DETAILED ACTION
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 § 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.
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Claims 1-16 and 21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US8350142 (Fujiwara), hereinafter US’142, in view of US8466359 (Sakai), hereinafter US’359.
Regarding claim 1, US’142 discloses ‘A pedal unit for an electronic musical instrument, the pedal unit comprising: a case (US’142, Fig. 1-2; col. 9, lines 4-5: "The damper pedal 110 is rotatably supported inside the pedal box 110d", teaches a musical-instrument pedal box/case;
a foot lever including a first portion located inside the case and a second portion located outside the case (US’142, Fig. 2; col. 9, lines 6-11: "A human player puts his or her foot on the front portion of the damper pedal 110..." and "the front portion... is lowered, and the rear portion... is lifted"; the front portion of damper pedal 110 is depressed by the player while the rear portion is disposed within pedal box 110d and moves upward, teaches a foot lever having an outside foot-contact portion and an inside portion),
the foot lever being rotatably arranged with respect to the case (US’142, Fig. 2; col. 9, lines 4-6: "The damper pedal 110 is rotatably supported inside the pedal box 110d, and a pin 110a gives an axis of rotation to the damper pedal 110", teaches the pedal is rotatable relative to the case; pin 110a provides the center/axis of rotation for pedal 110 relative to pedal box 110d),
a center of rotation of the foot lever being located between the first portion and the second portion (US’142, Fig. 2; col. 9, lines 1-13: “player puts his or her foot on the front portion of the damper pedal 110, and exerts force on the front portion of damper pedal 110. Then, the damper pedal 110 is rotated about the pin 110a as indicated by arrows in FIG. 2 … the front portion of damper pedal 110 is lowered, and the rear portion of damper pedal 110 is lifted”, pin 110a gives axis and front/rear portions move oppositely; pin 110a is positioned between the forward foot-contacting portion and the rear portion within the pedal box, where depression of the front portion raises the rear portion, teaches the center of rotation);
US’142 does not expressly disclose ‘and an elastic member arranged inside the case and applying a force to the first portion.’
However, US’359 discloses ‘and an elastic member arranged inside the case and applying a force to the first portion (US’359, Fig. 2/4; col. 6, lines 35-41: "the coil spring 22 presses the pedal 10 upwards by its spring force" and is "arranged between the bottom surface of the pedal 10 and the corresponding recess section 9d of the pedal chassis 9", teaches an elastic member located within the pedal case/chassis that directly biases the pedal upward).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to incorporate the spring-biased pedal arrangement of US’359 into the pedal assembly of US’142 because both references are directed to pedal devices for electronic keyboard musical instruments, and US’359 teaches that its pedal structure provides a compact construction while maintaining comfortable pedal operation, thereby improving pedal feel and reducing installation space.
Regarding claim 2, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1, as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) further discloses ‘wherein the elastic member is disposed above the first portion (US’359, Fig. 2/4; col. 6, lines 35-41: "the coil spring 22 is arranged between the bottom surface of the pedal 10 and the corresponding recess section 9d..." and "presses the pedal 10 upwards by its spring force", teaches a spring disposed in the internal pedal-case/chassis region and applying force to the pedal).
Regarding claim 3, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1, as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) further discloses ‘wherein the elastic member is a metal spring (US’359, Fig. 2/4; col. 6, lines 40 & 46: "the coil spring 22"; col. 3, line 26: pedal chassis 9 is made of metal, teaches a coil spring biasing the pedal; a coil spring is conventionally metal in this pedal context).
Regarding claim 4, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1, as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) further discloses ‘further comprising a sensor disposed above the first portion and configured to detect a position of the foot lever as the foot lever rotates (US’359, Fig. 2-5; col. 7, line 4: "the third supporting section 9c of the pedal chassis 9 is provided with a switch section 24" and the dome section is (col. 7, line 26):"pressed from above", teaches a switch/sensor section above the internal/back pedal mechanism; US’142, Fig. 3-4; correlation passage: "The pedal position sensor 24... serves as 'a sensor'", teaches pedal position sensor 24 detecting pedal position).
