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 .
Response to Amendment
The previous 35 U.S.C. 112(b) rejection of claim 4 is withdrawn in light of the amendment to the claim.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 10-17 in the Remarks, filed 11 February 2026, with respect to claim 1 have been fully considered and are persuasive. The rejections of claims 1-7 have been withdrawn.
Applicant's arguments regarding claims 8-12 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. The claim limitations argued in the Remarks are not reflected in claims 8-10.
Regarding claim 11, Cuppari discloses the location of the user is within a pre-defined range of each of the portable beverage dispensing device (col. 10, lines 47-50: The rules engine 154 may further establish location (e.g., food outlet, geographic, etc.) as a rule that may be used in determining qualified pour.)
Regarding claim 12, Cuppari discloses receiving, by a server (118, 116), a command associated with at least one of a plurality of beverages (seen in Fig. 2A) within at least one of a portable beverage dispensing device (102) available within a pre-defined range of a user location (col. 10, lines 47-50: The rules engine 154 may further establish location (e.g., food outlet, geographic, etc.) as a rule that may be used in determining qualified pour.)
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) 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Aguirre, et al. (“Aguirre”) (U.S. Pat. 7,044,335) in view of Chang (U.S. Pub. 2013/0292591).
Regarding claim 8, Aguirre discloses a cap assembly (Figs. 8A-8E: 12) for beverage bottles (10), the cap assembly comprising:
a cork (12) comprising:
a first end comprising:
an outlet port (84) configured to:
receive a tube (16); and
dispense, via the tube, a beverage from within a beverage bottle;
an intermediate cylindrical surface (Fig. 8C: 82) comprising:
an inlet port configured to receive a pressurized gas (“air”) from a pressurized gas vessel (44) via a gas tube (18);
a second end, wherein the intermediate cylindrical surface is positioned between the first end and the second end, and wherein the second end comprises a plurality of grooves (102), and O-rings cooperating with the plurality of grooves;
an inner sleeve (100), wherein the second end of the cork is attached to the inner sleeve via a collar (96).
Aguirre is silent that the inner sleeve comprises a plurality of spherical metal balls and a spring.
Chang discloses a quick-release coupling comprising an inner sleeve (12) which comprises a plurality of spherical metal balls (23) and a spring (22); and
an outer sleeve (21), wherein the inner sleeve and the outer sleeve are assembled with each other via the plurality of spherical metal balls and the spring, and wherein the outer sleeve is configured to move relative to the inner sleeve between a up position and a down position to put a leak-proof device (4) in a locked state or an unlocked state at an opening of a male connector (6).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to borrow the teaching of Chang to modify Aguirre’s cap assembly with a quick-disconnect coupling and Aguirre’s bottle necks to accept the quick-connect, to allow the user the quickly connect and disconnect the cap without tools while ensuring a leak-proof connection.
Regarding claim 9, Aguirre, as modified by Change, discloses that the plurality of the spherical metal balls is configured to move radially between a first position and a second position, and wherein, in the locked state, the plurality of the spherical metal balls is at the first position and the outer sleeve is at the down position, and wherein, in the unlocked state, the plurality of the spherical metal balls is at the second position and the outer sleeve is at the up position. (¶ [0015])
Regarding claim 10, Aguirre discloses the outlet port of the cork comprises an airtight seal (112) for inserting the dispensing tube into the beverage bottle.
Claim(s) 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as anticipated by or, in the alternative, under 35 U.S.C. 103 as obvious over Cuppari (U.S. Pat. 10,899,595).
Regarding claim 11, Cuppari discloses an apparatus that capable of performing the following steps during normal use, which is for providing beverage at a location of a user, the method comprising:
rendering to a user, via a user device (110), a list of a plurality of beverages (seen in Fig. 2A) within each of a portable beverage dispensing device (102), wherein the list comprises a type of each of the plurality of beverages (Fig 2A), an amount of each of the plurality of beverages (Fig. 2B), and additional attributes associated with each of the plurality of beverages, and wherein the location of the user is within a pre-defined range of each of the portable beverage dispensing device (col. 10, lines 47-50); receiving from the user, via the user device, a command (224) associated with at least one of the plurality of beverages within one of the portable beverage dispensing device in response to rendering, wherein the command comprises a request to provide the at least one of the plurality of beverages at the location of the user and one or more of the additional attributes selected by the user corresponding to at least one of the plurality of beverages; and displaying to the user, via the user device, a confirmation message (Fig. 2C) for providing the at least one of the plurality of beverages at the location of the user in response to receiving the command.
Regarding claim 12, Cuppari discloses an apparatus that capable of performing the following steps during normal use, which is for providing beverage at a location of a user, the method comprising:
receiving, by a server (118, 116), a command associated with at least one of a plurality of beverages (seen in Fig. 2A) within at least one of a portable beverage dispensing device (102) available within a pre-defined range of a user location (col. 10, lines 47-50), wherein the command (224) comprises a request to provide the at least one of the plurality of beverages at the user location and one or more additional attributes selected by the user corresponding to the at least one of the plurality of beverages; transmitting (114), by the server (118, 116) to at least one of the portable beverage dispensing device, the command associated with the at least one of the plurality of beverages; receiving, by the server from the at least one of the portable beverage dispensing device, a confirmation message for providing the at least one of the plurality of beverages at the user location with fulfilment of the one or more of the additional attributes; and transmitting, by the server, the confirmation message (Fig. 2C) to a user device (110).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-7 are allowed for the reasons stated above.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MICHAEL J MELARAGNO whose telephone number is (571)270-7735. The examiner can normally be reached Mon - Fri: 8 am - 5 pm +/- flex.
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/MJM/ Examiner, Art Unit 3754
/PAUL R DURAND/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3754 March 16, 2026