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 .
Claims 1-10 are pending.
Claims 1-10 have been examined. Applicant’s election without traverse of Species I in the reply filed on 10/9/25 is acknowledged.
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) 1, 2, 4 and 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Misono et al. (US 20180272909) (“Misono”). Misono discloses a conveyance seat, comprising: a seat frame serving as a skeleton, wherein the seat frame includes a body frame made of a frame-shaped body (fig. 2: 17), and a support member (fig. 2: 22) bridging one portion and the other portion of the body frame in a predetermined direction and supporting a seated occupant, and the support member includes a central support portion supporting the seated occupant (fig. 2: 23), side support portions (fig. 2: 24) provided at positions outside the central support portion in a seat width direction and extending outward in the seat width direction while inclining, and a shape-holding member extending along outer edge portions of the side support portions and bridging the one portion and the other portion of the body frame (fig. 5: 25, 26).
As concerns claim 2, Misono discloses wherein the seat frame includes a cushion frame, the cushion frame includes side frames (fig. 2: 18) disposed on right and left sides in the seat width direction as the body frame, a front connecting frame (fig. 2: 19) connecting front portions of the right and left side frames, and a rear connecting frame (fig. 2: 20) connecting rear portions of the right and left side frames, and the shape-holding member extends in an elongated manner along the outer edge portions of the side support portions, and bridges the front connecting frame and the rear connecting frame.
As concerns claim 4, Misono discloses wherein the shape-holding member includes an attachment portion attached to the body frame (fig. 2: 26), and portions of connection locations between the central support portion and the side support portions are disposed outside the attachment portion in the seat width direction (as shown in fig. 2).
As concerns claim 5, Misono discloses wherein the side support portions extend outward in the seat width direction with respect to the central support portion while inclining to a seated occupant side (as shown in fig. 2: 24), the shape-holding member includes an attachment portion attached to the body frame (fig. 2: 26c), and extension end portions of the side support portions are disposed to be closer to the seated occupant side than the attachment portion (figs. 2 and 4 show extension ends which extend over the side seat frame upper surface and are higher than rear frame 20 which is attached to the lower portion of the seat side frames).
Claim(s) 1 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Izumida et al. (US 4883320) (“Izumida”). Izumida discloses a conveyance seat, comprising: a seat frame serving as a skeleton, wherein the seat frame includes a body frame made of a frame-shaped body (fig. 10: 28, 29), and a support member (fig. 10: 31, 31a) bridging one portion and the other portion of the body frame in a predetermined direction and supporting a seated occupant, and the support member includes a central support portion supporting the seated occupant (fig. 10: 31), side support portions (fig. 10: 31a) provided at positions outside the central support portion in a seat width direction and extending outward in the seat width direction while inclining, and a shape-holding member extending along outer edge portions of the side support portions (fig. 10: 33) and bridging the one portion and the other portion of the body frame.
Alternatively, for purposes of compact prosecution, claim(s) 1 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kawasaki (US6435618). Kawasaki discloses a conveyance seat, comprising: a seat frame serving as a skeleton, wherein the seat frame includes a body frame made of a frame-shaped body (fig. 1: 41, 42), and a support member (fig. 1: 53) bridging one portion and the other portion of the body frame in a predetermined direction and supporting a seated occupant, and the support member includes a central support portion supporting the seated occupant (fig. 1: 53), side support portions (fig. 1: 53b,c) provided at positions outside the central support portion in a seat width direction and extending outward in the seat width direction while inclining, and a shape-holding member extending along outer edge portions of the side support portions (fig. 1: 49) and bridging the one portion and the other portion of the body frame.
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) 3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Izumida. Izumida teaches wherein the central support portion has a mesh shape (fig. 10) and the side support portions have a mesh shape, but does not expressly teach the side support portions have a mesh shape finer than the mesh shape of the central support portion. However, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to try different shape/fineness of mesh to the side support portions, as the sides are a different shape and provide a different type of support, in order to provide the desired amount of comfort to an occupant.
Claim(s) 6-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Misono in view of Onuma et al (US 10654385) (“Onuma”). Misono does not teach wherein the central support portion has a mesh shape, a plurality of through-holes penetrating through the central support portion in a direction orthogonal to a support surface of the central support portion are formed at portions of the support surface that do not have the mesh shape, and the plurality of through-holes are formed to be larger than a mesh of the mesh shape of the central support portion.
However, Onuma teaches a similar support member for a seat frame having a central support portion (Onuma, figs. 4, 5: 311, 312, 330) and inclined side support portions (fig. 4: 340) wherein the central support portion has a mesh shape (fig. 8: 313), a plurality of through-holes (fig. 5: the two rectangular outer holes in 311 and 340 located near 212) penetrating through the central support portion in a direction orthogonal to a support surface of the central support portion are formed at portions of the support surface that do not have the mesh shape, and the plurality of through-holes are formed to be larger than a mesh of the mesh shape of the central support portion, are provided at predetermined intervals in the seat width direction at central positions on the central support portion, and are disposed at positions overlapping the side support portions in a seat front to rear direction (as shown in figs. 5, 8). It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the support member of Misono to have a mesh shape and a plurality of through-holes in order to provide the desired weight and flexibility to the support member.
As concerns claim 7, Misono, as modified, teaches wherein the shape-holding member includes an attachment portion attached to the body frame (Onuma, fig. 2: 26c), and the plurality of through-holes are disposed at positions overlapping the attachment portion in the seat width direction (Onuma, fig. 2 shows that the outer springs 26c meander in and out and the plurality of through-holes may be placed in similar position shown in Misono between the outward meandering portions such that they align in the width direction with the attachment portion of 26c).
As concerns claim 8, Misono, as modified, teaches wherein the plurality of through-holes are disposed behind front end portions of the side support portions in the seat front to rear direction (as shown in Onuma, figs. 5 and 8).
As concerns claim 9, Misono, as modified, does not teach a detection sensor that detects a biological signal of the seated occupant. However, Onuma teaches a detection sensor that detects a biological signal of the seated occupant (fig. 5: 30), wherein the detection sensor is disposed between the plurality of through-holes in the seat width direction (Onuma, fig. 5 shows sensor 30 between the outer two rectangular elongate holes in the width direction).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 10 is 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: The prior art references of Misono and Onuma fail to teach wherein the central support portion includes a first central support portion disposed at a central portion of the cushion frame, and right and left second central support portions provided at positions in front of the first central support portion and protruding from right and left side portions of the first central support portion toward a front side, the shape-holding member extends along outer edges of the central support portion and the side support portions, the detection sensor includes a sensor attachment portion attached to the shape-holding member, and the sensor attachment portion is disposed at a position in front of the first central support portion in a top view, and is attached between the right and left second central support portions. Further, there is no teaching, suggestion or motivation to modify the prior art absent hindsight.
Conclusion
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/TIMOTHY J BRINDLEY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3636