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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, filed 5 November 2025 have been considered but are moot because the amendment required the new reference shown below.
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.
Claims 1 and 3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shibuya et al. (“Shibuya”; JP 2020-161349A, English translation attached), in view of Tengler et al. (“Tengler”; US 2008/0272969).
Regarding claim 1: Shibuya discloses a fastening structure of metal plates (Fig. 1), comprising:
a first metal plate (10) including a first hole portion (11);
a second metal plate (2) including a second hole portion (3); and
a fastening material (20) fastened to penetrate the first hole portion and the second hole portion, with the first metal plate and the second metal plate overlapping each other (Fig. 1),
wherein the first metal plate is provided with a protrusion (12), the second metal plate is provided with a receiving portion (4) in which the protrusion fits, and
with the protrusion fitting in the receiving portion, the first metal plate is restricted from rotating with respect to the second metal plate (as show in Fig. 1 and 2).
Shibuya does not explicitly disclose a pair of protrusions on one side of the first hole portion.
However, Tengler discloses a pair of protrusions (121, Fig. 2) on one side of a first hole portion (52), and receiving portions (101b).
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the protrusions, and requisite receiving portions, of Shibuya to be the pair on one side of the first hole, as disclosed by Tengler, in order to better stabilize the connection.
Regarding claim 3: Shibuya modified by Yamaguchi discloses a pair of receiving portions, Tengler further discloses one of the receiving portions (101b) constituting the pair is greater in size in a direction in which the receiving portions constituting the pair are arranged than in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the receiving portions constituting the pair are arranged (as shown in Fig. 2).
Claims 4 and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shibuya and Tengler, as applied to claim 1 above, further in view of Kudo (US 2022/0239030).
Regarding claim 4: Shibuya modified Tengler discloses the pair of protrusions, Shibuya further discloses a device connector connected to a mating device, the device connector comprising the fastening structure of the metal plates according to claim 1,
wherein the first metal plate (10);
the second metal plate (2) constitutes an electric wire-side terminal connected to an electric wire (20),
the device-side terminal and the electric wire-side terminal being fastened by the fastening material (20, shown in Fig. 1 and 2),
the first hole portion (11) and the protrusion (12) are formed on the device-side fastening portion (Fig. 1),
the electric wire-side terminal includes an electric wire connection portion (2b) connected to the electric wire and an electric wire-side fastening portion (2a), and
the second hole portion (3) and the receiving portion (4) are provided on the electric wire-side fastening portion (Fig. 1).
Shibuya does not explicitly disclose the first metal plate constitutes a device-side terminal engaging the mating device, the device connector comprises a housing configured to support the device-side terminal and the electric wire-side terminal, the device-side terminal includes a device-side fitting portion configured to engage the mating device and a device-side fastening portion, and is formed to be bent at a border between the device-side fitting portion and the device-side fastening portion.
However, Kudo discloses the first metal plate (320a, 340b, akin to 210 in Fig. 2) constitutes a device-side terminal engaging the mating device (paragraph 0030),
the device connector comprises a housing (300) configured to support the device-side terminal (320a, 340a) and the electric wire-side terminal (320b, 340b, Fig. 10),
the device-side terminal includes a device-side fitting portion configured to engage the mating device and a device-side fastening portion (via 22), and is formed to be bent at a border (for example, at 24, Fig. 4) between the device-side fitting portion and the device-side fastening portion.
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the connector of Shibuya to include the housing and bent portion of Kudo in order to protect the connector and allow for more compact configurations.
Regarding claim 5: Shibuya modified by Kudo discloses a wire harness comprising:
the device connector according to claim 4; and
Shibuya further discloses an electric wire (20) connected to the electric wire-side terminal and extending from the device connector (Fig. 3).
Conclusion
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.
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/SEAN GUGGER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2834