Regarding claim 5, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1 as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) further discloses ‘wherein an upper surface of the second portion is horizontally disposed at a predetermined position in a rotatable range of the foot lever (US’359, Fig. 2; col. 9, lines 14-15:"the upper surface section 10a of the pedal 10 comes into elastic contact with the upper limit stopper 12", teaches an upper surface section 10a of the exposed/front pedal portion held at a predetermined upper/rest position; Fig. 2 shows the upper surface of the second/exposed portion substantially horizontal at the rest/upper-limit position).
Regarding claim 6, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1, as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) further discloses ‘wherein at least part of an upper surface of the first portion is disposed below an upper surface of the second portion at a predetermined position in a rotatable range of the foot lever (US’359, Fig. 1-3; col. 3, lines 16-17: back portions are inserted into pedal case 8; col. 3, lines 22-24:“Fig. 2, the inner upper surface of each pedal insertion hole 8a is provided with an upper limit stopper 12 for setting the upper limit position of the pedal 10”, shows the internal/back upper surface below the exposed/front upper surface, teaches a pedal with internal/back and external/front portions having offset upper surfaces; the internal/back upper surface is below the external/front upper surface in the depicted rest/upper-limit position).
Regarding claim 7, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1, as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) further discloses ‘wherein an upper distal end portion of the second portion in the foot lever is disposed: higher than the center of rotation at a rest position of the foot lever (US’359, Fig. 2/4; col. 6, lines 41-43: upper surface section 10a contacts upper limit stopper 12; col. 8, lines 25-26:Fig. 2 shows rest position relative to imaginary fulcrum P, teaches the front/distal portion of the pedal at an upper/rest position; Fig. 2 supports the distal/front portion being higher than the rotation/fulcrum reference at rest);
and lower than the center of rotation at a fully pressed position of the foot lever (US’359, Fig. 5; col. 6, lines 45-47: when pedal 10 is pressed down, it contacts lower limit stopper 23; col. 8, lines 25-26: "the overall pedal 10 moves by rotating around the imaginary fulcrum P", teaches the pedal moves downward to a fully pressed/lower-limit position by rotation; Fig. 5 supports the distal/front portion moving lower than the rotation/fulcrum reference at the lower-limit position).
Regarding claim 8, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1, as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) further discloses ‘wherein the center of rotation is disposed below an upper surface of the second portion at a rest position of the foot lever (US’359, Fig. 2/5; col. 5, lines 2-4, col. 6, lines 29-30: guide grooves 18 are arc-shaped around imaginary fulcrum P; Fig. 2 shows imaginary fulcrum P below/behind the upper surface of the front pedal portion at rest”, teaches a pedal rotating about imaginary fulcrum P located below the upper surface of the exposed/front portion at rest; the imaginary fulcrum P corresponds to the claimed center of rotation under a broad reading).
Regarding claim 9, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1, as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) further discloses ‘wherein the case includes a support structure disposed underneath the foot lever and supporting at least one of a shaft or a bearing (US’359, Fig. 2-4; col. 3, lines 32-39: pedal chassis 9 has first, second and third supporting sections 9a, 9b, 9c; col. 6, lines 22-24, : first/second guide shafts 20,21 are movably inserted in guide grooves 18”, teaches a case/chassis support structure underneath the pedal supporting guide shafts/bearing-like guide structure; the pedal chassis/supporting sections function as the support structure for the shaft/guide mechanism).
Regarding claim 10, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1, as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) further discloses ‘wherein a width of part of the foot lever, which is arranged above the center of rotation, is wider than a width of an area where a shaft and a bearing face each other (US’359, Fig. 3 and Fig. 6; col. 3, lines 59-60: pedals are elongated front-back; col. 5, lines 59-61 & col. 6, lines 4-8: guide coupling member 14 and guide shafts 20,21 define a narrower shaft/groove interface, teaches a wide pedal body relative to a narrower guide shaft/groove engagement area; Fig. 3/6 support the claimed width relationship).
