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 .
Status of Claims and Application
This final election is in response to the remarks and amendments received by the office on 26 June 2026. Claims 1 2, 5-16, 19-24 are pending. Claims 1, 16 and 19 are amended. Claims 3, 4 17 and 18 are cancelled. Claims 16, 19-22 are withdrawn as non-elected. Claims 21-24 are newly added.
Claim Objections
Claims 16, 20-22 are objected to because of the following informalities: The claims are not presented with the correct claim status identifiers. Withdrawn claims are required to present with the claim status ‘Withdrawn. Whereas claim 16 and 19 are given the status identifier ‘Currently Amended’ claim 20 is indicated as ‘Original’ and claims 21-23 are assigned ‘New’ status. See MPEP 714 (II) C for guidance regarding claim status identifiers. Appropriate correction is required.
Response to Amendment
Election/Restrictions
Newly submitted claims 21 and 22 are directed to an invention that is independent or distinct from the invention originally claimed for the following reasons: the reasons previously made of record in regard to claims 16-20 in the requirement for restriction mailed by the office 10 October 2025.
Since applicant has received an action on the merits for the originally presented invention, this invention has been constructively elected by original presentation for prosecution on the merits. Accordingly, claims 21 and 22 are withdrawn from consideration as being directed to a non-elected invention. See 37 CFR 1.142(b) and MPEP § 821.03.
To preserve a right to petition, the reply to this action must distinctly and specifically point out supposed errors in the restriction requirement. Otherwise, the election shall be treated as a final election without traverse. Traversal must be timely. Failure to timely traverse the requirement will result in the loss of right to petition under 37 CFR 1.144. If claims are subsequently added, applicant must indicate which of the subsequently added claims are readable upon the elected invention.
Should applicant traverse on the ground that the inventions are not patentably distinct, applicant should submit evidence or identify such evidence now of record showing the inventions to be obvious variants or clearly admit on the record that this is the case. In either instance, if the examiner finds one of the inventions unpatentable over the prior art, the evidence or admission may be used in a rejection under 35 U.S.C. 103 or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) of the other invention.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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) 1, 2, 7, 8, & 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Application Publication 2017/0203508 to Dikovsky et al. (‘508 hereafter) in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication 2004/0135269 to Tetsuya Otsuki (‘269 hereafter).
Regarding claim 1, ‘508 teaches a method for manufacturing a wire harness, comprising: Step 5110: printing an insulation carrier by a 3D printing process (Fig 4A item 30); Step S 120: laying at least one conductor on the insulation carrier (Fig 4A item 35); and Step S 130: printing an insulation layer on the insulation carrier by a 3D printing process, to make the conductor be enclosed between the insulation carrier and the insulation layer (Fig 4A items 50). ‘508 does not teach the steps of sequentially or synchronously laying conductors or connecting conductors of a single layer to form a loop or a branch.
In the same field of endeavor, additive manufacturing of conductive articles, ‘269 teaches a method comprising sequentially or synchronously laying a plurality of conductors on the insulation carrier in a preset arrangement (Fig. 6 item 60); Step S125: electrically connecting designated different conductors among the plurality of conductors in a same layer to form a conductive loop or a branch point of a circuit (Fig. 6 item 60) for the benefit of making the needed electrical connections. It would have been obvious to the artisan possessed of ordinary skill at the time of effective filing to combine the teachings of ‘508 with those of ‘269 for the benefit of making needed or desired electrical interconnects.
Regarding claim 2, ‘508 teaches the method for manufacturing a wire harness wherein the method is used to manufacture a wire harness having n layers of conductors, where n is a positive integer greater than 1; and the method further includes: Step S140 after Step S130: repeatedly performing Steps S120 to S130 for (n-i) times to obtain a wire harness having n layers of conductors; wherein, the insulation carrier in Step S120 that is repeatedly performed each time is the insulation layer printed in Step S130 that is performed most recently (Fig 4C).
Regarding claim 7, ‘508 teaches the method for manufacturing a wire harness wherein the step of laying the conductor in Step S120 is started before the step of printing the insulation carrier in Step 5110 is completed; and the step of printing the insulation layer in Step S130 is started before the step of laying the conductor in Step S120 is completed (Fig 6 S3-S6).
