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 .
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, these limitations: the force, the perforation, and the reduced thickness of the shell, 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.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1, 5-8, 10, 13, 15-16, 18-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Stroebe et al (US PGPUB 20220153220 A1).
Re claim 1, Stroebe discloses a vehicle trim assembly (Fig. 8B, 1000), comprising:
a trim portion that includes a first trim panel (see annotated Fig. 8B) and a second trim panel (see annotated Fig. 8B) that are separated by a gap (see annotated Fig. 8B); and a shell (see annotated Fig. 8B) configured to couple with the trim portion, wherein an outer surface of the shell is continuous from an outer edge of the first trim panel to an outer edge of the second trim panel (as shown in Fig. 8A) and extends across the gap (as seen in Fig. 8A).
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Re claim 5, a skin (see annotated Fig. 8B) coupled to and extending over the outer surface of the shell.
Re claim 6, the shell and the skin form a unitary panel (as seen in Fig. 8B).
Re claim 7, the first trim panel and the second trim panel are connected by a connector portion (Fig. 8B, AB) that includes a mating portion (see annotated Fig. 8B) configured to interface with a corresponding mating portion of the first trim panel and the second trim panel, wherein the connector portion extends across the gap (see annotated Fig. 8B).
Re claim 8, Stroebe discloses a vehicle trim assembly (Fig. 8B, 1000), comprising: a trim portion that includes a first trim panel and a second trim panel (see annotated Fig. 8B); a shell configured to couple with the trim portion (see annotated Fig. 8B); and a connector portion configured to connect to the first trim panel and the second trim panel (see annotated Fig. 8B), wherein the connector portion includes a mating portion configured to interface with a corresponding mating portion of the first trim panel and the second trim panel to align the first trim panel and the second trim panel (see annotated Fig. 8B); wherein the shell is configured to extend across gaps between the first trim panel, the second trim panel, and the connector portion such that the gaps are obscured from view from within a cabin of a vehicle (see Fig. 1C below, in the assembled state the gaps are not visible).
Re claim 10, a skin (see annotated Fig. 8B) configured to extend over an outer surface of the shell.
Re claim 13, the trim portion defines an aperture (see annotated Fig. 8C) sized to allow access to a vehicle component through the aperture (as seen in Fig. 8C).
Re claim 15, Stroebe discloses a vehicle (Fig 1A), comprising: a body portion (see annotation in Fig. 1B and Fig. 1C); a trim portion (Fig. 2A, 1000) connected to the body portion (see annotated figures below), wherein the trim portion includes a first trim panel and a second trim panel that are separated by a gap (Fig. 8B); a shell (Fig. 8B) configured to couple with the trim portion, wherein an outer surface of the shell is continuous from an outer edge of the first trim panel to an outer edge of the second trim panel and extends across the gap such that the gap is obscured from view from within a cabin of the vehicle (as seen from Figs. 1A-1C, 2A, and 8B); and a skin configured to extend over the outer surface of the shell (Fig. 8B), wherein the shell has a weakened portion (see annotated Fig. 8C) that separates a first shell portion from a second shell portion and is configured to allow the shell to deform in response to a force (as seen in the annotated Fig. 8C).
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Re claim 16, Stroebe discloses the first shell portion and the second shell portion separate (see annotated Fig. 8C above) when an expandable portion (see annotated Fig. 8C above and paragraph 0070) of the vehicle moves from an unexpanded configuration to an expanded configuration and applies the force to the second shell portion.
Re claim 18, the weakened portion includes a reduced thickness (see annotated Fig. 8B) of the shell that is configured to reduce a strength of the weakened portion.
Re claim 19, the skin has a weakened portion (see annotated Fig. 8C) configured to allow the skin to deform in response to the force.
Re claim 20, the skin has a reinforced portion (see annotated Fig. 8C) that is adjacent to the weakened portion of the skin.
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 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Stroebe et al. (US 2022/0153220 A1) in view of Hemphill et al. (US 10086681 B1).
Stroebe et al. discloses all the limitations of the claim, as applied above, except for the configuration of the shell to couple with the trim portion with a mechanical fastener that includes a snap, a hook, a hook-and-loop connector, a magnet, a push through connector, or a combination thereof.
