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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species H in the reply filed on 5/28/2025 is acknowledged.
Claims 1-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 5/28/2025.
Claim Objections
The claims are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 25 – “wherein the wearing chamber is configure to” should be “wherein the wearing chamber is configured to”
Claim 29 – “the first end portion, the pet paw can be located” should be amended to “the first end portion, and the pet paw can be located”, “the first end portion, wherein the pet paw can be located”, or the like
Claim 31 – “wherein the least one water outlet” should be “wherein the at least one water outlet”
Claim 30 – the comma at the end of the claim should be a period
Appropriate correction is required.
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 28-30 and 38 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.
Claim 28 recites the limitation "said same time" in line 4. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Dependent claims 29, 30, and 38 are likewise rejected.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 21-25, 27-29, 31, 32, and 34-40 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being clearly anticipated by Bennett et al. (US 20190239478 A1), hereinafter Bennett.
Regarding Claim 21
Bennett teaches a pet paw washing arrangement (pet cleaning apparatus (10)), comprising a pet washing device (glove device (24) or hand device (11)), wherein the pet washing device has at least one water outlet (Para. [0247] “fluid output point arrangement 110, which is for distance outputting of fluid”, the output having apertures (86), apertures shown in Fig. 14 and 45), when the pet washing device is worn on a hand of the user (Para. [0155] “A glove device is worn by a user on one hand”, hand shown wearing device in Fig. 38 or Fig. 50, for example), the at least one water outlet is located near a finger of the hand of the user (Fig. 50, or alternatively, Fig. 14, for example).
Regarding Claim 22
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 21, wherein the pet washing device comprises a water feeding pipeline (connecting member (26), Fig. 44) and a water guiding component (line to secondary final fluid output point (110), shown in Fig. 45 and 48 with arrow B indicating water flow) which is communicated between the at least one water outlet and the water feeding pipeline (Para. [0248] “an example fluid input point 101 (eg to receive fluid from a connecting member, or from any other source)”, Examiner notes water then flows through to secondary fluid output point arrangement (110)), wherein the water guiding component is located between two fingers of the user when the pet washing device is worn on the user (Examiner notes that the water line and fluid output arrangement (110) shown in Fig. 48, for example, is in the center of the body and can be said to be between two of the finger holders (e.g., between the two middle holders or between the two outside holders. Fig. 32 and Fig. 37 also depict the fluid output arrangement between two finger holders, for example, or Fig. 47 shows a plurality of secondary outlets (110a-d) which can be considered in between fingers).
Regarding Claim 23
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 21, wherein the pet washing device has a wearing chamber allowing at least one finger of the user to enter (glove (24), Fig. 38, for example, or alternatively, back securing arrangement (502) with finger holder arrangement (504), Fig. 50), so as to allow the pet washing device to be worn on the at least one finger of the user (Fig. 38 or Fig. 50, for example).
Regarding Claim 24
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 22, wherein the pet washing device has a wearing chamber allowing the two fingers of the user to enter (glove (24), Fig. 38, for example, or alternatively, back securing arrangement (502) with finger holder arrangement (504), Fig. 50), so as to allow the pet washing device to be worn on the two fingers of the user (Examiner notes glove (24) is worn on the two fingers, Fig. 38, or alternatively, Para. [0225] “The finger holder arrangement may comprise any number of finger holder(s) 505”, Fig. 50), wherein the water guiding component is arranged between the wearing chamber and the at least one water outlet (Fig. 50, Examiner notes that the water guiding component is inside the front portion (13) which is between the water outlet (110) and wearing chamber (502, 504)).
Regarding Claim 25
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 24, wherein the wearing chamber is configure to allow an index finger and a middle finger of the user to enter (Fig. 27, for example, shows index and middle fingers in finger holder arrangement), so as to allow the pet washing device to be worn on the index finger and the middle finger of the user (Fig. 27), wherein the water guiding component is located between the index finger and the middle finger when the pet washing device is worn on the user (Examiner notes that a user may place their fingers in any of the finger holders disclosed and the guiding component (any of 110a-d, for example, shown in Fig. 47) may be located between the index and middle finger).
