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 .
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 02/24/2026 has been entered.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 02/24/2026 was filed after the mailing date of the Final Office Action on 11/28/2025. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Status
This Office Action is in response to the remarks and amendments filed on 02/24/2026. The previous objections to the claims have been withdrawn. Claims 1-2 and 6-19 remain pending for consideration.
Claim Objections
Claim 19 is objected to because of the following informalities:
Regarding claim 19, the phrase “wherein the buffer member is along and inner surface” is understood to include a typographical error and for examination purposes will be interpreted as -- wherein the buffer member is along an inner surface --
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 6 and 18-19 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 6 recites the limitation “the portion of the outer surface” in lines 4-5. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
For examination purposes, the phrase “the portion of the outer surface of the second portion of the supply line” will be interpreted as -- a portion of an outer surface of the second portion of the supply line --
Claims 18-19 are also rejected due to dependency.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
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.
Claims 1-2 and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee et al. (US20240060708A1, herein after referred to as Lee), in view of Kang et al. (US20130047656A1, herein after referred to as Kang), and in further view of Kim et al. (US 20120011877 A1, herein after referred to as Kim’77).
Regarding claim 1, Lee teaches a refrigerator (refrigerator 1 Fig. 1) comprising: a main body (cabinet 10 Fig. 1) forming a storage room (upper first space 11 Fig. 1); a door (first door 21 Fig. 1) to open and close the storage room (paragraph [0068]); a hinge (hinge apparatus 80 Fig. 2) supporting the door so that the door is rotatable with respect to the main body (paragraph [0073]) between an open position (Fig. 18) in which the storage room is open (Fig. 18) and a closed position (Fig. 15) in which the storage room is closed (Fig. 15); a supply line (water pipe 72 and wire 74 Fig. 3) having one end (ends of wire 74 and water pipe 72 coming out of the top surface of the refrigerator Fig. 3) connected to the main body (Fig. 3) and another end (ends of water pipe 72 and wire 74 connected to guide housing 50 Fig. 3) connected to the door (Fig. 15), and a first portion of the supply line (portions of water pipe 72 and wire 74 located inside guide housing 50 Fig. 3) is movable when the door is rotated between the open position and the closed position (Figs. 15-19), the supply line including a water supply hose (water pipe 72 Fig. 3) that includes: a first hose portion (corresponds to the portion of water pipe 72 that is located inside support wall 434 Fig. 2), a second hose portion (corresponds to the portion of water pipe 72 that is located between support wall 434 and guide housing 50 Fig. 2); a guide cover (cabinet guide 40 and guide housing 50 Figs. 6 and 11) on an upper surface of the main body (Fig. 2) and forming an accommodating space (guide body 400 Fig. 11) in which the first portion of the supply line is movably accommodated (paragraph [0182]); and a fixing cover (guide portion 430, first cover member 460, and second cover member 470 Fig. 11), the fixing cover on the upper surface of the main body (Fig. 2) and fixing a second portion of the supply line (portion of water pipe 72 that is covered by support wall 434 Fig. 11) such that the second portion is maintained in a fixed position (position of support wall 434 Fig. 11) when the door is rotated between the open position and the closed position (from paragraphs [0220] to [0223], a person skilled in the art would recognize that the fasteners that are employed would maintain water pipe 72 in a fixed position).
Lee teaches the invention as described above but fails to explicitly teach “the supply line including a connector connecting the first hose portion to the second hose portion; the fixing cover including a cover portion that covers a portion of the water supply hose, the fixing cover including: a fixing portion that is disposed inside the cover portion and surrounds at least a portion of an outer surface of the connector to maintain the connector in the fixed position, and the fixing portion spaces the connector from the main body and fixes the connector to the fixing cover”.
