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 .
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.
Claims 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kressel, Sr. (US PN 6,494,344) in view of Chrisco (US PN 5,301,829) and Cover (US D657,558).
Regarding claims 1 and 5, Kressel, Sr. teaches liquid storage container (item 10, figure 1, it is capable of holding a mixture of gas and oil or any pourable liquid, column 3, lines 52-61) comprising of:
a fuel chamber (item 20, figure 1);
a hose (item 50, figure 1) and nozzle (item 54, figure 1) to dispense two cycle fuel;
a screw on top (item 30, figure 2, column 3, lines 32-37);
a handle (item 26, figure 1);
a translucent stripe up and down on the side of the can (item 40, figure 1);
a gradation of ¼, ½, ¾, and full marks (markings 22 showing various quantities of a 4-gallon volume, figure 2).
Kressel, Sr. does not teach a lower tool box with a lid, that the translucent strip is 1 inch wide, a yellow slide pointer with ratios ranging from 1:1 to 50:1; and an embossed chart with instructions with regard to oil to gas ratios.
However, Kressel, Sr. does teach that the transparent window is molded on at least one side of the container to visually detect the level of liquid in the container (column 3, lines 31-50) and the marking 22 can be of any form to mark any volume or other information as desired (column 4, lines 46-59). Such marking assist a user in mixing oil and gasoline per a predetermined ration and dispense the mixture (column 4, lines 46-59).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have provided various indicia and other markings on the side of Kressel, Sr.’s container that shows the volume, different mixing ratios, a pointer that points to a particular liquid level or any other relevant printed or molded information since doing so only involves modifying the manufacturing process to form such information.
Furthermore, Chrisco teaches a fuel container and a tool box assembly (item 10, figure 1) wherein a top container (item 12, figure 1) holds a fuel and a bottom container (item 14, figure 1) comprises a storage space for tools, wherein the bottom container is attached to the top container via a pair of closable latch members (item 22, 24, figures 1-11). The purpose of such configuration is to provide a user ease in carrying fuel and various tools and other equipment at the same time in a one integrated assembly (column 1, lines 44-68: column 2, lines 1-37).
Also, Cover teaches an integrated container (figure 1) with an empty container (figure 8) and multiple toolboxes connected to the container via a hinged door (figure 8).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have combined the teachings of Chrisco and Cover with Kressel, Sr. to provide a tool box at a side or a bottom of the fuel container with a hinged door or a latch assembly in order to provide a user with an integrated fuel container assembly.
Lastly, regarding color, it would be obvious to make the container out of any color and material as desired since doing so only involves a routine skill in the art. It has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select a known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice. (See MPEP § 2144.07).
Regarding claims 2-4, Kressel, Sr. as modified as discussed in detail above, can provide a fuel container with a translucent 1″ wide strip and various gradation markings and volume ratios as desired since doing so only involves a routine skill in the art and Kressel, Sr. already teaches some form of transparent window and markings.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The prior arts cited on PTO-892 disclose subject matter related to various types of fuel containers which are related to the instant invention.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to VISHAL J PANCHOLI whose telephone number is (571)272-9324. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Thursday (9 am - 7 pm).
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/Vishal Pancholi/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3754