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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on September 11, 2026 has been entered.
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(s) 1-4, 10, and 21-25 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Jungkind, US 9,072,341.
Regarding claim 1, Jungkind discloses a fastening system [for an article of footwear], comprising: a fastening mechanism including an upper cover (5) that is rotatably coupled to a chassis (housing 2; see annotated figure 1 below); a lace (portion of element 4 not confined in the fastening mechanism; wherein the lace is configured to be attached to the sport shoe at another location besides the fastening mechanism) that is configured to be operably engaged with [an upper of the footwear] and with the fastening mechanism (including the cover 5); and a cable (element 4 that is defined within the fastening mechanism) that is attached to the upper cover (5; the end of 4 is anchored to roller 3, which is driven by the intermediate carrier 6, which is in turn driven by the cover 5, such that the cable end is attached to the cover 5 through the rotating assembly, as described in col. 4, ll. 14-21), wherein the cable (of 4) is configured to be received by a receptacle (see the annotated figure 1; the slot in 2 through which 4 enters the fastening mechanism) that is disposed outboard of an outer chassis wall (see the annotated figure 1; the cylindrical outer wall of 2), wherein the cable (of 4) is configured to be rotated relative to the chassis (2; see the annotated figure 1) about a rotational axis (A) [to adjust the footwear] between a loosened configuration (figure 3) and a tightened configuration (figure 2), wherein the fastening mechanism is tightened by actuating the cable (by rotating the cover 5 to actuate and wind said cable of element 4 on the roller 3), and wherein the fastening mechanism is loosened by rotating the upper cover (5) counterclockwise (R2).
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Claim language set in brackets [] set forth above and below in this office action are considered by the examiner to be intended use that fails to further limit the structure of the claimed invention. Since the claimed invention is directed solely to that of the fastening system, the prior art must only be capable of performing the functional recitations in order to be applicable, and in the instant case, the examiner maintains that the rotary closure for a shoe disclosed by Jungkind (US 9,072,341), is indeed capable of the intended use statements. Note that it has been held that 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 satisfying the claimed structural limitations.
It is further noted that claim 1 does not require the lace and the cable to be separate physical components. Under the broadest reasonable interpretation, a single continuous tensioning element having a first (lace) portion operably engaged with the upper and a second (cable) portion anchored to and rotated with the cover (5) assembly reads on both limitations. The recitation “attached to the upper cover” is met when considering the end of element 4 that is anchored to the roller (3), which is driven by the carrier (6) and in turn driven by the cover (5), and therefore “attached to” the cover (5) through mechanical connection.
Regarding claim 2, Jungkind discloses the fastening system of claim 1, [wherein the fastening mechanism is mounted to the upper on a lateral side of the footwear (sport shoe) within a midfoot region]. Jungkind has disclosed that the rotary closure can be attached to the instep, lateral region, or heel region of a shoe (col. 3, ll. 66 - col. 4, ll. 3).
Regarding claim 3, Jungkind discloses the fastening system of claim 1, wherein the lace (of 4) is operably engaged with the fastening mechanism and extends through a spool (3), [and wherein the lace is proximate a tongue of the footwear].
Regarding claim 4, Jungkind discloses the fastening system of claim 3, wherein the fastening mechanism includes the upper cover (5) [that is configured to receive a cable], the spool (3) that is configured to receive the lace (4), and a screw (16) that is operably engaged with the upper cover (5) and the spool (3).
Regarding claim 10, Jungkind discloses the fastening system of claim 1, wherein the upper cover (5) is rotated counterclockwise (R2) to loosen a tension of the lace (see figure 3).
Regarding claim 21, Jungkind discloses the fastening system of claim 1, wherein the outer chassis wall (cylindrical outer wall of 2) defines an outermost radial boundary of an internal volume (the inner area of 2) of the chassis (2).
Regarding claim 22, Jungkind discloses the fastening system of claim 21, wherein an intermediate wall (the annular wall of 2) is disposed radially inward of the outer chassis wall (the cylindrical outer wall of 2).
Regarding claim 23, Jungkind discloses the fastening system of claim 1, wherein a first end (the anchored end of 4) of the cable (4) is directly attached to the upper cover (5).
Regarding claim 24, Jungkind discloses the fastening system of claim 23, wherein a second end (the free end of 4 that exits the fastening mechanism and extends along the shoe) of the cable (4) is spaced apart from the receptacle (the opening formed in the chassis 2).
Regarding claim 25, Jungkind discloses the fastening system of claim 24, wherein the second end (the free end of 4 external to 2) of the cable (4) [is configured to be pulled by a user].
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) 11-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jungkind, US 9,072,341 in view of Goodman, US 8,516,662.
Regarding claim 11, Jungkind discloses a fastening system [for an article of footwear], comprising: a fastening mechanism including an upper cover (5), a chassis (2; see the annotated figure 1), a floating latch (9), an affixed latch (7), a cable (4) that is connected to the upper cover (5), a screw (16), and a pinion-spool assembly (3) including a pinion (11), wherein the pinon (11) is configured to rotate within the chassis (2)¿, wherein the floating latch (9) is configured to move radially about the screw (16) and is disposed vertically above the affixed latch (7); and a lace (portion of 4 not in the assembly 3 and connected to the footwear) [that is configured to be operably engaged with an upper of the footwear], [wherein the fastening mechanism is configured to be actuated (via rotation of the upper cover 5) to adjust the footwear from a loosened configuration to a tightened configuration], wherein the floating latch (9) is configured to be rotated about a longitudinal axis (B), and wherein the longitudinal axis (B) is parallel with and offset from a central axis (A) that extends centrally through the fastening mechanism (axis B is parallel to the axis A but distanced from the same).