Regarding claim 11, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1, as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) further discloses ‘wherein an edge in a cross-section of a shaft is arc shaped (US’359, Fig. 6; col. 6, lines 63-67: "the first guide shaft 20 and the second guide shaft 21 are both spring pins. The spring pin is formed into a pipe shape, and the surface thereof is formed into a wave shape along the axial direction", teaches shaft members formed as pipe-shaped spring pins; a pipe-shaped shaft has an arc/circular cross-sectional edge; the wave-shaped surface also supports non-flat shaft edge geometry).
Regarding claim 12, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1, as discussed above.
US’142 further discloses ‘wherein the foot lever includes one of a shaft and a bearing (US’142, Fig. 2; col. 9, lines 4-6: "a pin 110a gives an axis of rotation to the damper pedal 110", teaches the foot lever includes/works with a shaft/pin),
the shaft and the bearing forming the center of rotation (US’142, Fig. 2; col. 9, lines 4-6: "a pin 110a gives an axis of rotation to the damper pedal 110", teaches a shaft/pin and bearing/support forming the center of rotation; pin 110a defines the pedal rotation center),
and the case includes the other of the shaft and the bearing (US’142, Fig. 2, col. 9, lines 4-5: pin 110a is supported by the pedal box 110d., teach the case includes the corresponding support/bearing for the shaft).
Regarding claim 13, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1, as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) further discloses ‘wherein: the center of rotation is located inside the case (US’142, Fig. 2; col. 9, lines 4-6: damper pedal 110 is rotatably supported inside pedal box 110d and pin 110a gives an axis of rotation, teaches the center of rotation located inside the pedal box/case; pin 110a/rotation axis is inside pedal box 110d)
and at least part of an area where a shaft and a bearing face each other overlaps the second portion as the foot lever is viewed from above (US’359, Fig. 2-6; col. 3, lines 15-20: back portions inserted into pedal case 8; col. 5-6: guide shafts 20,21 are attached to guide coupling member 14 in the back portion and move in guide grooves 18, teaches a shaft/groove facing area in the back/internal portion of the pedal that overlaps the pedal portion when viewed from above; Fig. 3/6 support the top-view overlap relationship).
Regarding claim 14, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1, as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) further discloses ‘further comprising: a stopper supporting the first portion of the foot lever from below in a rest position of the foot lever (US’359, Fig. 2 and Fig. 5; col. 6, lines 45-55: pedal 10 contacts lower limit stopper 23 and lower limit position is set, teaches a stopper supporting/stopping the pedal from below; support for a lower stopper supporting the internal/first portion),
US’142 (in view of US’359) further discloses ‘wherein the elastic member applies a force above the first portion between the center of rotation and the stopper (US’359, Fig. 2/4; col. 6, lines 35-41: coil spring 22 is arranged between bottom surface of pedal 10 and recess section 9d and presses pedal 10 upward, teaches an elastic member applying force to the internal/back pedal portion between the guide/rotation region and stopper structure; maps to the spring force arrangement).
Regarding claim 15, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1, as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) further discloses ‘further comprising: a lower stopper and an upper stopper defining a range of rotation of the foot lever in the first portion (US8466359, Fig. 2; col. 3, lines 20-25: upper limit stopper 12; col. 6, lines 45-55: lower limit stopper 23; col. 4-6: guide holding member 13 and guide coupling member 14, same-field for pedal travel; teaches lower and upper stop members defining the range of pedal/bracket travel)
and a guide member regulating a direction of rotation of the foot lever inside the case, wherein part of the upper stopper is disposed above the guide member (US8466359, Fig. 2-6; col. 4-6: rotation holding mechanism 11 includes guide holding member 13 and guide coupling member 14; guide grooves 18 guide movement along an arc, teaches a guide member regulating the direction of rotation/movement of the pedal inside the case; guide holding member 13/guide grooves 18 regulate the pedal's rotational movement),
and part of the lower stopper is disposed below the guide member (US8466359, Fig. 2: upper stopper 12 is above the guide/pedal region and lower stopper 23 is below, teaches upper and lower stop portions disposed above and below a guided pedal/ structure; maps to the upper/lower stopper relative placement).
