DETAILED ACTION
This communication is a first Office Action Non-Final rejection on the merits. The Restriction election received on 12/17/2025 has been acknowledged. Claim(s) 1-17 have been cancelled, claims 18 and 19 have been amended, and claim(s) 21-28 have been added. Claims 18-28 are now pending and have been considered below.
Election/Restrictions
1. Applicant’s election of Group II (claims 18-20) in the reply filed on 12/17/2025 is acknowledged.
2. Claims 1-17 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to nonelected invention Group I. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 12/17/2025.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
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.
Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b), as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which applicant regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 20, at lines 2-5, the recitation “the component” renders the claim indefinite because it lacks antecedent basis. In addition, the recitation “parallel to the lower surface of the window cavity” renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear if this is referring to the previously recited “lower surface” of the sill – did applicant intend to recite --a lower surface of the window cavity--? In addition, the recitation “being configured” renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear if this is referring to the one or more inlets or the window cavity. In addition, the recitation “and one or more air vents” renders the claim indefinite because the antecedent basis is unclear – did applicant intend to recite --and the one or more air vents--? In addition, the recitation “configured to air to exit the one or more compartments” renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear – applicant intend to recite --configured to allow air to exit the one or more compartments--?
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 23 is 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. In particular, the combined limitations of the base claim, the intervening claims, and the limitation “the weep hood defines one or more water vents and one or more air vents, wherein the one or more water vents includes a first water vent with a first outlet and a second water vent with a second outlet, the one or more air vents includes a first air vent, and the first and second water vents are arranged on either side of an outlet of the air vent, the method including allowing water to exit through the first and second water vents without impeding air exiting through the first air vent” from the dependent claim are not taught or suggested by any prior art of record, either alone or in combination. Such a configuration would require impermissible hindsight or piecemeal reconstruction to arrive at the claimed subject matter. Claim 24 depends from claim 23, and is therefore objected to as well.
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) 18-22 and 25-28, as best understood, is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Lee (KR 20080016424 A) with Espacenet translation.
Regarding claim 18, Lee teaches a method of managing water and air (discharge pipe; title; and process; figure 7) capable of being used for a fenestration unit the fenestration unit having an interior face, an exterior face opposite the interior face, a sill, a head opposite the sill, a first jamb, and a second jamb opposite the first jamb forming a window cavity therebetween (the examiner notes that the fenestration unit and elements are not being positively claimed), the sill including a lower surface (lower surface at 200, carrying the water; figure 7) and an upper surface (upper surface at 200; figure 7) and one or more compartments therebetween (compartments [not labeled] through which the water flows in the frame; figure 7), the method comprising: allowing water to exit the one or more compartments within the sill (figure 7) through a weep hood (60) arranged within the sill without water column buildup within the one or more compartments within the sill (figure 7) and without impeding air flow through the weep hood (it is understood that the air flow is not impeded and allowed to flow through at 40; figure 7); and maintaining the window cavity at a pressure that is substantially equal to an exterior pressure toward the exterior face (it is understood that the air intake port 40 is capable of maintaining the window cavity at a pressure that is substantially equal to an exterior pressure toward the exterior face, since the air is allowed to enter from the exterior to the interior and vice versa).
Regarding claim 19, Lee teaches the weep hood includes one or more water vents (70) and one or more air vents (40), and the one or more water vents are adjacent the one or more air vents (figure 7), the method further including allowing air to enter the one or more compartments through the one or more air vents (figure 7).
Regarding claim 20, Lee teaches the one or more water vents having one or more inlets arranged within (at 60) and parallel to the lower surface of a window cavity (it is understood that the water vent inlet is capable of being oriented parallel to the lower surface of a window cavity; figure 7), being configured to allow water to exit the one or more compartments within the sill (figure 7) and one or more air vents having one or more inlets (at 80) perpendicular to the lower surface of the window cavity (it is understood that the air vent inlet is capable of being oriented perpendicular to the lower surface of a window cavity) being configured to allow air to exit the one or more compartments within the sill (figure 7).
