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 § 102
2. 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; or
(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.
3. Claims 1-4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by KAMIMURA et al. (JP 2000056766 A, machine translation).
Regarding claim 1, KAMIMURA discloses a keyboard device for a keyboard instrument, comprising: a keyboard chassis (1 in Fig. 1, 2 and 4) made of synthetic resin (Abstract) and having a stopper support portion (2 or 11 in Figs. 2 and 4) that supports a stopper (44 or 47 in Fig. 2) extending in a left-right direction (para. 0014); and a plurality of keys (61 and/or 62) each extending in a front-rear direction and configured such that each key is pivotally moved downward in accordance with depression of the key, and in accordance with release of the key having been depressed, pivotally moves upward into contact with the stopper from below via a contact portion (64 or 69 in Fig. 2) protruding from a lower portion of a front end of the key in a front-rear direction, to thereby have upward pivotal movement of the key blocked (para. 0017), the plurality of keys being disposed on a top of the keyboard chassis in a side-by-side arrangement in the left-right direction (Fig. 1), wherein the stopper support portion includes: a plate-like erected portion (2b or 11b in Fig. 4) extending in the left-right direction along the entirety of the plurality of keys in a state erected at a location forward of or below the plurality of keys, and a stopper mounting portion (2a or 11a) formed in a plate shape protruding from an upper end of the erected portion (2b or 11b) in the front-rear direction, and having the stopper mounted on a lower surface thereof, and wherein the keyboard chassis further includes a plurality of plate-like ribs (6 or 15 in Fig. 4) erected on a rear surface of the erected portion, such that the ribs are associated with corresponding ones of the contact portions of the plurality of keys, respectively (para. 0009).
Regarding claim 2, KAMIMURA discloses: wherein the stopper support portion (e.g. 2 in Fig. 4) further includes a horizontally protruding portion (2a) horizontally protruding from the front surface of the erected portion (2b) and extending in the left-right direction along the entirety of the erected portion, and wherein each of the plurality of ribs (6) is continuous with the erected portion and the horizontally protruding portion and is provided at a corner between the erected portion and the horizontally protruding portion (Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 3, KAMIMURA discloses: wherein the stopper mounting portion (e.g. 2 in Figs. 3 and 4) is formed by a plurality of stopper mounting portions (2a/2b) which are associated with the plurality of keys, respectively, and are disposed with a spacing therebetween along a longitudinal direction of the erected portion (Figs. 3 and 4; para. 0007).
Regarding claim 4, KAMIMURA discloses: wherein the plurality of keys are formed by white keys and black keys (61 and 62), and wherein each of the plurality of ribs is formed at a location corresponding to an associated one of the black keys (Figs. 3 and 4; note: the instant claims do not require that each of the plurality of ribs is formed at a location corresponding to each black key of the instrument; also, the term “associated” is given a broad interpretation for examination).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
4. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JIANCHUN QIN whose telephone number is (571)272-5981. The examiner can normally be reached 9AM-5:30PM EST M-F.
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/JIANCHUN QIN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2837
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