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 .
Specification
The lengthy specification has not been checked to the extent necessary to determine the presence of all possible minor errors. Applicant’s cooperation is requested in correcting any errors of which applicant may become aware in the specification.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because some of the drawings are 3D renderings which make it impossible to ascertain the details being referenced in the drawings. The 3D rendered figures that need to be converted to line drawings or resubmitted are fig. 12, 13, and 14. Fig. 21 is objected to for containing unnecessary text. 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.
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) 1-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US Patent Application Publication 2020/0181892 (hereinafter Macsay) in view of US Patent Application Publication 2021/0148101 (hereinafter Lev).
Regarding claim 1, Macsay discloses a wand (20) for a faucet, the wand comprising: a frame (24) having a waterway (26) operable to receive fluid from a wand hose (22); an outlet (defined by face module 34) disposed at a downstream end of the waterway; and a shutoff mechanism (106, 108) disposed in the waterway and operable to control the flow of fluid through the waterway to the outlet (par. 54);
Regarding claim 2, Macsay discloses wherein the shutoff mechanism includes a first gate (112) and a second gate (120), each of the gates having a plurality of windows (158, 164) and a plurality of shutter portions (fig. 3a-1).
Regarding claim 3, Macsay discloses wherein each of the windows of the first gate (158) are aligned with one of the shutter portions of the second gate when the shutoff mechanism is in the first position (par. 54).
Regarding claim 4, Macsay discloses wherein each of the windows of the first gate (158) are aligned with one of the windows of the second gate (164) when the shutoff mechanism is in the second position (par. 54).
Regarding claim 5, Macsay discloses further comprising a shutoff actuator (216) operable to control the shutoff mechanism.
Regarding claim 6, Macsay discloses wherein the shutoff actuator includes a plurality of teeth (222) configured to rotate the shutoff mechanism between the first and second positions (par. 54).
Regarding claim 7, Macsay discloses a wand (20) for a faucet, the wand comprising: a frame (24) having a waterway (26) operable to receive fluid from a wand hose (22); an outlet (defined by face module 34) disposed at a downstream end of the waterway; a shutoff mechanism (106, 108) disposed in the waterway and defining a flow path, the shutoff mechanism including first (108) and second (106) gates each having a plurality of windows (158, 164) and a plurality of shutter portions (fig. 3a-1);
Regarding claim 8, Macsay is silent as to the material of the gates and thus fails to show they comprise ceramic. Attention is turned to Lev which shows ceramic is a common material known in the art for disk valves in a fluid system (par. 54). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing of the claimed invention to select ceramics as the material for the gates as the selection of a known material based on the suitability for its intended use involves only routine skill in the art.
Regarding claim 9, Macsay discloses wherein the shutoff mechanism is configured to prevent the flow of water through the flow path when each of the windows of the first gate are aligned with one of the shutter portions of the second gate (par. 54).
Regarding claim 10, Macsay discloses a filter seal (126) upstream of the first gate and configured to prevent water from flowing around the first and second gates.
Regarding claim 11, Macsay discloses the second gate (106) is stationary relative to a body of the shutoff mechanism (par. 23).
Regarding claim 12, Macsay discloses the first and second gates are disk-shaped (“disks” par. 23).
Regarding claim 13, Macsay discloses the shutoff mechanism is movable between a first position and a second position, and wherein the windows of the first and second gates are aligned in the first position and each of the windows of the first gate are aligned with one of the shutter portions of the second gate in the second position (par. 54).
Regarding claim 14, Macsay discloses the shutoff mechanism is rotatable to a third position in which the windows of the first gate are partially aligned with the windows of the second gate (par. 48 “third flow”).
Regarding claim 15, Macsay discloses a shutoff actuator (216) operable to control the shutoff mechanism.
Regarding claim 16, Macsay discloses a wand (20) for a faucet, the wand comprising: a frame (24) having a waterway (26) operable to receive from a wand hose (22); an outlet (generally at 34) disposed at a downstream end of the waterway; and a shutoff mechanism (106, 108) disposed in the waterway and operable to control the flow of the water from the wand hose through the waterway to the outlet (par. 54); wherein the shutoff mechanism is movable between a first position configured to prevent the flow of treated water in the waterway downstream of the shutoff mechanism and a second position configured to allow the flow of water in the waterway downstream of the shutoff mechanism to the outlet (par. 54; fig. 1). Macsay fails to recite the wand hose is continuously pressurized with fluid. Attention is turned to Lev which shows it is common to have a wand hose under continuous water pressure when the control valve for the wand is located in the wand head (par. 49). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing of the claimed invention to configure the wand hose to be continuously pressurized with fluid in order to prevent any air or breaks in the hose when switching the hose on as evidenced by the teachings above.
Regarding claim 17, Macsay discloses the shutoff mechanism includes two gates (112, 120) configured to rotate relative to each other to control the flow of water through the shutoff mechanism.
Regarding claim 18, Macsay discloses the shutoff mechanism includes a rotatable disk (120) with a plurality of windows (164) and shutter portions and a stationary disk (112) with a plurality of windows (158) and shutter portions (fig. 3a-1).
Regarding claim 19, Macsay discloses a shutoff actuator (216) operable to control the shutoff mechanism.
Regarding claim 20, Macsay shows the shutoff mechanism includes two disks (112, 120) but silent as to the material of the gates and thus fails to show they comprise ceramic. Attention is turned to Lev which shows ceramic is a common material known in the art for disk valves in a fluid system (par. 54). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing of the claimed invention to select ceramics as the material for the gates as the selection of a known material based on the suitability for its intended use involves only routine skill in the art.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US Patent 6,321,788 is directed to the state of the art of mixer valves located in a faucet head.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JANIE M LOEPPKE whose telephone number is (571)270-5208. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9AM-5PM ET.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, David Angwin can be reached at (571) 270-3735. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JANIE M LOEPPKE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3754