Hemphill et al. teaches a push pin or push-in rivets to couple the trim portion to the shell (Col. 4, ln. 19-21). Hemphill et al., teaches that it is common in the art to use a fastener like push pins/push-in rivets to secure features such as trim pieces to vehicle elements.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the earliest effective filing date of the claimed invention, to couple the shell with the trim portion, as taught by Stroebe et al., using a push pin/rivet, as taught by Hemphill et al., with a reasonable expectation of success, such that the shell will be secured to the trim portion.
Claim 12 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Stroebe et al. (US 2022/0153220 A1) in view of Farooq et al. (US 2022/0250576 A1) and Liu et al. (US 2015/0258957 A1).
Stroebe et al. discloses all the limitations of the claim, as applied above, except for the
connector portion has a coefficient of thermal expansion that is lower than a coefficient of thermal expansion of the first trim panel and the second trim panel in claim 12.
Farooq et al. teaches that a connector portion is made of Nylon 6,6 material (Col.5, ln. 21-22) which has a coefficient of thermal expansion of 70-100x10^-6/⁰C. Liu et al. teaches that first and second trim panels are made of thermoplastic olefin (TPO) material (Paragraph 0022) which has a coefficient of thermal expansion of 0.6x10^-4/⁰C.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the earliest effective filing date of the claimed invention, to construct a connector portion, such as that disclosed by Stroebe et al., from Nylon 6, 6, as taught by Farooq et al., and to construct first and second trim panels, such as those disclosed by Strobe et al., from TPO, as taught by Liu et al., with a reasonable expectation of success, such that the coefficient of thermal expansion of the connector portion is lower than the coefficient of thermal expansion of the first and second trim panels, since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select a known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice (In re Leshin, 125 USPQ 416 (CCPA 1960).
Claim 17 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Stroebe et al. (US 2022/0153220 A1) in view of Buice et al. (US 11597343).
Re claim 17, Stroebe discloses all the limitations of the independent claim 15, as applied above, except for a perforation in the weakened portion that extends through the shell. Buice et al. teaches the use of perforation included in weakened areas which would enable the airbag to easily penetrate the trim panel when the airbag is deployed (Col. 4, lns. 14-17).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the earliest effective filing date of the claimed invention to include perforations in the weakened portion, as taught by Buice et al., in the shell, as taught by Stroebe et al., with a reasonable expectation of success, which would enable the shell to easily deform when a force is applied to it.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-4, 9, 11, and 14 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.
The reason for the indication of allowable subject matter in claim 3 is the inclusion in the claim of the limitations directed to the shell’s inclusion of a flange portion that extends partially around the first trim panel such that the flange portion contacts an inner surface of the first trim panel to couple the shell to the first trim panel. Such limitations, in combination with the rest of the limitations of the claims, are not disclosed or suggested by the prior art of record.
The reason for the indication of allowable subject matter in claim 4 is the inclusion in the claim of the limitations directed to the shell’s inclusion of an extension portion that extends partially around the first trim panel such that the extension portion extends beyond an inner surface of the first trim panel to partially obscure a view of a cabin of a vehicle from outside of the vehicle. Such limitations, in combination with the rest of the limitations of the claims, are not disclosed or suggested by the prior art of record.
The reason for the indication of allowable subject matter in claim 9 is the inclusion in the claim of the limitations directed to the connector portion which is flexible to allow the first trim panel to move relative to the second trim panel. Such limitations, in combination with the rest of the limitations of the claims, are not disclosed or suggested by the prior art of record.
The reason for the indication of allowable subject matter in claim 11 is the inclusion in the claim of the limitations directed to the outer surface of the shell including a mesh, and an inner surface of the skin includes hooks configured to couple with the mesh. Such limitations, in combination with the rest of the limitations of the claims, are not disclosed or suggested by the prior art of record.
The primary reason for the indication of allowable subject matter in claim 14 is the inclusion in the claim of the limitations directed to the first trim panel including a first portion, a second portion, and a third portion, wherein the second portion is located between the first portion and the third portion, and a stiffness of the second portion is lower than a stiffness of the first portion and the third portion. Such limitations, in combination with the rest of the limitations of the claims, are not disclosed or suggested by the prior art of record.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The
Kahl (DE 102008006905 A1) teaches a trim portion that can be connected using mechanical fasteners.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JASMINE J THOMAS whose telephone number is (571)272-8742. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:00-5:00.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Vivek Koppikar can be reached at (571) 272-5109. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JASMINE JAMES THOMAS/Examiner, Art Unit 3612
/VIVEK D KOPPIKAR/Supervisory Patent Examiner
Art Unit 3612
March 27, 2026
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