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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement filed 10/12/2023 fails to comply with 37 CFR 1.98(a)(2), which requires a legible copy of each cited foreign patent document; each non-patent literature publication or that portion which caused it to be listed; and all other information or that portion which caused it to be listed. It has been placed in the application file, but the information referred to therein has not been considered.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because reference characters 26 and 28 should be switched, in accordance with the specification page 4 lines 20-31. 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.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
Page 4 lines 20-31 identifies elements 26 and 28 incorrectly according to fig. 1, the reference characters should be switched
Page 6 line 21 reads “output door 18” and should read –output port door 71--
Appropriate correction is required.
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 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Schweitz (US 4897988 A).
Regarding claim 1, Schweitz discloses a lawnmower clipping chute assembly for routing grass clippings laterally on a lawnmower (10) in lieu of a collection bag (26), said assembly comprising:
a chute (28) being mountable to a deck (12) of a push lawnmower having said chute being aligned with an output port (24) of said deck wherein said chute is configured to capture grass clippings produced by said push lawnmower in lieu of a collection bag (26) of said push lawnmower, said chute being curved such that said chute is directed laterally from said deck wherein said chute is configured to direct the grass clippings laterally from said deck (see fig. 1, col. 3 lines 49-59); and
a rod (30) being attachable to said chute such that said rod extends laterally across said chute, said rod being position able in each of a pair of collection bag mounts (58) on said deck of said lawnmower for mounting said chute to said deck (col. 3 line 64-col. 4 line 5).
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 1-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over the installation instructions for a side-discharge deflector, published by Toro, copyright 2021, in view of Grazioli (WO 2010055535 A1), Hartley (US 5398491 A), and Engelen (US 11805727 B1).
Regarding claims 1-9, the instructions from Toro disclose a lawnmower clipping chute assembly (assembly 139-6556) for routing grass clippings laterally on a lawnmower in lieu of a collection bag, said assembly comprising:
a chute (1) being mountable to a deck of a push lawnmower having said chute being aligned with an output port of said deck wherein said chute is configured to capture grass clippings produced by said push lawnmower in lieu of a collection bag of said push lawnmower, said chute being curved such that said chute is directed laterally from said deck wherein said chute is configured to direct the grass clippings laterally from said deck, said chute having a top wall and a first lateral wall extending downwardly from a first lateral edge of said top wall and a second lateral wall extending downwardly from a second lateral edge of said top wall, each of said first lateral edge and said second lateral edge extending between a front edge and a back edge of said top wall, said first lateral edge having a first curve being located between said front edge and said back edge, said first curve being positioned closer to said front edge than said back edge, said second lateral edge having a second curve being located between said front edge and said back edge, said second curve being located closer to said front edge than said back edge, each of said first lateral wall and said second lateral wall extending between said front edge and said back edge to define an entry of said chute and an exit of said chute;
a rod (2) being attachable to said chute such that said rod extends laterally across said chute, said rod being positionable in each of a pair of collection bag mounts on said deck of said lawnmower for mounting said chute to said deck, said rod having an outer surface being threaded along an entire length of said rod, said rod being positionable on top of said top wall of said chute, said rod having a length being greater than a width of said top wall of said chute such that said rod extends outwardly beyond each of said first lateral wall and said second lateral wall of said chute; and
a nut (3), said nut being positionable onto a respective one of a first end or a second end of said rod when said rod is positioned in said pair of collection bag mounts for securing said rod in said pair of collection bag mounts having said entry of said chute being aligned with said output port in said deck.
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The instructions do not disclose said chute having a plurality of first holes each extending through said top wall of said chute, said plurality first holes being spaced apart from each other and being distributed along said front edge of said chute, said chute having a plurality of second holes each extending through said top wall of said chute, each of said second holes being spaced from and being aligned with a respective one of said plurality of first holes, a plurality of brackets, each of said brackets having a curved portion being centrally located between a pair of flattened portions, said curved portion of each of said brackets being positionable on said rod having each of said pair of flattened portions of each of said plurality of brackets lying on saidtop wall of said chute such that each of said flattened portions of each of said plurality of brackets is aligned with a respective one of said plurality of first holes and a respective one of said plurality of second holes; a plurality of fasteners, each of said plurality of fasteners being extendable through a respective one of said flattened portions of a respective one of said plurality of brackets, each of said plurality of fasteners extending through a respective one of said plurality of first holes or a respective one of said plurality of second holes for securing said plurality of brackets to said top wall of said chute.
Grazioli discloses a rod (7) attached to a flat object (2) having a plurality of first and second holes (see fig. 6a-8b) via a rounded bracket (6) and a plurality of fasteners, each fastener extending through a flat portion of each bracket (see fig. 6-8b).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to attach the rod to the chute via a plurality of brackets and fasteners through a plurality of first and second holes in the chute, as disclosed by Grazioli as an alternative means of attaching the rod to the chute. Additionally, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to attach the rod to the chute using brackets and fasteners instead of forming the attachment means integrally with the chute, since it has been held that constructing a formerly integral structure in various elements involves only routine skill in the art. Nerwin v. Erlichman, 168 USPQ 177, 179.
The instructions do not disclose said chute having a plurality of third holes each extending through said top wall, each of said plurality of third holes being positioned closer to said plurality of second holes than said back edge of said chute, said plurality of third holes being arranged such that each of said plurality of third holes defines a respective corner of a rectangle.
In the same field of endeavor, Hartley discloses a chute having a plurality of third holes arranged in a rectangle (holes for bolts 40, see fig. 3) extending through a chute (22) and a mower deflector (38) so that the two may be attached via bolts (col. 3 lines 58-60).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to provide the chute of Toro with four holes arranged in a rectangle, as disclosed by Hartley, do that the chute may be attached to the back cover flap of the mower deck via bolts or other fasteners, yielding a more secure attachment between the chute and the mower.
The video does not disclose a plurality of nuts.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to comprise a plurality of nuts threadable on the rod, as it has been held that mere duplication of the essential working parts of a device involves only routine skill in the art. St. Regis Paper Co. v. Bemis Co., 193 USPQ 8. See also MPEP § 2144.05.
The instructions do not disclose the rod being threaded.
In the same field of endeavor, Engelen discloses a threaded rod (40, see fig. 4) for attaching a chute (12) to a mower deck (6).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to provide the rod of the Toro instructions with threads, as disclosed by Engelen, as an alternative design for the same attachment rod.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US 11844306 B2 discloses a mower having a rear lateral discharge accessory used in place of a bagging attachment.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MADELINE RUNCO whose telephone number is (469)295-9123. The examiner can normally be reached 8-4:30 M-F.
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/MADELINE I RUNCO/ Examiner, Art Unit 3671