Regarding claim 21, Lee teaches allowing water to exit the one or more compartments and allowing air to enter the one or more compartments are preformed simultaneously (as illustrated, the discharge pipe is capable of allowing water to exit the one or more compartments and allowing air to enter the one or more compartments simultaneously; figure 7).
Regarding claim 22, Lee teaches a method of managing water and air (discharge pipe; title; and process; figure 7) capable of being used for a fenestration unit having a sill, a head opposite the sill, a first jamb, and a second jamb opposite the first jamb forming a window cavity therebetween (the examiner notes that the fenestration unit and elements thereof are not being positively claimed), the sill including a lower surface (lower surface at 200, carrying the water; figure 7), an upper surface (upper surface at 200; figure 7), one or more compartments therebetween (compartments [not labeled] through which the water flows in the frame; figure 7), and a side wall having an opening (at 60) extending therethrough (figure 7), the method comprising: allowing water to exit the one or more compartments within the sill through a weep hood (60) arranged within the opening of the side wall (figure 7), where water exits without water column buildup within the one or more compartments (right compartment; figure 7); and allowing air to enter another of the one or more compartments (left compartment; figure 7) through the weep hood (figure 7), wherein allowing water to exit the one or more compartments and allowing air to enter the one or more compartments are preformed simultaneously (as illustrated, the discharge pipe is capable of allowing water to exit the one or more compartments and allowing air to enter the one or more compartments simultaneously; figure 7).
Regarding claim 25, Lee teaches a method of managing water and air (discharge pipe; title; and process; figure 7) capable of being used for a fenestration unit including a sill, a head opposite the sill, a first jamb, and a second jamb opposite the first jamb forming a window cavity therebetween (the examiner notes that the fenestration unit and elements thereof are not being positively claimed), the sill including a lower surface (lower surface at 200, carrying the water; figure 7) and an upper surface (upper surface at 200; figure 7), one or more compartments therebetween (compartments [not labeled] through which the water flows in the frame; figure 7), and a side wall defining an opening (at 60), the method comprising: allowing water to exit the one or more compartments through a weep hood (60) arranged within the opening of the side wall (figure 7), the weep hood including one or more water vents (70) having one or more inlets (at 60) arranged within the one or more compartments (figure 7) and parallel to the lower surface of the window cavity (figure 7), one or more air vents (40) having one or more inlets (at 80) perpendicular to the lower surface of the window cavity (figure 7), wherein an upper boundary of the one or more inlets of the one or more water vents is defined by a first vertical height (height at 60) and an upper boundary of the one or more inlets of the one or more air vents is defined by a second vertical height (height at 80), the first vertical height being less than the second vertical height (figure 7); and allowing air to enter the one or more compartments and through the weep hood (figure 7).
Regarding claim 26, Lee teaches allowing water to exit the one or more compartments and allowing air to enter the one or more compartments are preformed simultaneously (as illustrated, the discharge pipe is capable of allowing water to exit the one or more compartments and allowing air to enter the one or more compartments simultaneously; figure 7).
Regarding claim 27, Lee teaches including maintaining the window cavity at a pressure that is substantially equal to an exterior pressure (it is understood that the air intake port 40 is capable of maintaining the window cavity at a pressure that is substantially equal to an exterior pressure, since the air is allowed to enter from the exterior to the interior and vice versa).
Regarding claim 28, Lee teaches the one or more water vents are configured to allow water to exit without water column buildup within the one or more compartments (figure 7) and without impeding air flow through the weep hood (it is understood that the discharge pipe is capable of functioning as claimed without impeding air flow through the weep hood).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
The cited patents listed on the included form PTO-892 further show the state of the art with respect to fenestration drainage in general.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to OMAR HIJAZ whose telephone number is (571)270-5790. The examiner can normally be reached on 8-6 EST Monday-Friday.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Brian Mattei can be reached on (571) 270-3238. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/OMAR F HIJAZ/Examiner, Art Unit 3633