DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application is being examined under the pre-AIA first to invent provisions.
A power of attorney was received on 1/22/24 and a subsequent power of attorney was received on 2/13/24.
Response to Amendment
Applicant’s response of 11/26/25 is received and entered. Claims 1, 4, 9, 15, 17 and 18 are amended, claim 20 is withdrawn as non-elected, and claims 1-20 are pending. The response also includes a specification amendment to correct typographical errors in par.31 and this amendment is entered.
This application repeats a substantial portion of prior Application No. 15/676/124, filed 8/14/17, Application 14/715,138 filed 5/18/2015, and Application 13/093,758 filed 4/25/2011, and adds disclosure not presented in the prior application. Because this application names the inventor or at least one joint inventor named in the prior application, it may constitute a continuation-in-part of the prior application. Should applicant desire to claim the benefit of the filing date of the prior application, attention is directed to 35 U.S.C. 120, 37 CFR 1.78, and MPEP § 211 et seq. The presentation of a benefit claim may result in an additional fee under 37 CFR 1.17(w)(1) or (2) being required, if the earliest filing date for which benefit is claimed under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, 365(c), or 386(c) and 1.78(d) in the application is more than six years before the actual filing date of the application.
Specification
The specification is objected to as failing to provide proper antecedent basis for the claimed subject matter. See 37 CFR 1.75(d)(1) and MPEP § 608.01(o). Correction of the following is required: Claim 1 recites “a wedge shaped base unit comprising a bottom surface, a top surface and a side wall extending between the top surface and the bottom surface, wherein the portion of the base unit closest to the first end is wider from bottom surface to top surface than the portion of the base unit closest to the second end,..”.
Claim 15 recites the outer shell comprises a first finger opening, a second finger opening, a third finger opening, a fourth finger opening and a fifth finger opening, wherein the base unit is positioned on the back portion aligned with at least one of (i) the first finger opening and the second finger opening, (ii) the fifth finger opening and the third finger opening, or (iii) the first finger opening and the fifth finger opening.
Claim 16 recites the at least one light source is configured to emit at least one of a white light…or a white light and a red light.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the portion of the base unit closest to the first end is wider from bottom surface to top surface than the portion of the base unit closest to the second end as in claim 1 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Information Disclosure Statement
The listing of references in the specification is not a proper information disclosure statement. 37 CFR 1.98(b) requires a list of all patents, publications, or other information submitted for consideration by the Office, and MPEP § 609.04(a) states, "the list may not be incorporated into the specification but must be submitted in a separate paper." Therefore, unless the references have been cited by the examiner on form PTO-892, they have not been considered.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of pre-AIA 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 –
(b) the invention was patented or described in a printed publication in this or a foreign country or in public use or on sale in this country, more than one year prior to the date of application for patent in the United States.
Claims 1, 3, 4, 11-13, and 15 are rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102b as being anticipated by Schofield (GB 2,549,733). Schofield discloses the invention as claimed. Schofield teaches a glove 32 (Fig.18) as part of a kit, the glove comprising an outer shell including a back portion, wherein the outer shell includes a first end comprising finger openings and a second end comprising a wrist opening (see Fig.18) and a wedge shaped base unit 14 comprising a bottom and top surface and a side wall extending between the top surface and the bottom surface, wherein the portion of the base unit 14 closest to the first end is wider from bottom surface to top surface than the portion of the base unit closest to the second end (pg.3, lines 27-pg.4, line 5, the first surface of the connector is non-parallel with the second surface of the connector. Having two surfaces on the connector allows for it to be readily connected to both the hand engagement member and the mirror. Additionally, where the two surfaces are not parallel to one another, the mirror is attached to the hand engagement member at an angle. This can be advantageous in aligning the mirror for rearward viewing because the user's hand is likely to be positioned with the rear of the hand facing in a different direction than directly behind the user."). See also Figures 8 and 9 which show a portion of the base unit closest to the first end as wider from bottom to top surface than the portion of the base unit closest to the second end. The bottom surface of the wedge shaped base unit 14 is coupled to the back portion via 18a and a mirror 16 wherein the mirror 16 is coupled to the top surface via a ball and socket joint 25,26.
For claim 3, the mirror 16 is positionally adjustable with respect to the base unit as in Figures 3 and 5 and page 7, lines 7-10.
For claim 4, the mirror 16 is selectively detachable from the base unit 14.
For claim 11, the base unit 14 is selectively detachable from the back portion via hook and loop 18a.
For claim 12, the base unit 14 comprises at least one of a rigid material or a flexible material as "flexible" is a relative term and foam could be considered as either a rigid or flexible material.
For claim 13, the base unit 14 comprises foam.
For claim 15, the outer shell comprises a first finger opening, a second finger opening a third finger opening, a fourth finger opening and a fifth finger opening, wherein the base unit is positioned on the back portion aligned with at least one of (i) the first finger opening and the second finger opening, (ii) the fifth finger opening and the third finger opening, or (iii) the first finger opening and the fifth finger opening. The glove 32 (also illustrated as 30) and includes the five finger openings. Note that the hook and loop 18a extends between at least the first and second finger openings and the base unit 14 could be positioned at the end of the hook and loop such that the base unit is aligned with the first and second finger openings.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2, 5-10, 14, and 16-19 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.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s remarks have been considered. The previously cited claim objections and rejections under 35 USC 112(pre-AIA ) second paragraph are withdrawn in view of the claim amendments.
Regarding the priority claim, Applicant submits that each of the claimed elements can be found in the prior applications. However, at least claim 1 includes limitations not commensurate in scope with the disclosure of the present application and the disclosures of the cited priority applications, particularly paragraph 28 and the details of the wedge shaped base unit.
Regarding the drawing objections, Applicant points to Figures 3B and 3C as providing disclosure of “a wedge shaped base unit comprising a bottom surface, a top surface and a side wall extending between the top surface and the bottom surface, wherein a portion of the base unit closest to the first end is wider from bottom surface to top surface than a portion of the base unit closest to the second end, and wherein the bottom surface of the wedge shaped base unit is coupled to the back portion,” as recited in claim 1. However, the glove isn’t shown in Figures 3B and 3C such that it can be determined that the Figures show the claimed limitations.
The rejections of claims 1, 3, 4, 11-13, and 15 under pre-AIA 35 USC 102(b) are maintained.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
/KATHERINE M MORAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3732