DETAILED ACTION
for
APPARATUS FOR PUSHING AND PULLING PROBE USED FOR
ULTRASONIC IRIS AND EDDY CURRENT TESTING
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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
NO information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted.
Oath/Declaration
The Oath/Declaration submitted on 05/16/2024 is noted by the Examiner.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because:
The drawings are color drawings per 37 CFR 1.84(a)(2)—note that grayscale is considered “color” as opposed to black line drawings as defined in 37 CFR 1.84(a)(1). However, color drawings are normally permitted in utility applications, as stated in 37 CFR 1.84(a)(2). The drawings should be replaced with black and white line drawings.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Objections
Claims 2-4 and 6- 11 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Re: claim 2, replace “preferably a stepper gearmotor having a gear ratio of 1-15:1” with -- – Appropriate correction is required.
Re: claim 2, replace “a lower part with a half circular slot, 2 threaded vertical holes and 2 facing through holes on the left side and bare plate on the right side, an upper part with a half circular slot, 2 vertical through holes and 2 facing through holes” with -- a lower part with a half circular slot, two threaded vertical holes and two facing through holes on the left side and bare plate on the right side, an upper part with a half circular slot, two vertical through holes and two facing through holes – to correct a grammatical error.
Re: claim 2, replace “a lower part with a half circular slot, 2 threaded vertical holes” with -- a lower part with a half circular slot, two threaded vertical holes -- Appropriate correction is required.
Re: claim 2, replace “an upper part with a half circular slot, 2 vertical through holes” with -- an upper part with a half circular slot, two vertical through holes -- Appropriate correction is required.
Re: claim 2, replace “wherein the other four facing through holes on the front plate can be used for attaching the tube adapter” with -- wherein the other four facing through holes on the front plate are
Re: claim 2, replace “wherein the other four facing through holes on the front plate can be used for attaching the tube adapter” with -- wherein the other four facing through holes on the front plate are
Re: claim 2, the limitation "the inspection cable" in claim 2, line 25 “the inspection cable when the two butterfly screws” should be replaced with – an inspection cable when the two butterfly screws -- Appropriate correction is required.
Re: claim 2, the limitation "the inspection cable" in claim 2, line 27 “the inspection cable when the two butterfly screws” should be replaced with – an inspection cable when the two butterfly screws -- Appropriate correction is required.
Re: claim 2, the limitation "the other four facing through holes " in claim 2, line 16-17 “wherein the other four facing through holes on the front plate can be used for attaching the tube adapter” should be replaced -- Appropriate correction is required.
Re: claim 3, replace “wherein the top pulley assembly can be adjusted to move close to” with -- wherein the top pulley assembly is
Re: claim 4, replace “the wireless motor controller can be either enclosed in an electronic control box that is attached to one side of the square tube of the main structure” with -- the wireless motor controller is
Re: claim 6, replace “wherein the bearing pulley can slide upward into a slot at the bottom of the square tube” with -- wherein the bearing pulley s upward into a slot at the bottom of the square tube. Appropriate correction is required.
Re: claim 7, replace “wherein all the tubes are assembled using 90 degree clamps such that they can be adjusted in three dimensions flexibly so that the apparatus can be positioned firmly for tube inspection” with -- wherein all the tubes are assembled using 90 degree clamps is positioned firmly for tube inspection. Appropriate correction is required.
Re: claim 7, the limitation “the very bottom" in claim 7, line 2 should be replaced with “a horizontal tube attached to a very bottom of the square tube”. Appropriate correction is required.
Re: claim 8, replace “wherein the tube adapter can be a tube reducer, e.g. 1.0″ to 0.5″, 1.0″ to 1.5″ etc., and different tube reducers can be used for inspection of tubes with different sizes” with -- wherein the tube adapter is is
Re: claim 9, replace “wherein the long insertion tube's front end can be inserted into the short insertion tube adapter” with -- wherein the long insertion tube's front end is
Re: claim 10, replace “a water trap-and-drain mechanism comprising 8 through holes evenly allocated in a circumferential groove” with -- a water trap-and-drain mechanism comprising eight through holes evenly allocated in a circumferential groove
Re: claim 11, replace “the water gun can then be attached to the front plate at the four facing through holes using 4 screws, replacing the tube adapter” with -- the water gun is attached to the front plate at the four facing through holes using 4 screws, replacing the tube adapter. Appropriate correction is required.
Re: claim 11, replace “the water gun can then be attached to the front plate at the four facing through holes using 4 screws” with -- the water gun can then be attached to the front plate at the four facing through holes using four screws. Appropriate correction is required.
Upon review of the claims, the Examiner noticed that the claims may include a number of similar errors. Applicant is advised to check the claims thoroughly for similar issues.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
Claims 1-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being incomplete for omitting essential structural cooperative relationships of elements, such omission amounting to a gap between the necessary structural connections. See MPEP § 2172.01. The omitted structural cooperative relationships are:
Re: claim 1, The claims do not clearly describe the structural relationship between the claimed elements, specifically in claim 1, “a main structure, a top pulley assembly, an electronic control system, a timing belt, a timing belt tension adjustment mechanism, a hollow plastic handle, a supporting tube assembly and a water gun”. The above claimed elements do not clearly explain how they are structurally tied to the claimed Apparatus for pushing and pulling probe.
Claims 2-11 are indefinite by virtue of their dependencies on claim 1.
Claims 1 and 8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Re: claim 1; The claims state “a stepper gearmotor having a gear ratio of 1-15:1” In the case the use of a narrow numerical range that falls within a broader range in the same claim may render the claim indefinite when the boundaries of the claim are not discernible. Description of examples and preferences is properly set forth in the specification rather than in a single claim.
Re: claim 8; The claims state “a tube reducer, e.g. 1.0″ to 0.5″, 1.0″ to 1.5 etc.” In the case the use of a narrow numerical range that falls within a broader range in the same claim may render the claim indefinite when the boundaries of the claim are not discernible. Description of examples and preferences is properly set forth in the specification rather than in a single claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Bonnand et al. [herein after Bonnand] (US 5,008,996).
Regarding claim 1, the apparatus comprises a main structure (Fig. 2A), a top pulley assembly (23), an electronic control system (31), a timing belt (32), a timing belt tension adjustment mechanism (25; Fig. 3), a hollow plastic handle (22), a supporting tube assembly and a water gun (50).
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Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-11 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRANDI N HOPKINS whose telephone number is (571)270-7042. The examiner can normally be reached M & F 9-5 and T-TH, 6-4.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Kristina Deherrera can be reached at (303) 297-4237. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BRANDI N HOPKINS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2855