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 .
Status of Claims
Currently claims 1, and 3-10 are pending, claims 1, 7, and 10 have been amended, claim 2 has been cancelled.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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.
Claim(s) 1, 3, and 7-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Balogh (U.S. 2006/0180678).
With respect to claim 1, Balogh discloses an ice melt system (title/abstract, figure 1) comprising:
a reservoir (5), the reservoir having an outer wall and being hollow (being a tank);
an ice melting solution stored in the reservoir (paragraph 0025);
a pump (25) being in fluid communication with the reservoir for selectively pumping the ice melting solution out of the reservoir (see figure 2);
a piping (piping from 25 to 40) being fluidly coupled to and extending away from the pump; and
a plurality of dispensing assemblies (40) being fluidly coupled to the piping (figure 2), each dispensing assembly of the plurality of dispensing assemblies being configured for being positioned adjacent to a surface to be treated (paragraph 0024), each dispensing assembly of the plurality of dispensing assemblies comprising a nozzle (the outlet nozzle of the dispensing assembly, paragraph 0038 discloses the use of pop-up nozzles, which have a base and a head that pops up) being in fluid communication with the piping for dispensing the ice melting solution (figure 2), the nozzle being orientable such that the nozzle is configured for dispensing the ice melting solution over the surface to be treated (paragraph 0024). With respect to claim 2, Balogh discloses the pump and piping from the reservoir and the pump, but fails to disclose the pump is positioned in the reservoir, the piping extending out of the reservoir. Paragraph 0036 discloses in one embodiment, the pumping means 25 may be located adjacent the outflow port 12 of the reservoir 5 and may pump deicing agent 8 from the reservoir into the distribution network 20. Alternatively, the pumping means 25 may pump deicing agent 8 from the reservoir 5 into the distribution control manifold 60, it is unclear if the pump can then be put inside and outside if it is being disclosed inside the tank in an embodiment.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the pump inside the reservoir, since it has been held that rearranging parts of an invention involves only routine skill in the art. MPEP 2144.04(VI-C). Please note in the instant application, applicant has not disclosed any criticality for the claimed limitation. Such placement of the pump adjacent and inside the tank would still have fluid pumping from the tank/reservoir to the control manifold in Balogh, as such a pump within the reservoir would further buffer sound from the pump and thus be ideal from a sound engineering judgment (paragraph 0036).
With respect to claim 3, Balogh discloses each dispensing assembly of the plurality of dispensing assemblies comprises:
a base (being pop-up sprinklers, having a base that a nozzle then pops up from) being coupled to the piping 9parargraph 0038), the base having a first channel extending through the base (bring fluid from the piping to the pop up nozzle once the nozzle has popped up), the first channel being in fluid communication with the piping (so the nozzle outlet receives the fluid); and
a head (head of pop up nozzle 40) being pivotally coupled to the base, the head having a second channel extending through the head (being the outlet of the nozzle itself), the second channel being in fluid communication with the first channel and the nozzle, the head being pivotable to adjust an orientation of the nozzle (paragraph 0035).
With respect to claim 7, Balogh discloses a controller (control manifold 60 with control panel 27) being electrically coupled to the pump (as shown in figure 2), the controller including a control circuit (having control circuit from panel 27), the controller being mounted to the piping adjacent to the pump (as shown in figure 2); and an input being electrically coupled to the control circuit (as shown in figure 2), the input being mounted to the controller (as shown In figure 2), the input being operable to program the controller to activate the pump at a selected time for a selected duration (timer 29, figure 2).
With respect to claim 8, Balogh discloses a motion sensor (sensors 40, paragraphs 0040 and 0047) being electrically coupled to the controller (control panel 27), the motion sensor being programmed such that the motion sensor is configured to detect motion from an obstruction adjacent to the surface to be treated (paragraph 0047), the controller being programmed to deactivate the pump when the motion sensor detects motion (paragraphs 0044-0045 and 0047).
With respect to claim 9, Balogh discloses the reservoir has a fill opening (10) extending through a top portion of the outer wall (as seen in figures 1 and 2), the ice melt system further comprising a cap (paragraph 0026) being removably positionable to cover the fill opening of the reservoir (paragraph 0026).
