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 .
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 1, 3, 5, and 7-11 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 1 requires that “an upper wall portion that is located above out of a wall portion that configures the housing” on lines 10-11. It is unclear what the applicant intends with “above out of a wall”. Fig. 4 of the applicant’s drawings identify the upper wall portion as reference character 31, and the wall portions of the housing are identified as reference characters 33a-33b. For the purposes of examination, the claim is interpreted as “an upper wall portion that is located above a wall portion that configures the housing”. Furthermore, lines 12-13 require “an insertion port through which the filter is inserted, and that is formed on a top side part of the housing”. Fig. 4 of the applicant’s drawings show that the insertion port, reference character 50, is located in the upper wall portion1, furthermore the applicant’s specification does not clearly identify “a top side part of the housing”, for this reason the claim is interpreted as requiring “an insertion port through which the filter is inserted, and that is formed on the upper wall portion”.
Claims 3, 5, and 7-11 are rejected based on their dependence on claim 1.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to VIVEK K SHIRSAT whose telephone number is (571)272-3722. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00AM-5:20AM.
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/VIVEK K SHIRSAT/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3762
1 Additionally, claim 3 requires that “the upper wall portion has an upper wall inclined portion that inclines downwards as the upper wall inclined portion heads towards a front, and the insertion port is formed in the upper wall inclined portion and opens to the front and to the top” (emphasis added), establishing that the insertion port is formed in the upper wall portion.
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