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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Claims 1-8 in the reply filed on April 9, 2026 is acknowledged.
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.
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 1-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Rizk (US 4,546,530) in view of Merhi, et al. (US 2015/0308096).
In reference to Claim 1, Rizk discloses two story structure (9:5-6) (a building module used for constructing a modular multi-storey building), the fabrication happens at an assembly site (Abstract) (the building module being fabricated at an off-site location to an installation location), a poured concrete floor (8:35-40, 9:15-17, Examiner is interpreting this “support” to meet the claimed “suspended”) (the building module comprising a precast concrete floor and a permanent outer wall fixed at a side edge of the floor so that the outer wall is suspended by the concrete floor to extend vertically upward and defines part of a facade of the building); subsections are brought to a final assembly site (18:1-4) (wherein when the building module is installed at the installation location),
Merhi discloses the wall and flooring together with supporting ([0115], [0119], Fig. 6A, Examiner is interpreting this “support” to meet the claimed “suspended”) (the outer wall being suspended by the floor to extend laterally and upwardly from the side edge of the floor by a connection partially embedded along the side edge such that the connection bears the load of the outer wall at the side edge during transportation from the off-site location to the installation location); the operators can be safely positioned within the building structure behind guard rails while securing the outer wall panels ([0142]) (the outer wall forms an external safety barrier).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to complete the structure of Rizk using the support of Merhi because the steel perimeter beams suspend the wall for lightweight properties. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine the structure of Rizk using the safety features of Merhi to reduce the need for scaffolding. The reasonable expectation of success of the structure of Rizk with the connections and safety features of Merhi is a lower cost and safer final product.
In reference to Claim 2, modified Rizk discloses the building module of Claim 1, as described above.
Rizk discloses brackets to connect walls and floors (8:35-40) (the connection comprises a bracket of the outer wall connected to a fixing joint embedded along the side edge of the floor).
In reference to Claim 3, modified Rizk discloses the building module of Claim 1, as described above.
Rizk discloses stud runners and brackets in the wall and floor (8:35-40) (one or more temporary support members are fixed onto the floor).
In reference to Claim 4, modified Rizk discloses the building module of Claim 3, as described above.
Rizk discloses supports which are then removed (16:16-41) (the temporary support member is configured to vertically support at least part of a further building module above the building module at the installation location until the further building module is connected to a permanent support structure that supports the further building module, whereafter the temporary support member is removed).
In reference to Claim 5, modified Rizk discloses the building module of Claim 4, as described above.
Rizk discloses supports that can pivot to be positioned where needed (16:16-41) (the temporary support member has a tripod support structure).
In reference to Claim 6, modified Rizk discloses the building module of Claim 3, as described above.
Rizk discloses using a jack and connector pins to align floors with supports (17:35-47) (the temporary support member includes a locator provided on the temporary support member to assist in correctly locating the further building module above the building module).
In reference to Claim 7, modified Rizk discloses the building module of Claim 1, as described above.
Rizk discloses stud runners in the concrete floor (8:35-43) (the precast concrete floor is a concrete slab precast with reinforcement).
In reference to Claim 8, modified Rizk discloses the building module of Claim 1, as described above.
Rizk discloses the concrete beams (8:35-45) (the precast concrete floor is a concrete slab precast with integrally formed concrete beams).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KELSEY C GRACE whose telephone number is (571)270-1113. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 7:00 AM - 5:00 PM EST, Friday 7:00 AM - 11:00 AM EST.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Christina Johnson can be reached at (571)272-1176. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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KELSEY C. GRACE
Examiner
Art Unit 1742
/CHRISTINA A JOHNSON/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1742
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