Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
1. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
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.
2. Claims 1-2 and 4-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2010/0301545 (deJong et al.) (hereinafter “deJong”) (a reference of record) in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0111773 (Yokobori) (hereinafter “Yokobori”) (a reference of record).
Regarding claim 1, Figs. 1-3 of deJong show a media conveying apparatus (Figs. 1-3) comprising:
a first roller (30) and a second roller (20) spaced apart in a direction (Y-axis) orthogonal to a medium conveyance direction (Vp) in which a medium (S) is conveyed, to rotate independently to convey the medium (S);
a first sensor (40) and a second sensor (42) disposed downstream from the first roller (30) and the second roller (20) in the medium conveyance direction (Vp); and
circuitry (Fig. 2) configured to set a circumferential speed of the first roller (30) to a first speed (Vo) and a circumferential speed of the second roller (20) to a second speed (V1) higher than the first speed (Vo) to correct a skew of the medium (S) when the first sensor (40) detects the medium (S) before the second sensor (42) detects the medium (S),
the position of the first sensor (40) in the direction (Y-axis) orthogonal to the medium conveyance direction (Vp) being set based on a rotational center position (Cr in Fig. 1) of the medium (S) that rotates at a speed ratio of the second speed (Vi) to the first speed (Vo). deJong teaches all of the limitations of this claim, except for correcting the skew of the medium being stopped when the second sensor detects the medium, as claimed.
Yokobori shows that it is common in the art to utilize a sheet media conveying apparatus (including 52a, 52b, 51a, 51b and 46) in a punching unit (56) where it is operated such that correcting of skew of a medium (P1) is stopped when a second sensor (51b) detects the medium (P1), for the purpose of positioning the medium (P1) at a proper stopped punching position for the medium (P1) to be punched by punching unit (56). See, e.g., numbered paragraph [0040]. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to utilize the sheet media conveying apparatus arrangement of deJong in a punching unit and stop correction of skew of the medium when the second sensor detects the medium, because Yokobori teaches that it is common in the art to utilize a sheet media conveying apparatus similar to the deJong sheet media conveying apparatus (Fig. 1) in a punching apparatus and stop the medium when the second sensor detects the medium, thereby stopping the medium at the proper punching position.
Regarding claim 2, as best understood, Fig. 1 of deJong shows that the first sensor (40) is disposed within a predetermined range from a position outside the first roller (30) in the direction (Y-axis) orthogonal to the medium conveyance direction (Vp) by a distance L calculated by L = D/(a - 1), where a represents a ratio of the second speed to the first speed and D represents a distance between the first roller and the second roller. With regard to what is actually shown in Fig. 1 of deJong, the claimed formula above L = D/(α- 1), the letter "L" is represented by "So", the letter "D" is represented by “Ns”, and the ratio “α” is represented by Vo/Vi in Fig. 1 of deJong.
Regarding claim 4, Figs. 1-3 of deJong disclose a media conveyance method comprising:
conveying a medium (S) with a first roller (30) and a second roller (20) spaced apart in a direction (Y-axis) orthogonal to a medium conveyance direction (Vp), in which the medium (S) is conveyed, to rotate independently to convey the medium (S); and
setting a circumferential speed of the first roller (30) to a first speed (Vo) and a circumferential speed of the second roller (20) to a second speed (Vi) higher than the first speed (Vo) to correct a skew of the medium (S) when a first sensor (40) detects the medium (S) before a second sensor (42) detects the medium (S),
the first sensor (40) and the second sensor (42) being disposed downstream from the first roller (30) and the second roller (20) in the medium conveyance direction (Vp),
the position of the first sensor (40) in the direction (Y-axis) orthogonal to the medium conveyance direction (Vp) being set based on a rotational center position (Cr in Fig. 1) of the medium (S) that rotates at a speed ratio of the second speed (Vi) to the first speed (Vo). deJong teaches all of the limitations of this claim, except for correcting the skew of the medium being stopped when the second sensor detects the medium, as claimed.
Yokobori shows that it is common in the art to utilize a sheet media conveying apparatus (including 52a, 52b, 51a, 51b and 46) in a punching unit (56) where it is operated such that correcting of skew of a medium (P1) is stopped when a second sensor (51b) detects the medium (P1), for the purpose of positioning the medium (P1) at a proper stopped punching position for the medium (P1) to be punched by punching unit (56). See, e.g., numbered paragraph [0040]. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to utilize the sheet media conveying apparatus arrangement of deJong in a punching unit and stop correction of skew of the medium when the second sensor detects the medium, because Yokobori teaches that it is common in the art to utilize a sheet media conveying apparatus similar to the deJong sheet media conveying apparatus (Fig. 1) in a punching apparatus and stop the medium when the second sensor detects the medium, thereby stopping the medium at the proper punching position.
Regarding claim 5, Figs. 1-3 of deJong teach a non-transitory recording medium storing a plurality of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors (e.g., 60), causes the one or more processors (e.g., 60) to perform a method for controlling a media conveying apparatus (Figs. 1-3), the method comprising:
setting a circumferential speed of a first roller (30) to a first speed (Vo) and a circumferential speed of a second roller (20) to a second speed (Vi) higher than the first speed (Vo) to correct a skew of a medium (S) when a first sensor (40) detects the medium (S) before a second sensor (42) detects the medium (S),
the first roller (30) and the second roller (20) being spaced apart in the media conveying apparatus (Figs. 1-3) in a direction (Y-axis) orthogonal to a medium conveyance direction (Vp) in which the medium (S) is conveyed, to rotate independently to convey the medium (S),
the first sensor (40) and the second sensor (42) being disposed downstream from the first roller (30) and the second roller (20) in the medium conveyance direction (Vp) in the media conveying apparatus (Figs. 1-3),
the position of the first sensor (40) in the direction (Y-axis) orthogonal to the medium conveyance direction (Vp) being set based on a rotational center position (Cr in Fig. 1) of the medium (S) that rotates at a speed ratio of the second speed (Vi) to the first speed (Vo). deJong teaches all of the limitations of this claim, except for correcting the skew of the medium being stopped when the second sensor detects the medium, as claimed.
Yokobori shows that it is common in the art to utilize a sheet media conveying apparatus (including 52a, 52b, 51a, 51b and 46) in a punching unit (56) where it is operated such that correcting of skew of a medium (P1) is stopped when a second sensor (51b) detects the medium (P1), for the purpose of positioning the medium (P1) at a proper stopped punching position for the medium (P1) to be punched by punching unit (56). See, e.g., numbered paragraph [0040]. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to utilize the sheet media conveying apparatus arrangement of deJong in a punching unit and stop correction of skew of the medium when the second sensor detects the medium, because Yokobori teaches that it is common in the art to utilize a sheet media conveying apparatus similar to the deJong sheet media conveying apparatus (Fig. 1) in a punching apparatus and stop the medium when the second sensor detects the medium, thereby stopping the medium at the proper punching position.
Response to Arguments
3. Applicant’s arguments, see pages 5-6 of the response, filed 12/8/2025, with respect to the rejection of claims 1-2 and 4-5 under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground of rejection is made over U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2010/0301545 (deJong et al.) in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0111773 (Yokobori).
Allowable Subject Matter
4. Claim 3 is 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.
Conclusion
5. 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.
6. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THOMAS A MORRISON whose telephone number is (571)272-7221. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9am - 5pm.
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/THOMAS A MORRISON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3653