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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group II (claims 17-21) in the reply filed on 3/17/2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 1-16 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 3/17/2026.
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 17 is 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 17 is not clear regarding “one contiguous piece of material” as it is ambiguous. It is unclear if the top and bottom portions are made of multiple part as “contiguous” is understood to be “sharing a common border or touching” (therefore indicating multiple pieces) or if the top and bottom portions they are a singular part (i.e. a continuous piece). For the purpose of examination, it is read as “one continuous piece”.
Recitation of “the top surface” in bridging lines 10-11 lacks a positive antecedent basis.
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 17-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Japanese Patent Application No. H07-300895 A (Mitsuo) in view of Japanese Patent Application No. H10-204974 A (Masaru).
Mitsuo teaches a method of manufacturing a longitudinal grating plate comprising the steps of:
extruding a substantially one continuous piece of material (e.g., aluminum) without welds or joins to form a top portion and a bottom portion (paragraph [0012]),
the top portion including a plurality of longitudinally extending apertures (elements 4 between elements 3a), which are shaped to induce flow of a fluid therethrough (see fig. 6);
removing an amount of the material from the bottom portion (paragraph [0012]: "at least one water dropping hole 5 is drilled at a predetermined position on the base plate 2 of each water flow path 4") to create a plurality of laterally extending apertures (as elements 5 are real 3D objects, they extend laterally), which cross below and at least partially overlap with the longitudinally extending apertures 4 of the top portion, thereby forming a fluid flow path, which passes from a top surface of the grating plate through the longitudinally extending apertures 4 and the laterally extending apertures 5 (see fig. 6).
Claim 17 differs from the method of Mitsuo in reciting a step of anodizing at least one of the top and bottom portions.
Masaru teaches that the step of anodizing aluminum grating is a standard procedure to prevent corrosion (see paragraph 0005).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to include the step of anodizing at least one of the top and bottom portions of grating plate in the method of Mitsuo to prevent corrosion as known standard procedure in Masaru.
Regarding claim 18, Mitsuo teaches the step of extruding a first longitudinal sidewall 7connected to a second longitudinal sidewall 7, the two sidewalls being connected by the grating plate, which extends therebetween, and wherein the laterally extending apertures 5 at least partially extend between the first and second sidewalls 7 (see fig. 3-4, 6).
Claim 19 differs from the method of Mitsuo in reciting the step of anodizing at least one of the first and second sidewalls.
Masaru teaches that the step of anodizing aluminum grating is a standard procedure to prevent corrosion (see paragraph 0005).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to include the step of anodizing at least one of the first and second sidewalls of grating plate in the method of Mitsuo to prevent corrosion as known standard procedure in Masaru.
Claims 20-21 differ from the method of Mitsuo in reciting the step of forming a continuous and repeating S-shaped aperture or a curved zig-zag pattern in the bottom portion of the grating plate.
Masaru teaches the step of forming a continuous and repeating S-shaped aperture or a curved zig-zag pattern in the bottom portion of the grating plate (see fig. 3; paragraphs [0016]-[0017]).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to form a continuous and repeating S-shaped aperture or a curved zig-zag pattern in the bottom portion of the grating plate of Mitsuo to accommodate various geometric patterns for water drain flow as suggested by Masaru (see paragraph [0025]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOHN KIM whose telephone number is (571)272-1142. The examiner can normally be reached Maxi Flex.
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, IN SUK BULLOCK can be reached at 571-272-5954. 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.
/John Kim/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1777
JK
4/5/26
Prosecution Insights