DETAILED ACTION
In response to remarks filed on 3 July 2025
Status of Claims
Claims 1, 5-8, 9 and 17-20 are pending;
Claims 1, 5 and 9 are currently amended;
Claims 6-8 and 17-20 were previously presented;
Claims 2-4 and 10-16 are cancelled;
Claims 1, 5-8, 9 and 17-20 are rejected herein.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments filed on 3 July 2025 have been fully considered and they are moot since new references are being used to reject the claims in view of the new limitations. The claims are too broad and examiner believes yet-to-be-found references in a wide array of unrelated areas could read on the claims.
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 1 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Gradek (U.S. Patent No. 5,688,075).
As to Claim 1, Gradek discloses a portable beach wall device comprising:
A body (38 in Figure 17) comprised of a pointed end (39. Element 39 is shaped like a point);
A first fastener (Left 70) positioned on a left edge of the body (38);
A second fastener (Right 70) positioned on a right edge of the body (38); and
A closed cell foam (35 is filled with polystyrene which is a closed-cell foam; Column 12, Lines 35-37: “The air bladder may include a polystyrene foam component to again add to the buoyancy of the system”) padding positioned on a top edge of the body (38); and
Wherein the first and second fasteners (70) are magnetic fasteners (Column 17, Lines 26-27: “wherein the releasable connection means comprises bar magnets 70 disposed in sleeve elements 71”).
Claims 5-8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Powers (U.S. Patent No. 4,142,477)
As to Claim 5, Powers discloses a portable beach wall device comprising:
A hollow body (10) comprised of a pointed end (16) and a cap (30) configured to allow access to an interior of the hollow body;
A cup holder (44) attached to the body;
A first fastener (38) positioned on a left edge of the body;
A second fastener (32) positioned on a right edge of the body; and
An impact resistant latex foam (20) padding positioned on a top edge of the body (Latex foam is a foam rubber).
As to Claim 6, Powers discloses the invention of Claim 5 (Refer to Claim 5 discussion). Powers also discloses wherein the hollow body (10) is comprised of a corrugated material (Portion 24 contains valleys and ridges which can be interpreted as a corrugated area).
As to Claim 7, Powers discloses the invention of Claim 5 (Refer to Claim 5 discussion). Powers also discloses wherein the hollow body (10) is comprised of a convex body shape (Figures 2 and 3).
As to Claim 8, Powers discloses the invention of Claim 5 (Refer to Claim 5 discussion). Powers also discloses wherein the pointed end (16) is comprised of a rounded point (42).
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 9 and 17-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Pasij (U.S. Patent No. 6,588,979) in view of Poscich (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0199123).
As to Claim 9, Pasij discloses a portable beach wall device comprising:
A hollow body (18 contains a plurality of holes and “hollow” is defined as “having a hole or empty space inside”) comprised of a pointed end (24) and a cap (64) configured to allow access to an interior (Interior of 70) of the hollow body;
A first hook fastener (40) positioned on a left edge of the body (“Hook” is defined as attach or fix. Element 40 can be interpreted as a hook fastener under the broadest reasonable interpretation since it attaches or fixes one element with another);
A second loop fastener (44) positioned on a right edge of the body (A circle is a “loop”. Therefore, circle 44 under the broadest reasonable interpretation can be interpreted as a loop fastener);
An impact resistant padding (50) positioned on a top edge of the body;
A handle (62) extending out of the impact resistant padding (50) comprising a raised textured grip area (Figure 1 shows 62 with a bolt head on top which can be interpreted as a raised textured grip area).
However, Pasij does not explicitly discloses that the padding is made of rebond foam. But Pasij discloses in Column 1, Lines 34-36 that “the flood fence may be made of any suitable material, such as sheet aluminum, a plastic material, galvanized sheet metal, wood; etc”. Therefore, before the effective filing date of the invention, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to make the padding of rebond foam since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select a known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice.
Furthermore, Pasij as modified (See above paragraph) is silent about a solar panel. Poscich discloses a barrier (10, 12, 13) with a solar panel attached thereto (Paragraph 0079: “For example, alternative energy sources may be used, such as a wind turbine system to harness the vortex air effect, a solar panel system attached to the outer shell”). Before the effective filing date of the invention, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to provide a solar panel. The motivation would have been to increase the utility of the system by allowing it to be used to produce some energy for nearby activities.
As to Claim 17, Pasij as modified teaches the invention of Claim 9 (Refer to Claim 9 discussion). Pasij as modified also teaches further comprised of an umbrella holder (72 can receive an umbrella).
As to Claim 18, Pasij as modified teaches the invention of Claim 9 (Refer to Claim 9 discussion). Pasij as modified also teaches further comprised of a hook (40).
As to Claim 19, Pasij as modified teaches the invention of Claim 9 (Refer to Claim 9 discussion). Pasij as modified also teaches further comprised of a battery charged by the solar panel (It is inherent that since a solar panel is used to produce energy, the presence of a battery is essential to accumulate the produced energy).
As to Claim 20, Pasij as modified teaches the invention of Claim 9 (Refer to Claim 9 discussion). Pasij as modified also teaches wherein the battery is comprised of a charging port (It is inherent that since a solar panel is used to produce energy, the presence of a battery is essential to accumulate the produced energy and the presence of a charging port is essential to transmit the energy from the panel to the battery).
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 EDWIN J TOLEDO-DURAN whose telephone number is (571)270-7501. The examiner can normally be reached Monday through Friday: 10:00AM to 6:00PM EST.
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/EDWIN J TOLEDO-DURAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3678