Regarding claim 16, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 15, as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) further discloses ‘wherein the guide member is in contact with at least one of the upper stopper or the lower stopper (US'359, col. 9, lines 14-15:"the upper surface section 10a of the pedal 10 comes into elastic contact with the upper limit stopper 12 ... col. 6, lines 45-47: when each of the plurality of pedals 10 is pressed down … the pedal 10 comes into contact with a lower limit stopper 23....", teaches a guided contact structure contacting upper and lower stop members; the guide structure is in contact with the stop members).
Regarding claim 21, US’142 discloses ‘An electronic keyboard apparatus comprising:
a pedal unit comprising: a case (US’142, Fig. 1-2; col. 9, line 4: pedal box 110d);
a foot lever including a first portion located inside the case and a second portion located outside the case (US’142, US’142, Fig. 2; col. 9, lines 6-11: "A human player puts his or her foot on the front portion of the damper pedal 110..." and "the front portion... is lowered, and the rear portion... is lifted"; the front portion of damper pedal 110 is depressed by the player while the rear portion is disposed within pedal box 110d and moves upward, teaches a foot lever having an outside foot-contact portion and an inside portion),
the foot lever being rotatably arranged with respect to the case (US’142, Fig. 2; col. 9, lines 4-6: "The damper pedal 110 is rotatably supported inside the pedal box 110d, and a pin 110a gives an axis of rotation to the damper pedal 110", teaches the pedal is rotatable relative to the case; pin 110a provides the center/axis of rotation for pedal 110 relative to pedal box 110d),
a center of rotation of the foot lever being located between the first portion and the second portion (US’142, US’142, Fig. 2; col. 9, lines 1-13: “player puts his or her foot on the front portion of the damper pedal 110, and exerts force on the front portion of damper pedal 110. Then, the damper pedal 110 is rotated about the pin 110a as indicated by arrows in FIG. 2 … the front portion of damper pedal 110 is lowered, and the rear portion of damper pedal 110 is lifted”, pin 110a gives axis and front/rear portions move oppositely; pin 110a is positioned between the forward foot-contacting portion and the rear portion within the pedal box, where depression of the front portion raises the rear portion, teaches the center of rotation);
a keyboard unit having a plurality of keys (US’142, Fig. 1; col. 7, lines 25-35: "Plural black keys 1f and plural white keys 1h are incorporated in the keyboard 1a...");
and a sound source unit configured to generate a sound signal according to an operation to the plurality of keys and an operation to the foot lever on the pedal unit (US’142, Fig. 3; col. 10-11: "An electronic tone generating system 150 is further connected to the controller 10"; correlation passage identifies pedal position sensor and pedal events, teaches an electronic tone generating system/sound source responsive to key and pedal operations; the electronic tone generating system corresponds to the claimed sound source unit).
US’142 does not expressly disclose ‘and an elastic member arranged inside the case and applying a force to the first portion
However, US’359 discloses ‘and an elastic member arranged inside the case and applying a force to the first portion (US’359, Fig. 2/4; col. 6, lines 35-41: coil spring 22 arranged between bottom surface of pedal 10 and recess section 9d and presses pedal 10 upward).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to incorporate the spring-biased pedal arrangement of US’359 into the pedal assembly of US’142 because both references are directed to pedal devices for electronic keyboard musical instruments, and US’359 teaches that its pedal structure provides a compact construction while maintaining comfortable pedal operation, thereby improving pedal feel and reducing installation space.
Claims 17-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US’142, in view of US’359, and in further view of US20090229440 (Iwamoto), hereinafter US’440.
