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 .
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 4 and 10 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.
In claims 1 and 8, from which claims 4 and 10 depend respectively, applicant claims “the tab extends from a planar surface of the clamp body”. This limitation appears to be identical to the claim language in claims 4 and 10 and seems to double claim the same planar surface. It is suggested the phrase be removed from claims 4 and 10.
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.
Claims 1-3, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Parkey (US Patent 10,315,498).
Re claim 1, Parkey discloses a bulkhead panel clamp for a tonneau cover assembly, the bulkhead panel clamp comprising a clamp body (206) with a hook (331) located at one end of the clamp body; a flange located adjacent to and extends in an opposite direction of the hook (see the annotated figure below); and a tab located on the clamp body spaced apart from the hook (see the annotated figure below); wherein the tab extends from a planar surface of the clamp body (see the annotated figure below), wherein the tab extends away from the clamp body that is in a direction opposite from the flange; wherein the hook is configured to engage a rail (108, figure 3) and the clamp body is configured to be supported by a bulkhead panel portion (28) of the tonneau cover assembly when the bulkhead panel clamp is in an unclamped position.
PNG
media_image1.png
543
435
media_image1.png
Greyscale
Re claim 2, a post (316) that extends through the clamp body and is configured to be supported by the bulkhead panel portion of the tonneau cover assembly when in the unclamped position.
Re claim 3, the flange extends downwardly away from an underside of the bulkhead panel portion (as shown in figure 6) and underneath the hook to limit lateral movement of the clamp body (the device is capable of limiting lateral movement when an object interferes with the flange in a lateral direction).
Re claim 5, a threaded member (212) that threads onto the post and supports the clamp body when the bulkhead panel clamp is in the unclamped position is provided.
Re claim 6, the threaded member is selected from the group consisting of a knob (it is a knob 212) and a nut.
Re claim 8, Parkey discloses a bulkhead panel clamp for a tonneau cover assembly, the bulkhead panel clamp comprising: a clamp body (206, figure 6) with a hook located at one end of the clamp body and a bore (as shown in figure 8, the hole through which 206 extends) disposed through a planar portion of the clamp body (see the annotated figure above); a post with a longitudinally extending threaded body (316) and a head (304) at one end of the longitudinally extending threaded body that is wider than the longitudinally extending threaded body; wherein the longitudinally extending threaded body of the post extends through the bore of the clamp body (shown in figure 6); a knob (212) with a threaded bore corresponding to threads on the longitudinally extending threaded body of the post; wherein the knob rotates on the longitudinally extending threaded body of the post to move linearly along the longitudinally extending threaded body of the post; wherein the head of the post is configured to be received in an opening (242) formed within an underside of a bulkhead panel; wherein the knob is configured to move the clamp body either toward or away from the underside of the bulkhead panel; a flange (see the annotated figure above) located adjacent to and extends in an opposite direction of the hook; and a tab (see the annotated figure above) located on the clamp body spaced apart from the hook; wherein the tab extends from a planar surface of the clamp body (see the annotated figure above), and wherein the tab extends away from the clamp body that is in a direction opposite from the flange.
Re claim 9, the hook is configured to engage a rail (108) and the clamp body is configured to be supported by a bulkhead panel portion of the tonneau cover assembly when the bulkhead panel clamp is in an unclamped position (such as shown in figure 3).
Re claim 11, the flange extends downwardly away from the underside of the bulkhead panel and underneath the hook to limit lateral movement of the clamp body (the device is capable of limiting lateral movement when an object interferes with the flange in a lateral direction).
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.
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Parkey (US Patent 10,315,498) in view of Dylweski, II et al. (US Patent Application Publication 2020/0108702).
Re claim 7, Parkey discloses all the limitations of the claims, as applied above, except for a wingnut that threads onto the post adjacent the threaded member.
Dylweski, II et al. teaches the use of a wingnut (34, figure 2) that threads onto a post adjacent a threaded member (30).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the earliest effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify a bulkhead panel clamp, such as that disclosed by Parkey, to have a wingnut that threads onto the post adjacent the threaded member, as taught by Dylweski, II et al., with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to keep the threaded member from becoming unexpectedly loose (see Dylweski, II et al., paragraph 0033 that explains the desirability of including a wingnut).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4 and 10 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The primary reason for the indication of allowable subject matter in claims 4 and 10 is the inclusion in the claims of the limitations directed to the tab engaging an underside of the bulkhead panel portion when the bulkhead panel clamp is in a clamped position. Such limitations, in combination with the rest of the limitations of the claims, are not disclosed or suggested by the prior art of record. The closest prior art of record is Parkey (US Patent 10,315,498). The tab of Parkey does not nor it is intended to engage the bulkhead panel portion when clamped.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 10/7/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues the rejection of claims 1-3, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 11 under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Parkey (US Patent 10,315,498) is overcome by the addition of claim limitations into claims 1 and 8 that were indicated as allowable in a previous office action. However, applicant did not add all of the limitations of the claims previously indicated as containing allowable subject matter. Key limitations present in previously indicated claims including allowable subject matter were left out of amended independent claims 1 and 8. The examiner has modified the rejection above to indicate how claims 1-3, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 11 are still rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Parkey (US Patent 10,315,498).
Applicant also argues that Dylweski, II et al. (US Patent Application Publication 2020/0108702) is not available as prior art as applied in the rejection of claim 7 above as it is owned by the same person or subject to an obligation of assignment to the person pursuant to 37 C.F.R 1.104. While neither agreeing nor disagreeing with applicant’s assertion of common ownership, this exception applies only to prior art available under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2). It does not apply to 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1), which applies to disclosures with a prior public availability date. In this case, the reference, Dylweski, II et al., was published April 9, 2020, more than a year prior to applicant’s earliest effective filing date and is available under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as prior art.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 Jason S Morrow whose telephone number is (571)272-6663. The examiner can normally be reached Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m..
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, Vivek Koppikar can be reached at (517) 272-5109. 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.
/JASON S MORROW/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3612