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 .
This Office action is in response to amendments filed on 01/16/2026. Claims 1-15 and 17-21 are pending. Claims 1-6, 11-15, and 17 are rejected; claims 7-10 and 18-21 are withdrawn.
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 newly amended subject matter “a projection of the cyclone chamber in the axial direction passes through the second portion of the dirt collection chamber” 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
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.
Claim 17 is 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.
Newly amended claim 17 recites the limitation, “such that a projection of the cyclone chamber in the axial direction passes through the second portion of the dirt collection chamber” which is not supported by applicant’s original disclosure. In the Remarks, applicant does not recite a specific area (col., page, and/or paragraph) of the disclosure that supports the amendments. However, the Examiner refers to fig. 8 for the following explanation. Though fig. 8 shows the second portion of the dirt collection chamber is axially spaced form the cyclone chamber, the Examiner notes the figure(s) does not show any projection from the cyclone chamber that passes through the second portion of the dirt collection chamber. Further, the Examiner notes the instant disclosure does not recite any projection and/or structure corresponding to a projection from the cyclone chamber within the specification. Therefore, the recitation introduces New Matter, and it does not appear the applicant had possession of the claimed invention at the time the application was filed.
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.
Claims 1-6, 11-12, and 14-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Conrad (US Patent No. 11,154,169) in view of KR100938202 (KR’202), as provided by Examiner in previous Office action filed on 11/05/2025.
The embodiment of figs. 28-30 is utilized in the following rejection; however, specific reference numbers are shown and described for earlier figures and embodiments. Please refer to those figures for details.
Regarding claim 1, Conrad (US Patent No. 11,154,169) discloses a surface cleaning apparatus (item 100; fig. 28) comprising:
(a) an air flow path (defined as pathway through inlet 108, cyclone 116, suction source 112, and exhaust outlets 120; fig. 28) from a dirty air inlet (item 108; col. 12, ll. 44-48; fig. 28) to a clean air outlet (item 120; col. 12, ll. 48-49; fig. 28) with a motor and fan assembly (item 144; col. 12, ll. 60-63);
(b) a cyclone bin assembly (item 116; figs. 28-30) having
(i) a first assembly end (designated in annotated fig. 30 below), an opposed second assembly end (designated in annotated fig. 30 below), a longitudinal axis (designated in annotated fig. 30 below ) extending in an axial direction between the first and second assembly ends (col. 25, ll. 31-33),
(ii) a cyclone (item 152; fig. 29) located in the air flow path (col. 12, ll. 44-50), the cyclone having a first end (item 208; figs. 29-30), an opposed second end (item 206; fig. 30), a cyclone axis of rotation (item 204; fig. 30) that extends in the axial direction (col. 25, ll. 31-33) between the first and second ends (cyclone axis of rotation 204 extends in a region between the two ends), a sidewall (item 202; col. 15, ll. 58-61; figs. 29-30) located between the first and second ends (sidewall 202 is positioned between both ends in a left-right direction in view of fig. 30), a cyclone air inlet (designated in annotated fig. 30 below), a cyclone air outlet (item 188; col. 13, ll. 55-56; figs. 29-30) and a first dirt outlet (item 190; col. 13, ll. 65-67; figs. 29-30) wherein a cyclone chamber (item 154; figs. 29-30) is located internal of the sidewall (cyclone chamber 154 is within boundary of sidewall 202; figs. 29-30) between the first and second ends (cyclone chamber 154 is positioned between first and second ends in left-right direction in view of fig. 30), and
(iii) a dirt collection chamber (item 156; figs. 29-30) external to the cyclone chamber (col. 13, ll. 12-14; figs. 29-30) and in communication with the cyclone chamber via the first dirt outlet (col. 13, ll. 65 through col. 14, ll. 3),
wherein the first dirt outlet comprises an opening in the sidewall (figs. 29-30; col. 25, ll. 56-58), and
wherein the dirt collection chamber is radially positioned beside the cyclone chamber (dirt collection chamber 156 is radially positioned outward and next to, i.e. besides, cyclone chamber 154; figs. 29-30) and the cyclone chamber and the dirt collection chamber are concurrently openable (fig. 34; via item 207 and hinges at upper portion of cyclone 116; col. 9, ll. 10-12).
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Annotated Fig. 30.
Conrad does not explicitly disclose wherein the cyclone chamber has a non-circular cross-sectional area in a plane that is perpendicular to the cyclone axis of rotation, and wherein, in the plane that is perpendicular to the cyclone axis of rotation, the cyclone bin assembly has a cross-sectional area that is ovaloid, ellipsoid, or rectangular with rounded ends.
