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, 6-7, 17-18, and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by LEE et al. (KR 10-0608259).
Re Claims 1 and 17-18, LEE et al. teaches a laundry appliance, comprising: a cabinet having a front panel (where 12 is), the front panel defining a front opening; a tub 20 positioned within the cabinet, wherein the tub defines an access opening; and a bellows assembly 40 coupled to the front panel along the front opening and the tub along the access opening, wherein the bellows assembly defines a first fold and second fold in an opposing direction (left and right( to form a sinusoidal shape (see where 40 and 21 point to, Fig. 1) between the front panel and the tub at each of 12 o’clock (where 40 points to) and a 6 o’clock position (where 21 points to generally).
Re Claims 6-7 and 17-18, the bellows is S-shaped and forms an overall downward slope (from right to left) to form a watershed feature.
Re Claim 20, the cabinet receiving edge is vertically higher than the tub-receiving edge at a 12 o’clock position and at a 6 o’clock position of the bellows assembly. Based on the tub lean the cabinet receiving edge (right side) is vertically higher.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 2 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over LEE et al. (KR 10-0608259).
LEE et al. is relied upon as applied to the claims above.
Claims 2 and 19 are further directed toward the at least one of the sinusoidal shape and the oblique sinusoidal shape at each of a 3 o’clock position and a 9 o’clock positing of the bellows assembly, which it is unclear whether LEE et al. teaches.
However, it would have been obvious to provide a bellows either at these positions, as a matter of duplication of parts or continuously around the tub to seal it so that the bellows accomplish their intended and expected function of sealing.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 11-16 are allowed.
Claims 3-5 and 8-10 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.
These claims are considered allowable because the bellows position and shape (at 3 o’clock and 9 o’clock) or oblique cylinder defining a downward angle (claim 11) are not taught or made obvious to modify the base reference (a conventional front-load washing machine) , as it is for a sliding door bellows arrangement.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JASON Y KO whose telephone number is (571)270-7451. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 9:00-6:00.
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JASON Y. KO
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1711
/JASON Y KO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1711