DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
A preliminary amendment was filed on 03/18/2024.
Claims 3, 6, 8-13, 15-17 and 20 are amended.
Claims 21-33 are canceled.
Claims 1-20 are remaining in the application.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
6. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
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.
Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor, regards as the invention.
Claim 20 recites dependency on “any of claim 18” which is unclear since the extent of subject matter dependency cannot be determined as claimed.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-19 are allowed.
As best understood by the examiner, claim 20 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claim.
Conclusion
11. The prior art cited and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure.
The prior art references disclose watercraft with manually operated fishtail propulsion systems.
The prior art does not disclose nor render obvious a watercraft with a fishtail propulsion system that is operated with both pedals and pivot body that is configured to receive a pump system.
12. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DANIEL V VENNE whose telephone number is (571) 272-7947. The examiner can normally be reached between M-F, 7am-3:30pm Flex. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Marc Q Jimenez, who can be reached at phone number (571) 272-4530. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free).
13. If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/Daniel V Venne/
Senior Examiner, Art Unit 3615B
03/04/2026