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 Arguments
Applicant's arguments regarding the objections and rejections of claim 15 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Put as simply as possible, Applicant claims “a pair of wicket pins” that support a first and second set of bags contemporaneously. However, there appear to be TWO PAIR that perform this function. While the specification acknowledges that each set can be adjusted for different bag sizes, in order to hold a first bag size AND a second bag size at the same time (denoted by the AND) both sets of pins 17 must be used. This is further supported by the cited text [0055], “The same size bags 14A, 14B may be loaded into the left and right machine segments 10A,lOB, and the machine 10 or different sized bags 14A, 14B may be used at the different machine segments 10A,1OB during the bagging session.”. As can be seen in the below Examiner Illustration A, the different sized bags of 10A and 10B utilize different pins 17. If further elucidation of this rejection is required, the Examiner recommends an interview.
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Examiner Illustration A
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-14, 16-19 are allowed.
Reasons for allowance previously stated in 3/26/2025 Non-Final action.
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, the
Claim 15 - “a pair of wicket pins that are located at the bag station, the pair of wicket pins configured to support; a first set of wicketed bags of a first size; a second set of wicketed bags of a second bag size”
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
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claim 15 is 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.
Regarding claim 15, the newly amended claim limitation “a pair of wicket pins that are located at the bag station, the pair of wicket pins configured to support; a first set of wicketed bags of a first size; a second set of wicketed bags of a second bag size” does not appear in the specification and therefore represents both a written description violation as well as a new matter situation. Simply put, there does not exist a single pair of wicket pins that supports both a first and second set of bags. Rather, two different sets of pins hold the different bags. See [0055], “The same size bags 14A, 14B may be loaded into the left and right machine segments 10A,lOB, and the machine 10 or different sized bags 14A, 14B may be used at the different machine segments 10A,1OB during the bagging session.”. Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being Johnson et al., (US 5127212).
Regarding claim 15, the previous citations for claim 1, 10-15, and 18-19 from the 3/26/2025 office action are incorporated by reference, as all claim limitations (minus the 112A omitted material discussed above) have already been cited and rejected.
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 DANIEL JEREMY LEEDS whose telephone number is (571)272-2095. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Thurs, 0730-1730.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Anna Kinsaul can be reached at 571-270-1926. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/DANIEL JEREMY LEEDS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3731
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