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 .
DETAILED ACTION
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.
Claims 4 and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
As concerns claim 4, lines 1 and 2 recites “a vicinity of a resonance point” which is ambiguous and renders the claim indefinite.
As concerns claim 5, line 2 recites “a region in which vibration is suppressed” which is also ambiguous and renders the claim indefinite.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
Claims 1 and 3-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being unpatentable by Hamme et al (US 11,760,273).
As concerns claim 1, Hamme et al (US 11,760,273) discloses an assembly comprising:
a back door (Hamme - 102) including an inner panel (Hamme - 108);
a subwoofer (Hamme – 118) attached to the inner panel (Hamme – Figure1); and
two or more braces (Hamme – 124) provided on the inner panel and configured to reduce a primary vibration mode and a secondary vibration mode of the inner panel that is vibrated by the subwoofer. (Hamme – Column 4, Lines 44-65)
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As concerns claim 3, Hamme discloses the assembly according to claim 1, wherein the back door further includes an outer panel (Hamme - 112), and the inner panel and the outer panel are fixed via the braces. (Hamme – Figure 1)
As concerns claim 4, Hamme discloses the assembly according to claim 1, wherein the inner panel is connectable to a vicinity of a resonance point of a trim (Hamme - 112) of a vehicle. (Hamme – Figure 1 illustrates this, as best understood, given the broad use of the term ‘vicinity’)
As concerns claim 5, Hamme discloses the assembly according to claim 4, wherein a region in which vibration is suppressed in the inner panel is connectable (via braces 124) to the vicinity of the resonance point of the trim. (Hamme – Figure 1 illustrates this, as best understood, given the broad use of the term ‘region’)
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 of this title, 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 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hamme in view of OpenStax.
As concerns claim 2, Hamme discloses the system of claim 1.
Hamme does not specifically disclose wherein a distance from a center of the inner panel to each of the braces is 1/4 of a wavelength of primary vibration of the inner panel.
Hamme does, however, disclose wherein the optimal size, material makeup and location for elements 124 is related to the parameters of the subwoofer. (Hamme - Column 4, Lines 9-27)
According to the OpenStax, the equation (2n-1)/4 is a commonly used to find a point at which to place a dampening element as this distance (1/4 the wavelength away from the resonance point), insures both dampening of vibrations without significantly effecting the overall system resonance, i.e. dampening the sound of the speaker itself. As such, placing an element at a ¼ length of the wavelength away from a resonance point is considered to be well known in the art.
See, for reference, 14.4 Sound Interference and Resonance - Physics | OpenStax
Therefore, it would have been obvious to modify Hamme as taught by OpenStax to place the braces at ¼ the wavelength away from the center of the panel, i.e. the resonance point, for the expected benefit of lowering vibration without significantly effecting the overall quality of the sound system, to obtain the invention as specified in the claim.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to AARON L LEMBO whose telephone number is (571)270-3065. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 7am-4pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Nicole Coy can be reached on (571) 272-5405. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/AARON L LEMBO/
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3679
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