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 .
DETAILED ACTION
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) 1-13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cherry et al (2021/0083237), in view of Watson et al (7701172).
The factual inquiries set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Cherry teaches the claimed invention, except as noted:
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“[0064] The engaging portion 114 includes a flat side 120 and an angled side 122, as best illustrated in FIG. 2. The flat side 120 and the angled side 122 join at a line 124. At least a portion of the flat side 120 and at least a portion of the angled side 122 protrude through the opening 118 when the latch assembly mechanism 126 is in the default state. The latch assembly mechanism 126 is in a default/engaged/unengaged position with the user activation button 112 undepressed and the engaging portion 114 extending or protruding through the opening 118 of the housing 110. The latch assembly mechanism 126 is in an engaging/unengaging position with the user activation button 112 depressed and the engaging portion 114 at least partly recessed into the opening 118 of the housing 110. The flat side 120 and the angled side 122 form the engaging portion 114, which acts like a hook to engage a recessed area on the piece of equipment and assists to secure the battery pack 100 to the equipment.”
1. A latch assembly for a power equipment having a battery housing and a battery removably arranged inside the battery housing (intended arrangement of the battery 100, inside the housing 110), comprising:
a lever (marked up) configured to pivot about a fulcrum (138);
a latch button coupled to the lever (marked up) and configured to move vertically in response to the pivoting of the lever about the fulcrum (intended configuration taught in figs 4, 5, see teaching above); and
a roller (not shown, instead an engaging portion 114 is provided) rotatably engaged to the latch button and adapted to be removably engaged with the battery to removably secure the battery inside the battery housing (in re the intended use “engaged with the battery” is taught to be with the equipment, however, one skilled would recognize the arrangement could be in reverse, i.e. the engagement could be with the battery inside the battery housing).
Watson teaches that it has been known that an engagement surface could be a roller:
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It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the engagement surface of Cherry with the teachings of Watson, with a reasonable expectation of success since the roller is known to guide with less friction, and avoids jamming when exchanging a battery pack.
2. The latch assembly of claim 1, wherein the latch button is configured to move between a vertically upward position and a vertically downward position in response to the pivoting of the lever in a first direction and a second direction, respectively, wherein in the vertically upward position, the roller is engaged with the battery, and in the vertically downward position, the roller is disengaged from the battery (shown/taught in the combination; the intended configuration shown/taught above, see quote, figs 4, 5, Cherry when the intended use is in reverse, i.e. battery engagement).
3. The latch assembly of claim 2, wherein the latch button is biased to the vertically upward position (shown/taught in the combination; although, the spring is not claimed, Cherry shows/teaches a spring 140, fig 4).
“[0069] The button extension 128 is connected to the user activation button 112 and extends from an internal side of the user activation button 112. The button extension 128 extends past the button pivot axis 132 and includes the button extension arm 130. In operation, when the user activation button 112 is depressed and released, the user activation button 112 and the button extension 128 rotate about the button pivot axis 132. Additional details related to the user activation button 112, the button extension 128, the button extension arm 130, and the button pivot axis 132 are illustrated in FIGS. 7-10, as described below.” (Cherry; see marked up figure below)
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4. The latch assembly of claim 1 further includes a push button operatively coupled to the lever and adapted to be moved to pivot the lever about the fulcrum to disengage the roller from the battery, wherein the push button and the latch button are arranged on opposite sides of the fulcrum (shown/taught in the combination, marked up in Cherry).
5. The latch assembly of claim 4, wherein the latch assembly includes a latch housing and the push button is rotatably coupled to the latch housing and rotates about a rotation axis to pivot the lever about the fulcrum (shown/taught in the combination, marked up in Cherry, see quote).
6. The latch assembly of claim 5, wherein the push button includes a handle portion adapted to be pushed by a user to rotate the push button in a first direction about the rotational axis, and an engagement portion arranged in engagement with the lever to pivot the lever about the fulcrum in the second direction in response to the rotation of the push button in the first direction (shown/taught in the combination, marked up in Cherry, figs 4, 5).
The following are already addressed above, unless otherwise noted:
7. A power equipment, comprising: a battery housing; a battery removably coupled to the battery housing; and a latch assembly configured to removably secure the battery with the battery housing, the latch assembly including a lever configured to pivot about a fulcrum, a latch button coupled to the lever and configured to move vertically in response to the pivoting of the lever about the fulcrum; and a roller rotatably engaged to the latch button and adapted to be removably engaged with the battery to removably secure the battery inside the battery housing (see in re cl. 1, addressed in the intended use section).
8. The power equipment of claim 7, wherein the battery defines a detent and the roller is arranged inside the detent to secure the battery with the battery housing and the roller is moved outwardly of the detent to remove the battery from the battery housing (in the combination, the detent would be match the engagement surface, i.e. the roller).
9. The power equipment of claim 7, wherein the latch button is configured to move between a vertically upward position and a vertically downward position in response to the pivoting of the lever in a first direction and a second direction, respectively, wherein in the vertically upward position, the roller is engaged with the battery, and in the vertically downward position, the roller is disengaged from the battery (in the combination, the engagement or roller is already addressed in re cl. 2).
