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 .
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.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species I in the reply filed on March 23, 2026 is acknowledged.
The examiner agrees that claims 1-8 are readable on the elected species, and the examination of claims 1-8 is set forth below.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they do not include the following reference sign(s) mentioned in the description: 18a and 33. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they include the following reference character(s) not mentioned in the description: 30 and 32a. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d), or amendment to the specification to add the reference character(s) in the description in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(b) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
The drawings are objected to because reference character “34” in Figure 24 should be changed to “34a,” and the instance of reference character “34” located next to reference character “54a” in Figure 25 should be changed to “34a.” Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities: In Paragraph 66, line 4, the phrase “the moto 34” should be changed to “the motor 34.”
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Objections
Claims 1-8 are objected to because of the following informalities:
In regards to claim 1, line 1, the phrase “A rear door lock assembly” should be changed to “A vehicle,” in line 4, the phrase “to upper end” should be changed to “to an upper end,” in line 6, commas should be inserted before and after the phrase “covering the rear door opening,” in line 7, a comma should be inserted after the phrase “an open orientation,” in lines 9 and 10, commas should be inserted before and after the phrase “such that in the locked orientation,” in line 11, the phrase “the four-bar assembly preventing” should be changed to “the four-bar assembly, thereby preventing,” in line 12, commas should be inserted before and after the phrase “and in the unlocked orientation,” and in line 13, the phrase “the lock engagement structure releasing” should be changed to “the lock engagement structure, thereby releasing.”
In regards to claims 1-5, 7, and 8, line 1 of each claim, the phrase “The rear door lock assembly” should be changed to “The vehicle.”
In regards to claim 6, line 1, the phrase “The rear door lock assembly” should be changed to “The vehicle,” in line 3, commas should be inserted before and after the phrase “with the locking member in the locked orientation,” and in line 6, commas should be inserted before and after the phrase “and when the rear door has moved to the closed orientation.”
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
In regards to claim 1, it is unclear how the “rear door lock assembly” can include the vehicle body structure having the rear door opening, the four-bar assembly, and the rear door, as recited in the body of the claim. The vehicle body structure and the rear door, for example, are parts of the vehicle that cooperate with the lock assembly that includes the locking member, the lock engagement structure, and the operating mechanism for the locking member, not that the vehicle body structure and the rear door are parts of the lock assembly itself. For examination purposes, the claim will be examined as drawn to a vehicle. See claim objections above.
In regards to claims 2-8, these claims are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) because they depend from claim 1.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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) 1-8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Barreau (DE 102008022072 A1).
In regards to claim 1, Barreau discloses a vehicle, comprising: a vehicle body structure 11 defining a rear door opening (opening covered by rear door 9, Figure 8); a four-bar assembly 33a, 29a, 31a, 21a (two sets of the bar assembly shown in Figure 8 and discussed in Paragraph 25 of the Computer Generated Translation) having a first support bracket 21a fixed to the vehicle body structure at an area adjacent to an upper end of the rear door opening (Figure 8); a rear door 9 supported by a second support bracket 33a of the four-bar assembly for movement between a closed orientation (Figure 8), covering the rear door opening, and an open orientation (Figure 9), exposing the rear door opening, a first arm 31a of the four-bar assembly having a lock engagement structure 99a extending from a portion thereof; a locking member 97a movable between a locked orientation (Figure 8) and an unlocked orientation (Figure 9), such that in the locked orientation, the locking member engages the lock engagement structure of the first arm of the four-bar assembly, thereby preventing movement of the rear door from the closed orientation (Figure 8), and in the unlocked orientation, the locking member is moved away from the lock engagement structure, thereby releasing the rear door (Figure 9).
In regards to claim 2, Barreau discloses that the lock engagement structure includes a cylindrically shaped rod (apparent from Figures 8 and 9 that the lock engagement structure is a cylindrically shaped rod since it extends from the first arm and since it matches the cylindrically shaped recessed portion of the locking member) extending from one side of the first arm of the four-bar assembly and the locking member includes a recessed portion dimensioned to hook onto the cylindrically shaped rod (Figure 8).
In regards to claim 3, Barreau discloses that the locking member pivots about a pivot axis that extends through a portion of the first support bracket (see Figure 9 below, with it being inherent that at least a portion of the pivot on which the locking member is located extends through a portion of the first support bracket since the pivot rotatably connects the locking member to the first support bracket, Paragraph 53 of the Computer Generated Translation).
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In regards to claim 4, Barreau discloses that the recessed portion of the locking member has a hook shape (Figures 8 and 9).
In regards to claim 5, Barreau discloses that the locking member includes a cam surface (see Figure 9 above) that extends upwardly away from the recessed portion.
In regards to claim 6, Barreau discloses that the cam surface and the recessed portion of the locking member are dimensioned and shaped such that, with the locking member in the locked orientation, when the rear door is moved from the open orientation to the closed orientation, the lock engagement structure contacts the cam surface of the locking member and urges the locking member toward the unlocked orientation, and when the rear door has moved to the closed orientation, the locking member is biased to move to the locked orientation engaging the lock engagement structure (biased by spring 105a, Paragraph 55 of the Computer Generated Translation and Figure 9).
In regards to claim 7, Barreau discloses that the locking member is connected to an actuator 41 via a cable 47a such that when the actuator is operated the locking member is moved from the locked orientation to the unlocked orientation.
In regards to claim 8, Barreau discloses that the locking member is connected to a spring 105a that biases the locking member toward the locked orientation (Figure 9).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ALYSON MERLINO whose telephone number is (571)272-2219. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 7 AM to 3 PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Christine Mills can be reached at 571-272-8322. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ALYSON M MERLINO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3675 May 14, 2026
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