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 § 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, 5, 7, and 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Ewel et al (2006/0053957).
Ewel et al disclose a pedal device. comprising: a pedal pad (12) including a plate-shaped plate part that has a thickness in a thickness direction and extends in an extending direction (see Fig 2), and is configured to be rotatable about an axis (X) perpendicular to the extending direction when a driver performs a depression operation on the plate part from one side in the thickness direction (see Fig 2), wherein the axis (X) extends in an axial direction (see Fig 2); a shaft member (102) extending in the axial direction at a position separated and downward from the plate part in a vehicle (see Fig 2); a housing (14) rotatably supporting the shaft member (102); and a connecting portion (15) configured to connect the pedal pad (12) and the shaft member (102), wherein the pedal device is a pedal device in which a pedal upper end on one side in the extending direction of the pedal pad (12) is positioned at an upper position of the vehicle than a pedal lower end on an another side in the extending direction of the pedal pad (12), in a non-depressed state in which the depression operation by the driver is not performed on the plate part, a gap is provided between the housing and the pedal lower end, the housing has a facing surface facing the pedal pad (12), and the pedal lower end is not in contact with an end of the facing surface to define the gap between the pedal lower end and the end of the facing surface, the housing (14) has a side surface (unnumbered side of 76, see Fig 4) facing in the axis direction (see Fig 2), the shaft member (102) has an end extending beyond the side surface in the axis direction (see Fig 2), and the connecting portion (15) is provided on an outside of the side surface of the housing (14), and the connecting portion (15) connects between the end of the shaft member and the pedal pad (12)..
Re claim 2, the pedal pad (12) extending from the pedal upper end to the pedal lower end is provided at a position away from the housing (14), and a space between the pedal pad (12) and the housing (14) and the gap between the housing (14) and the pedal lower end are continuous in a longitudinal direction of the vehicle (12).
Re claim 5, the housing includes: a right side surface (114) facing one side in the axial direction of the axis (X); a left side surface (unnumbered side opposite 114, see Fig 4) facing an another side in the axial direction of the axis (X); and a wall portion (18) extending toward an upper side of the vehicle from at least one of the right side surface or the left side surface (see Fig 2).
Re claim 7, the pedal pad (12) includes a pad lower wall portion (84) extending from the plate part toward the housing (14) at a position (i) adjacent to the wall portion (18) of the housing (14) in the axial direction of the axis (X) and (ii) facing the connecting portion (15) in the axial direction of the axis (X).
Re claim 14, a distance of the gap between the pedal lower end and the housing (14) is greater than a distance between the pedal pad (12) and the housing (14) in an area where the pedal pad (12) and the housing (14) is shortest in the fully-depressed state in which the pedal pad (12) rotates to fully due to the depression operation by the driver (see Fig 2).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8, 9-10, 12, 13 and 17 are allowed.
Claims 3, 4, 6, 11 13, 14, 15, and 16 are 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.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed March 11,2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Applicant argues Ewel et al does not disclose the spring arrangement on a side surface of the housing. Ewel et al shows in Figure 1 the spring arrangement on a side surface of the housing. The applicant’s remarks have been accorded due; consideration, however they are not deemed fully persuasive. Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 VICKY A JOHNSON whose telephone number is (571)272-7106. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, John R Olszewski can be reached at 571-272-2706. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/VICKY A JOHNSON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3617
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