DETAILED ACTION
The following Non-Final Office Action is in response to the application filed 2/29/2024.
Status of the claims: Claims 1-14 are hereby examined below.
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 Objections
Claim 2 is objected to because of the following informalities: Claim 2, lines 5-6 recites “the wall mounting”. Examiner presumes this should read – the wall mounting bracket --.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claims 1-5, 10 and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Vries et al US 10,428,580.
In regard to claim 1, with reference to Figures 1-8, Vries et al ‘580 disclose a tensioning device (10, Fig. 4) for a roller blind including a tube assembly (4, Fig. 3) about which a retractable screen (2, Fig. 2) is wound, the tube assembly (4) housing an internal spring (5, Fig. 3) configured to be tensioned to provide for the extension and retraction of the screen, the internal spring (5) being operably connected to a drive receiver (8, Fig. 4) positioned at one end of the tube assembly (4) ,the drive receiver (8) being configured to rotate to adjust tension in the spring (5), the tensioning device comprising: a drive assembly (11,15,16,25,26 Fig. 4) configured to connect with and impart rotation to the drive receiver (8) to adjust tension in the spring (5), a spring lock (32, Fig. 6 and 7A) adapted to selectively prevent rotation of the tube assembly (4) and tensioning device (10) relative to one another, a mounting lock (20-5/20-4, Fig. 7A) adapted to releasably secure the tensioning device (10) to a wall mounting bracket (20, Fig. 7A), and an actuator (21, Fig. 7A) adapted to actuate the spring lock (32) and the mounting lock (20-4/20-5), the actuator (21) being moveable between a first position (within 20-4/20-5 ) and a second position (outside of 20-4/20-5).
In regard to claim 2, Vries et al ‘580 disclose wherein, in use, when the actuator (21) is in the first position (within 20-4/2-5), the tensioning device is secured to the wall mounting bracket (20) by the mounting lock (20-4/20-5), and the tube assembly (4) is released from the tensioning device (10) to permit rotation relative to tensioning device, and wherein, when the actuator (21) is in the second position (outside of 20-4/20-5), the tensioning device (10) is released from the wall mounting bracket (20), and the tube assembly (4) is secured to the tensioning device (10) to prevent rotation relative to tensioning device (as 32 locks rotation).
In regard to claim 3, Vries et al ‘580 disclose wherein the mounting lock (20-4/20-5) includes a locking tab (20-2) which is configured to abut behind a portion of the wall mounting bracket (20) to prevent the tensioning device (10) from axial movement, when the actuator (31) is in the first position (within 20-4/20-5).
In regard to claim 4, Vries et al ‘580 disclose wherein the spring lock (32) includes a retractable tongue (35) which projects axially from a housing portion (27, Fig. 7B) of the tensioning device when the actuator (21) is in the second position (outside of 20-4/20-5)
In regard to claim 5, Vries et al ‘580 disclose wherein the tube assembly (4) includes an end section, the retractable tongue (35) being configured to engage (indirectly through11,15,16,25,26) with the end section of the tube assembly to prevent rotation of the tube assembly, when the actuator (21) is in the second position (outside of 20-4/20-5).
In regard to claim 10, Vries et al ‘580 disclose wherein the mounting lock (20-4/20-5) is connected to the actuator (21), the actuator (21) being operable by a push action to move between the first (within 20-4/20-5) and second (outside of 20-4/20-5) positions.
In regard to claim 13, Vries et al ‘580 discloses wherein a housing portion (27, Fig. 7B) of the tensioning device (10) includes an arcuate slot (shown to have curved walls forming an arcuate slot) through which an arcuate portion (formed by mounting lock 20-4/20-5) of the wall mounting bracket (20) is receivable when mounting the tensioning device (10) to the wall mounting bracket (20)
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 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Vries et al US 10,428,580.
In regard to claim 14, Vries et al ‘580 fails to disclose wherein the arcuate slot has a length greater than the arcuate portion of the wall mounting bracket such that the tensioning device can be rotated by hand back and forth on the wall mounting bracket. However, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to make the arcuate slot length be greater than the arcuate portion of the wall mounting bracket for the purpose of providing a fit that is not so tight as to be hard to removed.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 6-9 and 11-12 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
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/JEREMY C RAMSEY/Examiner, Art Unit 3634
/DANIEL P CAHN/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3634
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