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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
Acknowledgement is made of Applicant’s Information Disclosure Statement (IDS) form PTO-1149 filed 12/04/2023 & 10/09/2025. These IDS have been considered.
Specification
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
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 6, 7, and 10 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.
Regarding claim 6, the limitations “the load receiver body” and “the suspension portion” both lack antecedent basis. This claim depends on claim 1, however antecedent basis for these limitations is found in claim 3. For the purposes of applying prior art, Examiner is considering this claim as dependent on claim 3.
Regarding claim 7, the limitations “the load receiver body” and “the suspension portion” both lack antecedent basis. This claim depends on claim 2, however antecedent basis for these limitations is found in claim 3. For the purposes of applying prior art, Examiner is considering this claim as dependent on claim 3.
Regarding claim 10, the limitations “the load receiver body” and “the suspension portion” both lack antecedent basis. This claim depends on claim 5, which depends on claim 1. However antecedent basis for these limitations is found in claim 3. For the purposes of applying prior art, Examiner is considering this claim as dependent on claim 3.
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.
Claims 1, 2, and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Wilhelms et al. (DE 102018132059; “Wilhelms”, see attached machine translation).
Regarding claim 1, Wilhelms discloses in figure 7 a shopping cart (1) (¶ [0012]) comprising a cart body (2) (¶ [0041]), an electronic device (6) attached to the cart body (2) and configured to perform at least one of registration processing and payment processing of commodities (¶¶ [0044]-[0045], [0055], [0057]), an upper placing portion (11) provided in an upper stage of the cart body (2) and having the commodities placed thereon (¶ [0047]), a lower placing portion (12) provided in a lower stage of the cart body (2) and having the commodities placed thereon (¶ [0047]), and a detection device (9) configured to detect presence of the commodities placed on the upper placing portion (11) and the lower placing portion (12) (¶¶ [0046]-[0048]).
Regarding claim 2, Wilhelms discloses the detection device (9) is a load sensor including a strain gauge and a strain body (¶ [0028]).
Regarding claim 5, Wilhelms discloses in figure 7 the lower placing portion (12) is arranged to open rearward with respect to the cart body (2) (¶ [0051]).
Allowable Subject Matter
There are no prior art rejections for claims 6, 7, and 10. However, Examiner cannot comment on their allowability until the 112 rejections are adequately addressed.
Claims 3, 4, 8, and 9 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 3, none of the prior art either alone or in combination discloses or renders obvious a shopping cart as claimed wherein the strain body has a first end and a second end opposed to each other in a longitudinal direction, the first end being connected to the cart body, the second end being connected to a load receiver body fixed to a lower part of the upper placing portion, and the lower placing portion is suspended by a suspension portion of the cart body extending downward from the load receiver body in combination with the remaining claim limitations.
Claims 4, 8, and 9 would be allowable based on their dependence on claim 3.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
US 2018/0370554 discloses detecting the load of the upper and lower placing portions of a shopping cart.
USPN 5,488,202 discloses detecting the load of the upper and lower placing portions of a shopping cart.
US 2025/0140084 discloses detecting the load of the upper and lower placing portions of a shopping cart where the lower placing portion is suspended from the load receiver body however this document is not available as prior art under 102(a)(1) or 102(a)(2).
US 2024/0212024 discloses detecting the load of the upper and lower placing portions of a shopping cart where the lower placing portion is suspended from the load receiver body however this document is not available as prior art under 102(a)(1) or 102(a)(2).
The remaining cited references represent the general state of the art for shopping carts with load detectors.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NATALIE HULS whose telephone number is (571)270-5914. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8-5 EST.
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, John Breene can be reached at (571) 272-4107. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/NATALIE HULS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2855
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