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.
Claim(s) 1-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yoneda et al (US 12,138,959) in view of Nagata et al (US 8,497,435). Yoneda discloses:
With regard to claim 1 - A hub motor, suitable to be mounted on a bicycle, the hub motor comprising:
an axle 12, fixing the hub motor to a frame RB of the bicycle;
a stator 62, fixed to the axle 12 and suitable to be connected to a control unit 44;
a rotor 64, rotatably sleeved on the axle 12 and suitable to rotate around the stator 12;
a casing 14, rotatably sleeved on the axle 12 and suitable to be driven by the rotor 64 to rotate around the rotor 64 and the axle 12, the casing 14 having an accommodating space and an opening, the accommodating space accommodating the stator 62 and the rotor 64, and the opening communicating with the accommodating space (see Fig. 5); and
a power cord 40, arranged in the opening and comprising a positioning structure (see reference numeral 18b in Fig. 5) and a wire, the wire being electrically connected to the control unit 44.
Yoneda fails to explicitly disclose the claimed structure of the positioning structure.
Nagata teaches a cable mounting structure for an electric apparatus comprising a power cord 11 arranged in an opening 16 in the electric apparatus and a positioning structure 20, the positioning structure 20 covering the wire 11, wherein the positioning structure 20 has a first rib 23 and at least one second rib 24, the first rib 23 being located between one end of the positioning structure 20 and the at least one second rib 24 and suitable to be clamped in a casing 10a, and the at least one second rib 24 being adjacent to the first rib 23 and suitable to press a wall surface of the opening (see Figs. 2a and 2b). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to modify the hub motor of Yoneda with the teaching of Nagata such that the positioning structure includes first and second ribs, with a reasonable expectation of success, to ensure sealing properties, such as waterproof properties and dustproof properties with a secure connection.
With regard to claim 2, Yoneda discloses wherein the casing 14 has an axle hole, the axle 12 is arranged to pass through the axle hole, and the opening is located on one side of the axle hole and communicates with the axle hole (see marked up figure below).
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With regard to claim 3, Yoneda discloses wherein the positioning structure 18b has an abutting surface corresponding to a surface profile of the axle, the abutting surface is located on a side of the positioning structure close to the axle and in surface contact with the axle (see marked up figure above).
With regard to claim 4, Yoneda discloses a connecting member 20, wherein a first end of the connecting member 20 is connected to the frame, and a second end of the connecting member 20 is arranged to pass through the axle hole, the axle 12 is sleeved on the connecting member 18, the positioning structure 18b is connected to the connecting member 18, a first part of the abutting surface contacts the axle, and a second part of the abutting surface (corner thereof) contacts the connecting member 18 (see marked up figure above).
With regard to claim 5, Nagata teaches wherein a quantity of the at least one second rib 24 is plural, and the second ribs 24 are spaced apart from each other (see Fig. 2a).
With regard to claim 6, Nagata teaches wherein the first rib 23 extends along a radial direction away from the axle to form a blocking member, the blocking member has a blocking surface, and a normal direction of the blocking surface is parallel to an extending direction of the axle (see marked up figure below).
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With regard to claim 7, Nagata teaches wherein the at least one second rib 24 forms a convex ring around a surface of the positioning structure 20 (the ribs extend around the positioning structure), and an axial direction of the convex ring is the same as an extending direction of the wire 11.
With regard to claim 8, Nagata teaches wherein in a radial direction of the wire 11, a thickness of the convex ring 24 is less than a thickness of the blocking member 24 (see Fig. 2a).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
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/TIMOTHY WILHELM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3614 December 23, 2025