DETAILED ACTION
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. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on December 23, 2025, has been entered. Claims 1-15 are pending in the current application.
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.
Claims 1-7 and 11-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Yamamoto et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 10,914,372 B2, hereinafter “Yamamoto”).
Specifically, regarding Claim 1, Yamamoto discloses a shift device for a vehicle, comprising: a shift body (40, 50b, 52, 60, 70; FIG. 2) that is operable by rotational movement to change a shift position among plural shift positions of the vehicle (Abstract, and, e.g., FIGS. 1 and 2), a guide member (75, 76) that is provided at the shift body (40, 50b, 52, 60, 70) and that guides light (FIG. 2), and a mounting body (13) at which an emission section (a light source; col. 5, ll. 40-42) and a detection portion (col. 4, ll. 38-41, 61-63) are provided, the emission section (light source) emitting light to the guide member (75, 76) and the detection portion detecting a movement position of the shift body (40, 50b, 52, 60, 70), wherein the guide member (75, 76) is provided with an insertion hole (between annular portion 52; FIG. 2) formed in the shift body (40, 50b, 52, 60, 70; FIG. 2).
Regarding Claim 2, Yamamoto discloses that the emission section (light source) includes a plurality of emission portions (outer top surface of the light source) that emit light (col. 5, ll. 47-49), and an incidence face (a bottom surface of 75, 76 adjacent the light source) is provided at the guide member (75, 76), the light emitted by the emission portions (outer top surface of the light source) being incident on the incidence face (FIG. 2), and a number of the emission portions that oppose the incidence face is maintained at a same number when the shift body (40, 50b, 52, 60, 70) is moved (col. 5, ll. 47-49; FIG. 3).
Regarding Claim 3, Yamamoto discloses that the detection portion detects the movement position of the shift body (40, 50b, 52, 60, 70), sideward of the guide member (75, 76; col. 4, ll. 38-41, FIGS. 3 and 6).
Regarding Claim 4, Yamamoto discloses that an urging mechanism is provided sideward of the guide member (75, 76), the urging mechanism urging the shift body (40, 50b, 52, 60, 70) toward a shift position side thereof (col. 7, ll. 15-25).
Regarding Claim 5, Yamamoto discloses that a side face of a bent portion of the guide member (75, 76) is curved (an outer portion of 75; FIG. 2).
Regarding Claim 6, Yamamoto discloses that a protrusion portion (a top portion of 76 adjacent 72 and opposite 13; FIG. 2) is provided protruding from the guide member (75, 76; FIG. 2), a decreasing section that decreases a contact area with the guide member (75, 76) being provided at the protrusion portion (also the top portion of 76 adjacent 72; FIG. 2).
Regarding Claim 7, Yamamoto discloses that the plural shift positions include a drive position corresponding to a drive range of a transmission of the vehicle and a reverse position corresponding to a reverse range of the transmission (col. 7, ll. 22-25).
Regarding Claim 11, Yamamoto discloses that the guide member and the shift body are movable in a front and rear direction of the vehicle due to the shift body being rotationally operated (inherently disclosed in an assembled state; see, e.g., FIGS. 1 and 2).
Regarding Claim 12, Yamamoto discloses that the guide member (75, 76) is movable together with the shift body (40, 50b, 52, 60, 70; FIG. 2) in the front and rear direction due to the shift body being rotationally operated (the guide member is coupled with 70, itself coupled to 50b, 60; FIG. 2).
Regarding Claims 13 and 14, Yamamoto discloses that an incident face (73) is provided at the guide member (75, 76; FIG. 2), the light emitted by the emission section being incident on the incidence face (via 75, 76), and the incidence face of the guide member is movable in the front and rear direction due to the shift body being rotationally operated (the guide member is coupled with 70, itself coupled to 50b, 60; FIG. 2).
Regarding Claim 15, Yamamoto discloses that the emission section (a light source; col. 5, ll. 40-42) includes a plurality of emission portions that emit light (e.g., for each of a respective one of 76; FIG. 2), and an incidence face (a bottom surface of 75, 76 adjacent the light source) is provided at the guide member (FIG. 2), the light emitted by the emission portions being incident on the incidence face (FIG. 2), and a number of the emission portions that oppose the incidence face is maintained at a same number when the shift body is moved (each of 75, 76 has a respective light source; col. 5, ll. 47-49).
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 8-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yamamoto in view of Wang et al. (U.S. Pat. Pub. No. 2018/0259063 A1, hereinafter “Wang”).
Yamamoto discloses substantially all of the limitations of the present invention, and further discloses, that the emission section (light source) being electrically connected to a control device (103; col. 5, ll. 51-52, FIG. 7) of the vehicle and the detection portion being electrically connected to the control device (103; FIG. 7, col. 4, ll. 38-41, 61-63; FIG. 7), as recited in each of Claims 8 and 9. Yamamoto does not disclose the claimed circuit board and section.
However, Wang discloses that the (i) mounting body (48) is a circuit board (FIG. 17), the emission section (78, 80, 82, 84, 86) being electrically connected to a control device of the vehicle via the circuit board and the detection portion (154, 156, 158, 160) being electrically connected to the control device via the circuit board (inherently disclosed at ¶¶ [0002], [0114], [0027], [0038]), as recited in Claim 8, (ii) control device is electrically connected to the transmission (inherently disclosed at ¶¶ [0002], [0114], [0027], [0038]), as recited in Claim 9, and (iii) decreasing section (e.g., the etched 13. or removed portion that surrounds each of the indicators; FIG. 14) is a slit portion (e.g., an edge or surface of each of the indicators; FIG. 14) formed between the guide member (88, 90, 92, 94, 96) and the protrusion portion (e.g., each of the shift position indicators or displays at 88, 90, 92, 94, 96; FIG. 14), as recited in Claim 10.
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Wang with those of Yamamoto to provide an integrated switch and controller minimizing required housing real estate.
Conclusion
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/ANTHONY R JIMENEZ/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2833