However, KR100938202 (KR’202) teaches a cyclone assembly (item 100; fig. 2) for a surface cleaning apparatus (fig. 1), wherein the cyclone bin assembly has a cyclone (item 110; figs. 2-4) with cyclone axis of rotation (defined around axis C1; fig. 3) and a cyclone chamber (within item 110; figs. 3-4), and a dirt collection chamber (item 133; fig. 3) external to the cyclone chamber (figs. 2-3), wherein the cyclone chamber has a non-circular cross-sectional area (p. 8, pp. 4 of NPL, defined as ovaloid cross-section; fig. 4) in a plane that is perpendicular to the cyclone axis of rotation (designated in annotated fig. 3 below), wherein, in the plane that is perpendicular to the cyclone axis of rotation, the cyclone bin assembly has a cross-sectional area that is ovaloid (p. 8, pp. 4; cross-section is ovaloid; fig. 4).
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KR’202 Annotated Fig. 3.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cyclone chamber, as disclosed in Conrad, to have a non-circular cross-sectional area, i.e. ovaloid cross-sectional area, in a plane that is perpendicular to the cyclone axis of rotation, as taught in KR’202, in order to define a wider gap between the sidewalls of the cyclone chamber and the filter member in order for the separated dust to easily flow and be discharged along the inner surface of the cyclone assembly without being obstructed by the filter member (KR’202; p. 8, pp. 5-9 and p. 9, pp. 1-2).
Regarding claim 2, Conrad as modified discloses the surface cleaning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, comprising a first end wall (defined as wall at first end 208, i.e. item 207), wherein the sidewall extends to the first end wall (annotated fig. 30 above; upper portion of sidewall extends to a portion of first end wall) and the first dirt outlet is a port in the sidewall (first dirt outlet 190 is a port, i.e. opening, in the sidewall; col. 25, ll. 56-58).
The embodiment of figs. 28-30 in Conrad does not explicitly disclose wherein the first dirt outlet is located at the first end. However, Conrad discloses the dirt outlet (e.g. first dirt outlet 190) may be provided at various positions along the cyclone sidewall, such as with the upstream end (item 193) of the dirt outlet located at the front end of the cyclone (corresponding to first end 208; col. 26, ll. 4-22; fig. 31).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the first dirt outlet to extend from the sidewall to the first end wall, as taught in embodiment of fig. 31 in Conrad, to help dirt which remains in the cyclone chamber after termination of operation of the vacuum cleaner to fall into the dirt collection chamber when the vacuum is held with the cyclone extending horizontally (col. 25, ll. 64 through col. 26, ll. 3).
Regarding claim 3, Conrad as modified discloses the surface cleaning apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the first dirt outlet is located at the first end wall (fig. 31) and comprises a gap between the sidewall and the first end wall (first dirt outlet 190 forms a gap, i.e. break or opening, between sidewall 202 and first end wall 207, 230; modified from fig. 31 embodiment above).
Regarding claim 4, Conrad as modified discloses the surface cleaning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein, in perpendicular section (defined as perpendicular plane designated in annotated fig. 30 above and KR’202 fig. 3 above), the cyclone is ovaloid with rounded ends (KR’202; cross-section of cyclone chamber is ovaloid).
Regarding claim 5, Conrad as modified discloses the surface cleaning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cyclone air inlet is located at the second end (designated in annotated fig. 39 above). The embodiment of fig. 28-30 does not explicitly disclose wherein the cyclone air outlet is also disposed at the second end; however, Conrad discloses in any embodiment, the cyclone air outlet may be disposed at the cyclone second end (col. 4, ll. 43-45). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to rearrange the cyclone air outlet, as disclosed in the embodiment of figs. 28-30, to be located at the second end since it has been held that rearranging parts of an invention involves only routine skill in the art (refer to MPEP 2144.04-VI-C) and the rearrangement is expected to function in an equivalent manner to allow the airflow to continue passing through the pre-motor filter, suction motor, and clean air outlets.
Regarding claim 6, Conrad as modified discloses the surface cleaning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cyclone air inlet is located at the second end (annotated fig. 30 above) and the cyclone air outlet is located at the first end (cyclone air outlet 188 is disposed at first end 208; figs. 29-30).
Regarding claim 11, Conrad as modified discloses the surface cleaning apparatus as claimed in claim 1. The embodiment of figs. 28-30 does not explicitly disclose further comprising a second dirt outlet that is also located at the first end and is angularly positioned around the sidewall from the first dirt outlet. However, the embodiment of figs. 28-30 does disclose the dirt outlet(s) may be configured similar to the embodiment of figs. 15-16 (col. 25, ll. 31-40), which comprises a cyclone (item 116) with sidewall, and a first dirt outlet (item 190.sub.1; fig. 16) and a second dirt outlet (item 190.sub.2; fig. 16) formed at the first end (item 208, corresponding to first end in figs. 29-30) and is angularly positioned around the sidewall rom the first dirt outlet (first dirt outlet 190.sub.1 is angularly positioned relative to outermost boundary of second dirt outlet 190.sub.2; fig. 16).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the first dirt outlet, as disclosed in embodiment of figs. 29-30, to include a first and second dirt outlet angularly positioned around the sidewall, as taught in embodiment of fig. 16, to help dirt which remains in the cyclone chamber after termination of operation of the vacuum cleaner to fall into the dirt collection chamber when the vacuum is held with the cyclone extending horizontally (col. 25, ll. 64 through col. 26, ll. 3) and to accommodate especially large dirt particles (col. 20, ll. 20-24).
