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 statements (IDS’s) submitted on 29 May 2024 have been considered by the examiner to the best of the examiner’s ability in the time allotted for examination; see attached forms PRO-1449.
The numerous (over 1,300) references and materials listed on the 142 sheets of the six separate IDS submissions make it difficult to determine whether or not any of the references, or parts of the references, are material to applicant’s claimed invention. It is noted that the applicant, in their six separate IDS submissions, does not indicate any particular reference or parts of references which they deem "material" to the patentability of the pending claims under 37 CFR 1.56(b), and in many cases it is not at all clear why a particular reference has been cited.
Applicant is directed to MPEP §2004, ¶13:
“It is desirable to avoid the submission of long lists of documents if it can be avoided. Eliminate clearly irrelevant and marginally pertinent cumulative information. If a long list is submitted, highlight those documents which have been specifically brought to applicant's attention and/or are known to be of most significance. See Penn Yan Boats, Inc. v. Sea Lark Boats, Inc., 359 F. Supp. 948, 175 USPQ 260 (S.D. Fla. 1972), aff'd, 479 F.2d 1338, 178 USPQ 577 (5th Cir. 1973), cert. denied, 414 U.S. 874 (1974). But cf. Molins PLC v. Textron Inc., 48 F.3d 1172, 33 USPQ2d 1823 (Fed. Cir. 1995).”
Drawings
The drawings submitted have been reviewed and determined to facilitate understanding of the invention. The drawings are accepted as submitted.
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)(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.
Claims 32, 33, and 35 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US Patent Application Publication 2020/0026007 to Dobler (hereinafter “US1”).
Regarding Claim 32, US1 describes an extender port (1) for optically coupling a first fiber optic connector (3) and a second fiber optic connector (4), the extender port comprising:
a housing (30) comprising:
a first end and a second end (shown in Figs 1-6);
a first passageway (28) for receiving the first fiber optic connector;
a second passageway (28) for receiving the second fiber optic connector, wherein an interior surface of the second passageway of the housing comprises a groove (22 associated with 14 as shown in Fig 4);
a dividing wall (25) separating the first passageway and the second passageway;
an integrated sleeve holder (14) that protrudes from a first surface of the dividing wall in a direction toward the first end; and
a first hard stop and a second hard stop positioned at a second surface of the dividing wall (sections of 25 between detent connections 18, as shown in Figs 9 and 10); and
a sleeve holder insert (15) disposed within the second passageway and adjacent to the dividing wall, the sleeve holder insert comprising:
a main body (shown in Figs 11 and 12);
a first flexible extension and a second flexible extension (21), wherein the first flexible extension and the second flexible extension protrude from a first end of the main body (see Figs 11 and 12), bend toward a second end of the main body, and are disposed within the groove to secure the sleeve holder insert within the housing; and
a plurality of alignment tabs (17) protruding from the first end of the main body, wherein the plurality of alignment tabs define a first notch and a second notch, the first hard stop is positioned within the first notch, and the second hard stop is positioned within the second notch (see Figs 9-14).
Regarding Claim 33, US1 describes a sleeve (5) disposed within the integrated sleeve holder, the sleeve holder insert and through an opening in the dividing wall (see Fig 14).
Regarding Claim 35, US1 describes the first flexible extension and the second flexible extension are on opposite sides of the main body from one another (see Figs 5-6 and 9-12).
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim 34 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US1 as applied to Claim 32 above.
US1 describes the housing further comprising a third hard stop protruding from the first surface of the dividing wall (see Figs 9-12). US1 does not describe a fourth hard stop protruding from the first surface of the dividing wall. However, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to use additional hard stops in the structure of US1, since 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.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-31 are allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter.
Independent Claim 1 describes an extender port for optically coupling a first fiber optic connector and a second fiber optic connector, the extender port comprising:
a housing having a first end, a second end, a first passageway for receiving the first fiber optic connector, and a second passageway for receiving the second fiber optic connector;
a first lock assembly and a second lock assembly, wherein each of the first lock assembly and the second lock assembly comprises:
a shuttle disposed on an inner surface of the housing within one of the first passageway and the second passageway, the shuttle comprising a slot;
a latch comprising a pivot end and a latching end, wherein the latch is coupled to the shuttle such that the pivot end is disposed within the slot of the shuttle; and
an end cap rotationally disposed within one of the first passageway and the second passageway, the end cap comprising a body, an end cap passageway within the body, a release arm, and a lock arm, wherein the release arm and the lock arm extend from the body such that the release arm pivots the latch to a released position when the end cap is rotated in a first direction with respect to the housing, and the lock arm pivots the latch to a locked position when the end cap is rotated in a second direction with respect to the housing.
