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 on 12/16/2025 has been entered. The applicant has amended the claims 1, 2, 5, 7 and 8. Claims 1-10 are pending.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments filed on 12/16/2025 with respect to the rejection of amended claims 1 have been fully considered but are moot. The Applicant amended claim 1. A new ground of rejection necessitated by the amendment. Arguments do not apply to the combination of references being used in the current rejection.
Specification
The Applicant amended specification to overcome the objection for few informalities, therefore the objection has been withdrawn.
Claim Objections
Claim 9 objected to because of the following informalities: claim recites “angle is at most 20* “, In mathematics and computing, the expression 2* typically represents multiplication by two (doubling) or indicates an incomplete expression awaiting a second number. The specification of the instant application disclosed “The acute angle can be at most 200 …”. Therefore, it needs to be corrected as “ angle is at most 200 ”. Appropriate correction is required.
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.
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wakabayashi (US 2008/0247068, of record) in view of Sinelli et al. (US 2008/0310041).
Regarding claim 1, Wakabayashi teaches an observation apparatus for a motor vehicle for observing rear traffic events (refer to US 2008/0247068, the observation apparatus, vehicular mirror device, Fig. 1, mirror device 18, [0030]) comprising:
a base member (base 15, [0030]) with a base member body (body of base member 15, Fig. 1) to fasten the base member to a bodywork or an add-on part of the motor vehicle (base 15 mounted on a side door of a vehicle, [0030]); and
a head member (housing 19/20/17) which is arranged hingedly connected to the base member (turnably supported on the base 15, [0032]) such that the head member (housing 19/20/17) is rotatable with respect to the base member (15), the head member having a head member body (body of 19/20/17, Figs. 1-2) and an observation member arranged therein or thereon (case 21 for rotatably supporting the mirror 16 is contained in the housing body 17 in such a manner that it is attached to a bracket 22; and the housing 17 is also attached to the bracket 22, an actuator for turning the mirror 16 is contained in the support case 21, and the bracket 22 is turnably supported on the base 15, [0032]; i.e. support case 21 attached to bracket 22 and housing 17, rotatably supporting the mirror 16, bracket 22 is turnably supported on the base 15),
wherein the base member body (body of 15) and the head member body (body of 19/20/17) are adjacent to each other at, at least one gap (gap in Fig 1 shows a gap between 19/20/17 and body of 15).
Wakabayashi doesn’t explicitly teach wherein the head member body has at least one recessed region that is adjacent to the at least one gap such that a step is formed between the base member body and the recessed region of the head member body.
Wakabayashi and Sinelli are related as rearview mirror of vehicle.
Sinelli teaches the base member body and the head member body are adjacent to each other and at least one gap wherein the head member body has at least one recessed region that is adjacent to the at least one gap such that a step is formed between the base member body and the recessed region of the head member body (see annotated Fig. 4 below, base member body, head member body, recessed region that is adjacent to the gap and that formed a step between the base member body and the recessed region of the head member body are labeled on the annotated Fig. 4).
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Annotated Fig. 4
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to modify the observation apparatus of Wakabayashi to design the head member body has at least one recessed region that is adjacent to the at least one gap such that a step is formed between the base member body and the recessed region of the head member body, as taught by Sinelli for the predictable advantage of having a telescoping side mirrors for motor vehicles that may accommodate the operator's ability to view the spaces behind a large motor vehicle or a motor vehicle that is hauling a trailer there behind, as taught by Sinelli in [0002-0004].
Regarding claim 2, the modified Wakabayashi teaches the observation apparatus according to claim 1 (see above). Wakabayashi teaches a face of the base member body and a face of the head member body and the gap. Sinelli teaches wherein the step is formed between one face of a member body (26) and a face of the head member body (56; see annotated Fig. 4 above), respectively, which together form a guide face (26/56) having an extension direction (see Figs. 3 and 4 for extension direction), wherein the guide face extends along an incident flow direction of an air flowing incident to the observation apparatus during forward travel of the motor vehicle equipped with the observation apparatus (Fig. 4; the vehicle is traveling, air flows on the outer surface of the 26/56 from the vehicle frontward side to the vehicle rearward side. . when the airflow passes on the 26/56 portion, the airflow can be rapidly changed by pivoting using pivot 29, and also by changing the length of extension. As a result, the airflow smoothly flows on the tilted outer surface of the housing. Thus, the airflow passing on the outer surface of the housing can be reduced.