However, Kang teaches a supply line (first water supply pipe 70 and second water supply pipe 71 Fig. 8 correspond to the supply line of Lee) including a connector (connector 72 Fig. 9) connecting a first hose portion (first water supply pipe 70 Fig. 8 corresponds to the first hose portion of Lee) to a second hose portion (Fig. 9 and paragraph 0054] where second water supply pipe 71 corresponds to the second hose portion of Lee); a fixing cover (fixing member 80 Fig. 4 corresponds to the fixing cover of Lee) including a cover portion (support surface 85 and side surfaces 82-83 Fig. 4) that covers a portion of a water supply hose (Fig. 10 where first water supply pipe 70 corresponds to the water supply hose of Lee), the fixing cover including: a fixing portion (fixture 81 Fig. 4) that is disposed inside the cover portion and surrounds at least a portion of an outer surface of the connector (corresponds to the portion of the outer surface of connector 72 that is between fixture 81 and accommodation unit 84 Fig. 10) to maintain the connector in a fixed position (paragraph [0078] and Fig. 10 where the illustrated position of connector 72 corresponds to the fixed position of Lee), and the fixing portion spaces the connector from a main body and fixes the connector to a fixing cover (Figs. 4 and 10 where fixture 81 of fixing member 80 which corresponds to the fixing cover of Lee fixes connector 72 onto accommodation unit 84 allowing therefore connector 72 to be spaced apart from bottom surface 6 of outer case 3 which corresponds to the main body of Lee) to prevent damage and enhance an appearance of the refrigerator (paragraph [0080]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person skilled in the art before the effectively filed date to modify the apparatus of Lee to include “the supply line including a connector connecting the first hose portion to the second hose portion; the fixing cover including a cover portion that covers a portion of the water supply hose, the fixing cover including: a fixing portion that is disposed inside the cover portion and surrounds at least a portion of an outer surface of the connector to maintain the connector in the fixed position, and the fixing portion spaces the connector from the main body and fixes the connector to the fixing cover” in view of the teachings of Kang to prevent damage and enhance an appearance of the refrigerator.
The combined teachings teach the invention as described above but fail to explicitly teach “the fixing portion including: a support portion that protrudes from an inner wall of the cover portion, a first extension portion that extends from the support portion, and a second extension portion that extends from an end of the first extension portion, wherein the connector is supported by the support portion, the first extension portion and the second extension portion, and the second extension portion is spaced apart from the upper surface of the main body”.
However, Kim’77 teaches a fixing portion (fixing part 426 Fig. 4 corresponds to the fixing portion of Kang) including: a support portion (see below annotated Fig. 4 of Kim’77) that protrudes from an inner wall of a cover portion (see below annotated Fig. 4 of Kim’77 where case body 422 corresponds to the cover portion of Kang), a first extension portion (corresponds to the slot provided on fixing part 426 Fig. 4) that extends from the support portion (see below annotated Fig. 4 of Kim’77), and a second extension portion (see below annotated Fig. 4 of Kim’77) that extends from an end of the first extension portion (see below annotated Fig. 4 of Kim’77), wherein a connector (tube connector 430 Fig. 4 corresponds to the connector of Kang) is supported by the support portion, the first extension portion and the second extension portion (Fig. 4 and paragraph [0054]), and the second extension portion is spaced apart from an upper surface of a main body (Figs. 3-4 where the upper surface of outer case 120 corresponds to the upper surface of the main body of Lee) to provide a space for receiving the tube connector (paragraph [0054]).
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Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person skilled in the art before the effectively filed date to modify the apparatus of the combined teachings to include “the fixing portion including: a support portion that protrudes from an inner wall of the cover portion, a first extension portion that extends from the support portion, and a second extension portion that extends from an end of the first extension portion, wherein the connector is supported by the support portion, the first extension portion and the second extension portion, and the second extension portion is spaced apart from the upper surface of the main body” in view of the teachings of Kim”77 to provide a space for receiving the tube connector.
Regarding claim 2, the combined teachings teach wherein the cover portion covers the second portion of the supply line (Fig. 10 of Kang where the portions of first and second water supply pipes 70 and 71 located inside fixing member 80 correspond to the second portion of the supply line of Lee), and the fixing portion is inside the cover portion (Fig. 4 of Kang).
