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
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.
Claim(s) 1, 4-14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Clark (EP 1324956) and Chao et al. (KR 10-1766989) as cited in the machine translation provided herein after.
Regarding claims 1, 12 and 24, Clark discloses a method of shaping a glass sheet, comprising:
providing a glass sheet (G) having a first major surface and an opposing second major surface and a first edge portion, the first edge portion being a minor surface of the glass sheet that extends between and connects the first major surface and the second major surface because it is a sheet (Fig 1);
heating the glass sheet in furnace (12) to a temperature suitable for shaping [0015];
depositing the glass sheet on a first bending tool (20),
the glass sheet (G) being disposed over a first segment (42) of the first bending tool (see also Fig. 2), the first segment defining at least a portion of a shaping surface of the first bending tool; wherein any segment of (20) is considered the claimed first segment given the broadest reasonable interpretation
moving the first segment of the first bending tool from a first position to a second position adjusting a position of the glass sheet relative to the shaping surface of the first bending tool; and
shaping the glass sheet on the first bending tool where the glass sheet (G) is shaped on the first bending tool (20) by press bending the glass sheet between the first bending tool (20) and a second bending tool (24), the second bending tool having a shaping surface facing the glass sheet configured such that during press bending the shaping surface of the second bending tool is over the first edge portion as depicted in Fig 1 and section 22.
The only difference between the claim 1 of the present application and the invention of Clark is an exterior structure on the bending tool such that the moving in step iv yields
contact with the first edge portion of the glass sheet, the contact with the first edge portion of the glass sheet adjusting a position of the glass sheet relative to the shaping surface of the first bending tool while the glass sheet is supported on the shaping surface of the first bending tool
In analogous art of bending a glass sheet on a split ring mold Chao discloses aligning and retaining members (214) secured to the bending frame (page 6 ¶6-page 7 ¶3). It would be obvious to a skilled artisan to modify the method of Clark with the members 214 of Chao as motivated to align and retain the glass sheet during bending thus contacting at least a portion of the edge while the glass sheet is supported on the bending surface and during bending to maintain alignment with the bending frame and press.
Regarding claim 4, movement of the first segment of the first bending tool from the first position to the second position is in a direction which is toward a second segment of the first bending tool.
The mold ring 34 also includes at least one movable portion 42 that is movable with respect to the frame 32 and the fixed portion 38 from the phantom line indicated lower position shown in Figure 2 to the solid line indicated upper position to form the heated glass sheet by pressing in cooperation with the upper mold 25 shown in Figure 1
Regarding claim 5, moving the first segment from the second position to the first position prior to the glass sheet being disposed over the first segment of the first bending tool because it is necessary to pivot the movable portion (42) to the first position to restart the method of bending another glass sheet.
Regarding claim 6, moving a second segment of the first bending tool, the other side of the split mold/ second (42), from a first position to a second position to cause contact with a second portion of the glass sheet,
pivotal connection 44 supports the movable portion 42 of the mold ring 34 for pivotal movement between the phantom line lower position of Figure 2 and the solid line upper position of about a pivotal axis A that extends through the mold ring at spaced portions 46 of the mold ring
thus the contact with the second portion of the glass sheet adjusting the position of the glass
An actuating mechanism collectively indicated by 52 includes a pair of actuators 54 that respectively extend between the fixed frame 32 of the mold and the pair of movable end portions 42 of the mold ring 34 to provide movement of the end portions between the lower and upper positions respectively shown by phantom and solid line representation in Figure 3. The actuating mechanism 52 positions the movable end portions 42 in their lower positions upon initially receiving a heated glass sheet from the top side transfer platen 18 shown in Figure 1. After movement of the forming mold 20 from the transfer station 16 to the forming station 22, the upper mold 24 is moved downwardly and the actuating mechanism 52 moves the movable end portions 42 upwardly to provide cooperative press forming between the molds. The adjuster 48 of
each movable end portion allows positioning thereof to provide the most effective press forming
sheet relative to the shaping surface of the first bending tool,
wherein movement of the second segment of the first bending tool from the first position to the second position is in a direction which is toward the first segment of the first bending tool.
Regarding claim 7, the first edge portion of the glass sheet is a first pillar edge portion of the glass sheet and after moving the first segment of the first bending tool from the first position to the second position the first pillar edge portion of the glass sheet abuts an end surface of a first positioning assembly.
Regarding claims 8-9, Clark discloses mounts (36) that can be adjusted to provide proper positioning of the glass with the frame, or lower first bending tool [0015].
Clark is not specific if the first edge portion of the glass sheet is contacted by a first positioning assembly, the first positioning assembly moving with the first segment and in a direction which is toward the glass sheet prior to contacting the first edge portion of the glass sheet.
Fig 2 shows positioning assemblies (36) to adjust and align the first bending tool relative to the glass. It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to place the positioning assemblies (36) to move the glass relative to the mold as motivated by touching the edge of the glass or alternatively moving the first bending tool with the positioning assemblies (36) and keeping the glass stationary.