Regarding claim 17, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1, as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘wherein the contact member is integral with any one of a shaft forming the center of rotation of the foot lever or a bearing facing the shaft (US'359, Figs. 2-4; col. 4, ll. 42-67; col. 5, ll. 1-36, teaches a pedal support structure in which the rotational shaft and bearing support are integrated into the pedal mechanism to support rotational movement).
US’142 (in view of US’359) does not expressly disclose ‘further comprising: a guide member regulating a direction of rotation of the foot lever in the first portion; and a contact member disposed on the first portion of the foot lever and moving in contact with the guide member as the foot lever rotates.
However, US’440 discloses ‘further comprising: a guide member regulating a direction of rotation of the foot lever in the first portion (US'440, ¶[0058]: "The friction producing member 47 is allowed to travel only in a direction perpendicular to the contact portion 46d ... by a guide member which is not shown", teaches a guide member constraining and regulating movement of the pedal mechanism during lever rotation);
and a contact member disposed on the first portion of the foot lever and moving in contact with the guide member as the foot lever rotates (US'440, ¶[0056]: "The pivot restricting member 46 is fixed to the top surface of the lever 40"; ¶ [0059]: "friction caused by the contact is produced between the pivot restricting member 46 and the friction producing member 47", teaches a contact member fixed to the lever and moving in contact with the guide member as the lever rotates),
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to integrate the contact member of US'440 with the rotational support structure taught by US'359 because both references are directed to pedal mechanisms for keyboard musical instruments, and such integration predictably reduces component count, improves alignment of contacting members, simplifies assembly, and improves durability of the pedal mechanism.
Regarding claim 18, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 1, as discussed above.
US’142 (in view of US’359) does not expressly disclose ‘further comprising: a guide member regulating a direction of rotation of the foot lever in the first portion; and a contact member disposed on the first portion of the foot lever and moves in contact with the guide member as the foot lever rotates, wherein the contact member includes an area for elastic deformation and is configured to apply a restoring force in a direction from the foot lever to the guide member.
However, US’440 discloses ‘further comprising: a guide member regulating a direction of rotation of the foot lever in the first portion (US'440, ¶[0058]: "The friction producing member 47 is allowed to travel only in a direction perpendicular to the contact portion 46d ... by a guide member which is not shown", teaches a guide member regulating movement of the pedal mechanism) ;
and a contact member disposed on the first portion of the foot lever and moves in contact with the guide member as the foot lever rotates (US'440, ¶[0056]: "The pivot restricting member 46 is fixed to the top surface of the lever 40"; ¶[0059]: "friction caused by the contact is produced between the pivot restricting member 46 and the friction producing member 47", teaches a contact member that moves in contact with the guide member during pedal rotation),
wherein the contact member includes an area for elastic deformation and is configured to apply a restoring force in a direction from the foot lever to the guide member (US'440, ¶[0056]: "The pivot restricting member 46 is formed of a material which has relatively high stiffness but is elastically deformable"; "the contact portion 46d can elastically deform in the vertical direction to a certain degree"; ¶[0060]: "the urging force by the spring 48 causes the pivot restricting member 46 to slightly elastically deform toward the lever 40", teaches an elastically deformable contact member providing a restoring force while maintaining contact).
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 pedal mechanism of US'142 (in view of US'359) to include the elastically deformable contact member taught by US'440 because US'440 teaches that the resilient contact member maintains guided contact while providing a restoring force during pedal movement, thereby improving smooth and reliable operation.
Claim 19 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US’142, in view of US’359, and in further view of US5775212 (Takao), hereinafter US’212.
Regarding claim 19, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 15, as discussed above.
