DETAILED ACTION
The Information Disclosure Statement filed on May 4, 2023 has been reviewed and considered by the Examiner.
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
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.
Claim(s) 1-8, 12 and 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Borst (US 3,774,548).
Borst discloses a hanging trolley system 200comprised of a body, shown in figure 1, including an upper portion, in contact with the top of the rail 110, and a lower portion, in contact with the underside of the rail 110. A plurality of first support wheels 203, 204 coupled to the upper portion of the body for rotation relative thereto about corresponding first axes that are parallel to each other. The first support wheels 203a, 203b being configured to roll on an upward facing first surface of a rail to support the body on the rail and a brake system, described in paragraph 88 and including a traction wheel 209, a first component, in the form of arm 209a and a second component, notch 211 wherein the traction wheel is coupled to the lower portion of the body for rotation relative thereto about a second axis and is configured to roll along a second surface of the rail, wherein the first component is coupled to the traction wheel for rotation therewith, wherein the second component is configured to selectively inhibit rotation of the first component. The second surface is a downward facing surface such that the traction wheel 209 is configured to be below the first support wheels when the first support wheels support the body on the rail. The second axes of support wheels 204 are transverse to the first axes. The system is further comprised of a motor 206 drivingly coupled to the traction wheel by way of a belt drive 205a.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 9-11 and 14-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Borst (US 3,774,548) in view of Brannan (US 7,966,941).
Borst discloses the trolley system as disclosed above but does not specially show the brake system to include pads, calipers and hand grips operated through a Bowden cable. Brannan discloses a hanging trolley with a braking system that is comprised of calipers and pads operated by hand grips through a Bowden cable as depicted in the exploded views of figures 6A and 6B. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have applied a brake system, like that of Brannan, to a trolley system, like that of Borst, with the expected result of providing a system that is easily manipulated by a used to safely and efficiently slow and stop the trolley.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Robert J McCarry Jr. whose telephone number is (571)272-6683. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7:00-3:00.
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/Robert J McCarry Jr/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3615
RJM
December 11, 2025
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