Regarding claim 12, Conrad as modified discloses the surface cleaning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the surface cleaning apparatus is a hand vacuum cleaner (fig. 28; col. 12, ll. 44-50) having a front end (designated in annotated fig. 28 below) having the dirty air inlet (dirty air inlet 108 disposed at front end) and a rear end (designated in annotated fig. 28 below), wherein the dirty air inlet comprises an inlet conduit (item 112; fig. 28) having an inlet conduit axis (defined as axis extending centrally through inlet conduit 112), wherein the cyclone axis of rotation extends between the front end and the rear end (cyclone axis of rotation extends between both ends; fig. 28) and, when the hand vacuum cleaner is oriented such that the conduit axis extends horizontally, the cyclone axis of rotation extends horizontally (inlet conduit axis and cyclone axis of rotation are parallel; therefore, when conduit axis is horizontal, cyclone axis is also horizontal) and the first dirt outlet is in a lower portion of the sidewall (when inlet conduit axis and cyclone axis of rotation are horizontal, i.e. defined as position in view of fig. 30 above, the first dirt outlet 190 is disposed in lower portion of sidewall).
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Annotated Fig. 28.
Regarding claim 14, Conrad as modified discloses the surface cleaning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, but does not explicitly disclose wherein the cyclone air inlet is a tangential air inlet. However, Conrad discloses in any embodiment, the cyclone air inlet may be a tangential air inlet (col. 2, ll. 28-30).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to rearrange the cyclone air inlet, as disclosed in the embodiment of figs. 28-30, to be disposed on a sidewall of the cyclone in order to form a tangential air inlet since it has been held that rearranging parts of an invention involves only routine skill in the art (refer to MPEP 2144.04-VI-C) and the rearrangement is expected to function in an equivalent manner to promote cyclonic action in the cyclone assembly (col. 13, ll. 60-63).
Regarding claim 15, Conrad as modified discloses the surface cleaning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cyclone air inlet is an axial air inlet (col. 26, ll. 57-59; cyclone air inlet is in an axial location of the cyclone; fig. 30).
Claim 13 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Conrad (US 2019/0328188) in view of KR100938202 (KR’202), as provided by Examiner in previous Office action filed on 11/05/2025, and further in view of Thomas (US 2021/0204769).
Regarding claim 13, Conrad as modified discloses the surface cleaning apparatus as claimed in claim 1, but does not explicitly disclose wherein the surface cleaning apparatus is an upright surface cleaning apparatus and, in a storage position in which wheels of the surface cleaning apparatus are positioned on a floor, the cyclone axis of rotation extends vertically and dirt exits the first dirt outlet laterally.
However, Thomas (US 2021/0204769) teaches a surface cleaning apparatus (item 104; fig. 1) analogous to the surface cleaning apparatus in Conrad, wherein the surface cleaning apparatus is an upright surface cleaning apparatus (item 100; fig. 1) and, in a storage position (defined as position in view of figs. 1 and 3) in which wheels (wheels disposed on item 110 of surface cleaning apparatus) of the surface cleaning apparatus are positioned on a floor (figs. 1 and 3), the cyclone axis of rotation extends vertically and dirt exits the first dirt outlet laterally (corresponding to cyclone axis of rotation and first dirt outlet in Conrad, the cyclone axis of rotation extends parallel to axis A3 in fig. 3 of Thomas and first dirt outlet is lateral, i.e. to the right of, cyclone axis of rotation).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to configure the surface cleaning apparatus, as disclosed in Conrad, to be an upright surface cleaning apparatus, as taught in Thomas, in order for the apparatus to function as intended and further, allow the user to clean a floor surface without needing to bend over.
Claim 17 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Conrad (US 2019/0328188) in view of KR100938202 (KR’202), as provided by Examiner in previous Office action filed on 11/05/2025.