Regarding claim 14, the combined teachings teach wherein the supply line further includes a wire (wire 74 Fig. 3 of Lee), one end of the wire (end portion of wire 74 that is located before coupling member 450 Fig. 3 of Lee) is connected to the main body (Fig. 3 of Lee), and another end of the wire (end portion of wire 74 that is located inside first housing 510 Fig. 20 of Lee) is connected to the door (Fig. 20 of Lee).
Claims 6 and 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee, Kang, and Kim”77 as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Mitchell et al. (US20120055190A1, herein after referred to as Mitchell).
Regarding claim 6, the combined teachings teach the invention as described above but fail to explicitly teach “wherein the fixing cover further includes: a buffer member including an elastic material, and the buffer member is between a portion of an outer surface of the second portion of the supply line and the fixing portion”.
However, Mitchell teaches wherein a fixing cover (fixing assembly 100 Fig. 4 corresponds to the fixing cover of Lee) further includes: a buffer member (first fitting 30a Fig. 3) including an elastic material (paragraph [0028]), and the buffer member is between a portion of an outer surface of a second portion of the supply line (outer surface of second tube 25 Fig. 2 where second tube 25 corresponds to the second portion of the supply line of Lee) and a fixing portion (bracket 10 Figs. 2-3 corresponds to the fixing portion of Lee) to provide a rigid structure (paragraph [0028]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person skilled in the art before the effectively filed date to modify the apparatus of the combined teachings to include “wherein the fixing cover further includes: a buffer member including an elastic material, and the buffer member is between a portion of an outer surface of the second portion of the supply line and the fixing portion” in view of the teachings of Mitchell to provide a rigid structure.
Regarding claim 18, the combined teachings teach wherein the buffer member is between the portion of the outer surface of the connector (Figs. 2 and 7 of Mitchell where seal assembly 20 corresponds to the connector of Kang) and the support portion (Figs. 2 and 7 of Mitchell where the recess of bracket 10 corresponds to the support portion of Kim”77).
Regarding claim 19, the combined teachings teach wherein the buffer member is along an inner surface of the support portion (Figs. 2 and 7 of Mitchell where the recess of bracket 10 corresponds to the support portion of Kim”77), and covers the portion of the outer surface of the connector (Figs. 2 and 7 of Mitchell where seal assembly 20 corresponds to the connector of Kang).
Claims 7 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee, Kang, and Kim”77 as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Lee et al. (US20090249822A1, herein after referred to as Lee’22).
Regarding claim 7, the combined teachings teach wherein the main body includes an outer case (see annotated Fig. 1 of Lee), and an inner case (see annotated Fig. 1 of Lee) positioned inside the outer case and forming the storage room (see annotated Fig. of Lee), and the refrigerator further includes: a line guide (guide pipe 110 Fig. 5 of Lee) accommodating a third portion of the supply line (understood to be the portion of water pipe 72 that is inside guide pipe 110 Fig. 5 of Lee) and positioned between the inner case and the outer case (see below annotated Fig. 5 of Lee); and a spacer (protective guide 120 Fig. 5 of Lee).
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The combined teachings teach the invention as described above but fail to explicitly teach “the spacer between at least one portion of the line guide and the inner case to space the at least one portion of the line guide from the inner case”.
However, Lee’22 teaches a spacer (spacing members 152 and 154 correspond to the spacer of Lee Fig. 5) between at least one portion of a line guide (portion of the backside of tube guide 150 Fig. 5 and paragraph [0086] where tube guide 150 corresponds to the line guide of Lee) and an inner case (outer case 116 fig. 5 corresponds to the inner case of Lee) to space the at least one portion of the line guide from the inner case (paragraph [0086]) to enable the foaming liquid to smoothly flow (paragraph [0092]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person skilled in the art before the effectively filed date to modify the apparatus of the combined teachings to include “the spacer between at least one portion of the line guide and the inner case to space the at least one portion of the line guide from the inner case” in view of the teachings of Lee’22 to enable the foaming liquid to smoothly flow.
Regarding claim 10, the combined teachings teach wherein the spacer protrudes from the at least one portion of the line guide and is in contact with the inner case (Fig. 5 of Lee’22).
Claims 8-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee, Kang, Kim”77, and Lee’22 as applied to claim 7 above, and further in view of Park (KR20190010376A).
