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 .
This action is in response to the claims filed 12/08/2023.
Claims 1-10 are presented for examination.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 12/08/2023 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-4 and 7-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Chen et al. in CN218681120 (hereinafter “Chen”).
Regarding claim 1, Chen discloses a suction and blowing integrated care machine, comprising a base 1 (Fig. 1), wherein an upper portion of the base is fixedly connected with a shell 2, the interior of the shell is hollow, and a fan is fixedly mounted therein (it’s a vacuum and blower), one end of the shell 2 is connected with a dust collection box 4, the shell 2 is in communication with the dust collection box 5, and the other end of the shell is provided with a suction port 61 and a blowing port 62 respectively, a suction channel 8 in communication with the dust collection box and the suction port is reserved at the bottom of the shell (Fig. 3), and a heating channel is further reserved in the shell (Fig. 4; 7 is a heating element), the interior of the shell, the dust collection box and the blowing port are in communication with each other and form a blowing channel together (Fig. 3).
Regarding claim 2, Chen discloses the suction and blowing integrated care machine according to claim 1, wherein the exterior of the shell 2 is movably connected with a handle 21 for improving portability (the handle can be used to move the shell; this claim language is notably broader than reciting something like a pivoting connection between the handle and shell).
Regarding claim 3, Chen discloses the suction and blowing integrated care machine according to claim 1, wherein the interior of the base is fixedly connected with a winding frame for winding of a power cord (see Fig. 1; the lips of the base 1 could be used to wrap a power cord).
Regarding claim 4, Chen discloses the suction and blowing integrated care machine according to claim 1, wherein an inner bottom end of the dust collection box is connected with a dust guide sleeve, the height of the dust guide sleeve is at least one third of the inner height of the dust collection box, and the interior of the dust guide sleeve is in communication with the suction channel and the dust collection box respectively (see annotated Fig. 3 below).
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Regarding claim 7, Chen discloses the suction and blowing integrated care machine according to claim 1, wherein the interior of the heating channel is fixedly provided with a heating wire for heating the airflow (element 7 in Fig. 4 is a heating element which must have a wire).
Regarding claim 8, Chen discloses the suction and blowing integrated care machine according to claim 1, wherein the shell is connected with a top portion and a bottom portion of the dust collection box jointly by means of a first snap-fit structure and a second snap-fit structure respectively (see Fig. 1-3; dust bin 5 is detachable from the filter housing 4 by attachment features that can be called “snap fit” as the dust bin clicks into the rest of the unit).
Regarding claim 9, Chen discloses the suction and blowing integrated care machine according to claim 8, wherein the first snap-fit structure comprises a rotary buckle rotationally connected to a top portion of the dust collection box and a buckle protrusion fixedly connected to a top portion of the shell (see the buckle on top of the unit in Fig. 1 between the dust bin 5 and filter housing 4), wherein the rotary buckle is able to be fixed to the buckle protrusion in a snap-fit manner after rotating clockwise by 180° (it’s a hinge that rotates about an axis into and out Fig. 3).
Regarding claim 10, Chen discloses the suction and blowing integrated care machine according to claim 8, wherein the second snap-fit structure comprises a plurality of slots formed at a bottom end of the dust collection box and a plurality of tab protrusions fixedly connected to an inner bottom end of the shell, and the slots are fixed to the tab protrusions in a snap-fit manner when the dust collection box is horizontally pushed into the shell.
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Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 5-6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen alone.
Regarding claim 5, Chen discloses the suction and blowing integrated care machine according to claim 1, including a filter element, but doesn’t explicitly disclose wherein a first filter element and a protective net are fixedly disposed respectively at a part where the shell and the dust collection box are in communication with each other, and the protective net is located in front of the first filter element in a flow direction of an airflow. The examiner is giving official notice that the use of two-stage filters is common and widely employed in the art. Numerous examples can be found in the patent literature and in products, including vacuums and blowers, readily available for purchase. A two-stage filter may comprise an initial filter element to capture larger debris, and a second stage that captures smaller debris that makes it through the first filter stage. The first stage or filter element may be considered a “net”. It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified to have modified the suction and blowing machine of Chen by employing a two stage filter (or a filter with a “net”) to improve the filtration capacity of the suction and blowing machine, and the result would have been predictable.
Regarding claim 6, Chen as modified and applied against claim 5 does not comprise a second filter element is fixedly disposed at a position where the shell is in communication with the heating channel. The examiner is giving official notice that the use of multiple filters is common and widely employed in the art. Numerous examples can be found in the patent literature and in products, including vacuums and blowers, readily available for purchase. Filters are widely employed in air moving products to filter debris from the desired air flow. It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the suction and blowing machine of Chen by utilizing a filter on the blower outlet (in communication with the heating element) in order to clean air that is blown out of the device, particularly considering that that air is intended to be blown onto a living creature, and the result would have been predictable.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Relevant Prior Art:
US20230320322 discloses an animal cleaning device including a vacuum and blower, a filter on the blower, a heater, power cord storage, a removable dust/debris bin, and a pivoting handle.
US11559039 discloses a combination vacuum and blower for animal grooming including a heat, component storage, a carrying handle that stores in a recess, and a removable debris collection compartment.
CN220140487 discloses a pet dust collector with multi-layer filtering structure.
CN220675896 discloses a double-channel blowing and sucking integrated machine for animal grooming.
CN115720857 discloses a pet cleaning machine nearly identical to the instant disclosure, just with vacuum and blower ports on opposite sides of the casing.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ELDON T BROCKMAN whose telephone number is (571)270-3263. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 9am-5pm EST.
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/ELDON T BROCKMAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3799