US'142 (in view of US'359) further discloses ‘wherein the guide member includes a first guide surface and a second guide surface (US'359, Figs. 4-9; col. 4, lines 52-56:"in each of the pair of side surface sections 13b of the guide holding member 13, a guide plate 17 ... is embedded ...";col. 6, lines 22-23:"the first guide shaft 20 and the second guide shaft 21 are movably inserted into the ... guide grooves 18 of the guide plates 17"; col. 6, lines 29-31:"the guide coupling member 14 is moved ... along the arc-shaped guide grooves 18" teaches a pair of guide plates positioned on opposite side surface sections, each including a guide groove that provides opposing guide surfaces guiding movement of the pedal mechanism);
the first guide surface is disposed opposite to the second guide surface with respect to the foot lever (US'359, Figs. 4, 5, 7-9; "the pair of side surface sections 13b"; col. 6, lines 10-11"guide plate 17 ... provided in the pair of side surface sections 13b"; col.6 , lines 8-11:"the end portions of the first guide shaft 20 are movably inserted into the ... guide grooves 18 of the guide plates 17 provided in the pair of side surface sections 13b"; "the second guide shaft 21 ... inserted into the ... guide grooves 18 of the guide plates 17 provided in the pair of side surface sections 13b" teaches guide surfaces located on opposite sides of the pedal to regulate guided movement);
US'142 (in view of US'359) does not expressly disclose ‘and the first guide surface and the second guide surface are non-parallel
However, US’214 discloses ‘and the first guide surface and the second guide surface are non-parallel (US’212, Fig. 2; col. 3, lines 33-35 "the guide gib 3 has the inclined guide surface 3a in sliding contact with the inclined sliding surface 1b"; col. 3, lines 44-49:"a plurality of inclined surfaces 3f ... are inclined at a predetermined angle"; col. 3, lines 64-65:"the wedge inclined surface 6a has the same inclination as that of the inclined surface 3f,", teaches cooperating inclined guide surfaces arranged at an angle to define a non-parallel wedge guide configuration; teaches non-parallel guide surfaces).
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 guide structure of US'142 (in view of US'359) to incorporate the non-parallel guide surfaces taught by US’212 because US’212 teaches that inclined guide surfaces provide adjustable guided movement and controlled clearance between cooperating movable components, thereby improving guidance accuracy and reducing looseness in a predictable mechanical manner.
Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US’142, in view of US’359, and in further view of US9687250 (Dayton), hereinafter US’250.
Regarding claim 20, US’142 (in view of US’359) discloses ‘The pedal unit according to claim 15, as discussed above.
wherein: the guide member includes a first guide surface and a second guide surface (US’250, col. 4, lines 62-64: "the main guide member 120 can have a first guide surface 130A and a second guide surface 130B"),
the first guide surface is disposed opposite to the second guide surface with respect to the foot lever (US’250, col. 4, lines 66-67 & col. 5, line 1: "the first and second guide surfaces 130A and 130B can be adjacent surfaces facing one another with a space defined between," teaches opposed guide surfaces defining a guide channel),
and the first guide surface and the second guide surface are parallel to each other (US’250, col. 2, lines 25-28:"the main guide member includes a first guide surface defining a first plane and a second guide surface defining a second plane, where the first plane is parallel to the second plane").
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to utilize the opposed parallel guide-surface arrangement taught by US’250 in the guided pedal mechanism of US'142 (in view of US'359) because parallel guide surfaces are a known mechanical configuration for accurately constraining translational movement while maintaining alignment between relatively movable members. Applying this known guide arrangement would have predictably improved guidance and positional stability of the pedal mechanism while using a well-known mechanical design technique.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
US9064387 teaches a pedal apparatus for an electronic keyboard instrument including a pedal mechanism having a pivoting pedal, return spring, and pedal housing.
US6084167 teaches a pedal mechanism for a keyboard musical instrument including a pivoted pedal lever, spring bias, and pedal support structure.
US20210193098 teaches a pedal device for a keyboard instrument having a compact pedal housing, pedal guide structure, and pedal position detection arrangement.
US20100107984 teaches a mechanical guide mechanism including opposing guide surfaces and guide members for controlling guided movement between relatively movable components.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NICOLE K GILLESPIE whose telephone number is (571)482-4187. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7:30-5pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Dedei K Hammond can be reached at (571)270-3819. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/NICOLE K GILLESPIE/Examiner, Art Unit 2837
/JEFFREY DONELS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2837
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