Regarding claim 17, Conrad discloses a surface cleaning apparatus (item 100; fig. 1) having an axis extending in an axial direction (designated in annotated fig. 13 below), the surface cleaning apparatus comprising:
(a) an air flow path (defined as pathway through inlet 116, cyclone 112, suction source 152, and exhaust outlets 120; pp. [0226]; fig. 12) from a dirty air inlet (item 116; pp. [0226]; figs. 1-13) to a clean air outlet (item 120; pp. [0226]; figs. 1-2) with a motor and fan assembly (item 152; pp. [0230]; fig. 12);
(b) a cyclone (item 112; figs. 1-2 and 7-13) located in the air flow path (pp. [0227-0229]), the cyclone having a first end (item 176; fig. 13) comprising a first end wall (item 196; figs. 10 and 12-13), an opposed second end (item 172; fig. 13), a cyclone axis of rotation (item 484; pp. [0229]; fig. 12) that extends in the axial direction (pp. [0229], [0257], [0263]) between the first and second ends (cyclone axis of rotation 484 extends in a region between the two ends), a sidewall (designated in annotated fig. 13 below) located between the first and second ends (sidewall is positioned between both ends in a left-right direction in view of fig. 13), a cyclone air inlet (item 180; pp. [0257]; fig. 13), a cyclone air outlet (item 184; pp. [0257]; fig. 13) and a first dirt outlet (item 188; fig. 13) wherein a cyclone chamber (item 160; fig. 12) is located internal of the sidewall (cyclone chamber 160 is within boundary of sidewall; figs. 12-13) between the first and second ends (cyclone chamber 160 is positioned between first and second ends in left-right direction in view of fig. 13);
(c) a dirt collection chamber (item 164; figs. 12-13) external to the cyclone chamber (pp. [0384-0385]; figs. 12-13) and in communication with the cyclone chamber via the first dirt outlet (pp. [0384]; fig. 13),
wherein the first end wall is moveable between a closed position (defined as position in view of figs. 12-13) and an open position (defined as position in view of figs. 7-10) and the first dirt outlet comprises a spacing between at least a portion of the first end wall and the sidewall (first dirt outlet 188 is a space between the first end wall 196 and sidewall; fig. 13), and
wherein a first portion of the dirt collection chamber (defined as left portion of dirt collection chamber 164 in view of fig. 13) is radially positioned beside the cyclone chamber (dirt collection chamber 164 is radially positioned outward and next to, i.e. besides, cyclone chamber 160; figs. 12-13) and a second portion of the dirt collection chamber (defined as right portion of dirt collection chamber 164 in view of fig. 13, designated in annotated fig. 13 below) is axially spaced from the cyclone chamber (second portion is axially spaced from right portion of cyclone chamber 160 in view of fig. 13) such that a projection of the cyclone chamber (designated in annotated fig. 13 below) in the axial direction passes through the second portion of the dirt collection chamber (designated in annotated fig. 13 below) and
wherein the cyclone chamber and the dirt collection chamber are concurrently openable (via item 196; figs. 7-10).
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Annotated Fig. 13.
Conrad does not explicitly disclose wherein the cyclone chamber has a non-circular cross-sectional area in a plane that is perpendicular to the cyclone axis of rotation.
However, KR100938202 (KR’202) teaches a cyclone assembly (item 100; fig. 2) for a surface cleaning apparatus (fig. 1), wherein the cyclone bin assembly has a cyclone (item 110; figs. 2-4) with cyclone axis of rotation (defined around axis C1; fig. 3) and a cyclone chamber (within item 110; figs. 3-4), and a dirt collection chamber (item 133; fig. 3) external to the cyclone chamber (figs. 2-3), wherein the cyclone chamber has a non-circular cross-sectional area (p. 8, pp. 4 of NPL, defined as ovaloid cross-section; fig. 4) in a plane that is perpendicular to the cyclone axis of rotation (designated in annotated fig. 3 above).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the cyclone chamber, as disclosed in Conrad, to have a non-circular cross-sectional area, i.e. ovaloid cross-sectional area, in a plane that is perpendicular to the cyclone axis of rotation, as taught in KR’202, in order to define a wider gap between the sidewalls of the cyclone chamber and the filter member in order for the separated dust to easily flow and be discharged along the inner surface of the cyclone assembly without being obstructed by the filter member (KR’202; p. 8, pp. 5-9 and p. 9, pp. 1-2).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1 and 17 have been considered but are moot because they are addressing newly amended claim limitations, as compared to the rejection of record. Upon further consideration and as necessitated by the amendments, a new grounds of rejection is made for independent claim 1 in view of the same primary reference, Conrad (US 2019/0328188), and further in view of a new teaching reference, KR100938202 (KR’202), as provided by Examiner in previous Office action filed on 11/05/2025. Additionally, as necessitated by the amendments, a new grounds of rejection is made in view of Conrad (US 2019/0328188) and further in view of KR100938202 (KR’202).
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 SIDNEY D FULL whose telephone number is (571)272-6996. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 7:00a.m.-2:30p.m..
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Brian Keller can be reached at (571)272-8548. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/SIDNEY D FULL/Examiner, Art Unit 3723
/BRIAN D KELLER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3723