Regarding claim 8, the combined teachings teach wherein the outer case includes: a rear surface (see below annotated Fig. 1 of Lee), and a side surface (see below annotated Fig. 1 of Lee), and a corner area (see below annotated Fig. 1 of Lee) is formed between the outer case and the inner case (see below annotated Fig. 1 of Lee) and between the rear surface and side surface of the outer case (see below annotated Fig. 1 of Lee).
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The combined teachings teach the invention as described above but fail to explicitly teach “the at least one portion of the line guide is positioned in the corner area”.
However, Park teaches at least one portion of a line guide (a portion of first guide tube 36 Fig. 6 where first guide tube 36 corresponds to the line guide of Lee) is positioned in a corner area (the area located between first corner 124 and first corner 134 Fig. 6 corresponds to the corner area of Lee) to minimize the influence of the cold air of the storage chamber on the line guide (paragraph [0086]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person skilled in the art before the effectively filed date to modify the apparatus of the combined teachings to include “the at least one portion of the line guide is positioned in the corner area” in view of the teachings of Park to minimize the influence of the cold air of the storage chamber on the line guide.
Regarding claim 9, the combined teachings teach wherein the spacer includes at least one pair of spacers (Fig. 5 of Lee’22), and the at least one portion of the line guide includes a linear portion (see below annotated Fig. 5 of Lee’22) positioned between the at least one pair of spacers (see below annotated Fig. 5 of Lee’22) and extending along the corner area (Fig. 6 of Park) adjacent to the outer case (Fig. 5 of Lee’22).
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Claim 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee, Kang, and Kim”77 as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Lee et al. (US20190024962A1, herein after referred to as Lee’62).
Regarding claim 11, the combined teachings teach wherein the water supply hose includes a hose bending portion (understood to be the portion of water pipe 72 located inside second housing 530 Fig. 18 of Lee) positioned adjacent to the hinge (Fig. 18 of Lee) and configured to be bent when the door is rotated from the open position to the closed position (Figs. 15-19 of Lee).
The combined teachings teach the invention as described above but fail to explicitly teach “the water supply hose further includes an elastic spring surrounding an outer circumferential surface of the hose bending portion”.
However, Lee’62 teaches a water supply hose (dispenser water supply tube 62 Fig. 18 corresponds to the water supply hose of Lee) further includes an elastic spring (folding prevention member 621 Fig. 18 and paragraph [0256]) surrounding an outer circumferential surface of a hose bending portion (Fig. 18).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person skilled in the art before the effectively filed date to modify the apparatus of the combined teachings to include “the water supply hose further includes an elastic spring surrounding an outer circumferential surface of the hose bending portion” in view of the teachings of Lee’62 to prevent the water supply hose from folding.
Claims 12-13 and 15-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee, Kang, and Kim”77 as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Kim et al. (US20180187956A1, herein after referred to as Kim).
Regarding claim 12, the combined teachings teach the first portion of the supply line (portion of water pipe 72 located inside guide housing 50 Fig. 3 of Lee) moves with respect to the guide cover (Figs. 15-19 of Lee).
The combined teachings teach the invention as described above but fail to explicitly teach “wherein the supply line further includes: a line bending portion bent inside the accommodating space of the guide cover, and the guide cover further includes: a line support portion supporting the line bending portion when the door is rotated to the open position”.
However, Kim teaches wherein a supply line (wire 170 Fig. 5A corresponds to the supply line of Lee) further includes: a line bending portion (see below annotated Fig. 5A of Kim) bent inside an accommodating space (storing portion 113 Fig. 5A corresponds to the accommodating space of Lee) of a guide cover (case 110 Fig. 5A corresponds to the guide cover of Kim), and the guide cover further includes: a line support portion (protruding members 115a-115c Fig. 5A) supporting the line bending portion when a door is rotated to the open position (Fig. 3 and A-5B) to reduce friction with the supply line (paragraph [0078]).
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Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person skilled in the art before the effectively filed date to modify the apparatus of the combined teachings to include “wherein the supply line further includes: a line bending portion bent inside the accommodating space of the guide cover, and the guide cover further includes: a line support portion supporting the line bending portion when the door is rotated to the open position” in view of the teachings of Kim to reduce friction with the supply line.
