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 .
Response to Amendment
The amendment filed October 23rd, 2025 has been entered. Claims 1-12 remain pending in the application.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed October 23rd, 2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that Schumacher does not disclose “a pair of guides which guides the peripheral edge of the filter unit … to let the filter unit slide on the guides into the interior of the cleaner case through the opening.” The Examiner respectfully disagrees. Schumacher teaches a filter unit having a peripheral edge (Fig. 1, filter element 10 has sidewalls 20, 22); and a pair of guides which guides the peripheral edge of the filter unit to let the filter unit slide on the guides into the interior of the cleaner case through the opening (¶0017 “The housing preferably has at least one guide mechanism, the at least one holding element can be moved from the initial position into the functional position. For example, as the filter element is introduced into the receiving space, the at least one holding element can follow a curved contour of the guide mechanism” ; Fig. 2, guide mechanisms or guide tracks 54). Applicant asserts that “the guide mechanism 66 of Schumacher does not contact the Examiner-designated peripheral edge of Schumacher.” It is unclear why Applicant is referencing “guide mechanism 66”, as this element of Schumacher was not previously used for any teachings in the Non-Final Office Action mailed July 24th, 2025. The Examiner has interpreted the guide mechanisms or guide trackers 54 to read on the “pair of guides” as required by claim 1. Additionally, although the Applicant is correct that there is no contact between the guide mechanism (54) and the side walls (20, 22) of Schumacher, such contact is not required by claim 1. Claim 1 only requires “a pair of guides which guides the peripheral edge of the filter unit … to let the filter unit slide on the guides into the interior of the cleaner case through the opening.” Whether this guiding occurs directly or indirectly is not specified and the Examiner therefore maintains that Schumacher teaches the pair of guides as required by claim 1.
Applicant’s arguments, see Applicant Arguments/Remarks, filed October 23rd, 2025, with respect to the rejection of dependent claims 2-3 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Due to the inconsistent mapping of claims 1-3, the rejections of claims 1-3 have been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground of rejection is made in view of Schumacher.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
(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 1-5 and 10-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by U.S. Patent Application No. 2020/0230540 to Schumacher (hereinafter referred to as Schumacher).
Regarding claim 1, Schumacher teaches an air cleaner which filters intake air to be supplied to an engine of a motorcycle (Abstract “A filter element for an air filter of a motor vehicle”), the air cleaner comprising: a cleaner case (Fig. 2, housing 12) having an interior (Fig. 2, receiving space 28) and having an opening defined therein (Fig. 2, opening 52); a filter unit which filters intake air therethrough (Fig. 1, filter element 10), the filter unit having a peripheral edge (Fig. 1, sidewalls 20, 22) and being detachably mounted to the cleaner case (¶0039 “The filter element 10 can be introduced or inserted in this insertion direction 26 into a receiving space 28” ; Claim 25 “the fastening element (44, 78) is movable into a release position in which fixation of the fastening element (44, 78) to the holding element (36) is disengaged.”); and a pair of guides which guides the peripheral edge of the filter unit which is positioned opposite thereto to let the filter unit slide on the guides into the interior of the cleaner case through the opening (¶0017 “The housing preferably has at least one guide mechanism, wherein by introducing the at least one holding element into the at least one guide mechanism, the at least one holding element can be moved from the initial position into the functional position. For example, as the filter element is introduced into the receiving space, the at least one holding element can follow a curved contour of the guide mechanism”; Fig. 4, connecting strip 34 which comprises holding element 32, see also Fig. 11).
Regarding claim 2, Schumacher teaches the air cleaner as applied to claim 1 above, wherein the guides have a width in a thickness direction of the filter unit, the width decreasing progressively in an attachment direction of the filter unit (Fig. 11 depicts the insertion of the filter element into the housing, wherein the guides (connecting strip 34) are compressed as the filter element is inserted (and therefore in the attachment direction), decreasing in width from extension 30 to holding element 36; see annotated figure below).
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Regarding claim 3, Schumacher teaches the air cleaner as applied to claim 1 above, wherein at least closed side portions of the pair of guides are sloped towards each other in the attachment direction (Fig. 11, as tab 32 is compressed bilaterally, the pair of guides would therefore be sloped towards one another in the attachment direction as the filter is inserted; see annotated figure below).
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Regarding claim 4, Schumacher teaches the air cleaner as applied to claim 3 above, wherein the peripheral edge of the filter unit comprises a pair of peripheral edges (Fig. 11, extension 30 is present bilaterally on the peripheral edges of the filter element), distal portions of which are sloped towards each other in the attachment direction (Fig. 11, tab 32 reads on the “distal portion” of the peripheral edge and, as tab 32 is compressed, the distal portions are therefore sloped towards each other in the attachment direction).
Regarding claim 5, Schumacher teaches the air cleaner as applied to claim 1 above, further comprising: a retainer which is associated with an inlet side of the filter unit (Fig. 2, openings 56) and retains the filter unit on the cleaner case (Fig. 11 depicts how the filter element is inserted into the housing through opening 56, wherein a screw is inserted to further retain the filter unit on the cleaner case).
Regarding claim 10, Schumacher teaches the air cleaner as applied to claim 1 above, wherein the pair of guides contact the peripheral edge of the filter unit (Fig. 11, attachment strip 34 which comprises holding elements 32 make contact with sidewall 20).
