January 12, 2026
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 .
Response to Amendment
Applicant's arguments filed 12/01/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
Claims 1-2, 4-15, 17, and 19-24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
In claim 1, lines 3-4 and 15-19, applicant defines that “said seat member comprises a front edge and a rear edge” and that “said male element comprises an elongated profile projecting from an operating surface of said seat member and extending parallel to the rear edge of said seat member”. However, nowhere in the specification does applicant identify “a front edge and a rear edge” of the “seat member” nor is there any description of the “male element….. extending parallel to the rear edge of said seat member.
The aforementioned problem renders the claim unclear and indefinite. Clarification and/or correction is required.
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.
Claims 1-2, 4-10, 13-15, and 20-24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Piretti (U.S. Patent No. 9,462,889 B2).
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As for claim 1, Piretti teaches an adaptable seat (10) comprising a frame, a backrest member (16) and a seat member (14), said backrest member (16) being rotatably connected to the frame about a rotation axis (A), wherein said seat member comprises a front edge and a rear edge, said seat member (14) comprising a sliding mechanism which includes at least one linear guide (42) which connects the seat member (14) to the frame and allows said seat member to move along a sliding axis (B) which is defined by said linear guide (42), said adaptable seat (10) further comprising a connection mechanism (38) which connects said backrest member (16) to said seat member (14), said connection mechanism (36) comprising a male element (18) and a female element (36) which are formed on said seat member (14) and said backrest member (16), respectively, or vice versa, and which are configured for mutual engagement in such a manner as to convert a rotation of the backrest member (16) about the rotation axis (A) into a sliding action of the seat member (14) along the sliding axis (B), and vice versa; wherein said male element (18) comprises a profile projecting (18) from an operating surface of said seat member (14), and said female element (36) comprising a pocket-like element which is formed on said backrest member (16) and is configured so as to receive said projecting profile (18).
.As for claim 2, Piretti teaches that the male element (18) and the female element (36) mutually engage with backlash.
As for claim 3, Piretti teaches that said male element (18) comprises a profile projecting (18) from an operating surface of said seat member (14), and said female element (36) comprising a pocket-like element which is formed on said backrest member (16) and is configured so as to receive said projecting profile (18).
As for claim 4, Piretti teaches that said male element (18) is formed near an end of the seat member (14) that is proximal to the backrest member (16), on a side of the seat member (14) facing the frame.
As for claim 5, Piretti teaches that said female element (36) is formed proximate to a lower end of the backrest member (16).
As for claim 6, Piretti teaches that said male element (18) is inserted into said female element (36), thus securing said seat member (14) to said backrest member (16) so as to allow an inclination of the backrest member (16) to be adapted in a simultaneous and coordinated manner with the sliding action of the seat member (14) along the sliding axis (B).
As for claim 7, Piretti teaches that said pocket-like element (36) is formed near the lower end of the backrest member (16).
As for claim 8, Piretti teaches that said projecting profile (18) is formed proximate to an end of the seat member (14) that is proximal to the backrest member (16), on a side of the seat member (14) facing the frame.
As for claim 9, Piretti teaches that the projecting profile (18) is substantially perpendicular to the seat member (14).
As for claim 10, Piretti teaches that said rotation axis (A) is positioned in a region of the backrest member (3) that is arranged centrally along a direction of vertical extent thereof.
As for claim 13, Piretti teaches that the sliding mechanism comprises at least one fixed track (44) which defines a cavity inside which a runner (46) which is fixedly joined to said seat member (14) can slide.
As for claim 14, Piretti teaches that said frame comprises longitudinal elements (162) and transverse elements, said linear guide (42) being secured in a slidable manner to said longitudinal elements and being configured so as to retain said seat member (14) in a manner supported on said frame, and said fixed track (44) being supported on said transverse elements.
As for claim 15, Piretti teaches that said linear guide (42) comprises at least one sliding elements 46 connected to said frame and snap-fixed in a slidable manner on said seat member (14).
As for claim 17, Piretti teaches that said male element (18) and said female element (36) have an elongate shape and extend at an outer edge of said seat member (14) and said backrest member (16), respectively, or vice versa.
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As for claim 20, Piretti teaches that said male element 18 extends underneath said seat member (14).
As for claims 21-22, Piretti teaches that said backrest member (16), specifically the female element, is configured so as to extend partially beneath said seat member (14); wherein said female element (36) is formed at a lower end, when in use, of said backrest member (16), near a lower edge of said backrest member (16), such that said female element (36) is located, when in use, underneath said seat member (14). (see Fig. 3 above).
As for claims 23-24, Piretti teaches that said projecting profile (18) comprises at least one thickening element which is received in said pocket (36), said projecting profile (18) being received in said pocket (36) with greater backlash than said at least one thickening element; wherein said at least one thickening element is substantially in contact with walls of said pocket (36)(see annotated Fig. 3 above).
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 11-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Piretti (U.S. Patent No. 9,462,889 B2) in view of Romero (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0361588 A1).
Piretti teaches the structure substantially as claimed including a resilient element (74) which is configured to move the seat member (14) back from an activation position to a rest position without intervention of external forces but does not teach that the sliding mechanism comprises at least one resilient element which is configured to move the seat member (14) back from an activation position to a rest position without intervention of external forces.
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However, Romero teaches a chair that uses the concept of a sliding mechanism comprising at least one resilient element, in the form of a spring 48, which is configured to move a seat member 18 back from an activation position to a rest position without intervention of external forces. It would have been obvious and well within the level of ordinary skill in the art to modify the seat, as taught by Piretti, to include a sliding mechanism comprising at least one resilient element which is configured to move a seat member back from an activation position to a rest position without intervention of external forces, as taught by Romero, since the spring would return the seat back from an activation position to a rest position without intervention of external forces quicker.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 19 is 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.
Claims 16 and 18 allowed.
Response to Arguments
Applicant has amended Claim 1 to include the subject matter of Claim 3 and has also amended Claim 1 to include language that “seat member comprises a front edge and a rear edge” and that “said male element comprises an elongated profile projecting from an operating surface of said seat member and extending parallel to the rear edge of said seat member”. However, Applicant has not identified what is considered to be the “front edge and a rear edge” of the “seat member”.
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However, the male element 18 of Piretti extends parallel to a specific point on a rear edge of the “seat member 14”, as shown in annotated Fig. 3 of Piretti (U.S. Patent No. 9,462,889 B2).
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Rodney B. White whose telephone number is (571)272-6863. The examiner can normally be reached 8:30 AM-5:00 PM.
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/Rodney B White/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3636