DETAILED ACTION
The communication dated 2/9/2026 has been entered and fully considered.
Claim 10 was amended. Claims 1-18 are currently pending.
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 .
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.
Election/Restrictions
The restriction requirement between Groups I and II, as set forth in the Office action mailed on 12/10/2025, has been reconsidered and is hereby withdrawn.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-3, 5-6, 10-12, and 14-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Rockwell et al. U.S. Publication 2012/0298154 (henceforth referred to as Rockwell).
As for claim 1, Rockwell teaches a dishwashing appliance (Fig. 17: part 1700), comprising: a tub (Fig. 18: part 1702) defining a wash chamber (Fig. 18: part 1718) therein for receipt of articles for washing; a sump (Fig. 18: part 1815) positioned at a bottom of the wash chamber for receiving fluid from the wash chamber; a pump (Fig. 18: part 1704) in fluid communication with the wash chamber and the sump; and an acoustic barrier (Fig. 18: parts 1708 and 1716) positioned outside the tub, wherein a portion (Fig. 18: part 1708) of the acoustic barrier is visible from outside of the dishwashing appliance, and wherein the acoustic barrier is color matched with an adjacent external portion of the dishwashing appliance (Fig. 17).
As for claim 2, Rockwell further teaches that the adjacent external portion of the dishwashing appliance comprises a front surface of a door of the dishwashing appliance (Fig. 17).
As for claim 3, Rockwell further teaches that the adjacent external portion of the dishwashing appliance comprises a toe kick (paragraph [0073]).
As for claim 5, Rockwell further teaches that the acoustic barrier comprises a sound blanket (Fig. 19: part 20) extending along at least one side of the tub (paragraph [0004]; Fig. 18).
As for claim 6, Rockwell further teaches that the acoustic barrier comprises sound insulation formed of a fiber material (paragraph [0003]).
As for claim 10, Rockwell teaches a dishwashing appliance (Fig. 17: part 1700) comprising: a tub (Fig. 18: part 1702) defining a wash chamber (Fig. 18: part 1718) therein for receipt of articles for washing; a sump (Fig. 18: part 1815) positioned at a bottom of the wash chamber for receiving fluid from the wash chamber; a pump (Fig. 18: part 1704) in fluid communication with the wash chamber and the sump; a cosmetic panel (Fig. 17; the outer surface of access door 1720) defining at least one external surface of the dishwashing appliance, wherein the at least one external surface comprises a color (Fig. 17); and an acoustic barrier (Fig. 18: parts 1708 and 1716) positioned within the dishwashing appliance, wherein a portion (Fig. 18: part 1708) of the acoustic barrier is visible from outside of the dishwashing appliance, and wherein the portion of the acoustic barrier comprises the color (Fig. 17).
As for claim 11, Rockwell further teaches that the cosmetic panel is a door panel and the at least one external surface of the dishwashing appliance comprises a front surface of a door of the dishwashing appliance (Fig. 17).
As for claim 12, Rockwell further teaches that the cosmetic panel comprises a toe kick (paragraph [0073]).
As for claim 14, Rockwell further teaches that the acoustic barrier comprises a sound blanket (Fig. 19: part 20) extending along at least one side of the tub (paragraph [0004]; Fig. 18).
As for claim 15, Rockwell further teaches that the acoustic barrier comprises sound insulation formed of a fiber material (paragraph [0003]).
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 7-9 and 16-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Rockwell et al. U.S. Publication 2012/0298154 (henceforth referred to as Rockwell).
Rockwell teaches the features as per above. Examiner takes official notice that using paint, dyes, or other common colorants to make an appliance aesthetically pleasing is old and well known in the art. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
As for claims 8 and 17, Rockwell further teaches that the acoustic barrier comprises a first material configured for acoustically insulating the dishwashing appliance (Fig. 19: part 22) and a layer of a second material on a portion of the exterior of the acoustic barrier (Fig. 19: part 20).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4 and 13 are 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 following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: Rockwell et al. U.S. Publication 2012/0298154, the closest prior art, differs from the instant claims in failing to teach cutout defined in the toe kick, wherein the portion of the acoustic barrier is visible from outside of the dishwashing appliance through the cutout defined in the toe kick. Furthermore, it would not have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the dishwashing appliance taught by Rockwell as claimed.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to LEVON J SHAHINIAN whose telephone number is (571)270-1384. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 9:30am-6:00pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Michael Barr can be reached at (571)272-1414. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/LEVON J SHAHINIAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1711
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