The prior art of record does not describe or reasonably suggest, in conjunction with the further limitations of the present claims:
each of the first lock assembly and the second lock assembly comprises:
a shuttle disposed on an inner surface of the housing within one of the first passageway and the second passageway, the shuttle comprising a slot;
a latch comprising a pivot end and a latching end, wherein the latch is coupled to the shuttle such that the pivot end is disposed within the slot of the shuttle; and
an end cap rotationally disposed within one of the first passageway and the second passageway, the end cap comprising a body, an end cap passageway within the body, a release arm, and a lock arm, wherein the release arm and the lock arm extend from the body such that the release arm pivots the latch to a released position when the end cap is rotated in a first direction with respect to the housing, and the lock arm pivots the latch to a locked position when the end cap is rotated in a second direction with respect to the housing.
Claims 2-16 depend from Claim 1 and are therefore allowable for at least the same reasons.
Independent Claim 17 describes an optical assembly comprising:
a first fiber optic cable assembly comprising a first optical fiber and a first fiber optic connector, wherein the first optical fiber is disposed within the first fiber optic connector;
a second fiber optic cable assembly comprising a second optical fiber and a second fiber optic connector, wherein the second optical fiber is disposed within the second fiber optic connector;
an extender port comprising:
a housing having a first end, a second end, a first passageway for receiving the first fiber optic connector, and a second passageway for receiving the second fiber optic connector;
a first lock assembly and a second lock assembly, wherein each of the first lock assembly and the second lock assembly comprises:
a shuttle disposed on an inner surface of the housing within one of the first passageway and the second passageway, the shuttle comprising a slot;
a latch comprising a pivot end and a latching end, wherein the latch is coupled to the shuttle such that the pivot end is disposed within the slot of the shuttle; and
an end cap rotationally disposed within one of the first passageway and the second passageway, the end cap comprising a body, an end cap passageway within the body, a release arm, and a lock arm, wherein:
each of the first fiber optic connector and the second fiber optic connector comprises a connector housing;
the connector housing comprises a locking face; the release arm and the lock arm extend from the body;
the lock arm pivots the latch to a locked position such that the latching end of the latch is disposed between the locking face of the connector housing to lock one of the first fiber optic connector and the second fiber optic connector to the housing when the end cap is rotated in a first direction with respect to the housing; and
the release arm pivots the latch to a released position such that the latching end of the latch is removed from the locking face of the connector housing to release one of the first fiber optic connector and the second fiber optic connector from the housing when the end cap is rotated in a second direction with respect to the housing.
The prior art of record does not describe or reasonably suggest, in conjunction with the further limitations of the present claims:
a first lock assembly and a second lock assembly, wherein each of the first lock assembly and the second lock assembly comprises:
a shuttle disposed on an inner surface of the housing within one of the first passageway and the second passageway, the shuttle comprising a slot;
a latch comprising a pivot end and a latching end, wherein the latch is coupled to the shuttle such that the pivot end is disposed within the slot of the shuttle; and
an end cap rotationally disposed within one of the first passageway and the second passageway, the end cap comprising a body, an end cap passageway within the body, a release arm, and a lock arm, wherein:
each of the first fiber optic connector and the second fiber optic connector comprises a connector housing;
the connector housing comprises a locking face; the release arm and the lock arm extend from the body;
the lock arm pivots the latch to a locked position such that the latching end of the latch is disposed between the locking face of the connector housing to lock one of the first fiber optic connector and the second fiber optic connector to the housing when the end cap is rotated in a first direction with respect to the housing; and
the release arm pivots the latch to a released position such that the latching end of the latch is removed from the locking face of the connector housing to release one of the first fiber optic connector and the second fiber optic connector from the housing when the end cap is rotated in a second direction with respect to the housing.
Claims 18-31 depend from Claim 17 and are therefore allowable for at least the same reasons.
US Patent Application Publication 2020/0049896 to Dannoux et al. (hereinafter “US2”) stands as the closest prior art of record.
US2 describes an extender port (200) for optically coupling a first fiber optic connector and a second fiber optic connector (10), the extender port comprising:
a housing (210) having a first end, a second end, a first passageway (236) for receiving the first fiber optic connector, and a second passageway (236’) for receiving the second fiber optic connector;
a first lock assembly (310) and a second lock assembly (310, see Figs 1, 2, 3, and 5), wherein each of the first lock assembly and the second lock assembly comprises a latch (310L).
US2 does not describe the lock assembly including a shuttle, an end cap, or the latch having the structural details as described in Claims 1 and/or 17.
Conclusion
The prior art cited in the attached form PTO-892 are made of record and considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The cited prior art describes various optical fiber extender ports or pass-through structures for use with fiber optic connectors.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JERRY RAHLL whose telephone number is (571)272-2356. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00am-5:00pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Uyen-Chau Le can be reached at 571-272-2397. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JERRY RAHLL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2874