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 .
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.
Claims 1, 6-7, 13, 15, 17, 19-21 and 23-24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Murakami et al. (6,383,022) in view of Kuroda et al. (8,647,132).
Regarding claims 1, 13 and 20-21, Murakami et al. disclose a connector, comprising:
a plurality of contacts (W, Fig. 2A);
a housing (11, Fig. 2A) having:
a mating portion adapted to be mated with a mating connector (not shown) and defining a front opening (15, Fig. 2A); and
a waterproofed portion (14, Fig. 2A) into which the plurality of contacts are plugged (Fig. 1A), the waterproofed portion including: a rear opening (pointed at 14, Fig. 2A); and an inner wall surface (a wall of 14) defining the rear opening; and
a waterproofing element (12 and 13, Fig. 2A) arranged within the waterproofed portion (Fig. 1A) and adapted to prevent the entry of water into the connector, including:
a seal element (13, Fig. 2A) having: a plurality of first waterproofing portions (though holes of 22) each defining a plug hole into which one of the contacts (W) is plugged and adapted to prevent water from entering an area surrounding the contact; and a second waterproofing portion (22a, Fig. 2A) arranged in sealing contact with the inner wall surface (contact by an outer wall of 19 or an outer wall 18, Fig. 2A) of the waterproofed portion and adapted to prevent water to enter a space between the inner wall surface and the seal element (Fig. 1A), and
a supporting element (12, Fig. 2A) defining a plurality of through holes (between 17 and 18) and surrounding the first waterproofing portions (surround the area of the through holes that received the W) and adapted to prevent a misalignment of the first waterproofing portions, the supporting element pressing the second waterproofing portion against the inner wall surface (against by the outer wall 18) and, in a state of being free from an external force, is in watertight contact with the seal element, the first waterproofing portions are respectively arranged in the through holes of the supporting element.
Murakami et al. disclose the claimed invention as described above except for a drain groove is formed into a rear end face of the supporting element and is not formed in the seal element.
Kuroda et al., Fig. 2 shows a waterproofing element (20) defines a drain groove (23) formed into a rear end face and is not formed in a seal element (30). It would have been obvious to modify Murakami et al. to have a drain groove is formed into a rear end face of the supporting element and is not formed in the seal element, as taught by Kuroda et al., in order to protect the connector.
Regarding claim 6, it is noted that Kudora et al., Fig. 2 shows the drain groove extends in a direction normal to a front-rear direction of the connector.
Regarding claim 7, Murakami et al., Fig. 1A shows the supporting element protrudes from the rear opening.
Regarding claim 15, Murakami et al., Fig. 2A shows the first waterproofing portions are discrete from the second waterproofing portion.
Regarding claim 17, it is noted that Kudora et al., Fig. 2 shows the drain groove extends in a direction normal to an axial direction of each of the plurality of through holes of the supporting element.
Regarding claim 19, the combination of Murakami et al. and Kudora et al. disclose rear end faces of the supporting element and the seal element are arranged offset from one another in the axial direction, and the drain groove is formed in the rear end face of the supporting element, that is arranged closest to a rear side of the waterproofing element.
Regarding claim 23, Murakami et al. disclose the claimed invention as described above except for the supporting element is formed of a material more rigid than a material forming the seal element.
It would have been obvious to modify Murakami et al. to have the supporting element is formed of a material more rigid than a material forming the seal element, since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select a known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice. In re Leshin, 125 USPQ 416 for better engaging.
Regarding claim 24, Murakami et al., Fig. 2A disclose the supporting element is formed of a resin material (rubber).
Claims 3-4 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Murakami et al. and Kuroda et al. as applied to claims 1 and 13 above, and further in view of Kilian et al. (11,362,496).
Regarding claims 3 and 16, Murakami et al. and Kuroda et al. disclosed the claimed invention as described above except for the seal element and the supporting element are integrally molded.
Kilian et al., Figs. 1 and 2 shows a seal part (4/5) and a holder part (6) are integrally molded (Kilian et al., column 3, lines 17-25). It would have been obvious to modify Murakami et al. and Kuroda et al. to have the seal element and the supporting element are integrally molded, as taught by Kilian et al. for better engaging.
Regarding claim 4, Murakami et al., Fig. 2A shows the seal element and the supporting element are formed from distinct materials.
Claim 22 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Murakami et al. and Kuroda et al. as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Abe (5,766,039).
Regarding claim 22, Murakami et al. and Kuroda et al. disclosed the claimed invention as described above except for an end of the drain groove extends to at least one through hole.
Abe, Figs. 1 and 2 show an end of a drain groove (8) extends to at least one through hole (7). It would have been obvious to modify Murakami et al. and Kuroda et al. to have an end of the drain groove extends to at least one through hole, as taught by Abe for better connection.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 8 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.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1, 3-4, 6-7, 1, 15-17 and 19-24 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THANH TAM T LE whose telephone number is (571)272-2094. The examiner can normally be reached 9AM-6PM.
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, Abdul Riyami can be reached at 571-270-3119. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/THANH TAM T LE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2831 08/09/26
thanh-tam.le@uspto.gov
Prosecution Insights