DETAILED ACTION
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 2/3/2026 has been entered.
Election/Restrictions
Claims 7, 9, 11, 12, and 13 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.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 5/16/2025. Additionally claims 2, are being withdrawn as being drawn to a nonelected species. The examiner notes claim 2 recites “the corpus portion has a fitting portion” which is not a feature of the elected species discloses in figure 6. The examiner notes in the species of figure 6, the fitting portion is a portion of the body, rather than the corpus portion as claimed. The examiner notes claim 13 recites an “other dentate structure”, a feature not present in the elected species shown in figure 6. The examiner notes amended claim 14 now recites inclusively “an engaging portion adapted to be driven …”, a feature not present in the elected species shown in figure 6.
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.
(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 1 and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1,2) as being anticipated by Magaribuchi et al. US 2018/0087544 A1.
Magaribuchi discloses:
Claim 1- a corpus portion (12) adapted to be disposed at a body; an operating member (40a) movably fitted to the corpus portion and having a dentate portion (instance of 44 on 40a); an object (40b) having first gear teeth (instance of 44 on 40b); and a gear (80) having second teeth, wherein the second gear teeth of the gear are in contact with the teeth and the dentate portion (see Fig. 2) by meshing, and the gear undergoes motion by being in contact with the dentate portion while the operating member is operated (the device performs this function, so as to drive the object to undergo movement, relative motion, motion, rotation or labor-saving motion (the device is capable of this function).
Claim 5- wherein the corpus portion or the operating member (40a) has a limiting portion (50a) conducive to rotation prevention (50a is rectangular thus preventing rotation), positioning or orienting between the operating member and the corpus portion, and the corpus portion has a rotation-preventing portion conducive to rotation prevention and position limitation relative to the body (inner walls of 12 are rectangular thus preventing rotation).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3, 4, and 10 are allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: the prior art neither discloses nor renders obvious the claimed combination including:
wherein the operating member has an abutting portion, a head portion, and a resilient component, wherein the abutting portion is adapted to abut against the corpus portion, and the head portion is adapted to abut against the corpus portion, and wherein the resilient component having has an end abutting against the corpus portion from inside and another end abutting against the abutting portion, so as to allow the operating member to be normally pushed in a direction toward the dentate portion
wherein the operating member is bolted to a head portion being movable, relative to the corpus portion, to an abutting high-position or an abutting low-position to abut against the corpus portion, and adapted to resist a resilience force of a resilient component and thus attain positioning upon completion of the movement of the operating member.
Wherein a circuit is connected between the dentate structure, the operating member and a second body, the circuit is in communication connection with an electronic apparatus via wireless or wired signals, the operating member is moved to allow the dentate structure, the operating member and the second body to transmit motion to control the electronic apparatus
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 10/9/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Applicant generally argues
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US 2026/0055805 A1 discloses a similar device but is unavailable as prior art.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TERENCE BOES whose telephone number is (571)272-4898. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 10-6:30.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Minnah Seoh can be reached at (571) 270-7778. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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TERENCE BOES
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3618
/TERENCE BOES/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3618