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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 5-7 of the amendment, filed 4/16/20261-20, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s)1-20 under35 USC 112 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view od Yu (US 2017/0215537 A1) in view of Schinasi (US 2015/027289 A1}.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
Claims
Claim5 and 10-20 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 10 recites the limitation "the main opening" in line 15. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claims 5 and 16 recite wherein “the second fastener apparatus is an expandable zipper” in the last line of each claim. Each claim previously recites “ at iast one second fastening apparatus” It isn’t clear to which of the at least one second fastening apparatus “The second fastening apparatus” is being referred to. The claims should read “wherein the at least one second fastening apparatus is an expandable zipper.”
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) s 1,2 and 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yu (US 2017/021557 A1) in view of Schinasi (2015/0272289 A1).
Yu teaches a cover for a luggage container(luggage cover #10), the cover comprises a body formed of a flexible durable material( formed of any durable material such as canvas, fabric, polyester, spandex, nylon, leather, plastic (e.g. vinyl), and the like) and configured to fully enclose the luggage container (panels surround all sides of the luggage), the body comprising a main opening (aperture #60) that is openable to permit access to the interior of the body, the main opening comprising a fastening apparatus (open and closed by a zipper mechanism), a first set of openings o a bottom side of the cover configured to permit passage of the luggage wheels when position within the body (wheels exposed through holes in the bottom panel #92)(para 0038) and a second set of closeable openings on a first, second or top side of the cover or any combination thereof, configured to permit passage of handles of the luggage container when positioned inside the body (aperture #40 or 50 may be used to expose a external component of the luggage container within the luggage cover `such as a handle or carrying means); and one or more handles (shoulder straps #20) on an exterior of the body positioned on the firs side, the second side, the top side, or any combination there of, wherein the cover provides a secure interior configured as a travel case when each of the main opening, the first set of closeable openings, and the second set of closeable openings are closed.
Yu does not disclose closeable openings for the wheels. Schinasi discloses an analogous travel bag compfising a base (#1) having wheel holes (#9) and two flaps (#7) for opening and closing the w wheel holes. When opened the flaps allow a plate (#12) with wheels (#10) to be inserted through the holes, and when closed the flaps cover the wheel holes to prevent contents escaping from the bag. It would have been obvious before the effective filing date to modify the bottom of Yu to include closeable wheel apertures as taught by Schinasi in order to enable the cover to accept either wheeled or non-wheeled luggage while providing maximum protection. Regarding claims 2 and 10, note aperture (#50). Regarding claim 19, note aperture (#40).
Allowable Subject Matter
ClaimS 3.4 and 6-9 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
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/SUE A WEAVER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3733