Regarding claim 8, ‘508 teaches the method for manufacturing a wire harness wherein in Step S 120, the conductor is pre-formed by a 3D printing process (Paragraph 0077).
Regarding claim 15, ‘508 teaches the method for manufacturing a wire harness comprising: Step S200 after Step S 130: printing a wire harness seal on the outermost insulation carrier and/or the outermost insulation layer by a 3D printing process (paragraph 0158 and 0159).
Regarding claim 23, ‘508 teaches the method for manufacturing a wire harness wherein the method is used to manufacture a wire harness having n layers of conductors, where n is a positive integer greater than 1, and wherein the method further includes: Step S140' after Step S130: repeatedly performing Steps S110 to S130 for (n-1) times to obtain a wire harness having n layers of conductors (Fig. 4 steps 14 to 12).
Regarding claim 24 ‘508 teaches the method for manufacturing a wire harness wherein, the Step S110 comprises printing the insulation carrier having a plurality of slots by the 3D printing process (Fig 4 item12); the Step S120 comprises laying the conductors into the slots of the insulation carrier, respectively (Fig 4 item 13) ; and the Step S130 comprises printing the insulation layer on the insulation carrier and the conductors by the 3D printing process, so as to enclose the conductors between the insulation carrier and the insulation layer, and to fill a portion of the insulation layer into a gap between each of the slots and the conductor located therein (Fig 4 items 14).
Claim(s) 1, 2, & 8-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Application Publication 2015/0108677 to Mark et al. (‘677 hereafter) in view of ‘269.
Regarding claim 1, ‘677 teaches a method for manufacturing a wire harness, comprising: Step 5110: printing an insulation carrier by a 3D printing process (Fig 37, item 1800); Step S 120: laying at least one conductor on the insulation carrier (paragraph 0247); and Step S 130: printing an insulation layer on the insulation carrier by a 3D printing process, to make the conductor be enclosed between the insulation carrier and the insulation layer (paragraph 0247 – 0249). ‘677 does not teach the steps of sequentially or synchronously laying conductors or connecting conductors of a single layer to form a loop or a branch.
In the same field of endeavor, additive manufacturing of conductive articles, ‘269 teaches a method comprising sequentially or synchronously laying a plurality of conductors on the insulation carrier in a preset arrangement (Fig. 6 item 60); Step S125: electrically connecting designated different conductors among the plurality of conductors in a same layer to form a conductive loop or a branch point of a circuit (Fig. 6 item 60) for the benefit of making the needed electrical connections. It would have been obvious to the artisan possessed of ordinary skill at the time of effective filing to combine the teachings of ‘677 with those of ‘269 for the benefit of making needed or desired electrical interconnects.
Regarding claim 2, ‘677 teaches the method for manufacturing a wire harness wherein the method is used to manufacture a wire harness having n layers of conductors, where n is a positive integer greater than 1; and the method further includes: Step S140 after Step S130: repeatedly performing Steps S120 to S130 for (n-i) times to obtain a wire harness having n layers of conductors (Fig. 34); wherein, the insulation carrier in Step S120 that is repeatedly performed each time is the insulation layer printed in Step S130 that is performed most recently (Paragraph 0249).
Regarding claim 8, ‘677 teaches the method for manufacturing a wire harness wherein in Step S 120, the conductor is pre-formed by a 3D printing process (Fig 26).
Regarding claim 9, ‘677 teaches the method for manufacturing a wire harness wherein the conductor is a conductive wire; and in Step S 120, the conductive wire is laid on the insulation carrier by a wire feeder (Fig. 33, paragraphs 0246-0247).
Regarding claim 10, ‘677 teaches the method for manufacturing a wire harness wherein the conductor is a conductive wire with a shielding layer (paragraph 0293 and Fig. 49G).
Claim(s) 5, 11-14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over ‘508 in view of ‘269 as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication 2015/0329069 to Daugherty et al. (‘069 hereafter).
Regarding claim 5, ‘508 in view of ‘269 does not teach a cooling pipe. In the related art of wire harness assembly, ‘069 teaches that it is known to manufacture a wire harness comprising: Step S126 after Step S 120: laying at least one hollow cooling pipe on the insulation carrier (paragraph 0027) for the benefit of conducting fluid through the wire harness. It would have been obvious to one possessed of ordinary skill in the art at the time of effective filing to combine the teachings of ‘508 in view of ‘269 with those of ‘069 for the benefit of conducting fluids through the harness assembly.