Regarding claim 11, Schumacher teaches the air cleaner as applied to claim 1 above, wherein the pair of guides guide the peripheral edge throughout a sliding of the filter unit into the interior of the cleaner case (Figs. 7-8 depict the insertion of the filter unit into the interior of the cleaner case, wherein holding elements 32 are compressed to make contact with sidewall 20 ; Fig. 11 depicts the compression of holding element 32 and the contact that is made with sidewall 20 during insertion of the filter unit).
Regarding claim 12, Schumacher teaches the air cleaner as applied to claim 2 above, wherein the width decreases progressively along an entire length of the guides (see annotated figure below ; attachment strip 34 which comprises holding element 32 decreases in width along the entire length of attachment strip 34 as depicted below)
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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 1 and 6-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chinese Patent No. CN108397317A to Li et al. (hereinafter referred to as Li), and further in view of Schumacher.
Regarding claims 1 and 6, Li teaches an air cleaner which filters intake air to be supplied to an engine of a motorcycle (Pg. 1 “The invention relates to the technical field of air filters, in particular to a fire net installation structure of an air filter and a motorcycle.”), the air cleaner comprising: a cleaner case having an interior (Fig. 1, air filter housing 100 has cavity 120) and having an opening defined therein (Fig. 1, air filter cover 200 is removed to access cavity 120); a filter unit which filters intake air therethrough (Fig. 2, filter component 400); the filter divides the cleaner case into a clean and dirty side (Pg. 2 “Further, the filter element divides the cavity of the air filter housing into a dirty cavity and a clean cavity”), wherein the fire arrester is located in the clean cavity (Pg. 2 “the fireproof mesh being disposed in the clean cavity”). Li is silent on the installation of the filter component and does not teach a pair of guides which guide the peripheral edge of the filter unit which is positioned opposite thereto to let the filter unit slide on the guides into the interior of the cleaner case through the opening or a pair of holders which clamp the element in a thickness direction of the filter unit.
However, Schumacher teaches an air cleaner which filters intake air to be supplied to an engine of a motorcycle (Abstract “A filter element for an air filter of a motor vehicle”), a filter unit which filters intake air therethrough (Fig. 1, filter element 10), the filter unit having a peripheral edge (Fig. 1, sidewalls 20, 22) and being detachably mounted to the cleaner case (¶0039 “The filter element 10 can be introduced or inserted in this insertion direction 26 into a receiving space 28” ; Claim 25 “the fastening element (44, 78) is movable into a release position in which fixation of the fastening element (44, 78) to the holding element (36) is disengaged.”); and a pair of guides which guides the peripheral edge of the filter unit which is positioned opposite thereto to let the filter unit slide on the guides into the interior of the cleaner case through the opening (¶0017 “The housing preferably has at least one guide mechanism, wherein by introducing the at least one holding element into the at least one guide mechanism, the at least one holding element can be moved from the initial position into the functional position. For example, as the filter element is introduced into the receiving space, the at least one holding element can follow a curved contour of the guide mechanism”; Fig. 4, connecting strip 34 which comprises holding element 32, see also Fig. 11), wherein providing such a guide mechanism enables the filter insertion to be properly aligned in a reliable manner (¶0017 “Providing such a guide mechanism or guide track enables the holding element to be aligned in an expedient and process-reliable manner.”). Schumacher further teaches a pair of holders which clamp the element in a thickness direction of the filter unit (Fig. 2, housing bottom part 48 and housing top part 50, when the filter 10 containing filter material 14 is inserted through space 52, the housing bottom part 48 and housing top part 50 work to “clamp” the element in a thickness direction (from the top and bottom of the element)). These elements additionally provide a secure fixation of the filter element into the receiving space (¶0018 “A particularly secure fixing of both the filter element in the receiving space and of the cover to the housing of the air filter is thus achievable.”).
Li and Schumacher are considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of filtration units for motorized vehicles. 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 air cleaner apparatus as taught by Li to further include the filter component as taught by Schumacher to ensure proper fixation of said filter element inside of the air cleaner housing, as well as ensuring easy installation, as described above. The combination of these two references read on the limitations of claims 1 and 6.
Regarding claim 7, Li and Schumacher teach the air cleaner as applied to claim above. Li further teaches a motorcycle (Fig. 9) comprising an air cleaner as described above.
Regarding claim 8, Li and Schumacher teach the motorcycle as applied to claim 7 above. Li further teaches wherein the opening is oriented towards a widthwise outside thereof (Fig. 5, air filter 1 is provided on the side of the motorcycle; Fig. 1, air filter cover 200 is removed to provide an opening that is therefore oriented towards a widthwise outside thereof), the motorcycle further comprising: a side cover, the side cover being removably mounted to a vehicle body thereof and covering the opening laterally from outside (Fig. 1, air filter cover 200).
Regarding claim 9, Li and Schumacher teach the motorcycle as applied to claim 8 above. Li further teaches wherein the side cover has an inner surface (Fig. 5) with a seal member mounted thereon (Fig. 5, interference slope 210), the seal member having a shape conforming to the opening (Pg. 4 “The drawings of the present embodiment are each illustrated as a case where the resisting slope 210 is provided on the air filter cover 200” ; Pg. 4 “The surface of the inclined structure against the inclined surface of the fireproof net can be used to fix the fireproof net, prevent the fireproof net from loosening, ensure the correct installation of the air filter cover body, and have a simple structure.”).
Conclusion
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/RACHEL MARIE SLAUGOVSKY/Examiner, Art Unit 1776
/Jennifer Dieterle/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1776