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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on February 26, 2026 has been entered.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the viewing region accessed from a rear side of the door element when door is in the open state as recited in claim 1 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
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.
Claims 1, 5, and 7-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over CN 108674241 A to Li in view of KR102900909 to Im.
Regarding claim 1, Li teaches a car charging and advertising integrated cabinet (charging station) for charging the electric vehicle. The charging station (cabinet 1) has a viewing region, which is configured to receive at least one printed product (poster, not labeled) in such a way that a user of the charging station can view the at least one printed product (poster) from outside the charging station, wherein the viewing region is a viewing box (Li recites "as shown in Figure 3, A2 front door middle position is provided with a groove 210, groove 210 is provided with a door 220, the groove 210 of the circumferential side surface are fixed with lamp 221") integrated in a door element (door A, door B) of the charging station (1), and wherein the viewing box has an arranging space (groove 210) for arranging the at least one printed product as well as a transparent protective element.
PNG
media_image1.png
320
588
media_image1.png
Greyscale
Li does not teach the viewing region accessed from a rear side of the door element when door is in the open state,
Im teaches a vending machine comprising door comprising a poster replacement structure which “allows a poster (advertisement) of the vending machine to be easily inserted and replaced while being stably supported” (¶0001). The poster replacement structure comprising a door (310) arranged on the front side of the vending machine body (1), an outer chamber (320) arranged on the rear side of the door (310) and having an internal receiving space (321), a poster (330) inserted into the receiving space (321) of the outer chamber (320), and a holding means (340) supporting the poster (330). Figure 20 is a three-dimensional diagram showing an open door and an outer chamber. Figure 21 is a three-dimensional diagram showing an outer chamber opened by a hinge and a poster replacement structure.
PNG
media_image2.png
618
308
media_image2.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image3.png
420
330
media_image3.png
Greyscale
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skills in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to substitute the door with means to support and display a poster of the charging station taught by Li with the door with the rear mounted poster mounting structure as taught by Im with a reasonable expectation of success to provide a means such that it is “easy to insert and replace posters, thereby making maintenance simple and increasing the added value of the vending machine by increasing the usability of advertisements and informational materials” (¶0045). Such a modification would have involved a simple substitution of one known door for another to obtain predictable results. KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S. 398, 82 USPQ 2D 1385 (2007).
Regarding claim 5, Li teaches the viewing region is designed to be capable of being opened in such a way that a printed product arranged in the viewing region can be removed and can be exchanged with another printed product. Im teaches the viewing region is designed to be capable of being opened in such a way that a printed product arranged in the viewing region can be removed and can be exchanged with another printed product. Im teaches the “door (310) arranged on the front side of the body (1), an outer chamber (320) arranged on the rear side of the door (310) and having an internal receiving space (321), a poster (330) inserted into the receiving space (321) of the outer chamber (320), and a holding means (340) supporting the poster (330). (¶0145)
Regarding claim 7, Li teaches a lighting device (lamp 221), which is arranged and configured to at least regionally illuminate the viewing region. Im teaches a lighting device (light-emitting module 323) arranged and configured to at least regionally illuminate the viewing region.
Regarding claim 8, Both Li and Im teaches the viewing region is configured to receive a poster or placard as the at least one printed product. Im teaches “the holding means (340) is provided with a viewing window (346) formed on the front surface of the outer chamber (320) to enable the poster (330) to be viewed with the naked eye. This is to enable the poster (330) to be viewed with the naked eye from the outside (¶0170).
Regarding claim 9, Li teaches the charging station has a charging side comprising at least one charging point (charging plug, not labeled), and whereby the viewing region is arranged laterally of the charging side.
Regarding claim 10, Li teaches the charging station is a charging station for electric vehicles (abstract).
Regarding claim 11, Li teaches the transparent protective element (Li recites “the door comprises a metal frame and a transparent plate, the transparent plate is installed in the frame; the transparent plate is glass plate, acrylic plate”) is arranged in front of the arranging space (claim 3). Im teaches “a window made of a transparent material be formed on the door (310) at a position corresponding to the viewing window (346). (¶0170).
Regarding claim 12, Li teaches the transparent protective element is arranged in front of the arranging space from the perspective of a viewer (claim 3). Im teaches the transparent protective element is arranged in front of the arranging space from the perspective of a viewer (¶0170).
Regarding claim 13, Li teaches the lighting device (lamp 221) is arranged and configured to laterally illuminate or backlight the at least one printed product (poster, not labeled). Im teaches the lighting device (light-emitting module 323) is arranged and configured to laterally illuminate or backlight the at least one printed product (poster 330). (¶0157).
Regarding claim 14, Li teaches the viewing region is arranged perpendicularly to the charging side.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1, 5, and 7-14 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US 20230081083 to Fisher is cited to show a combination vending machine and charging station.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CASSANDRA DAVIS whose telephone number is (571)272-6642. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-4:30 PM.
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, Jonathan Liu can be reached at 571-272-8227. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/CASSANDRA DAVIS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3631