Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, a torsional damper comprising all the limitations of claim 5, and a torsional damper comprising all the limitations of claims 6-9 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
Claims 5-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Claim 5 recites the limitations, “the preloading element [is in abutting contact with the friction disk] and provides axial preload on the friction disk indirectly via the holding element.” Applicant has not pointed out where this combination of limitations supported, nor does there appear to be a written description of this combination of limitations in the application as originally filed.
Claim 6 recites the limitations, “a rotational securing contour is formed on the friction ring, and a rotational securing contour is formed on the holding element, each of said contours corresponding to one another and providing a connection for conjoint rotation under axial preload [and the preloading element is in abutting contact with the friction disk].” Applicant has not pointed out where this combination of limitations supported, nor does there appear to be a written description of this combination of limitations in the application as originally filed.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed June 2, 2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Applicant’s arguments fail to point to any place in the application as originally filed where the offending combinations of claims 5 & 6 are supported. Instead, applicant’s representative merely points to a generic statement at the end of the specification where it says “all combinations . . . are within the scope of the invention.” (See paragraph 0088). That is not a description of either of the offending combinations, combinations that include limitations that are expressly disclosed as mutually exclusive. Namely the limitation “the preloading element is in abutting contact with the friction disk” pertains only to the embodiment shown in Figs. 1-7. Whereas the additional limitations recited in claims 5 & 6 pertain only to another embodiment shown in Figs. 8+. There is no description of how or why they would be combined.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1, 3-4 & 10 are allowed.
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 Greg Binda whose telephone number is (571)272-7077. The examiner can normally be reached 9:30-5:30 et.
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/Greg Binda/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3679
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