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 .
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.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 16-30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 16 recites “wherein said chip guiding structure is associated with said cutting edge”. Associated in what manner? What are the mets and bounds for the term “associated with”. It is unclear.
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 (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 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)(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.
Claims 16, 17, 20, 21, 26, 28 and 30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Kaufmann et al. (US Pub. No. 2016/0136734).
Regarding claim 16, Kaufmann discloses a cutting element, comprising:
a cutting head having a cutting edge (30); a shaft (12) carrying said cutting head, said cutting head protruding over said shaft transversely relative to a longitudinal extent of said shaft (figure 5); wherein said cutting edge follows a circle segment with a circle center at a side of said shaft, is disposed in a virtual cutting head plane and is constructed symmetrically, when viewed in a direction perpendicular to the virtual cutting head plane, with respect to a virtual cutting edge axis of symmetry which is contained in the virtual cutting head plane (figures 5 and 6); and wherein said cutting head has a chip guiding structure, wherein said chip guiding structure is associated with said cutting edge (figure 8), wherein said chip guiding structure has a chip guiding groove (32) formed therein which is constructed to follow said cutting edge when viewed in the direction perpendicular to the virtual cutting head plane (figures 5 and 8), said chip guiding structure further having a plurality of chip guiding elements which are constructed in a region of said chip guiding groove, wherein each of said chip guiding elements has a longitudinal rib (A: see below) and a transverse rib (B), wherein said longitudinal rib (A) of each said of chip guiding elements has a rib ridge and rib flanks which decline from said rib ridge at both sides, wherein said rib ridge (Rb)
of each said longitudinal rib, when viewed in the direction perpendicular to the
virtual cutting head plane, extends in each case substantially radially away from
said cutting edge and is disposed between said transverse rib (B) and said cutting
edge (30) (figure 5), wherein in each of said chip guiding elements said transverse rib (B) protrudes, when viewed in the direction perpendicular to the virtual cutting head plane transversely relative to a longitudinal extent of said rib ridge over said rib ridge so
that chips when rising from said chip guiding groove strike said transverse rib when
the chips are guided by said longitudinal rib (figures 5 and 8).
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Regarding claim 17, Kaufmann discloses wherein said transverse rib in at least one of said chip guiding elements, in a rib longitudinal section which is orientated radially with respect to said cutting edge, when viewed in a direction perpendicular to the rib longitudinal section, is curved in a convex manner at a side of said rib ridge (even though there are no sections in Kaufmann’s figures as claimed, the convex shape is best seen in figures 8-12).
Regarding claim 20, Kaufmann discloses wherein in at least one of said chip guiding elements said transverse rib (B), when viewed in the direction perpendicular to the virtual cutting head plane, protrudes over said rib ridge (Rb) at both sides (Side x1, and side x) transversely relative to the longitudinal extent of said rib ridge (see below).
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Regarding claim 21, Kaufmann discloses wherein in at least one of said chip guiding elements said transverse rib is, when viewed in the direction perpendicular to the virtual cutting head plane, in a form of a capital letter D, wherein a curve of the capital letter D faces said cutting edge when viewed in the direction perpendicular to the virtual cutting head plane (see below).
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Regarding claim 26, Kaufmann discloses wherein said chip guiding structure has a plurality of recesses (36) formed therein at said side of said cutting edge (30), wherein said recesses and said chip guiding elements are disposed alternately in an alternating manner when viewed in the direction perpendicular to the virtual cutting head plane (figure 5).
Regarding claim 28, Kaufmann discloses wherein said shaft (12) has
a V-shaped groove formed therein, wherein said V-shaped groove extends along
the longitudinal extent of said shaft (figure 6 and paragraph 37).
Regarding claim 30, Kaufmann discloses wherein said transverse rib (B) of at least one of said chip guiding elements protrudes at least partially from the virtual cutting head plane (figures 3 and 9).
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 29 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kaufmann et al. (US Pub. No. 2016/0136734) and as evidenced by Kaufmann et al. (US Pub. No. 2015/0343534).
Kaufmann (‘734) discloses all aspects of the claimed subject matter as set forth in the rejection above. Kaufmann does not disclose having an additional cutting head, wherein said additional cutting head is carried by the shaft opposite said cutting head. Kaufmann (‘534) discloses a cutting insert with a cutting edge that follows a circle segment and chip guiding elements (figures 1, 2, 5 and 6). Kaufmann (‘534) also discloses “the invention is not limited by the single cutting region 142, and that the cutting insert 24 can have a pair of cutting regions 142 disposed on each end of the cutting insert 24” (Paragraph 29).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Kaufmann (‘734) such that it has an additional cutting head, as taught by Kaufmann (‘534) for the purpose of having the capacity when one of the cutting regions is worn, the cutting insert can be rotated 180° in the toolholder in order to locate the other cutting thus extend the tool life and down time (Kaufmann (‘534), paragraph 29).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 18, 19, 22-25 and 27 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 SARA ADDISU at (571) 272-6082. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday - Friday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm (Mondays and Wednesday-Friday).
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Sunil K. Singh can be reached on (571) 272-3460. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/SARA ADDISU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3722 1/23/26