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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of election of species in the reply filed on 6/24/25 is acknowledged. Therefore, Examiner will exam elected embodiment and associated claims.
Applicant determined, in the Remark filed on 12/31/25, claim 6 is shown on embodiment disclosed in fig 3, 4, 10 which are belong to non-elected embodiments. Claim 6 is withdrawn from consideration and the previous objection is withdrawn as well.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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 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 of this title, 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 1-5, 7-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KAWAMATA (JP 2005304846) in view of Ueno (UP 2012011043).
With regard claim 1, KAWAMATA discloses A product shelf (abstract, see also fig 1-14) comprising: a shelf on which a product is arranged (abstract, at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14; all structures provide with a shelf on which a product is arranged), and a display apparatus being attached to the shelf (abstract, at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14; Examiner consider the collection of parts for display purpose is the display apparatus), wherein the display apparatus includes a shelf tag attachment member being fixed to a front end surface of the shelf (at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14, The structure being fixed to a front end surface of the shelf, Examiner consider as a shelf tag attachment member, including the rotation parts) ; and a shelf tag having a display surface (abstract, at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14, the display surface shows the product information), wherein the shelf tag is attached to the shelf tag attachment member via a rotation axis (at least fig 8, axis on 6 as one of them, see also fig 10-14), and is rotatable in a predetermined direction in which the display surface is turned upward (abstract, at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14) from a reference direction (at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14;), and a lower end of the shelf tag is located below a lower surface of the shelf and a lower end of the shelf tag attachment member in a vertical direction (abstract, at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14), when the display surface faces the reference direction (abstract, at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14).
KAWAMATA lacks teaching: a part of the shelf tag overlaps, in the reference direction, a part of a space where the product is arranged on another shelf located below the shelf, when the display surface faces the reference direction.
Ueno teaches a shelf structure comprising: a part of the shelf tag overlaps, in the reference direction, a part of a space where the product is arranged on another shelf located below the shelf, when the display surface faces the reference direction (compare fig 1, 2 and fig 3; see also abstract).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, or at the time of the invention was made, to include this feature (a part of the shelf tag overlaps, in the reference direction, a part of a space where the product is arranged on another shelf located below the shelf, when the display surface faces the reference direction) and modify to previous discussed structure (modified and provide multi-shelf structure as discussed) so as to further provide or display more products for the modified structure. \
Regarding claim 2, KAWAMATA further disclosed the shelf tag is rotatable until the lower end of the shelf tag is located at a same position as a lower surface of the shelf in a vertical direction or above the lower surface (at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14).
Regarding claim 3, KAWAMATA further disclosed a center of gravity of the shelf tag is located below the rotation axis in a vertical direction (at least fig 8).
Regarding claim 4, KAWAMATA further disclosed the rotation axis is located at a same position as an upper surface of the shelf or above the upper surface in a vertical direction (at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14).
Regarding claim 5, KAWAMATA further disclosed a locking mechanism for restricting a range in which the shelf tag rotates with respect to the shelf tag attachment member in the predetermined direction (at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14, the structure for restricting a range in which the shelf tag rotates with respect to the shelf tag attachment member in the predetermined direction, Examiner consider as a locking mechanism).
Regarding claim 7, KAWAMATA further disclosed the locking mechanism restricts a range in which the shelf tag rotates with respect to the shelf tag attachment member in the predetermined direction (at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14), in a range in which a center of gravity of the shelf tag is located below the rotation axis in a vertical direction (at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14).
Regarding claim 8, KAWAMATA further disclosed the rotation axis is provided in front of the shelf tag attachment member (at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14), and the locking mechanism restricts a range in which the shelf tag rotates with respect to the shelf tag attachment member in the predetermined direction (at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14), in a range in which a rear end of the shelf tag does not protrude rearward from an upper rearend of the shelf tag attachment member in a front-rear direction (at least fig 8, see also fig 10-14).
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
With respect to the Applicants’ remarks that, “Since Kawamata does not teach all the features of claim 1, in as complete detail as recited in the claim, Kawamata does not anticipate claim 1 or any of the other claims since they incorporate by reference all the features of claim 1” (pages 5 to the end).
Examiner’s Answer: the Examiner respectfully disagrees and notes that:a) Examiner request applicant to clearly show Fig A, B, C in the arguments instead of “describing the figure”.
b) Applicant’s arguments have been considered but are moot because the arguments do not apply to current ground of rejection in the office action.
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 extension fee 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 date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JERRY WU whose telephone number is (571)270-5420. The examiner can normally be reached on PHP: M-Th: 8:30-12:30; 2:30-8:30pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Imani Hayman can be reached on 571.270.5528. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JERRY WU/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2841
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