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 .
This Office Action acknowledges the applicant’s amendment filed on 10/24/2025. Claims 1-3 are pending in the application.
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office Action.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. The specification does not describe or disclose the limitation “corrugations are provided in side walls of the cavity proximal to two ends of the upper wall to increase a bending force in a direction perpendicular to the upper surface of the upper wall of the cavity when the upper wall is slightly pushed in the direction perpendicular to the upper surface of the upper wall of the cavity”.
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.
Claim 2 is 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 2 recites the limitation “corrugations are provided in side walls of the cavity proximal to two ends of the upper wall to increase a bending force in a direction perpendicular to the upper surface of the upper wall of the cavity when the upper wall is slightly pushed in the direction perpendicular to the upper surface of the upper wall of the cavity”. It is unclear how to interpret this limitation because as stated above the specification does not describe or disclose such a recitation. It will be assumed that any corrugated side wall structure of a cavity would perform the function of increasing a bending force in a direction perpendicular to the upper surface of the upper wall of the cavity when the upper wall is slightly pushed in the direction perpendicular to the upper surface of the upper wall of the cavity.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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Claim(s) 1 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Strachan US 2007/0163569 A1.
With regards to claim 1, Strachan (Fig. 1-8) discloses a disposable cup 10, comprising:
a substantially cylindrical body configured for division into a top chamber 18 and a bottom chamber 20;
a lid 30 for sealing the upper surface of the body:
a radially inwardly stepped lip 34 extending about an inner circumference of the body at a junction between the top chamber and the bottom chamber of the body;
a circular sealing film 16 seated on an upper surface of the radially inwardly stepped lip, wherein the circular sealing film seals the bottom chamber and prevents mixing up of contents inside the top chamber and the bottom chamber and
a single substantially cylindrical cavity (26/54; Para. 0041) disposed in said bottom chamber of the cylindrical body at middle of a bottom surface of said disposable cup, wherein the cavity extends perpendicularly upward along a central longitudinal axis of the disposable cup, wherein the cavity comprises an upper wall, wherein the upper wall of the cavity is in close proximity to the bottom surface of the sealing film (shown in Fig. 8; the upper wall is closer in proximity to the seal than the upper surface of the body), and wherein a slight upward push of the upper wall of the cavity in a direction perpendicular to the upper surface of the upper wall of the cavity is enough to break the sealing film to enable mixing of the contents inside the top chamber and the bottom chamber.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
Claim(s) 2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Strachan US 2007/0163569 A1 in view of Ueda et al. US 4,634,003.
With regards to claim 2, Strachan discloses the claimed invention as stated above but it does not specifically disclose corrugations are provided in side walls of the cavity proximal to two ends of the upper wall to increase a bending force in a direction perpendicular to the upper surface of the upper wall of the cavity when the upper wall is slightly pushed in the direction perpendicular to the upper surface of the upper wall of the cavity.
However, Ueda teaches it was known in the art to have a disposable cup having corrugations 4a are provided in side walls of the cavity proximal to two ends of the upper wall to increase a bending force in a direction perpendicular to the upper surface of the upper wall of the cavity when the upper wall is slightly pushed in the direction perpendicular to the upper surface of the upper wall of the cavity. (Col 4:43-55)
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the side wall of the cavity in Strachan by providing corrugations as taught by Ueda for the purposes of facilitating deformation of the side walls when a pressing force is applied to the cavity.
Claim(s) 3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Strachan US 2007/0163569 A1 in view of Calderaio US 6,338,252 B1.
With regards to claim 3, Strachan discloses the claimed invention (cavity) as stated above but it does not specifically disclose the upper wall of the cavity is made of elastic material.
However, Calderaio teaches that it was known in the art to have a container with the upper wall of the cavity is made of elastic material. (Col 3:48-56)
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the upper wall of the cavity in Strachan by having it made of elastic material as taught by Calderaio, since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select a known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1-3 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JENINE SPICER whose telephone number is (313)446-4924. The examiner can normally be reached 9:00am-5:00pm, Monday-Thursday.
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/JENINE SPICER/Examiner, Art Unit 3736
/ORLANDO E AVILES/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3736