt to pressure variations and extending the component life by having the seal under higher load only when necessary.
Bodki et al. teach in paragraph [0030] that a reference to an element in the singular is intended to mean "one or more".
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to have modified the inflatable seal assembly of Bodki et al., as modified, to have comprised both the first seal and second seal, in view of the teachings of Bodki et al., resulting in both the first and second seals being inflated and deflated as recited, in order to provide a means of increasing the sealing force for more effectively providing active damping by changing the configuration of two different seals in different areas of the assembly depending on the changing environment and/or varying applications.
Re: claims 4 and 15. Bodki et al., as modified, further show in figure 2B of Bodki et al. the limitation of a metering pin 220 connected to the shock strut piston 140 via shown intervening element connections, as broadly recited, wherein the second seal, as modified, is configured to engage the metering pin to restrict the second flow of fluid similar to the way in which the first seal engages the metering pin to further help with fluid flow restriction, as modified, in response to inflation.
Terminal Disclaimer
The terminal disclaimer filed on 5/12/26 disclaiming the terminal portion of any patent granted on this application which would extend beyond the expiration date of US 11814760 has been reviewed and is accepted. The terminal disclaimer has been recorded.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to the claim(s) have been considered but are moot because the new grounds of rejection do not rely on the exact combination of references used in the prior office action. Upon further review, new rejections have been presented. The double patenting rejections have been withdrawn in light of the most recent amendments. The non-final rejection has been issued because independent claim 17 is not rejected based on a new interpretation of the Bodki et al. reference.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MELODY M BURCH whose telephone number is (571)272-7114. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 6:30AM-3PM, generally.
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mmb
July 29, 2026
/MELODY M BURCH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3616
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