Regarding Claim 27
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 21, wherein the pet washing device comprises a paw washing head (glove (24), or alternatively, hand device (11)) which comprises a first end portion having the at least one water outlet (left side of glove (24), shown in Fig. 11 with water outlet apertures (86), for example, or alternatively, right side of hand device (11), shown in Fig. 29, for example, Examiner notes this side could comprise output points (110c-d) shown in Fig. 47), wherein the first end portion of the paw washing head is suitable for wearing on one or more fingers of the user (Examiner notes that the glove (24) shown in Fig. 11 is suitable for wearing on one or more fingers, or alternatively, Fig. 29 shows right side of hand device (11) suitable for wearing on one or more fingers).
Regarding Claim 28
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 27, wherein the paw washing head further comprises a second end portion (right side of glove (24) near thumb section, shown in Fig. 11 or Fig. 14, for example, or alternatively, left side of hand device (11), shown in Fig. 29, for example), wherein the first end portion and the second end portion are suitable for being worn on different fingers of the user at said same time (Examiner notes Fig. 38 shows an example of a user wearing glove (24) with thumb in the thumb section and ring and pinky figures near the opposite end portion, or alternatively, Fig. 29 shows right side of hand device (11) worn on ring and pinky fingers and left side worn on thumb).
Regarding Claim 29
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 28, wherein the second end portion is capable of being arranged at a position facing toward the first end portion (Para. [0279] “The covering/casing may be soft; for example, in the embodiment of FIG. 15, the hand device (and covering) is clearly deformable”, Examiner notes that since the glove/hand device is clearly deformable, the second end portion is therefore capable of being arranged in a position facing toward the first end portion), the pet paw can be located between the first end portion and the second end portion (Para. [0279] “Such material(s) may be beneficial to facilitate cleaning of what is to be cleaned”, the glove/hand device can be deformed as discussed above and Examiner notes that this deformation can be used, for example, to hold a pet’s paw, thereby having the paw located between the first and second end portions).
Regarding Claim 31
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 22, wherein the pet washing device comprises a paw washing head having a water outlet surface (secondary fluid output point arrangement (110), Fig. 46 or Fig. 48, for example), wherein the least one water outlet is located in the water outlet surface (apertures (86) located on fluid output arrangement (110)).
Regarding Claim 32
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 31, further comprising a brush located on the water outlet surface adjacent to the at least one water outlet (scrubbing surface (112) shown adjacent water outlet (110), Fig. 14).
Regarding Claim 34
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 21, wherein the paw washing device comprises a water spraying assembly for being worn on one or more fingers of the user (finger holding arrangement (504), Fig. 26, for example) and a holding element connected to the water spraying assembly for the user to hold thereof (housing of device (11) comprising the front portion (13) and back portion (15)), so as to integrate a handheld paw washing function and a finger-wearable paw washing function (Examiner notes that a user can hold the device (11) with a hand simply by gripping the housing or the user can insert fingers into the finger holding arrangement (504)).
Regarding Claim 35
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 21, further comprising a water storage container connected to the pet washing device to supply water to the pet washing device (station (12), Para. [0121] “Referring to the drawings, there is shown a glove device 24, which is connected to the station 12 and hence fluid output of the station 12 via a connecting member 26 which may be an umbilical and/or a tube”, Fig. 2 or Fig. 44, for example, shows arrows denoting fluid moving from station (12) to pet washing device (11, 24)).
Regarding Claim 36
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 22, further comprising a water storage container connected to the pet washing device to supply water to the pet washing device (station (12), Para. [0121] “Referring to the drawings, there is shown a glove device 24, which is connected to the station 12 and hence fluid output of the station 12 via a connecting member 26 which may be an umbilical and/or a tube”, Fig. 2 or Fig. 44, for example, shows arrows denoting fluid moving from station (12) to pet washing device (11, 24)).
Regarding Claim 37
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 24, further comprising a water storage container connected to the pet washing device to supply water to the pet washing device (station (12), Para. [0121] “Referring to the drawings, there is shown a glove device 24, which is connected to the station 12 and hence fluid output of the station 12 via a connecting member 26 which may be an umbilical and/or a tube”, Fig. 2 or Fig. 44, for example, shows arrows denoting fluid moving from station (12) to pet washing device (11, 24)).
Regarding Claim 38
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 28, further comprising a water storage container connected to the pet washing device to supply water to the pet washing device (station (12), Para. [0121] “Referring to the drawings, there is shown a glove device 24, which is connected to the station 12 and hence fluid output of the station 12 via a connecting member 26 which may be an umbilical and/or a tube”, Fig. 2 or Fig. 44, for example, shows arrows denoting fluid moving from station (12) to pet washing device (11, 24)).
