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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 04/10/2026 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to the independent claim(s) 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.
Applicant argues that Blackbourn does not teach a triangular cross section but instead a tipless cone. However, a review of the claim language in light of the specification, reveals the claimed triangular cross section being frustoconical in nature with a tip cut off as clearly depicted in Fig. 4 of the Applicant’s drawings. Under broadest reasonable interpretation Blackbourn clearly teaches these features. It’s unclear what distinction the Applicant is trying to make without crossing into new matter territory.
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.
Claim(s) 9-11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(A)(1) as being anticipated by Kieras et al. (US 2021/0347629 A1).
Re: Claim 9, Kieras discloses the claimed invention including a tap for dispensing fluids from containers (embodiment of Fig. 9) comprising:
a support body (910) (Fig. 2C);
an elastic actuating button (952) designed to allow and stop a fluid delivery, the elastic button being operatively connected to the support body (Depicted in Fig. 9-10); and
a first stem or a second stem (974) designed to allow and interrupt a delivery of fluid, the first stem or the second stem being contained in the support body and being operatively connected and operated by the elastic button (Depicted in Figs. 9-10), the first stem or the second stem having an end placed in operative coupling with a fluid outlet end (932) of the body, the first stem or the second stem being equipped with closing lips (58) at the fluid outlet end of the support body (Fig. 2B-2C);
wherein the body is equipped with a first central cylindrical geometry designed to impose a single opening dimension of the dispensing tap, being operatively coupled, once the dispensing tap is open, with a second central cylindrical geometry (938, 940) with which the elastic button is equipped (Depicted in Fig. 9); wherein the first central cylindrical geometry of the body and the second central cylindrical geometry of the elastic button are shaped and positioned to engage with each other to define the single opening dimension that is repeatable when the tap is opened (Fig. 10 depicts single opening); and
the first stem is designed for high viscosity fluids and therefore does not decrease the fluid passage section of the body (Fig. 9, Para 3, clear flow path for high viscosity), the first stem having an end in operative coupling with the fluid outlet end of the body shaped with a substantially bell-shaped cross section (972), with sides (at 976) almost perpendicular to the axis of the second stem and which end in closing lips (1006) of the outlet end of the body which are substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the second stem (Fig. 10).
Re: Claim 10, Kieras discloses the claimed invention including the first central cylindrical geometry consists of a first annular recess (941) projecting inside the body and extending in an opposite direction with respect to an opening direction of the first stem or the second stem (Depicted in Fig. 9), and the second central cylindrical geometry consists of a second annular recess (930) projecting inside the elastic button and extending in the same direction with respect an opening direction of the firs stem or the second stem (Depicted in Fig. 9), the first annular recess and the second annular recess coming into mutual contact when the delivering tap is in an opening phase and pouring fluids, obtaining a quantity of poured fluid which is always the same and controlled (Depicted in Fig. 9).
Re: Claim 11, Kieras discloses the claimed invention including a liquid delivery channel (916) with a triangular cross-section conformation which allows delivering a maximum quantity of fluid regardless of the viscosity of the fluid, the liquid delivery channel being placed in the body connected to the container from which to deliver a fluid except for expressly stating a cross section (Depicted in Figs. 11A-11C, Para. 77, channel opening outward in a triangular conformation).
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.
Claim(s) 6-8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kieras et al. (US 20210347629 A1) as applied to claim 9 above, and further in view of Blackbourn (US Patent No. 6,470,910).
Re: Claim 6, Kieras discloses the limitations recited in this claim as recited in the rejection of claim 9 above except for the stem having a triangular shape. However, Blackbourn discloses the art recognized alterative between a triangular stem end (20) (Fig. 2) and a bell-shaped stem end (70) (Fig. 6).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date to include either a triangular or bell-shaped stem end as taught by Blackbourn, since Blackbourn shows the equivalence of bell shaped and triangular shape for their use in the dispensing art as dispensing end configurations and the selection of any of these known equivalents to close an opening would be within the level of ordinary skill in the art.
Re: Claim 7, Kieras discloses the claimed invention including the first central cylindrical geometry consists of a first annular recess (941) projecting inside the body and extending in an opposite direction with respect to an opening direction of the first stem or the second stem (Depicted in Fig. 9), and the second central cylindrical geometry consists of a second annular recess (930) projecting inside the elastic button and extending in the same direction with respect an opening direction of the firs stem or the second stem (Depicted in Fig. 9), the first annular recess and the second annular recess coming into mutual contact when the delivering tap is in an opening phase and pouring fluids, obtaining a quantity of poured fluid which is always the same and controlled (Depicted in Fig. 9).
Re: Claim 8, Kieras discloses the claimed invention including a liquid delivery channel (916) with a triangular cross-section conformation which allows delivering a maximum quantity of fluid regardless of the viscosity of the fluid, the liquid delivery channel being placed in the body connected to the container from which to deliver a fluid except for expressly stating a cross section (Depicted in Figs. 11A-11C, Para. 77, channel opening outward in a triangular conformation).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Additional references are provided on the PTO-892 teaching the claimed features.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHARLES P. CHEYNEY whose telephone number is (571)272-9971. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Paul Durand can be reached at 571-272-4459. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CHARLES P. CHEYNEY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3754
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