With respect to claim 2, Balogh discloses the pump and piping from the reservoir and the pump, but fails to disclose the pump is positioned in the reservoir, the piping extending out of the reservoir. Paragraph 0036 discloses in one embodiment, the pumping means 25 may be located adjacent the outflow port 12 of the reservoir 5 and may pump deicing agent 8 from the reservoir into the distribution network 20. Alternatively, the pumping means 25 may pump deicing agent 8 from the reservoir 5 into the distribution control manifold 60, it is unclear if the pump can then be put inside and outside if it is being disclosed inside the tank in an embodiment.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the pump inside the reservoir, since it has been held that rearranging parts of an invention involves only routine skill in the art. MPEP 2144.04(VI-C). Please note in the instant application, applicant has not disclosed any criticality for the claimed limitation. Such placement of the pump adjacent and inside the tank would still have fluid pumping from the tank/reservoir to the control manifold in Balogh, as such a pump within the reservoir would further buffer sound from the pump and thus be ideal from a sound engineering judgment (paragraph 0036).
Claim(s) 4-6 and 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Balogh in view of Feith (U.S. 2007/0267516).
With respect to claim 4, Balogh discloses the plurality of dispensing assemblies, but fails to disclose each dispensing assembly of the plurality of dispensing assemblies further comprises a detent being coupled to the head, the base having a plurality of recesses positioned for receiving the detent, the detent being biased to extend into a selected recess of the plurality of recesses such that the head is secured to the base.
Feith, paragraph 0053 and figures 2-8, discloses recess’s 88 and detents 89 that correspond with one another to another along with biasing mechanism 60 to allow for the nozzle port 22 to be rotated and places in the desired positions, allowing the nozzle to then have the desired direction for it to be sprayed.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the plurality of recesses, detents, and the biasing mechanism of Feith into that of Balogh, allowing for their nozzles to be easily orientated into the desired position upon installation.
With respect to claim 5, Balogh as modified by Feith discloses the plurality of recesses is spaced in 90- degree intervals (as shown by Feith, taking 4 of the 8 recesses that are all spaced at 90 degree intervals).
With respect to claim 6, Balogh as modified by Feith discloses the plurality of recesses includes three recesses (as there are 8 shown recesses).
Claim 10 is rejected as shown in the rejection of claims 1-9.
Response to Arguments/Amendments
The Amendment filed (11/25/2025) has been entered. Currently claims 1, and 3-10 are pending, claims 1, 7, and 10 have been amended, claim 2 has been cancelled. Applicants’ amendments to the claims have failed to overcome each and every rejection previously set forth in the Office Action dated (09/08/2025). Applicant argues that official notice was taken in the rejection. Examiner disagrees, the rejection did not take official notice, but applied MPEP 2144.04(VI-C) “rearrangement of parts.” Where it is understood that rearranging parts of an invention involves only routine skill in the art. The noted pump is disclosed in Balogh as being adjacent the outlet of the tank, and placing within the tank and adjacent the outlet of the tank would have been a rearrangement of parts, absent any criticality in applicants’ speciation for the claimed limitations. No affidavit or assertion of obvious is required, because no office notice is being taken. As stated in the heading of 2144.04 “As discussed in MPEP § 2144, an examiner may utilize legal precedent as a source of supporting rationale when warranted and appropriately supported. In formulating any rejection invoking legal precedent, the examiner must take care to ensure that the rationale is explained and shown to apply to the facts at hand. Examples directed to various common practices which the court has held normally require only ordinary skill in the art and hence are considered routine expedients are discussed below. If the applicant has demonstrated the criticality of a specific limitation, it would not be appropriate to rely solely on case law as the rationale to support an obviousness rejection.” However, because applicant did not demonstrate any crictaitly for the pump being within the tank, then it is appropriate to rely solely on case law as the rationale. The case law being the cases associated with MPEP 2144.04(VI-C), which are In re Japikse, 181 F.2d 1019, 86 USPQ 70 (CCPA 1950) and In re Kuhle, 526 F.2d 553, 188 USPQ 7 (CCPA 1975).
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 JOSEPH A GREENLUND whose telephone number is (571)272-0397. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9am-5pm EST.
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/JOSEPH A GREENLUND/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3752