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 allowance or after an Office action under Ex Parte Quayle, 25 USPQ 74, 453 O.G. 213 (Comm'r Pat. 1935). 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, prosecution in this application has been reopened pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 04/09/2026 has been entered.
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)(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) 1-2, 12-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Cotterman et al. (2013/0239303—hereafter, Cotterman).
Regarding claim 1, Cotterman discloses an adjustment mechanism (116/300, fig.4/10) comprising: a housing (302, fig.10, par [0098-0099]) including a sidewall (314) extending circumferentially around a central axis, the sidewall defining an opening (fig.10 shows the recess 316 having an opening to expose the recess 316) extending along the central axis and including a first aperture (322a/322b) extending through the sidewall in a direction perpendicular to the central axis;
a receiving member (304, fig.11-12, 15, par [0099]) coupled to the housing and rotatable about the central axis, the receiving member including a protrusion (see the annotated fig.26A below) extending along the central axis, the protrusion including an aperture extending along an axis spaced from and parallel to the central axis;
a cable (328, fig.13) having a first end and a second end, the first end extending through the first aperture (322a, par [0098]) in the housing and the aperture (see the annotated figure below) in the receiving member and fixedly coupled to the receiving member (fig.13, and par [0099] wherein the spool 304 can have one or more holes 322a and 322b) the second end fixed relative to the housing (fig.13-14, par [0099]); a knob (structure of element 306, fig.11, par [0101]) coupled to the housing and rotatable about the central axis, the knob including a first protrusion (342a-d) configured to engage the protrusion of the receiving member such that rotation of the knob causes the receiving member to rotate (par [0101); and a locking element (310, par [0100-0101], fig.15) engaged with an interior surface of the sidewall of the housing, the locking element configured to be disengaged with the interior surface of the sidewall in response to a manual rotation of the knob by a user.
PNG
media_image1.png
334
676
media_image1.png
Greyscale
Regarding claim 2, Cotterman discloses wherein the locking element (310, fig.17-18) includes a biasing element (334a, 334b/228, fig.15-16) engaged with the interior surface of the sidewall of the housing and configured to disengage from the interior surface of the sidewall in response to manual rotation of the knob by the user (par [0100-0101).
Regarding claim 12, Cotterman discloses an aviation helmet (100, fig.1) comprising: a helmet shell (106) having an outer surface and an inner surface; and a base (structure of yoke 110) configured to be positioned proximate a nape of a user's neck when the user wears the helmet shell (par [0077]), the base adjustably coupled to the helmet shell by an adjustment mechanism (116/300), the adjustment mechanism comprising: a housing (302, fig.10) fixedly coupled to the helmet shell (fig.1) and including a sidewall (314) extending circumferentially around a central axis, the sidewall defining an opening (fig.10 shows the housing having an opening) extending along the central axis and including a first aperture (322a/322b) extending through the sidewall in a direction perpendicular to the central axis;
a receiving member (304, fig.11-12, 15, par [0099]) coupled to the housing and rotatable about the central axis, the receiving member including a protrusion (see the annotated figure 26A above) extending along the central axis, the protrusion including an aperture (see the annotated figure 26A above) extending along an axis spaced from and parallel to the central axis;
a cable (328 having two ends, fig.13) coupled to the base and having a first end and a second end, the first end extending through the first aperture in the housing and the aperture in the receiving member (par [0108]) and fixedly coupled to the receiving member, the second end fixedly coupled to the helmet shell (fig.1, 10, par [0108]);
a knob (306, fig.12, par [0101]) coupled to the housing and rotatable about the central axis, the knob including a first protrusion (The knob 306 can engage the boss structures 330a and 330b so that rotation of the knob 306 applies a rotational force to the spool 304, par [0101) configured to engage the protrusion of the receiving member such that rotation of the knob causes the receiving member to rotate; and a locking element (310, par [0100-0101], fig.15) engaged with an interior surface of the sidewall of the housing, the locking element configured to be disengaged with the interior surface of the sidewall in response to a manual rotation of the knob by a user.
Regarding claim 13, Cotterman discloses the aviation helmet of claim 12, wherein the locking element includes a biasing element (339a,339b) engaged with the interior surface of the sidewall of the housing and configured to disengage from the interior surface of the sidewall in response to manual rotation of the knob by the user (par [0100-0101).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8-11 are allowed.
Claims 3-4, 5-7, 14-15 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.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 04/09/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. See the new ground rejection below.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TIMOTHY K TRIEU whose telephone number is (571)270-3495. The examiner can normally be reached 8-4.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Alissa Tompkins can be reached at 571-272-3425. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/Timothy K Trieu/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3732
Prosecution Insights