Regarding claim 3, the modified Wakabayashi teaches the observation apparatus according to claim 1 (see above), wherein the observation apparatus is an exterior mirror such that the observation member is a mirror face or mirror face system, or wherein the observation apparatus is a camera such that the observation member is a camera lens or camera lens system (Wakabayashi Figs. 1-2 and Sinelli Figs. 1 and 6 show observation member is a mirror face or mirror face system).
Regarding claim 4, the modified Wakabayashi teaches the observation apparatus according to claim 1 (see above), wherein the base member body and/or head member body (body of 19/20/17) is formed by a casing (see Figs. 1-2; head member body formed by a casing).
Regarding claim 5, the modified Wakabayashi teaches the observation apparatus according to claim 1 (see above), wherein the observation apparatus comprises a hinge joint (Wakabayashi: shaft 32 for turnably supporting the mirror device, [0042]; Sinelli: pivot bolt 24, [0017]) hingedly connecting the base member body and the head member body to one another (Wakabayashi: Fig. 2 and 9; Sinelli: see Fig. 3-4.), and wherein, when the observation apparatus is mounted on a bodywork (Wakabayashi: support case 21 for rotatably supporting the mirror 16 is contained in the housing body 17 in such a manner that it is attached to a bracket 22; and the housing 17 is also attached to the bracket 22. Moreover, an actuator for turning the mirror 16 is contained in the support case 21, and the bracket 22 is turnably supported on the base 15, see Fig. 2; Sinelli: observation apparatus is mounted on the door of motor vehicle 12, Figs. 1-2) or an add-on part of the motor vehicle, the axis of rotation of the hinge joint extends substantially vertically (Wakabayashi Fig. 2 and Sinelli: Figs. 3-4 show he axis of rotation of the hinge joint extends substantially vertically).
Regarding claim 6, the modified Wakabayashi teaches the observation apparatus according to claim 1 (see above), Sinelli teaches wherein a height of the step between the base member body and the head member body is more than the wall thickness of the base member wall thickness, (base member body wall thickness plus the gap, see Fig 4), but doesn’t explicitly teach the thickness at least 1mm. It is noted that the Court has held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, it is not inventive to discover the optimum or workable ranges by routine experimentation; see In re Aller, 220 F.2d 454, 456,105 USPQ 233, 235. Benefits of optimizing thickness include holding the safety and preventing wall damage. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to select the thickness of wall of the base member body at least 1 mm for the predictable advantage of having the safety and preventing body wall damage. Wall thickness at least 1 mm makes the step thickness more than 1 mm.
Regarding claim 7, the modified Wakabayashi teaches the observation apparatus according to claim 1 (see above), Sinelli teaches wherein the step (annotated Fig. 4 above shows the step) between the base member body and the head member body is realized by a face of the base member body and a face of the head member body (face of the wall of the base member body and the face of the wall 56 head member body
Is shown on annotated Fig. 4), and wherein the face of the base member body and the face of the head member body are substantially parallel to each other (see Figs. 3-4 and the annotated Fig. 4 above; both faces are vertical and substantially parallel to each other).
Regarding claim 8, the modified Wakabayashi teaches the observation apparatus according to claim 1 (see above), Sinelli teaches, wherein the step is formed between a face of the base member body and a face of the head member body (annotated Fig. 4 above shows the step formation, and wherein a face, that is the tip portion, of the base member body and a face, the tip portion, of the head member body wall 56 are at an acute angle to each other (Fig. 3-4 show , the tip portion of wall of base member body and the tip portion of the wall 56 of the base member body are both almost vertical, and at an acute angle to each other).
Regarding claim 9, the modified Wakabayashi teaches the observation apparatus according to claim 8 (see above), Sinelli teaches wherein the acute angle is at most 200 (Fig. 3-4 show, and annotated Fig. 4 teaches the tip portion of wall of the base member body and the tip portion of the wall 56 of the base member body are both almost vertical, and substantially parallel to each other) and at an acute angle to each other, which is within the range of at most 200 (see annotated Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 10, the modified Wakabayashi teaches the observation apparatus according to claim 1 (see above), Wakabayashi teaches a motor vehicle comprising at least one observation apparatus according to claim 1 (A vehicular mirror device includes a housing which is comprised of two housing components at least partially opposed to each other, and which is adapted to cover a mirror from the front during traveling of a vehicle. [abstract, Fig. 1).
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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 RAHMAN ABDUR whose telephone number is (571)270-0438. The examiner can normally be reached 8:30 am to 5:30.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Bumsuk Won can be reached at (571) 272-2713. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/R.A/Examiner, Art Unit 2872
/WYATT A STOFFA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2881