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 text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
The response filed on June 9, 2026 is acknowledged.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant elected with traverse Species I (figure 27) in the reply filed on October 23, 2025.
The requirement was still deemed proper and was therefore made FINAL in the Office action mailed on February 11, 2026.
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 “notches” recited in claim 1 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 1-6, 9, 11-13 and 15-20 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 1 recites the limitation “said adjustment means being received or locked by the notches of the elongate element” in lines 15-16. The specification discloses, in paragraph 0134, “the strip can also have notches or grooves making it possible to receive or to block the adjustment means 32.” The specification does not appear to disclose the adjustment means 32 being locked by the notches of the elongate element.
Claim 1 recites the limitation “so that the extinguisher is able to be mounted on the pipeline regardless of a diameter of the pipeline” in lines 17-18. The limitation alleges the capability to mount the extinguisher on any diameter pipeline. The clamping collar cannot be mounted on a pipeline having a diameter outside the range of the clamping collar. The clamping collar has a length. The clamping collar cannot be mounted on a pipeline with a smaller or larger diameter than what the length of the clamping collar is capable of accommodating.
Claims 1-6, 9, 11-13 and 15-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 1 recites the limitation "the ends" in line 19. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 1 recites the limitation “at least one end” in line 20. It appears to be a double inclusion of at least one of the “ends” recited in line 19.
Claim 1 recites the limitation "pressure" in line 23. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 1 recites the limitation “pressure comprised between 5 and 20 bars” in lines 23-24. It is uncertain what “pressure” is being referenced. It is uncertain whether the “pressure comprised between 5 and 20 bars” is a double inclusion of the “water pressurized between 5 and 20 bars” recited in line 3.
Claim 3 recites the limitation “at least one end” in line 4. It appears to be a double inclusion of the “ends” and/or “at least one end” recited in claim 1, lines 19 and 20, respectively.
Claim 6 recites the limitation “two ends” in line 2. It appears to be a double inclusion of the “ends” recited in claim 1, line 19.
Clam 17 recites the limitation “wherein the base and the head, comprising the deflector, the stirrups and/or the element for blocking said through-hole are independent. Claim 17 contradicts intervening claim 16 which requires the base and the head, comprising the deflector, the stirrups and/or the element for blocking said through-hole to form a monolithic block.
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 CHRISTOPHER S KIM whose telephone number is (571)272-4905. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7:30-3:30.
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, Arthur O Hall can be reached at (571) 270-1814. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CHRISTOPHER S KIM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3752 CHRISTOPHER S. KIM
Examiner
Art Unit 3752
CK
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