DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Status of Claims
Claims 1, 12, 21-24 are pending.
Terminal Disclaimer
The terminal disclaimer filed on 02/27/2026 disclaiming the terminal portion of any patent granted on this application which would extend beyond the expiration date of 9795014 has been reviewed and is accepted. The terminal disclaimer has been recorded.
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.
Claims 1, 12, 21-24 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 “two parallel slide rails each having the same length as the two parallel slots”. The originally filed disclosure does not provide support for the claimed limitation claiming that the slide rails are the same length as the two parallel slots. The newly added limitation is a new matter.
Claims 12, 21-24 are rejected for being dependent on a rejected claim.
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, 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 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.
Claim(s) 1, 24 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Milo [US 20050224329].
As to claim 1. Milo discloses A system configured to control power delivered from a power distribution source to an electrical load, the system comprising:
a remote-control device, [fig. 1, 0051] assembly 10, that includes:
a two-piece housing, [fig. 1, 0051] housing 12, having a front housing portion, [fig. 1, 0054] inner compartment lid 28, physically couplable to a rear housing portion, [fig. 2, 0057] lid 28 attached to housing 12:
wherein the front housing portion includes a plurality of actuatable elements, [fig. 2, 0060] buttons 66, each of the plurality of actuatable elements disposed in respective ones of a plurality of apertures formed in a front surface of the front housing portion, [fig. 2, 0060] button openings 64 to receive buttons 66; and
wherein the rear housing portion includes an attachment feature that include a close-ended recessed slide receiving portion integrally formed with the rear housing portion, [fig. 14, 0089] recessed region 308 which is closed in the end close to end notches 316, and would not allow the plate 302 past the closed end notches 316;
wherein the close-ended recessed slide portion includes two parallel flanges disposed on opposing sides of the recessed slide receiving portion to create two parallel slots, each of the two parallel slots having a length, [fig. 14, 0089] longitudinal retaining tabs 312 creating two parallel slots 314 against the plates 300; wherein every physical object has a length;
radio-frequency (RF) transmitter circuitry disposed within the housing, [fig. 9, 0074, 0075] circuit board 164 includes circuitry comprising an RF transmitter; and
a mounting assembly couplable to a vertical surface, [fig. 14, 0088] wall mounting plate 302, the mounting assembly including:
two parallel slide rails, [fig. 14, 0090] slide tabs 322, each of the parallel slide rails slidably receivable along the length of each respective one of the two parallel slots, [fig. 14, 0090] slide tabs 322 received by slots 314, to permit the tool-less slidable coupling and decoupling of the remote-control device to the mounting assembly, [fig. 14, 0091, 0092] the mounting plate is slide on/off the slide tabs 322, and secured to the housing using a tab 334, there no tool required to slide in/out the plate 302.
Milo fails to disclose wherein the two parallel slides each having the same length as the two parallel slots.
The two parallel slots perform the function of holding the two parallel slides; wherein the relative length of the slides to the house is selected purely to prevent the mounting plate from falling out of the slides.
One of ordinary skill in the art easily understands that, outside having the two relative lengths sides to prevent the plate 302 from falling out of the slots, the relative lengths of the two does not affect the function performed by the claimed system configured to control power delivered to an electrical load other that providing an aesthetic feature.
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the filing of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Milo to size the length of the slide rails to any size, including the same length as the length of the slots as nothing but adding an aesthetic feature to the overall look of the housing.
As to claim 24. Milo discloses The system of claim 1 wherein the mounting assembly further comprises: a plurality of apertures to accommodate a corresponding plurality of fasteners, [fig. 14, 0088] holes for fasteners 306.
Claim(s) 12, 23 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Milo in view of Lingemann [US 20040267385].
As to claim 12. Milo fails to disclose The electrical control system of claim 1: wherein the remote-control device comprises a motorized window treatment remote control device; and wherein the plurality of actuatable elements control the position of the motorized window treatment.
Lingemann teaches a building automation system comprising a RF wireless remote control 150 with a plurality of switches, [fig. 13, 0085], to control appliances in a room, [0087], including electronic drapes and windoware, [0078]; wherein the remote control comprises a switches on the external surface of the housing, [fig. 13].
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the filing of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Milo with that of Lingemann so that the remote controller can be used to operate the different functionalities commonly used appliances without requiring a separate controller.
As to claim 23. Milo discloses The system of claim 1:
wherein the remote-control device comprises a lighting control device, [fig. 45, 0051] communicate with receivers that control lights 902; and
wherein the plurality of actuatable elements to cause a communicatively coupled switch, [0051], to:
transition an operatively coupled lighting device between an ON state and an OFF state, [0051] control lights, [0139] the control can be activating.
Milo fails to disclose wherein the switch is a dimmer; and control the power delivered to the operatively coupled lighting device to adjust the intensity of the operatively coupled lighting device.
Lingemann teaches a building automation system comprising a RF wireless remote control 150, [fig. 13, 0085], to control appliances in a room including lighting units, [0087]; wherein the remote control comprises a dimmer switch to dim lights, [0066, 0085].
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the filing of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Milo with that of Lingemann so that the remote controller can be used to operate the different functionalities commonly used appliances without requiring a separate controller.
Claim(s) 21, 22 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Milo in view of Haughawout et al. [US 20040169590].
As to claim 21. Milo discloses The system of claim 1, further comprising:
one or more visual indicators, [0086] the circuit board include LEDs; and
controller circuitry operatively coupled to each of the plurality of actuatable elements, [0073, 0074, 0084-0086] circuit board in electrical communication with the push plate through the switches and push pad, the one or more visual indicators, [0086] circuit board in electrical communication with the LEDs, and the memory circuitry, the controller circuitry to:
receive, from at least one of the plurality of actuatable elements, a first input, [0073, 0074, 0084-0086] circuit board generates a signal based on input received from switches attached to the push plate;
cause the one or more visual indicators to provide a visual indication of receipt of the first input, [0086] emit a first color based on input; and
transmit a command that corresponds to the first input, [0074] transmit a command based on the input.
Milo fails to disclose wherein the system comprises a memory circuitry; and the transmitting the command comprises the step to retrieve, from the memory circuitry, the command.
Haughawout teaches a system and method to select a remote control command set comprising a remote control with RF 10 capable of commanding the operation of home appliances, [fig. 1, 0028]; wherein the remote control includes a memory 26 that stores a command code library that that processor uses to select the appropriate command for transmitting, [0031], corresponding to the activated command key on the remote control, [0033].
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the filing of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Milo with that of Haughawout so that a single remote controller can be used to control a plurality of devices.
As to claim 22. Milo discloses The system of claim 21, the controller circuitry to further: cause a communication, via the RF transmitter circuitry, of the retrieved command to an electric load device, [0074].
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 02/27/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Argument 1: The prior arts on file do not teach the newly added limitations.
Response 1: The Office Action is amended to address the newly added limitations as detailed above.
Argument 2: Lingemann and Haughawout fail to treach the newly added limitations of claim 1.
Response 2: In response to applicant's arguments against the references individually, one cannot show nonobviousness by attacking references individually where the rejections are based on combinations of references. See In re Keller, 642 F.2d 413, 208 USPQ 871 (CCPA 1981); In re Merck & Co., 800 F.2d 1091, 231 USPQ 375 (Fed. Cir. 1986).
The Office Action is not relying on the above prior arts to teach the limitations claimed in claim 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 BENYAM HAILE whose telephone number is (571)272-2080. The examiner can normally be reached 7:00 AM - 5:30 PM Mon. - Thur..
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, Steven Lim can be reached at (571)270-1210. 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.
/Benyam Haile/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2688