Regarding claim 11, ‘508 in view of ‘269 does not teach a connecting terminal. In the same field of endeavor, wire harness manufacture, ‘069 teaches the method for manufacturing a wire harness comprising: Step S160 after Step S130: crimping or welding a connecting terminal to a tail end of the conductor, to allow electrical connection between different wire harnesses or between a wire harness and an electrical appliance by plugging connection between the connecting terminals thereof (Fig 1 items 22) for the benefit of providing secure connection to other elements of a larger assembly. It would have been obvious to one possessed of ordinary skill in the art at the time of effective filing to combine the teachings of ‘508 in view of ‘269 with those of ‘069 for the benefit of providing secure connection to other elements of a larger assembly.
Regarding claim 12, ‘508 in view of ‘269 does not teach printing a sheath. In the same field of endeavor, wire harness manufacture, ‘069 teaches the method for manufacturing a wire harness comprising: Step S170 after Step S160: printing a sheath at the tail end of the conductor by a 3D printing process, with the connecting terminal being accommodated in the sheath, to allow the plugging connection between the connecting terminals in the sheaths through plugging connection between the sheaths (Fig 1 items 28, 30, 22) for the benefit of producing a wire harness with appropriately positioned terminals. It would have been obvious to one possessed of ordinary skill in the art at the time of effective filing to combine the teachings of ‘508 in view of ‘269 with those of ‘069 for the benefit of appropriately positioned terminals.
Regarding claim 13, ‘508 in view of ‘269 does not teach a sealing connector. In the same field of endeavor, wire harness manufacture, ‘069 teaches the method for manufacturing a wire harness further comprising: Step S180 after Step S 126: printing a sealing connector at a tail end of the hollow cooling pipe by a 3D printing process, wherein the sealing connector is used to be connected to an air pump or a water pump to allow cooling gas or coolant to circulate in the hollow cooling pipe (paragraph 0027 and Fig. 1 item 28) for the benefit of conducting fluid through the wire harness. It would have been obvious to one possessed of ordinary skill in the art at the time of effective filing to combine the teachings of ‘508 in view of ‘269 with those of ‘069 for the benefit of conducting fluids through the harness assembly.
Regarding claim 14, ‘508 in view of ‘269 does not teach printing a wire fastener. In the same field of endeavor, wire harness manufacture, ‘069 teaches the method for manufacturing a wire harness comprising: Step S190 after Step S 130: printing a wire fastener on the outermost insulation carrier and/or the outermost insulation layer by a 3D printing process (Fig 2 items 32) for the benefit of supporting the wire harness in a larger assembly. It would have been obvious to one possessed of ordinary skill in the art at the time of effective filing to combine the teachings of ‘508 in view of ‘269 with those of ‘069 for the benefit of providing secure attachment to other elements of a larger assembly.
Claim(s) 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over ‘508 in view of ‘269 as applied to claim 2 above, and further in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication 2009/0110889 to Naoyuki Toyoda (‘889 hereafter).
Regarding claim 6, ‘508 in view of ‘269 does not teach making interlayer connection by punching vias. In the same field of endeavor, additively manufacturing wire harnesses, ‘889 teaches the method for manufacturing a wire harness further comprising: Step S150 after Step S 140: electrically connecting predetermined different layers of conductors among the n layers of conductors by punching a hole in the insulation layer and pouring a conductive material into the hole (paragraph 0263) for the benefit of forming interlayer connections. It would have been obvious to one possessed of ordinary skill in the art at the time of effective filing to combine the teachings of ‘508 with those of ‘889 for the benefit of forming interlayer connections.
Response to Arguments
Applicant has argued that the previously applied prior art does not teach the claims as instantly amended. Examiner agrees. Accordingly, an updated search was conducted, and newly relevant prior art was identified and applied. The rejection has been modified to reflect the prior art’s teachings of the claimed limitations.
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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to John P Robitaille whose telephone number is (571)270-7006. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:30AM-6:00PM.
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/JPR/Examiner, Art Unit 1743
/GALEN H HAUTH/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1743
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