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
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 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.
Claim(s) 1, 5, 6, 8-11, 15, 16, 18 and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Cooper, et al. (10,370,040).
Cooper discloses a vehicle beam component comprising an elongated beam 46 having a first wall 50, a second wall 52, and a third wall 54 interconnecting the first and second walls to define a channel along a length of the elongated beam; an array of stiffening members 26 disposed in the channel and along the elongated beam in a spaced arrangement that is configured to stiffen the elongated beam from a laterally directed impact at a plurality of locations on a majority section of the length of the elongated beam, wherein each stiffening member 26 of the array of stiffening members 32, 34 extends between and is secured to the first and second walls of the elongated beam, and wherein each stiffening member of the array of stiffening members 26 comprises a wall portion that is disposed orthogonal to the third wall of the elongated beam and transverse to the length of the beam, the wall portion configured to axially absorb the laterally directed impact, as shown in Figure 2. The spaced arrangement of the array of stiffening members 32, 34 is substantially equidistantly from each other. The spaced arrangement of the array of stiffening members comprises a distance between each of the array of stiffening members along the length of the elongated beam, and wherein the distance of the spaced arrangement is less than twice a depth dimension the array of stiffening members that is taken orthogonal to the length of the elongated beam, as shown in Figure 2. The elongated beam 46 comprises a sill inner or a sill outer 16 of a rocker assembly via 16, 18. The elongated beam 46 and the array of stiffening members 32, 34 comprises a rocker insert 14, and wherein the rocker insert is configured to be disposed with a hollow interior 58 of a sill assembly having at least one of a sill outer 16 having an outboard wall portion and a sill inner 18 having an inboard wall portion defining the hollow interior 58. The array of stiffening members 32, 34 are configured to carry a load path of the laterally directed impact between the inboard and outboard wall portions of the sill assembly. An array of transverse members 28 disposed at least partially within the channel and coupled to the top wall and the bottom wall of the first stiffening member, wherein upon undergoing a laterally directed impact at an exterior of the sill outer each of the transverse members are configured to carry a load path laterally between the inboard and outboard wall portions. The array of transverse members 28 includes a plurality of transverse members arranged equidistantly from each other. The array of transverse members 28 includes a first transverse member and a second transverse member and a lateral distance along the length of the rocker insert between the first transverse member and the second transverse member is not more than twice a length of the first transverse member.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-4, 7, 12-14, 17 and 19 are 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The prior art recited discloses common inventive concepts as the claimed present invention.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Faye M. Fleming whose telephone number is (571)272-6672. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30am-5:00pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Paul N. Dickson can be reached at (571) 272-7742. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/FAYE M FLEMING/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3614