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 .
STATUS OF CLAIMS
This Non-Final action is in reply to the application 18,543,062 filed on 05/22/2025.
Claims 1 – 19 are currently pending and have been examined.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on was filed after the mailing date of the 12/18/2023, 02/27/2023, 07/21/2025 are fully considered by examiner The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97.
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.
Claim(s) 1 – 13, and 17 – 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over CA2729514 – Champagne et al. hereinafter as CHAMPAGNE in view of CA2957582 – Paonessa et al. hereinafter as PAONESSA
Regarding Claim 1:
CHAMPAGNE discloses:
(Currently Amended) An inverted snowblower mountable behind a traction vehicle comprising:
a housing configured to receive snow to be blown, the housing configured to mount behind a traction vehicle and having a box between opposite sides of the housing with an open face directed towards the traction vehicle when the housing is mounted behind the traction vehicle, the housing being moveable vertically relative to the traction vehicle when mounted thereto;(fig. 4 – where wherein housing 4 mount behind traction vehicle Fig. 1-B - where having a box 5 between opposites of the housing with an open face towards the traction vehicle. Fig-1-B – tractor is in front of plow moving in the forward direction with tractor, para. 0004 - housing moving vertically via the lifting system of a 3 point lifting system)
a chute in fluid communication with the housing to remove snow within the housing;( para. 0004 – chute)
at least one auger within the box to move snow within the housing towards the chute;( para. 0003 – auger)
a gear assembly operatively coupled to said auger to transfer power from the traction vehicle to rotate the auger and to facilitate blowing of snow; and (para. 0004 – gear)
CHAMPAGNE discloses ground removal of snow with a blade ( para. 0004 – for collecting snow) and an auger to throw snow through the snow chute( para. 0004 – chute), however CHAMPAGNE does not explicitly disclose of the blade including trip edges, PAONESSA discloses of engaging in ground removal of snow and discloses of blade with trip edges, PAONESSA further discloses:
at least one bar extending lengthwise in a horizontal direction and coupled to between opposite sides of the housing and having a leading edge located at least partially towards said traction vehicle and/or vertically away from said box when the housing is mounted behind the traction vehicle, the at least one bar mounted to a portion of said housing to pivot away from said traction vehicle when impacted.(fig. 6B wherein the bar is interpreted to be the assembly of the blade structure 30, 40, 78 with the rod and the trip mechanism pivoting– 78 is the bar pivot rod, the housing is considered the upper portion of the blade section – 14P that does not have the trip edges. Blade 26 moves away from the direction of travel. Based on this combination the blade would be moving away from the traction vehicle during impact. Fig. 4 shows the trip mechanism and blades 22 running the length between the opposite sides of housing)
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the applicants invention for CHAMPAGNE’s inverted snow thrower includes the auger and rear blade such that it can be operated in either pushing the snowblower or pulling the snowblower such that the ability to utilize the ability to include a trip edge and bar and leading edge as taught by PAONESSA and Implementing a method to utilize a trip edge would allow the ability to improve blade resistant impact as taught by PANOESSA Doing so merely constitutes the substitution of blade mechanism for another to produce the predictable result of a blade resistant impact (MPEP 2143, subsection I, B). PAONESSA further teaches that blades can move linearly and pivot when encountering an obstacle (Paragraph 0010)
Regarding Claim 2:
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 1:
PAONESSA discloses the trip combination disclosed in claim 1
(Original) The inverted snowblower of claim 1 wherein the at least one bar is operatively coupled to at least one spring and wherein the at least one spring absorbs a force transmitted to said at least one bar upon impact to the bar. ( para. 0030 – when an obstacle applies force to trip blade 26, there will be a spring to absorb impact and pivot rod 78, where in impact to bar would activate the spring and redistribute the force.)
Regarding Claim 3:
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 2:
PAONESSA discloses the trip combination disclosed in claim 2
3. (Original) The inverted snowblower of claim 2 wherein said spring biases said at least one bar to orient said at least one bar at an initial angle relative to said housing.( fig. 6b - wherein the pivot rod is set an initial angle relative to the housing of the plow)
Regarding Claim 4:
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 3:
PAONESSA discloses the trip combination disclosed in claim 3
4. (Original) The inverted snowblower of claim 3 wherein the at least one spring comprises a plurality of springs.(fig. 6B - 38 is a plurality of springs)
Regarding Claim 5:
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 3:
PAONESSA discloses the trip combination disclosed in claim 3
5. (Original) The inverted snowblower of claim 3 wherein said initial angle comprises an angle of between zero degrees and forty five degrees from (i) a vertical reference line to (ii) a line from the leading edge of said bar to a pivot point of said bar.( fig. 6B – where in the leading edge to vertical reference line is within 45 degree, wherein the angle is from the pivot point the leading edge.)
