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 .
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant's claim for foreign priority based on an application filed in China on 8/17/2021. It is noted, however, that applicant has not filed a certified copy of the CN 202110945925 application as required by 37 CFR 1.55.
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,
the connecting portion in claim 10;
the first and second connecting portions of claim 13;
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 Objections
Claims 1, 2 and 19-20 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 1, line 8 recites “the cutting device is configured to execute a cutting task”, but should read – the cutting device is configured to execute the cutting task – due to earlier mention of the cutting task in line 5.
Claim 1, line 14 recites “and an edges of a cutting domain”, should read – and an edge of a cutting domain –.
Claim 2 has a comma at the end of line 13 instead of a period.
Claim 2, line 7 recites “the cutting domains of the two cutting units”, should read – the cutting domains of the two cutting units closest to the working surface – for clarity on which two cutting units of the plurality of cutting units is being claimed.
Claim 19, line 8 recites “the cutting device is configured to execute a cutting task”, but should read – the cutting device is configured to execute the cutting task – due to earlier mention of the cutting task in line 5.
Claim 20, line 8 recites “the cutting device is configured to execute a cutting task”, but should read – the cutting device is configured to execute the cutting task – due to earlier mention of the cutting task in line 5.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 2-8, 10-14, 16, 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 2, line 3 sets forth “V represents the moving speed of the cutting device during the execution of the cutting task”, however, line 4 sets forth “n represents a rotational speed of the cutting device during the execution of the cutting task”. It is unclear the difference between the moving and rotational speed of the cutting device. Specifically, the cutting device rotates about a vertical axis to cut vegetation; therefore, the moving and rotational speeds of the cutting device both represent the speed of the cutting device as it rotates about the vertical axis.
Further, applicant’s specification, para. [0065], lines 4-5 sets forth “the moving speed of the cutting device in a running direction of the lawn mower”. It is unclear if the moving speed represents the speed of the cutting device or the speed of the lawn mower. Therefore, the claim is rejected for the above mentioned reasons.
Due to dependency on claim 2, claims 3-8, 10-14, 16, and 18 are rejected as well.
Claim 2, lines 8-9 recite “edges of the cutting domains of the cutting units close to the working surface are closer to the driving device in the second direction”, however, it is unclear what the cutting units are closer to. Specifically, it is unclear if the cutting units are closer to the driving device than the working surface, or if the cutting units close to the working surface are closer to the driving device than another limitation.
Claim 3, lines 7-8 recites the same limitation is rejected for the same reason as stated above.
Claim 3 in lines 2-4 sets forth “in any two adjacent cutting units, one cutting unit includes a cutting domain during the execution of the cutting task, and the other cutting unit includes another cutting domain during the execution of the cutting task”. However, it is unclear how these cutting domains are related to the cutting domains set forth in dependent claim 2, lines 10-13. Specifically, it is unclear if these two portions are one and the same or two different portions altogether. Therefore, the claim is indefinite.
Claim 3 in lines 5-6 sets forth “a spacing between edges of the cutting domains of the two cutting units is greater than or equal to
30000
V
n
N
2
”. However, it is unclear how this spacing is related to the spacing set forth in dependent claim 2, lines 6-7. Specifically, it is unclear if these two portions are one and the same or two different portions altogether. Therefore, the claim is indefinite.
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)(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.
Claim(s) 1, 9, 17, and 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Zhang et al. (CN 103843516 A).
Regarding claim 1, Zhang et al. teaches a lawn mower [10] comprising:
a housing [1];
a moving device [5 and 7] connected with the housing and configured to drive the lawn mower to move (wheels configured to drive the mower, see para. [0001], lines 3-4); and
a cutting mechanism [30], installed on the housing (see Fig. 2) and configured to execute a cutting task (cuts vegetation through use of cutting units [33a, b, and c]), comprising a driving device [4] and a cutting device [31] connected with the driving device (see para. [0002], lines 1-3), wherein:
the cutting device is configured to execute a cutting task under driving of the driving device (driving device rotates the cutting device performing the cutting task through use of cutting units [33a, b, and c], see para. [0002], lines 1-6), the cutting device comprises a plurality of cutting units [33a, b, and c] stacked in a first direction (vertical, see below), each cutting unit comprises at least one cutting element (each unit is made up of blades [33] with cutting edges [34], see para. [0004], 7-10), and each cutting unit forms a cutting domain (diameter of the cutting unit, see Fig. 4) when executing the cutting task, and
in at least one second direction (horizontal, see below) perpendicular to the first direction, a first preset spacing (see below) is provided between edges of cutting domains (see below) of two cutting units [33b and c] closest to a working surface (ground; units [33b and c] are lower on the cutting device [31] and therefore closer to ground, see para. [0002], lines 5-12), and an edges of a cutting domain (see below) of a cutting unit [33c] closer to the working surface of the two cutting units (lowest on [31] so therefore is closest to the ground, see para. [0002], lines 5-12) is closer to the driving device in the second direction than that of the other cutting unit of the two cutting units ([33c] has the smallest cutting domain and is closer to [31] that is connected to the driving device [4], see para. [0002], lines 1-3; therefore, is closer to the driving device then the other cutting units).
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Examiner’s Note: while Zhang et al.’s para. [0002] describes both the cutting device and the cutting units as reference 31, it is clear from Figs. 3-4 that the cutting device is reference 31 and the cutting units are 33a, b, and c.
