DETAILED ACTION
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) 12-15, 18 and 22 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by EP 3,270,437 to Gao.
Regarding claim 12, Gao discloses a backpack device comprising: a harness unit (3-I); a battery pack receptacle (1-I) fastened to the harness unit and for receiving a battery pack (30-I); a connector (9-I) for connecting a hand-held electrical device, the connector having a universal base (Fig. 19-II, left element with areas for connecting to output different energies (20V, 40V, etc.)), each of a plurality of sockets of different types interchangeably fittable on the universal base (Fig. 19-II, the different sockets (63-II) for the different tools are capable of connecting to the connections on the base); and a configuration interface (217-II, see Fig. 25-II), energy to be output via the connector capable of being configured in terms of current and/or voltage and/or frequency via the configuration interface (para. 0690).
Regarding claim 13, Gao discloses wherein the battery pack receptacle is designed to simultaneously receive two battery packs of a same type (Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 14, Gao discloses a switch (15-II; see Fig. 9-II) enabling switching between a serial connection and a parallel connection of the two battery packs (para. 0577).
Regarding claim 15, Gao discloses an inverter (81-II) and a DC-DC converter (para. 0774).
Regarding claim 18, Gao discloses wherein the connector is modular (Fig. 19-II).
Regarding claim 22, Gao discloses a backpack system comprising: the backpack device as recited in claim 12 (see rejection of claim 12 above); and a battery pack received or able to be received in the battery pack receptacle (Fig. 1-I).
Regarding claim 23, Gao discloses wherein the energy to be output changes at the universal base (Fig. 19-II – the energy output changes between 20V, 40V, etc. depending on which is activated), the universal base being fitted with one socket of the plurality of sockets (Fig. 19-II – one of the sockets 63-II is fitted onto the universal base).
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) 16-17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gao in view of US Patent 9,293,755 to Bocek.
Regarding claim 16, Gao fails to disclose a wireless connection. However, Bocek discloses that using wireless devices to control a battery assembly is known in this art (Col. 3, lines 41-51). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to have used a wireless device to control the configuration interface in Gao because it would allow an alternative method for the user to adjust the battery operation.
Regarding claim 17, the combination from claim 16 discloses a mobile operator control unit (smart phone – Bocek Col. 3, lines 44-47) configured to enter into a wireless connection with the configuration interface.
Claim(s) 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gao in view of US Patent 5,333,768 to Krentz.
Regarding claim 20, Gao fails to disclose an elastic shoulder bracket. However, Krentz discloses a carrier including a shoulder strap having a flexurally elastic shoulder bracket (18, 20 – see abstract). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to have used elastic shoulder straps in Gao because the modification only involves choosing from a finite number of predictable materials to use in shoulder straps for a carrier.
Claim(s) 21 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gao in view of US Published Application 2020/0113317 to Okumi.
Regarding claim 21, Gao fails to disclose a receiving bay and cover flap. However, Okumi discloses a backpack battery assembly wherein the battery pack receptacle has a receiving bay and a cover flap for closing the receiving bay (Fig. 4). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to have included a receiving bay and cover flap in Gao to protect the batteries when they are attached to the backpack. Further, the modification only involves a simple substitution of one known, equivalent battery holding assembly for another to obtain predictable results.
Claim(s) 24-26 and 28-31 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gao in view of In2connect (NPL#1).
Regarding claims 24-25, Gao fails to disclose the claimed type of connector. However, In2connect discloses that making electrical connections via an IEC 60309 blue or red socket is known (“Description”, third paragraph). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to have made the electrical connection in Gao using either of these connectors because the modification only involves a simple substitution of one known, equivalent electrical connector for another to obtain predictable results.
Regarding claim 26, the combination from claims 24-25 discloses using a color coding (red, blue) to indicate the type of socket. The combination fails to disclose using the color green. However, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to have used a green socket because the modification only involves a simple substitution of one known, equivalent indicator color for another to obtain predictable results. Alternatively, using a green socket that already indicates a different type of socket in the art would have been obvious because the modification only involves a simple substitution of one known, equivalent electrical connector for another to obtain predictable results.
Regarding claims 28-31, Gao fails to disclose voltages or frequencies within the claimed ranges. However, In2connect discloses that it is known to use power within these claimed ranges (see “Description”, third paragraph). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to have used voltages and frequencies within the claimed ranges because the modification only involves a simple substitution of one known, equivalent power type for another to obtain predictable results.
Claim(s) 27 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gao in view of Westech (NPL#2).
Regarding claim 27, Gao fails to disclose the claimed type of connector. However, Westech discloses that making electrical connections via a 5-pole CEE socket is known (page 4). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to have made the electrical connection in Gao using a 5-pole CEE socket because the modification only involves a simple substitution of one known, equivalent electrical connector for another to obtain predictable results.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 12/2/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
As to applicant’s argument that Gao fails to disclose a universal base (page 2), in Fig. 19-II, the portion having the different power connections (20V, 40V, etc.) is the universal base.
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 SCOTT T MCNURLEN whose telephone number is (313)446-4898. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8am-5pm.
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/SCOTT T MCNURLEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3734