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 § 103
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 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.
Claims 1-3,5-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Benaroya (US 4,572,403) in view of Hines et al. (US 2016/0008226) in view of Lambelet et al. (US 5,664,697).
Claim 1, Benaroya discloses a snack containment and dispensing apparatus comprising: a bowl (12); a lid (13) connectable with the bowl, the lid (13) including an opening (21) having a pivotable cover (41b); said pivotable cover (41b) having a vertical handle (43) connected at one end of a window (41) disposed within said lid (13); a tray (15) disposed with the bowl (12), the tray (15) including multiple pockets (17) and being configured for selective rotation relative to the bowl (12) and connected lid (13) to align one or more of the pockets (17) with the pivotable cover (41) of said lid (13).
Benaroya does not disclose an opening having a slidable cover; said slidable cover having a vertical handle connected at one end of a window disposed within said lid where said slidable cover holds in multiple open positions; and a plunger button configured to actuate rotation of the tray.
Hines discloses an opening (22) having a slidable cover (24); said slidable cover (24) within said lid (12) where said slidable cover holds in multiple open positions (see abstract; para.0001-0045). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide the device of Benaroya with an opening having a slidable cover; said slidable cover having a vertical handle connected at one end of a window disposed within said lid where said slidable cover holds in multiple open positions simply to have a medication dispenser with a more advanced electronic core that enables a sliding cover to rotate automatically to open more than one window in the lid.
Lambelet discloses a plunger button (30) configured to actuate rotation of the tray (29). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide the device of Benaroya with a plunger button configured to actuate rotation of the tray since it merely provides another well-known mechanism in the art for rotation of the tray and such configuration does not impart any novelty on the claim limitation.
Claim 2, Benaroya discloses where the lid (13) is connectable with the bowl (12) by an angled rim on the interior circumference of the lid (fig.3) and an angled rim on the interior circumference of the bowl.
Claim 3, Benaroya discloses where said angled rim on the lid (13) and said angled rim on the bowl (12) are formed at such angles so as to enable a locking, sealed connection between the lid and the bowl (see figures).
Claim 5, Benaroya discloses where the locking of the angled rim of the lid (13) and the angled rim of the bowl (12) forms a seal through a pressure closure.
Claim 6, Benaroya does not disclose where the multiple pockets are of various volumetric sizes.
Hines discloses where the multiple pockets are of various volumetric sizes (para.0037). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide the device of Benaroya with where the multiple pockets are of various volumetric sizes simply to enable storing different-sized articles to be dispensed inside the device.
Claim 4 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Benaroya (US 4,572,403) in view of Hines et al. (US 2016/0008226) in view of Lambelet et al. (US 5,664,697) in view of Sellars et al. (US 2008/0083772).
Claim 4, Benaroya in view of Hines in view of Lambelet do not disclose where the mated rims are composed of multiple materials, each material having a unique elasticity.
Sellars discloses where the mated rims (para.0051; rims of lid and body portions are made of different materials which means they inherently have differing and unique elasticity) are composed of multiple materials, each material having a unique elasticity (para.0051). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide the device of Benaroya in view of Hines in view of Lambelet with where the mated rims are composed of multiple materials, each material having a unique elasticity because having a lid and body portion made of different materials is notoriously well-known in the art.
Claims 1 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Benaroya (US 4,572,403) in view of Hines et al. (US 2016/0008226) in view of DeJonge (US 6,098,835).
Claim 1, Benaroya discloses a snack containment and dispensing apparatus comprising: a bowl (12); a lid (13) connectable with the bowl, the lid (13) including an opening (21) having a pivotable cover (41b); said pivotable cover (41b) having a vertical handle (43) connected at one end of a window (41) disposed within said lid (13); a tray (15) disposed with the bowl (12), the tray (15) including multiple pockets (17) and being configured for selective rotation relative to the bowl (12) and connected lid (13) to align one or more of the pockets (17) with the pivotable cover (41) of said lid (13).
Benaroya does not disclose an opening having a slidable cover; said slidable cover having a vertical handle connected at one end of a window disposed within said lid where said slidable cover holds in multiple open positions; and a plunger button configured to actuate rotation of the tray.
Hines discloses an opening (22) having a slidable cover (24); said slidable cover (24) within said lid (12) where said slidable cover holds in multiple open positions (see abstract; para.0001-0045). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide the device of Benaroya with an opening having a slidable cover; said slidable cover having a vertical handle connected at one end of a window disposed within said lid where said slidable cover holds in multiple open positions simply to have a medication dispenser with a more advanced electronic core that enables a sliding cover to rotate automatically to open more than one window in the lid.
DeJonge discloses a plunger button (17) configured to actuate rotation of the tray (23). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide the device of Benaroya with a plunger button configured to actuate rotation of the tray since it merely provides another well-known mechanism in the art for rotation of the tray and such configuration does not impart any novelty on the claim limitation.
Claims 7-11 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hines et al. (US 2016/0008226) in view of Conley et al. (US 2008/0203107).
Claim 7, Hines discloses a snack containment and dispensing apparatus comprising a bowl (14); a tray (18) having a plurality of containment compartments (44); a lid (12) connectable with the bowl (14), the lid including an opening (22) having a slidable cover (24); said tray (18) indexes such that exposed access of a containment compartment (44) is changed from a first containment compartment position to a second containment compartment position; where when said tray is indexed said second containment compartment position is directly beneath said slidable cover (24) in the lid (12; para.0001-0045).
Hines does not disclose a plunger device adapted such that when said plunger is depressed, said tray indexes.
Conley discloses a plunger device (208A) adapted such that when said plunger is depressed, said tray (202) indexes (para.0085). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide the device of Hines with a plunger device adapted such that when said plunger is depressed, said tray indexes because it is just another tray rotating mechanism that incrementally rotates the tray and such limitation does not impart any novelty on the claim limitation.
Claim 8, Hines discloses where the first containment compartment (fig.2a) position permits access to one or more containment compartments.
Claim 9, Hines discloses where the second containment compartment (fig.2a) position permits access to one or more containment compartments.
10. The snack containment and dispensing apparatus of Claim 8, where the rims of each of
the lid and of the bowl are disposed to form a locking seal when the rim of said lid and
the rim of said bowl are compressed together.
Claim 10, Hines discloses where the rims of each of the lid (12) and of the bowl (14) are disposed to form a locking seal when the rim of said lid and the rim of said bowl are compressed together (fig.1).
Claim 11, Hines discloses where the containment compartments are of various volumetric sizes (para.0037).
Conclusion
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/AYODEJI T OJOFEITIMI/ Examiner, Art Unit 3651
/GENE O CRAWFORD/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3651