Jungkind does not explicitly disclose wherein each of the affixed latch and the floating latch is configured to engage at least one of a plurality of teeth of the pinion. The affixed latch (7) of Jungkind engages the first blocking gearing (8) formed into the inner circumference of the chassis (2) while the floating latch (9) engages the second blocking gearing (11) of the tensioning roller (3), such that the two latches engage two separate toothed elements rather than a common pinion.
However, Goodman teaches a reel (204) for a footwear lacing system in which a plurality of separately formed latches (236, each having a base 328, a pawl beam 330, and a pawl spring 332) are each configured to engage at least one of a plurality of teeth (housing teeth 224) of a common toothed element, each latch (236) being configured to rotate about a longitudinal axis (334) that is parallel with and offset from a central axis (228) and to move radially about a screw (300). Goodman further teaches that the toothed element may be relocated from the housing to an inner structure, the teeth being formed “on the outside surface of the shaft 244 or similar structure” with the pawls “biased radially inwardly toward the housing teeth 224”.
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the fastening mechanism of Jungkind such that each of the affixed latch (7) and the floating latch (9) engages at least one of a plurality of teeth of the pinion (blocking gearing 11) as taught by Goodman, in order to distribute the retention load across multiple engagement points on a single common toothed element, thereby providing more secure retention of the wound tensioning element against unintended loosening and permitting finer incremental adjustment of the closure.
Regarding claim 12, the combination Jungkind and Goodman teaches the fastening system of claim 11, Jungkind further discloses wherein a pinion (11) and a spool (spool portion of 3) are integrally formed to define a pinion-spool assembly (see figure 1), the pinion-spool assembly (3) including a medial hole (for the cable 4 to extend thru; see figure 1) that extends through the pinion-spool assembly (figure 1).
Regarding claim 13, the combination Jungkind and Goodman teaches the fastening system of claim 11, Jungkind further discloses wherein the chassis (2; see the annotated figure 1) includes a receptacle (slot/opening in 2 for the cable to travel thru) that has a guide passage (for said cable; see figures 2 and 3) through which a portion of the cable (4) is pulled to cause rotation of the upper cover (5) relative to the chassis (2; see the annotated figure 1).
Regarding claim 14, the combination Jungkind and Goodman teaches the fastening system of claim 13, Goodman further teaches wherein rotation of the upper cover (218) is configured to adjust a tension of a spring element (332). It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify the cover of Jungkind to include a spring element associated with each latch and arranged to bias the latch toward engagement with the teeth of the pinion as taught by Goodman, in order to ensure consistent and positive re-engagement of the latches with the teeth following each incremental advancement of the closure, thereby preventing inadvertent slippage of the tensioning element during use.
Regarding claim 15, the combination Jungkind and Goodman teaches the fastening system of claim 14, Goodman further teaches wherein the floating latch (330) is configured to be rotated radially about the central axis (228) to increase the tension of the spring element (332).
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed September 11, 2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant has argued that Jungkind (US 9,072,341) fails to disclose a lace that is configured to be operably engaged to an upper of a footwear and with a fastening system, a cable that is attached to an upper cover, and a fastening mechanism that is tightened by actuating the cable, as recited in claim 1. Specifically, the tensioning element (4) of Jungkind is not configured to be both operably engaged with an upper of a footwear with a fastening system, as specified for the claimed lace, and attached to an upper cover (5), as specified for the claimed cable. The argument is found not persuasive in view of the rejection of the claims set forth in the last Office action mailed on December 8, 2025 (page 3 for claim 1). As rejected, the claimed lace has been considered the portion of the tensioning element (4) that runs outside the fastening mechanism housing and the claimed cable has been considered the portion of the tensioning element (4) that is inside or within the fastening mechanism, which is at the end that is wound onto the roller (3) and driven by the ‘upper cover’ (5). In other words, the tensioning element (4) is a single continuous wire that functionally serves both roles depending on which segment is being considered. It is noted that claim 1 does not require the lace and the cable to be separate physical components. The examiner acknowledges that separately recited claim elements are distinct components, but notes that this presumption addresses separately recited structural elements, and is rebutted where the claim language is a construction in which the recited elements are distinct portions of a single continuous structure. Claim 1 has recited a lace and a cable as separate claim elements but nowhere recites that they are separate physical structures, not does claim 1 recite any structural feature that would require physical separation between them.
Applicant further argues that the tensioning element (4) is not configured to be both operably engaged with the upper and attached to the upper cover. The examiner maintains that the portion of the tensioning element (4) running through the shoe upper satisfies the lace limitation, and the portion of the tensioning element (4) anchored to the roller (3) satisfies the cable limitation, including the recitation “attached to the upper cover”. In other words, claim 1 does not require the cable to be actuating input that drives rotation of the upper cover; it requires that the cable be attached to the upper cover and configured to be rotated relative to the chassis, both of which are met by the anchored cable end rotating with the upper cover assembly about the central axis (A).
Applicant’s argument that Jungkind fails to disclose a floating latch configured to be rotated about a longitudinal axis that is parallel with and offset from a central axis is addressed by the revised element mapping set forth above. The last Office action mapped the floating latch to the intermediate carrier (6). Upon further consideration, the locking lever (9) is better mapped for the claimed floating latch: it is a discrete element that pivots between two distinct swivel positions, is supported on a bearing bolt (17) received in a recess (18) of the intermediate carrier (6) and is the element that selectively engages and disengages a blocking gearing.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ROWLAND DO whose telephone number is (571)270-5737. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 8:30 - 7:00 PT.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jason San can be reached at (571) 272-6531. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/R.D./ Examiner, Art Unit 3677
/JASON W SAN/ SPE, Art Unit 3677
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