10. The power equipment of claim 9, wherein the latch button is biased to the vertically upward position (see cl. 3).
11. The power equipment of claim 7, wherein the latch assembly further includes a push button operatively coupled to the lever and adapted to be moved to pivot the lever about the fulcrum to disengage the roller from the battery, wherein the push button and the latch button are arranged on opposite sides of the fulcrum (cl. 4).
12. The power equipment of claim 11, wherein the latch assembly includes a latch housing and the push button is rotatably coupled to the latch housing and rotates about a rotation axis to pivot the lever about the fulcrum (cl. 5).
13. The power equipment of claim 12, wherein the push button includes a handle portion adapted to be pushed by a user to rotate the push button in a first direction about the rotational axis, and an engagement portion arranged in engagement with the lever to pivot the lever about the fulcrum in a second direction in response to the rotation of the push button in the first direction (cl. 6).
Claim(s) 1-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cherry et al (2021/0083237), in view of Watson et al (7701172), in further view of Kubota et al (10230078).
“[0059] FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of an example embodiment of a battery pack 100. Referring also to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, FIG. 2 illustrates a side view of the battery pack 100 and FIG. 3 illustrates a top view of the battery pack 100. The battery pack 100 includes a housing 110 that encloses one or more battery cells to provide power to a piece of equipment such as, for example, a power tool, a lawn and garden tool, a radio, and other different types of equipment, when the battery pack 100 is attached to the piece of equipment.”
Cherry & Watson combination teaches the claimed invention (see cl. 1-13), while teaches the removable battery pack to power “a lawn and garden tool,” however, the arrangement of the latch assembly is taught to be in reverse from what is claimed:
14. A lawnmower, comprising: a cutter housing including a blade chamber; a plurality of wheels connected to and supporting the cutter housing; a blade arranged, at least partially, in the blade chamber and rotatably mounted to the cutter housing to rotate about a blade axis; a battery housing supported on the cutter housing; a battery removably arranged inside the battery housing; a motor mounted on the cutter housing to drive the blade; (not shown/taught in the Cherry & Watson)
a lever pivotably supported on the battery housing (shown on the battery, however, it would be obvious to arrange the latch assembly on the battery housing, see below in Kubota);
a latch button coupled to the lever and configured to move vertically in response to the pivoting of the lever about the fulcrum; and a roller rotatably engaged to the latch button and (already addressed in Cherry in view of Watson, see cl. 1, 7)
adapted to be removably engaged with the battery to removably secure the battery inside the battery housing (already discussed in re cl. 1, also see teachings below in further view of Kubota).
Kubota teaches that it has been known in the lawnmower art that a mower includes a cutter housing including a blade chamber; a plurality of wheels connected to and supporting the cutter housing; a blade arranged, at least partially, in the blade chamber and rotatably mounted to the cutter housing to rotate about a blade axis; a battery housing supported on the cutter housing; a battery removably arranged inside the battery housing; a motor (8) mounted on the cutter housing to drive the blade; a lever pivotably supported on the battery housing (figs 1, 2).
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It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to arrange the latch assembly of Cherry in view of Watson with the teachings of Kubota, with a reasonable expectation of success since the arrangement on the battery housing would provide a quick replacement of the battery pack, or less downtime.
15. The lawnmower of claim 14, wherein the battery defines a detent and the roller is arranged inside the detent to secure the battery with the battery housing and roller is moved outwardly of the detent to remove the battery from the battery housing (obvious matching detent to secure the combination assembly, see also in re cl. 8).
16. The lawnmower of claim 14, wherein the latch button is configured to move between a vertically upward position and a vertically downward position in response to the pivoting of the lever in a first direction and a second direction, respectively, wherein in the vertically upward position, the roller is engaged with the battery, and in the vertically downward position, the roller is disengaged from the battery (obvious operation in the combination, also see in re cl. 9).
17. The lawnmower of claim 14, wherein the latch button is biased to the vertically upward position (see also in re cl. 10).
18. The lawnmower of claim 14 further includes a push button operatively coupled to the lever and adapted to be moved to pivot the lever about the fulcrum to disengage the roller from the battery, wherein the push button and the latch button are arranged on opposite sides of the fulcrum (obvious operation in the combination, also see in re cl. 11).
19. The lawnmower of claim 18, wherein the push button is rotatably coupled to the battery housing and rotates about a rotation axis to pivot the lever about the fulcrum (obvious operation in the combination, also see in re cl. 12).
20. The lawnmower of claim 19, wherein the push button includes a handle portion adapted to be pushed by a user to rotate the push button in a first direction about the rotational axis, and an engagement portion arranged in engagement with the lever to pivot the lever about the fulcrum in a second direction in response to the rotation of the push button in the first direction (see in re cl. 13).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See form 892.
Hennesy et al (2022/0045399) teaches a latch batter interface (figs 14, 16, 47).
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/ARPAD FABIAN-KOVACS/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3671