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 .
Status
Claims(s) 1-27, is/are filed on 3/26/2026 are currently pending. Claim(s) 17-21 is/are withdrawn without traverse, 1-16 is/are rejected.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—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(s) 15-16 is/are 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 or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
Claim(s) 15 recites the limitation ‘the third tubular portions.’ There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim(s) 16 recites the limitation ‘the third tubular portions.’ There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
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 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 pre-AIA 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.
[AltContent: textbox (Top wall)][AltContent: textbox (Second group of through holes)]Claim(s) 1-2, 7-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(1) as being anticipated by Huang (CN 208611941 U).
[AltContent: arrow][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (Notch)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (Annular wall )][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (Transverse wall)][AltContent: textbox (Inner cylindrical portion)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (First group of through holes)][AltContent: arrow]
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Regarding claim 1, Huang discloses A filter head comprising a filter head housing comprising a hollow a housing body (10); a valve (20) mounted in an inner cavity of the housing body, wherein the valve comprises a hollow valve body (body of valve 20); an inner cavity of the valve body is to accommodate a fluid inlet (31) and a fluid outlet (32) of a filter cartridge; a filter head base (30) mounted to the filter head housing so as to confine the valve in the filter head housing; the housing body is provided with a raw water port (11), a first water outlet port (12) and a second water outlet port (13) in communication with the inner cavity of the housing body; the valve is configured so that the valve can rotate relative to the filter head housing to an open position or a closed position (when the blocking rotor 20 is misaligned with the first inlet channel 11 and the first outlet channel 12 of the access connector 10, the blocking structure...is in an open state [i.e., blocking state]); in the open position, the inner cavity of the valve body is in fluid communication with the raw water port, the first water outlet port and the second water outlet port; and in the closed position, the inner cavity of the valve body is not in fluid communication with any one of the raw water port, the first water outlet port and the second water outlet port (Huang discloses that in the passage/open state, the barrier rotor's inner cavity is in fluid communication with all three ports of the passage connector (10), and in the blocking/closed state, this fluid communication is severed for all three ports. See Huang at [0050] ("Water in the external pipeline enters the second inlet channel 21 through the first inlet channel 11, and then enters the filter element through the inlet connector 31"), [0051] ("Water from the external pipeline will not be able to enter the filter element"), and [0059] (describing alignment and misalignment of the sewage discharge channel (23) with the second sewage discharge channel (13) of the passage connector).
Regarding claim 2, Huang teaches wherein a circumferential wall of the valve body (body of valve 20) is provided with a first group of through holes and a second group of through holes spaced apart (see annotated figure 5 above) from each other in an axial direction of the valve; a transverse wall (see fig. above) of the valve body is provided with an inner cylindrical portion (see fig. above); the inner cylindrical portion axially extends through the transverse wall, and has a first inner cylinder portion (top portion) located axially above the transverse wall; the first inner cylinder portion is provided with an opening portion (bottom opening of the transverse wall) ;in the open position, one of the first group of through holes is in fluid communication with the raw water port, one of the second group of through holes is in fluid communication with the first water outlet port, and the opening portion is in fluid communication with the second water outlet port; and in the closed position, none of the first group of through holes is in fluid communication with the raw water port, none of the second group of through holes is in fluid communication with the first water outlet port, and the opening portion is not in fluid communication with the second water outlet port (intended use).
Regarding claim 7, Huang teaches wherein an annular first seal (bottom seal i.e. o-ring) annular second seal (middle seal i.e. o-ring) and an annular third seal (top seal i.e. o-ring) are provided between the circumferential wall of the valve body and a circumferential wall of the housing body (fig. 5); the first seal is located axially below the first group of through holes; the second seal is located between the first group of through holes and the second group of through holes; and the third seal is provided axially above the second group of through holes, and is located axially below the second water outlet port (see fig. 1 and 5).
Regarding claim 8, Huang teaches wherein each through hole of the first group of through holes and the second group of through holes is provided with an annular seal therearound (see top seal i.e. o-ring and bottom seal i.e. o-ring, fig. 5).
Regarding claim 9, Huang teaches wherein the filter head housing further comprises a housing flange (30); the housing flange is located on a radial outer side of the housing body; a housing step portion (horizontally flat portion on 31) is formed between the housing body and the housing flange in an inner cavity of the filter head housing (10); and the housing step portion and the filter head base jointly maintain an axial position of the valve (see fig. 1 and 5)
Regarding claim 10, Huang teaches wherein the valve (20) further comprises a valve flange (horizontally protruding portion coming off 20) (fig. 1); the valve flange is located on a radial outer side of the valve body (fig. 1); a valve step portion (top portion of the valve flange) is formed between the valve body and the valve flange in an inner cavity of the valve, wherein the valve flange is mounted between the filter head base and the housing step portion (fig. 1).
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It is noted that any citations to specific, pages, columns, lines, or figures in the prior art references and any interpretation of the reference should not be considered to be limiting in any way. A reference is relevant for all it contains and may be relied upon for all that it would have reasonably suggested to one having ordinary skill in the art. See MPEP 2123.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim(s) 3-6, 11-16 is/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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Waqaas Ali whose telephone number is (571) 270-0235. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F 9-5 PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Claire Wang can be reached on 571-270-1051. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/WAQAAS ALI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1777
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