Furthermore, the mere reversal of parts is obvious to a skilled artisan
In re Gazda, 219 F.2d 449, 104 USPQ 400 (CCPA 1955) (Prior art disclosed a clock fixed to the stationary steering wheel column of an automobile while the gear for winding the clock moves with steering wheel; mere reversal of such movement, so the clock moves with wheel, was held to be an obvious modification
Regarding claim 10, Clark discloses mounts (36), or positioning assemblies, movable relative to the first segment thus configured to move vertically to the frame (32) in an upward direction or a downward direction.
Regarding claim 11, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to move the mount (36) vertically in the downward direction prior to press bending the glass sheet between the first bending tool and a second bending tool or wherein the body portion moves vertically in the upward direction after press bending the glass sheet between the first bending tool and a second bending tool to then vertically raise the mounts (36) to position the glass relative to the lower first bending tool.
Regarding the claim 13, it would be obvious to one skilled in the art to have the first edge portion is generally perpendicular to the first and second major surface and is either flat or curved as motivated to produce a bent glass sheet with a flat or curved sheet edge.
Regarding claims 14-15 and 19, Clark discloses a method of shaping a glass sheet, comprising:
providing a glass sheet (G) having a first major surface and an opposing second major surface and a first edge portion, the first edge portion being a minor surface of the glass sheet that extends between and connects the first major surface and the second major surface generally perpendicularly because it is a sheet (Fig 1);
heating the glass sheet in furnace (12) to a temperature suitable for shaping [0015];
depositing the glass sheet on a first bending tool (20),
the glass sheet (G) being disposed over a first segment (42) of the first bending tool (see also Fig. 2), the first segment defining at least a portion of a shaping surface of the first bending tool; wherein any segment of (20) is considered the claimed first segment given the broadest reasonable interpretation
moving the first segment of the first bending tool from a first position to a second position adjusting a position of the glass sheet relative to the shaping surface of the first bending tool; and
shaping the glass sheet on the first bending tool where the glass sheet (G) is shaped on the first bending tool (20) by press bending the glass sheet between the first bending tool (20) and a second bending tool (24), the second bending tool having a shaping surface facing the glass sheet configured such that during press bending the shaping surface of the second bending tool is over the first edge portion as depicted in Fig 1 and section 22.
The only difference between the claim 14 of the present application and the invention of Clark is an exterior structure on the bending tool such that the moving in step iv yields
contact with the first edge portion of the glass sheet, the contact with the first edge portion of the glass sheet adjusting a position of the glass sheet relative to the shaping surface of the first bending tool while the glass sheet is supported on the shaping surface of the first bending tool
In analogous art of bending a glass sheet on a split ring mold Chao discloses aligning and retaining members (214) in mechanical communication to the bending frame (page 6 ¶6-page 7 ¶3). It would be obvious to a skilled artisan to modify the method of Clark with the members 214 of Chao as motivated to align and retain the glass sheet during bending thus contacting at least a portion of the edge while the glass sheet is supported on the bending surface and during bending to maintain alignment with the bending frame and press.
Mechanical communication is not clearly defined Chao depicts the alignment retaining members attached to the forming rail (Fig 9) thus all of the elements are considered in “mechanical communication” given the broadest reasonable interpretation
Regarding claim 16, Chao depicts the aligning and retaining member (214) is disposed adjacent the bending tool ring (Fig 9) it would be obvious to place the members anywhere on the bending ring including the first segment as motivated to promote retaining and aligning the sheet on the ring during the bending process thus they move from the first position to second position when the first segment of the split mold moves.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 20 and 22 are allowable. Claim 20 claims the structure depicted best in Fig 15 of the present application.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 01/15/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant remarks that the claimed invention requires moving the first segment of the first bending tool from a first position to a second position to cause contact with the first edge portion of the glass sheet, the contact with the first edge portion of the glass sheet adjusting a position of the glass sheet relative to the shaping surface of the first bending tool while the glass sheet is supported on the shaping surface of the first bending tool. Applicant indicates that the mold ring of prior art Clark has segments (42) that move when the glass is articulated on the mold but does not indicate mechanisms capable of contacting an edge portion of the glass sheet.
In response to the amendments, Examiner has done further search and consideration and the present rejection is over previously cited prior art Clark which discloses a typical split mold where the edge segments of the mold raise from a first position to a second position causing the heated glass to curve upwards on the sides and a press mechanism for pressing the glass into the split mold.
Analogous art Chao is cited providing aligning retaining mechanisms to a ring mold such that the hold the edge of the glass sheet during bending and contact may be made before during or throughout movement of the first segment from a first position to a further bent position with the same motivation to retain and align the glass to the molds. The method as claimed does not overcome the prior art.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JODI COHEN FRANKLIN whose telephone number is (571)270-3966. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8 am-4 pm.
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JODI COHEN FRANKLIN
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1741
/JODI C FRANKLIN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1741