Regarding Claim 39
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 36, wherein the water storage container comprises a container body (housing (22), Fig. 19) and a controller installed on the container body (pump (32), Fig. 19).
Regarding Claim 40
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 37, wherein the water storage container comprises a container body (housing (22), Fig. 19) and a controller installed on the container body (pump (32), Fig. 19).
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 30 and 33 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bennett et al. (US 20190239478 A1), hereinafter Bennett.
Regarding Claim 30
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 28, but the embodiment relied upon does not teach:
wherein each of the first end portion and the second end portion comprises a brush for brushing the pet paw
A separate embodiment of Bennett teaches:
wherein each of the first end portion and the second end portion comprises a brush for brushing the pet paw (Fig. 14 shows scrubbing surfaces (112) both on first end and second end portions)
Fig. 11 of Bennett teaches the first end having a water outlet, but does not teach the first and second end portions comprising brushes. On the other hand, Fig. 14 teaches both the first and second end portions having brushes but does not teach a water outlet on the first end. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have combined the teachings of the embodiments shown in Fig. 11 and Fig. 14 of Bennett with a reasonable expectation of success and with the motivation of having both more brushes and more water outlets, resulting in more flexibility for the user using the pet washing device.
Regarding Claim 33
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 27, further comprising a water control switch (button (512), shown in Fig. 27, for example, or stopping feature (518), shown in Fig. 47 and 48, for example), wherein the water control switch is arranged to allow another finger of the user, not the one or more fingers of the user for wearing the pet paw washing device, to operate the water control switch (Examiner notes that any finger can operate the water control switch, for example, but not limited to, any of the fingers on the other hand of the user), but does not teach:
the water control switch located at the first end portion
Examiner notes that Fig. 27 shows that button (512) can be placed on the first end portion, although this is for left-handed users. Examiner notes however, that this would not prevent a right-handed person from using the device, resulting in the claimed invention.
Furthermore, Bennett discloses the claimed invention except for the water control switch located on the first end portion. However, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have made the water control switch located at the first end portion, since it has been held that rearranging parts of an invention involves only routine skill in the art. In re Japikse, 86 USPQ 70.
Claim 26 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bennett et al. (US 20190239478 A1), hereinafter Bennett, in view of Wolgamuth (US 5722349 A).
Regarding Claim 26
Bennett teaches the pet paw washing arrangement, as recited in claim 24, but does not teach:
wherein the water guiding component is made of flexible material to allow the two fingers of the user to press thereon to adjust a water pressure thereof
Wolgamuth teaches:
wherein the water guiding component (outlet veins (34)) is made of flexible material (rubber tubing (30)) to allow the two fingers of the user to press thereon to adjust a water pressure thereof (Examiner notes that due to the arrangement of the outlet veins between the fingers as shown in Fig. 2-4, two fingers of the user can press thereon to adjust a water pressure)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the pet paw washing arrangement with the flexible guiding component of Wolgamuth with a reasonable expectation of success and with the motivation of providing a means for the two fingers to adjust the water pressure. While Bennett does teach a stopping feature (518), this is a button controllable by a user’s thumb. However, one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that it would also be beneficial for the two fingers that effectively control the aim of the water output to also control the pressure output, as this could provide better control for the user.
Examiner’s Note
Claim 34, for example, aims to define the dual use pet paw washing arrangement shown in Fig. 27 and 29 and Fig. 28 and 30, respectively. Examiner notes that the claims are currently broad but would receive favorable consideration if Applicant were to more narrowly define the structure that allows for the multiple configurations shown in the aforementioned figures. Specifically, Examiner recommends claiming limitations regarding the pet paw washing arrangement having a first planar configuration (Fig. 27 and 29) where a user holds the outside of the device and a second non-planar configuration (Fig. 28 and 30) where the flexible second end portion is detachably connected to the base and folded backwards into a C-shape, thereby opening a space for a user to place two fingers and another space within the second end where the user’s thumb can be inserted.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to Applicant’s disclosure:
US 20220000072 A1, US 20160073611 A1, US 20100282182 A1, US 6718913 B1, US 6257785 B1, US 6109214 A, US 5169251 A, and US 1530327 A all teach hand/finger wearable pet washing devices with water outlets on the hand or finger areas
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Katherine June Walter whose telephone number is (571)272-6150. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:00 am - 5:00 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Kimberly Berona can be reached at (571)272-6909. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/K.J.W./Examiner, Art Unit 3647
/KIMBERLY S BERONA/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3647