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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Invention I in the reply filed on 1/20/26 is acknowledged.
Claims 3-12 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 1/20/26.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 1-2 and 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yasumoto (US 2007/0283624 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Yasumoto discloses A detection device that detects opening and closing of a door (30, fig. 1-2 or 7A-C, para 50-62) with respect to a device main body (body of printer 60, fig. 1), comprising:
a pressing member (41, fig. 3, para 50) attached to the door (see fig. 3);
a sensor (44, fig. 3, para 51,53,55-56) attached to the device main body (see fig. 3 and para 51-56), and configured to detect that the door is closed, by detecting the pressing member (Sensor 44 indirectly detects pressing member 41 via movement of intermediate element 43. See fig. 3 and para 51-56.); and
a switch (45, fig. 3, para 51,58-63) attached to the device main body (see fig. 3), and configured to interrupt power supply when pressing by the pressing member is released (see fig. 3,7A-C, and para 50-62), wherein
the sensor and the switch are
positioned above or below the pressing member in a state where the door is closed (If the axis of rotation of Yasumoto’s door 30 is vertical, then Yasumoto’s fig. 3 or 7A-C would read on this limitation. While Yasumoto appears to be silent with regard to the orientation of the door’s rotational axis, the orientation of the door’s rotational axis is merely a design choice that does not affect the fundamental functionality of the door. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to orient the door 30 so that its rotational axis is vertical for the purpose of more easily allowing wider opening angles of the door and/or more easily propping the door open to various rotational degrees, since it has been held that rearranging parts of an invention involves only routine skill in the art. In re Japikse, 86 USPQ 70.), and
positioned so that the sensor and the switch overlap when viewed from a vertical direction (When Yasumoto’s door 30 is vertical, then Yasumoto’s fig. 3 or 7A-C would read on this limitation.).
Regarding claim 2, Yasumoto further discloses The detection device according to claim 1, comprising a link member (42+46+43+401+49, fig. 3 or 7A-C, para 50-62,71-79) that is attached to the device main body and comes into contact with the pressing member (see fig. 3 or 7A-C), wherein
the sensor detects that the door is closed, by being pressed by the pressing member (Since 43f can be considered to be a part of the sensor [44+43f], the sensor detects that the door is closed when the pressing member 41 indirectly presses 43f via 42 and 43.),
the switch
includes a lever (45a, fig. 3, para 58), and
interrupts power supply when pressing of the lever is released (see fig. 7A-C, para 71-79),
the link member presses the lever by being contacted by the pressing member (see fig. 7A-C, para 71-79), and
the link member and the sensor are aligned so as to come into contact with the pressing member in this order when the door is closed (see fig. 7A-C, para 71-79).
Regarding claim 13, Yasumoto further discloses A recording device, comprising: the detection device according to claim 1; the device main body; and the door (see title, fig. 1-3).
The following reference(s) is/are considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure and is/are cited for disclosing related limitations to the applicant’s claimed and disclosed invention.
US 20200086648 A1
An ink tank that communicates with an ink ejecting head, includes: an ink chamber configured to house ink; an ink inlet portion that communicates with the ink chamber and that receives ink supplied from an ink supply container; and an ink viewing portion that is a portion of a wall that defines the ink chamber and that enables the ink in the ink chamber to be viewed from an outside, the ink chamber having an ink guide wall for guiding the ink from the ink inlet portion toward the ink viewing portion.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JUSTIN SEO whose telephone number is (571)270-1327. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9am-5pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Ricardo I Magallanes can be reached at 571-272-5960. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JUSTIN SEO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2853
March 18, 2026
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