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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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 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.
Claims 1-16 and 18-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Franczyk et al. (CN 113969953 A).
In Re claim 1, Franczyk et al. disclose a damper assembly (fig. 2), comprising: a tube (2); a piston (4+) disposed in the tube and dividing the tube into a compression chamber (12) and rebound chamber (11), the piston defines a cross-flow passage (413; fig. 7) and includes: a first check valve (431); a second check valve (441); and a proportional valve (see 4, 422; figs. 7 and 8) configured to regulate flow between the cross-flow passage and an outlet passage (415, 416) based on an electrical signal (see 4, 421).
In Re claim 2, the flow is the same direction through the proportional valve (see arrows in figs. 7 and 8).
In Re claim 3, see third check valve (451) and fourth check valve (417).
In Re claims 4-6, see rebound valve assembly (47) in figs. 6-8.
In Re claims 7-9, see compression valve assembly (46) in figs. 5, 7, and 8.
In Re claims 10 and 20, see rebound valve assembly (47); compression valve assembly (46); and housing (4).
In Re claim 11, see cross-flow passage (413).
In Re claim 12, see fixing nut (439), which has an annular shape and is located in the cross-flow passage.
In Re claim 13, see flange and tubular axial passage (inlet pipe 433) which connect to the proportional valve (422) to bypass the compression and rebound valves.
In Re claim 14, see cross-flow bypass passage and proportional valve inlet (433; see flow arrows in figs. 7 and 8).
In Re claim 15, see proportional valve compression chamber axial passage (415).
In Re claim 16, see proportional valve rebound chamber passage (416).
In Re claim 18, see compensation chamber (13).
In Re claim 19, Franczyk et al. disclose a damper assembly (fig. 2), comprising: a tube (2); a piston (4+) disposed in the tube and dividing the tube into a compression chamber (12) and rebound chamber (11), the piston defines a cross-flow passage (413; fig. 7) and includes: a housing (4) having a tubular shape; a proportional valve (see 4, 422; figs. 7 and 8) configured to regulate flow between the cross-flow passage and an outlet passage (415, 416); wherein the piston defines an rebound flow passage (416).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 17 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THOMAS W IRVIN whose telephone number is (571)270-3095. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 9am - 5pm.
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, Robert Siconolfi can be reached at 571-272-7124. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/THOMAS W IRVIN/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3616