Regarding claim 9, Zhang et al. teaches wherein: in the two cutting units [33b and c] closest to the working surface (ground), one cutting unit [33b] includes a first cutting element (see below) arranged in a first phase (see Fig. 4), the other cutting unit [33c] includes a second cutting element (see below) arranged in a second phase (see Fig. 4), and a phase difference (see below) between the first cutting element and the second cutting element is configured to cause the first cutting element and the second cutting element to sequentially cut grass at the same position within a single rotation cycle of the cutting device (the first cutting element of unit [33b] is larger; therefore it cuts the grass first, then the smaller second cutting element of unit [33c] cuts the same grass; both units cut the grass at the same position within the same rotation cycle, see para. [0002], lines 5-15).
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Regarding claim 17, Zhang et al. teaches wherein a number of the cutting elements (each unit is made up of blades [33] with cutting edges [34], see para. [0004], 7-10) in each cutting unit [33a, b, and c] is less than or equal to 5 (each unit has two elements, see Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 19, Zhang et al. teaches a lawn mower [10] comprising:
a housing [1];
a moving device [5 and 7] connected with the housing and configured to drive the lawn mower to move (wheels configured to drive the mower, see para. [0001], lines 3-4); and
a cutting mechanism [30], installed on the housing (see Fig. 2) and configured to execute a cutting task (cuts vegetation through use of blades [33]), comprising a driving device [4] and a cutting device [31] connected with the driving device (see para. [0002], lines 1-3), wherein:
the cutting device is configured to execute a cutting task under driving of the driving device (driving device rotates the cutting device performing the cutting task through use of blades [33], see para. [0002], lines 1-6), the cutting device comprises a plurality of cutting units [33a, b, and c] stacked in a first direction (see below), each cutting unit comprises at least one cutting element (each unit is made up of blades [33] with cutting edges [34], see para. [0004], 7-10), and each cutting unit forms a cutting domain (diameter of the cutting unit, see Fig. 4) when executing the cutting task,
in at least one second direction (see below) perpendicular to the first direction, a first preset spacing Si (see below) is provided between edges of cutting domains (see below) of at least one set of two adjacent cutting units [33b and c], and an edge of a cutting domain (see below) of a cutting unit [33c] closer to a working surface (ground; lowest on [31] so therefore is closest to the ground, see para. [0002], lines 5-12) of the two adjacent cutting units is closer to the driving device than that of the other cutting unit of the two adjacent cutting units ([33c] has the smallest cutting domain and is closer to [31] that is connected to the driving device [4], see para. [0002], lines 1-3; therefore, is closer to the driving device then the other cutting units).
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Regarding claim 20, Zhang et al. teaches a lawn mower [10] comprising:
a housing [1];
a moving device [5 and 7] connected with the housing and configured to drive the lawn mower to move (wheels configured to drive the mower, see para. [0001], lines 3-4); and
a cutting mechanism [30], installed on the housing (see Fig. 2) and configured to execute a cutting task (cuts vegetation through use of blades [33]), comprising a driving device [4] and a cutting device [31] connected with the driving device (see para. [0002], lines 1-3), wherein:
the cutting device is configured to execute a cutting task under driving of the driving device (driving device rotates the cutting device performing the cutting task through use of blades [33], see para. [0002], lines 1-6), the cutting device comprises a plurality of cutting units [33a, b, and c] stacked in a first direction (see below), each cutting unit comprises at least one cutting element (each unit is made up of blades [33] with cutting edges [34], see para. [0004], 7-10),
in the two cutting units [33b and c] closest to the working surface (ground), one cutting unit [33b] includes a first cutting element (see below) arranged in a first phase (see Fig. 4), the other cutting unit [33c] includes a second cutting element (see below) arranged in a second phase (see Fig. 4), and a phase difference (see below) between the first cutting element and the second cutting element is configured to cause the first cutting element and the second cutting element to sequentially cut grass at the same position within a single rotation cycle of the cutting device (the first cutting element of unit [33b] is larger; therefore it cuts the grass first, then the smaller second cutting element of unit [33c] cuts the same grass; both units cut the grass at the same position within the same rotation cycle, see para. [0002], lines 5-15).
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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.
Claim(s) 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhang et al. (CN 103843516 A) in view of Song et al. (US 10716254 B2).
Regarding claim 15, Zhang et al. discloses the lawn mower as applied above but fails to explicitly disclose wherein the driving device drives the cutting device to rotate at a rotational speed less than or equal to 4000 r/min.
Song et al. discloses a similar lawn mower [10] wherein the driving device [30] drives the cutting device ([32], see Col. 6, lines 42-46) to rotate at a rotational speed less than or equal to 4000 r/min (see Col. 6, lines 33-34).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to drive the cutting device of Zhang et al. at a rotational speed less than or equal to 4000 r/min as disclosed by Song et al. in order to rotate the cutting device at a speed where the kinetic energy of the blades are within safety standards while still maintaining the cutting quality (see Song et al. Col. 6, lines 33-34).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-8, 10-14, 16 and 18 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Please see attached PTO-892 for the full list of references.
Reference US 10349576 B1 discloses a similar lawn mower (see Figs. 5-7) with a cutting device (see Fig. 1A) comprising of a plurality of cutting units [110] stacked in a first direction (see Fig. 1A).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SUNNY WEBB whose telephone number is (571)272-3830. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:30 to 5:30 E.T..
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/SUNNY D WEBB/Examiner, Art Unit 3671
/JOSEPH M ROCCA/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3671
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