Regarding claim 13, the combined teachings teach wherein the guide cover further includes: a first penetration opening (see below annotated Fig. 6 of Lee) and a second penetration opening (see below annotated Fig. 6 of Lee), the supply line penetrates the first penetration opening and the second penetration opening (Fig. 20 of Lee), and the line bending portion is supported by the line support portion behind the line support portion (Figs. 5A-5B of Kim).
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The combined teachings teach the invention as described above but fail to explicitly teach “the first penetration opening adjacent to the fixing cover and the second penetration opening adjacent to the hinge, the line support portion is positioned behind the first penetration opening”.
However, Applicant has not disclosed that having “the first penetration opening adjacent to the fixing cover and the second penetration opening adjacent to the hinge, the line support portion is positioned behind the first penetration opening” does anything more than produce the predictable result of providing an inlet and an outlet for a supply line that is movable with the refrigerator door. Since it has been held that mere rearrangement of parts has no patentable significance unless a new and unexpected result is produced, see MPEP 2144.04 VI. C, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made, to modify the apparatus of the combined teachings and meet the claimed limitations in order to provide the predictable results of providing an inlet and an outlet for a supply line that is movable with the refrigerator door.
Regarding claim 15, the combined teachings teach the invention as described above but fail to explicitly teach “further comprising: a moving member including a cover configured to cover a portion of the supply line, and coupled to the hinge, wherein the moving member is movable with respect to the guide cover, and is configured to, with the portion of the supply line covered by the cover, guide movement of the first portion of the supply line into the accommodating space when the door is rotated to the closed position and out of the accommodating space when the door is rotated to the open position”.
However, Kim teaches further comprising: a moving member (sliding member 130 Fig. 4) including a cover (top portion of sliding member 130 Fig. 4) configured to cover a portion of the supply line (corresponds to the portion of wire 170 that is covered by sliding member 130), and coupled to a hinge (Fig. 1 where hinge 30 corresponds to the hinge of Lee), wherein the moving member is movable with respect to a guide cover (Figs. 2-3 where case 110 corresponds to the guide cover of Lee), and is configured to, with the portion of the supply line covered by the cover (Figs. 5A-5B), guide movement of a first portion of the supply line (Figs. 2-4 where wire 170 corresponds to the first portion of the supply line of Lee) into an accommodating space (Figs. 5A-5B where storing portion 113 corresponds to the accommodating space of Lee) when the door is rotated to a closed position (Fig. 5A) and out of the accommodating space when the door is rotated to the open position (Fig. 5B).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person skilled in the art before the effectively filed date to modify the apparatus of the combined teachings to include “further comprising: a moving member including a cover configured to cover a portion of the supply line, and coupled to the hinge, wherein the moving member is movable with respect to the guide cover, and is configured to, with the portion of the supply line covered by the cover, guide movement of the first portion of the supply line into the accommodating space when the door is rotated to the closed position and out of the accommodating space when the door is rotated to the open position” in view of the teachings of Kim to ease the retraction and extension of the supply line.
Regarding claim 16, the combined teachings teach wherein the guide cover (case 110 Fig. 5A of Kim corresponds to the guide cover of Lee) further includes a movement guide portion (drawing portion 114 Fig. 5A of Kim) inside the accommodating space (Fig. 5A) and configured to guide movement of the moving member (Figs. 5A-5B of Kim) and guide movement of the first portion of the supply line (Figs. 5A-5B of Kim).
Regarding claim 17, the combined teachings teach wherein the movement guide portion is configured to support the moving member in the accommodating space from below the moving member (Figs. 5A-5B and paragraph [0083] of Kim where support is provided from below since sliding member 130 is inserted inside drawing portion 114), and the movement guide portion is configured to support the first portion of the supply line in the accommodating space from below the first portion of the supply line (Figs. 5A-5B of Kim).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to the claims have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
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/SAMBA NMN GAYE/Examiner, Art Unit 3763
/JERRY-DARYL FLETCHER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3763