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Regarding Claim 6
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 5:
PAONESSA discloses the trip combination disclosed in claim 5
6. (Original) The inverted snowblower of claim 5 wherein said at least one bar comprises a single bar.( (fig. 6B – wherein 78 is a single bar)
Regarding Claim 7
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 1:
PAONESSA discloses the trip combination disclosed in claim 1
7. (Original) The inverted snowblower of claim 1 wherein the at least one spring comprises at least one coil spring.( fig. 6B - 38 is a coil spring)
Regarding Claim 8
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 5:
PAONESSA discloses the trip combination disclosed in claim 5
8. (Original) The inverted snowblower of claim 5 wherein the initial angle is thirty degrees from the vertical line. ( Figure. 6B)
PAONESSA discloses a blade wherein the blade angles are known to be controlled to be optimized for various environments and conditions (Paragraphs 16). As a result, the initial angle value is seen as a results effective variable.
Therefore, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the applicants invention to utilize the claimed initial angle for initial angle of the blade from a vertical line as it has been held that routine optimization of a results effective variable is obvious, in this case to achieve a desired initial angle for operating in a specific condition or to control wear effectiveness.
Regarding Claim 9
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 5:
PAONESSA discloses the trip combination disclosed in claim 5
9. (Original) The inverted snowblower of claim 5 wherein the at least one bar comprises a plurality of bars oriented along a line to form a leading edge, and wherein said at least on spring comprises a plurality of springs, each of said plurality of springs coupled to one of said plurality of bars.(Fig. 6A – 26 is leading edge, wherein 78 is a bar out of a plurality of bars( See figure 2 with all of the trip blades 30 with bars 78 not identified) fig6A - wherein the springs are 38)
Regarding Claim 10
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 4:
CHAMPAGNE discloses of an inverted snowblower being pulled by a vehicle such that the direction of travel. PAONESSA discloses the trip combination disclosed in claim 4
10. (Original) The inverted snow blower of claim 4 wherein the at least one bar is coupled to at least one flange extending at an angle away from the traction vehicle and extending outside of said housing, the at least on flange supporting at least one of said plurality of springs.( fig. 9B - 48 Flange extends away when 26 is deflected rearward see diagrams below where in the angle show the flange extending away from fig. 6b to fig. 8b )
***CHAMPAIGNE is pulling the snowplow such that snow would be going into the direction of the blade, PAONESSA plows snow with the same direction of travel that snow is going towards the direction of blade as such the extension of the bar and flange would extend at an angle away from the traction vehicle***
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Regarding Claim 11
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 10:
PAONESSA discloses the trip combination disclosed in claim 10
11. (Original) The inverted snow blower of claim 10 comprising a plurality of brackets mounted outside of said housing wherein the plurality of springs comprise coils springs, each coil spring mounted between one of the at least one bracket and one of the at least one flange.( wherein the housing 14 and bracket 32S house the plurality of coil springs 38 and flange 48)
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Regarding Claim 12
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 11:
PAONESSA discloses the trip combination disclosed in claim 11
12. (Original) The inverted snow blower of claim 11 wherein each coil spring is positioned coaxially with a guide, the guide being slidable through an opening within one of the brackets.( Fig. 6 A – guide 36 , with coil 38, and bracket 32S)
Regarding Claim 13
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 12:
PAONESSA discloses the trip combination disclosed in claim 12
13. (Original) The inverted snow blower of claim 12 wherein the at least one bar includes an active section and a mounting section, the active section includes the leading edge, and the mounting section includes the at least one flange, wherein the active section and the mounting section are removably connectable with one another.(Fig. 6A – wherein the active section includes 30 – leading edge, and mounting section includes the element in the diagram below labeled as mounting section in which the mounting section is mounting for leading edge 30 using fasteners 44 and 42, all of this can be removably replaced by removing the bar 78 with the pin 104)
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Regarding Claim 17
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 14:
CHAMPAGNE discloses an inverse snow thrower with a rear blade with vertical lift, PAONESSA discloses a rear blade with adjustable shoes with a series of apertures to adapt to angle. PAONESSA discloses:
17. (Original) The inverted snow blower of claim 14 wherein the housing comprises a series of apertures configured to receive a pin or bar which restricts the initial angle by contacting the at least one bar. ( See figure 11 – and apertures 140 and 114 )
