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 .
Response to Amendment
The amendments filed May 26, 2026 have been entered. Accordingly, claims 7-10 and 12 are currently pending and have been examined. The Examiner acknowledges the amendments of claims 7-10. Claims 1-6 and 11 are cancelled by applicant. Claims 12 is newly presented. The previous 112b rejections have been withdrawn due to applicant’s amendments. The previous 102 rejection has been withdrawn due to applicant’s amendments. However, a new grounds of rejection has been made due to applicant’s amendments. For the reason(s) set forth below, applicant’s arguments have not been found persuasive. The action is Final.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 7-10 and 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
The term “slightly skewed in a circumferential direction” in claim 1, lines 13-14 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “slightly” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention.
Claims 8-10 and 12 depends on claim 7 and are therefore rejected accordingly under 35 USC 112(b).
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 (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 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 7-10 and 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Koh (US Pub. No. 2009/0191798) in view of Lageson (US Patent No. 6,422,932).
Regarding claim 7, Kohn discloses: a disk-shaped radial brush assembly (Figures 1-5 and see also paragraphs 0088-0089) for grinding or polishing (Applicant is reminded, a claim containing a "recitation with respect to the manner in which a claimed apparatus is intended to be employed does not differentiate the claimed apparatus from a prior art apparatus" if the prior art apparatus teaches all the structural limitations of the claim (See MPEP 2114 (II)), the disk-shaped radial brush assembly comprising:
a plurality of brushes (see paragraph 0089 where the prior art discloses a plurality of element 1 (brush) can be assembled onto a shaft (element 9) to form a “a brush assembly” (element 10)), each brush of said plurality of brushes comprising:
a plate-shaped central body (element 2) having a pair of side faces (top and bottom surface of element 2) and a central opening (see figure 1 annotated below Detail A); and
a plurality of bristles (element 5 and see also paragraph 0088) extending radially away from said plate-shaped central body (see figure 1), said plate-shaped central body having protrusions and corresponding receiving members thereon (see paragraph 0089 where the prior art discloses “a means for providing brush-to-brush engagement” including “an interengaging hole and dimple pattern on the surfaces of base”, thus said plate-shaped central body (element 2) comprises protrusions (dimple) and corresponding receiving members (interengaging hole)), and such that adjacent radial brushes of said plurality of brushes are positioned in a correspondingly specified offset position to each other (see paragraph 0089) and slightly skewed in a circumferential direction (see figure 2 annotated below showing portions (element 5 and element 7) of the brushes being slightly skewed in a circumferential direction (Detail B) from each other).
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However, Kohn does not explicitly disclose said plate-shaped central body having said protrusions formed on one side face of the pair of side faces, another side face of the pair of side faces having said corresponding receiving members thereon, and wherein the protrusions and the receiving members are circumferentially offset with each other.
Lageson is also concern in providing a disk-shaped radial brush (Figures 7-12 element 10 and see also col. 7, ll. 33-35) comprising a plate-shaped central body (element 12) having a pair of side faces (elements 24/26) and a central opening (see figure 7 annotated below Detail A), a plurality of bristles (element 18 and see also col. 7, ll. 36) extending radially away from said plate-shaped central body (see figure 7), and said plate-shaped central body having protrusions (element 36) and corresponding receiving members (element 38). Lageson further teaches wherein said plate-shaped central body having said protrusions formed on one side face of the pair of side faces (see figures 9-10 showing a plan view and cross-sectional view of a portion of the brush wherein one side face (element 24) having protrusions (element 36)), another side face of the pair of side faces having said corresponding receiving members thereon (see figures 9-10 showing a plan view and cross-sectional view of a portion of the brush wherein another side face (element 26) having receiving members (element 38)), and wherein the protrusions and the receiving members are circumferentially offset with each other (see figure 7 showing both the protrusions (element 36) and the receiving members (element 38) circumferentially arranged throughout the brush (element 10a) and see annotated figure 10 below showing a cross-sectional view of a portion of the brush showing a protrusion (box 1) being offset from a receiving member (circle 1) and another protrusion (box 2) being offset from a receiving member (circle 2), thus protrusions and the receiving members are circumferentially offset with each other).
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It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Kohn to incorporate the teachings of Lageson to provide wherein said plate-shaped central body having said protrusions formed on one side face of the pair of side faces, another side face of the pair of side faces having said corresponding receiving members thereon, and wherein the protrusions and the receiving members are circumferentially offset with each other. One of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that providing a known means for providing brush-to-brush engagement including the claimed protrusions formed on one side face of the pair of side faces with another side face of the pair of side faces having said corresponding receiving members in an offset position would necessarily allow the brush assembly to continue to function while also providing the feature of properly interlocking each brush with each other, thus preventing the assembly from dissembling and being damaged during operations.
Regarding claim 8, Kohn modified discloses: the disk-shaped radial brush of claim 7, wherein the protrusions and the receiving members having a substantially elongated shape (see figures 8 and 10 of prior art Lageson).
Regarding claim 9, Kohn modified discloses: the disk-shaped radial brush of claim 8, wherein the protrusions and the receiving members extend in a substantially radial direction (see figure 8 annotated below of prior art Lageson showing both the protrusions (element 36) and receiving member (element 38) extending in a substantially radial direction (X- arrow)).
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Regarding claim 10, Kohn modified discloses: the disk-shaped radial brush of claim 7, wherein the protrusions and the receiving members are disposed outside of an annular region surrounding the central opening (see figure 7 annotated below of prior art Lageson showing both the protrusions (element 36) and receiving member (element 38) disposed outside of an annular region (Detail A) surrounding the central opening).
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Regarding claim 12, Kohn modified discloses: the disk-shaped radial brush of claim 7, wherein the protrusions are arranged in spaced-apart groupings of protrusions (see figure 1 of prior art Lageson showing protrusions (element 36) are arranged in spaced-apart groupings (element 28) of protrusions).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments filed on 05/26/2026 have been fully considered but are moot because the arguments do not apply to the current rejection.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 ALBERTO SAENZ whose telephone number is (313)446-6610. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7:30-4:30PM EST.
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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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/A.S./Examiner, Art Unit 3723
/BRIAN D KELLER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3723
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