DETAILED ACTION
This communication is in response to applicant’s Amendment which is filed on July 20, 2026.
An amendment to amend the claims 16, 17, 20 and 21 has been entered and made of record in the application of Bauckman et al. for an “equipment for swimming pools and spas with near-field communications” filed July 19, 2023.
Claims 1-15 and 18-19 have been cancelled.
Claim 22 is introduced.
Claims 16-17 and 20-22 are now pending in the application.
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114.
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Because this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous action is withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. The submission filed on April 22, 2026, has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s election without traverse of Invention II, including claims 16, 17 and 20-21, in the reply filed on July 20, 2026 is acknowledged.
Applicant's amendment and arguments with respect to claims 16-17 and 20-22, filed July 20, 2026, have been fully considered but are moot in view of the new ground(s) of rejection.
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 16-17 and 20-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Diep (Pub. No. 2020/0077497).
Referring to claim 16, Diep discloses a method of installing a pool light (a LED lighting control device 110 and an outdoor LED lighting 101) at a swimming pool or spa (page 1 paragraphs 004-0010; see Figures 1 to 8), wherein the method comprises:
providing the pool light (110) in an uninstalled state relative to the swimming pool or spa (i.e. set up at the beginning state), the pool light (110) comprising a plurality of color modes (i.e. lighting schemes), each color mode of the plurality of color modes comprising a plurality of different colors or color sequences (i.e. based on a user-selected lighting scheme, the LED lighting control device 110 turns the power on and off rapidly a particular number of times to instruct the control device of the outdoor LED lighting 101 to cause the LEDs to display a particular lighting scheme. For example, to cause the outdoor LED lighting 101 to display a lighting scheme corresponding to a solid green color, the LED lighting control device 110 may turn the power on and off rapidly five times, whereas to cause the outdoor LED lighting 101 to display a lighting scheme corresponding to a particular light show made up of a plurality of different colors displayed in a particular sequence, the LED lighting control device 110 may turn the power on and off rapidly eleven times) (page 3 paragraphs 0039-0040; page 4 paragraphs 0044; 0048; see Figures 1 to 3B);
while the pool light (110) is in the uninstalled state and at least while the pool light is not powered or functional, sending, using near-field communication, a selection of one
color mode of the plurality of color modes to the pool light (i.e. based on a user-selected lighting scheme, the LED lighting control device 110 turns the power on and off rapidly a particular number of times to instruct the control device of the outdoor LED lighting 101 to cause the LEDs to display a particular lighting scheme. For example, to cause the outdoor LED lighting 101 to display a lighting scheme corresponding to a solid green color, the LED lighting control device 110 may turn the power on and off rapidly five times, whereas to cause the outdoor LED lighting 101 to display a lighting scheme corresponding to a particular light show made up of a plurality of different colors displayed in a particular sequence, the LED lighting control device 110 may turn the power on and off rapidly eleven times) (page 3 paragraph 0041; page 4 paragraphs 0044; 0048; see Figures 3B and 6 and 8); and
completing installation the pool light having the selected one color mode of the plurality of color modes at the swimming pool or spa (i.e. depressing the hold button 605 causes the LED lighting control device 110 to lock to the color that is currently displayed. Depressing the Bluetooth button 607 causes the LED lighting control device 110 to enter the remote mode of operations during which the LED lighting control device 110 is remotely controlled by the Bluetooth-enabled device 120 operated by a user. the Bluetooth-enabled device 120 executes a lighting application program that causes a UI 520 of the Bluetooth-enabled device 120 to be displayed on a display device 530 of the Bluetooth-enabled device 120 that preferably looks identical or very similar to the UI 601 of the LED lighting control device 110 shown in FIG. 6A. In other words, the UI 520 of the Bluetooth-enabled device 120 comprises a control panel having an on/off button similar or identical to button 603 and performing the same function, a plurality of lighting scheme icons similar or identical to the lighting scheme icons 604 and performing the same functions, a hold button similar or identical to hold button 605 and performing the same function, a recall button similar or identical to recall button 606 and performing the same function, and a Bluetooth button similar or identical to Bluetooth button 607 and performing the same function) (page 5 paragraphs 0048 to 0050; see Figures 5-8).
Referring to claim 17, Diep discloses the method of claim 16, further comprising powering (112) the pool light by communicating with the pool light (110) (i.e. the lighting application program 870 that is executed by the Bluetooth-enabled device 120 causes the UI 520 (FIG. 5) of the Bluetooth-enabled device 120 to be displayed on the display device 530 of the Bluetooth-enabled device 120. The user makes selections on the UI 520 displayed on the display device 530. The processing logic 810 generates one or more digital signals representing one or more commands corresponding to the user's selection. The DAC circuitry 840 converts the one or more digital signals into one or more analog signals and outputs them to the analog circuitry 850. The analog circuitry 850 converts the one or more analog signals into one or more Bluetooth wireless signals and causes the antenna 860 to transmit the one or more Bluetooth wireless signals over the Bluetooth wireless link 103 to the LED lighting control device 110, which then performs the operations described above to control the outdoor LED lighting 101) (page 5 paragraphs 0052-0053; see Figures 2-3B, 5 and 8).
Referring to claim 20, Diep discloses the method of claim 16, wherein sending the selection of the one color mode (i.e. one of the lighting schemes) of the plurality of color modes to the pool light comprises communicating using a piece of pool equipment (120) (i.e. In the processing logic 230 of the LED lighting control device 110, a digital representation of the wireless signal is processed to interpret the command and a lighting scheme to be displayed by the outdoor LED lighting 101 is selected from a plurality of lighting schemes, as indicated by block 302. The processing logic 230 controls the outdoor LED lighting 101 to cause the outdoor LED lighting 101 to display the selected lighting scheme, as indicated by block 303) (page 4 paragraphs 0043-0045; see Figures 3b to 6A).
Referring to claim 21, Diep discloses the method of claim 16, further comprising activating the pool light (110/101) such that the pool light is operating with the one color mode of the plurality of color modes (i.e. depressing the hold button 605 causes the LED lighting control device 110 to lock to the color that is currently displayed. Depressing the Bluetooth button 607 causes the LED lighting control device 110 to enter the remote mode of operations during which the LED lighting control device 110 is remotely controlled by the Bluetooth-enabled device 120 operated by a user) (page 4 paragraph 0048; page 5 paragraph 0053; see Figures 4 to 8).
Referring to claim 21, Diep discloses a pool light for a swimming pool or spa, although different in scope from the claim 16, the claim 21 contains similar limitations in that the claim 16 already addressed above therefore claim 21 is also rejected for the same reasons given with respect to claim 16.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Refer to the enclosed PTO-892 for details.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NAM V NGUYEN whose telephone number is 571-272-3061. Fax number is (571) 273-3061. The examiner can normally be reached on 8:00AM-5:00PM Monday to Friday.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Quan-Zhen Wang can be reached on 571-272-3114. The fax phone numbers for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned are 571-273-8300 for regular communications.
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/NAM V NGUYEN/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2685