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the applicants invention for CHAMPAGNE discloses an inverse snow thrower with a rear blade with vertical lift, PAONESSA discloses a rear blade with adjustable shoes with a series of apertures to adapt to angle as taught by PAONESSA as this would allow The wear shoes allow the ability control pivot relative to the wear shoes through the apertures within the limits to control the angle of and allow self-leveling. ( para. 0037)
Regarding Claim 18
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 1:
CHAMPAGNE discloses claim 1:
18. (New) The inverted snow blower of claim 1 wherein the width of the housing is the same as the box. (fig. 5 box is interpreted to mean the side section of the plow. The housing is everything that surrounds the auger and blades)
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Regarding Claim 19
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 1:
CHAMPAGNE discloses claim 1:
19. (New) The inverted snow blower of claim 1 wherein at least one bar is located between opposite sides of the housing.( fig. 10B – here there are 5 bars, wherein there is a bar for all the individual elements of the leading edge of the blade)
Claim(s) 14 and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over CA2729514 – Champagne et al. hereinafter as CHAMPAGNE in view of CA2957582 – Paonessa et al. hereinafter as PAONESSA in view of US PG Pub 20080235996 – Evans et al. hereinafter as EVANS
Regarding Claim 14
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 3:
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses of an inverted snow blower with the plow blade has a trip edge set at a particular angle ( fig. 6b - wherein the pivot rod is set an initial angle relative to the housing of the plow)EVANS discloses of a plow blade with adjusted angle.
EVANS discloses:
14. (Original) The inverted snow blower of claim 3 wherein the initial angle is adjustable.( fig. 7 – adjustable ring, this changes the angle of the blade through the adjustment of the ring and adjusting the preload. Wherein the spring has an adjustable stop. Wherein 89 is an adjustable stop to put in desired alignment and effecting the load on the spring)
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the applicants invention for CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses of a blade where in the blade angle is set an a particular angle to utilize an adjustable angle of the blade as taught by EVANS. The adjustable angle of the blade is adjust through the preload adjustment of the spring that effects the angle of the blade. Doing so merely constitutes the substitution of adjusting the biasing force (MPEP 2143, subsection I, B).
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Regarding Claim 15
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 14
EVANS discloses the adjustability of the initial angle of the blade wherein the initial angle is adjustable as taught in claim 14.
15. (Original) The inverted snow blower of claim 14 wherein the initial angle is adjustable via adjusting the compression of the at least one spring. ( fig. 7 – adjustable ring, this changes the angle of the blade, this adds compression to the spring. Wherein the spring has an adjustable stop. Wherein 89 is an adjustable stop to put in desired alignment and effecting the load on the spring)
Claim(s) 16 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over CA2729514 – Champagne et al. hereinafter as CHAMPAGNE in view of CA2957582 – Paonessa et al. hereinafter as PAONESSA in view of CA2141705C – Ryan et al. hereinafter as RYAN
Regarding Claim 16
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA discloses claim 12:
CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA disclose of plow with a mechanism that allows a biasing force connected to a trip edge that contains and a preloaded spring PAONESSA discloses of a strut that connects to the spring (fig. 9C – strut 60) RYAN also discloses of a mechanism that has a biasing force connected to a preloaded spring but includes the ability to adjust the preload biasing force with a pin. RYAN discloses of the ability to adjust the preload of a spring through a strut that contains apertures for a pin to adjust the preload, RYAN discloses:
16. (Original) The inverted snow blower of claim 12 wherein the guide comprises a series of apertures configured to receive a pin or bar which restricts the initial angle by contacting the at least one spring wherein the initial angle is adjustable via adjusting the compression of the at least one spring by inserting said pin or bar into the apertures. (fig. 1 – strut 5 with a plurality of apertures, adjustment to the pressure can be adjust through the provided holes as shown in figure 1)
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the applicants invention for CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA’s spring mechanism with strut 60 to utilize the strut 5 of RYAN as a quick way to adjust the preload / pressure / force on a spring as taught by RYAN. This would allow CHAMPAGNE / PAONESSA’s ability to control the adjustment of the pressure (spring) through an adjusting the linkage mechanism requiring more pressure. ( RYAN - page 2 – line 25 – 40 – page 3 line 1 – 16 – where in adjustment of the linkage 5 would adjust the amount of pressure force)
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Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ALFRED H TSUI whose telephone number is (571)272-9511. The examiner can normally be reached 9:00am - 5:00pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Chris Sebesta can be reached on 5712720547. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/A.H.T/Examiner, Art Unit 3671
/CHRISTOPHER J SEBESTA/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3671