DETAILED ACTION
This Office Action is in response to a Non-Final office action, filed on 03/17/2026, on an application filed on 05/08/2024. Claims 1-6 and 8-12 are presented for examination consideration.
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 .
Examiner’s Note
The Examiner is requesting the Applicant’s undersigned agent to provide contact information, such as providing a telephone number in the 03/17/2026 Filed Remarks, since the Examiner’s Data Base had the wrong telephone number of 301-952-9023.
Drawings
Applicant’s Claim and Specification Amendments (filed on 03/17/2026) are persuasive in the cited drawing objections from the last office action (mailed on 12/17/2025) due to the following:
The drawing objection showing the limitations in amended claim 6 is persuasive due to amending the claim FROM “wherein the door hinge apparatus further comprises an interior connector for connecting to a power source and network source” TO “wherein the door hinge apparatus further comprises a connector for connecting to a power source and network source, wherein an end of the wire harness is coupled to the connector” to support the claim.
The drawing objection showing the limitations in claim 7 is persuasive due to cancelling the claim.
The drawing objection showing “item 1100” is persuasive due to amending ¶[0057] in the amended specification.
The drawing objections cited in the last office action is withdrawn.
Specifications
Applicant’s Claim and Specification Amendments (filed on 03/17/2026) are persuasive in the cited specification objections from the last office action (mailed on 12/17/2025) due to the following:
The specification objection indicating the limitations in amended claim 6 is persuasive due to amending the claim FROM “wherein the door hinge apparatus further comprises an interior connector for connecting to a power source and network source” TO “wherein the door hinge apparatus further comprises a connector for connecting to a power source and network source, wherein an end of the wire harness is coupled to the connector” to support the claim. In addition, the specification objection indicating the limitations in claim 7 is persuasive due to cancelling the claim.
The specification objection indicating “item 1100” is persuasive due to amending ¶[0057] in the amended specification.
The specification objections cited in the last office action is withdrawn.
Response to Applicant’s Remarks and Amendments
Applicant's Claim Amendments (filed on 03/17/2026) with respect to the 112(a) rejection of claim 6 that was cited in the office action (mailed on 12/17/2025) is persuasive due to amending the claim to provide enablement support. The claim was amended FROM “wherein the door hinge apparatus further comprises an interior connector for connecting to a power source and network source” TO “wherein the door hinge apparatus further comprises a connector for connecting to a power source and network source, wherein an end of the wire harness is coupled to the connector”
The 112(a) rejection of claim 6 is withdrawn.
Applicant's Claim Amendments (filed on 03/17/2026) with respect to the 112(a) rejection of claim 7 that was cited in the office action (mailed on 12/17/2025) is persuasive due to cancelling the claim.
The 112(a) rejection of claim 7 is withdrawn.
Applicant's Claim Amendments, filed on 03/17/2026, with respect to the 35 USC § 102 rejection of independent claim 10 is persuasive due to further defining the following structural limitations:
“The barrel is comprised of a rotor and a stator”.
“Where the rotor is configured to rotate relative to the stator and with the door hinge.”
“Where the rotor has an exit port for the wire harness and the stator has an entry port for the wire harness”.
“Where the rotor rotates with the door and the wire harness exiting from the rotor does not flex or bend with door rotation”.
The rejection of claim 10 and the rejection of the dependent claims base on claim 10 cited in the last Office Action (mailed on 12/17/2025) are withdrawn.
Applicant's Claim Amendments, filed on 03/17/2026, with respect to independent claim 3 has been fully considered and is allowed due to the limitation of objected claim 3 and all of the necessary limitations of base independent claim 1. Claim 3 defines the limitation structure of “where the depth is one-eight inches, and the thickness of the ribbon is one-sixteenth inches”.
However, amended independent claim 1, amended in Applicant’s Claim Amendment (filed on 03/17/2025), will be subject to 112(a) rejection. The amended limitation “wherein the first base plate includes one to three channels, each of the one to three channels is in a form of a traverse groove made on an inner surface of the first base plate” was never explained or described in the filed disclosure (specification/drawings or presented in the original claims). In addition, the Applicant never provided an explanation of where the amended limitation in claim 1 was extrapolated in the specifications in the Remarks that (filed on 03/17/2025).
Nevertheless, Applicant's Amendments and Remarks (filed 03/17/2025) with respect to the 102 rejection of the claims 1-2, 4, and 8-9 and are moot in view of the new ground(s) of rejection due to the amended limitations in independent claim 1.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Independent Claim 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the filed disclosure (originally filed specification and/or drawing) in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for pre-AIA the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Amended independent claim 1 recites the limitation phrase “three channels” in the limitation “wherein the first base plate includes one to three channels, each of the one to three channels is in a form of a traverse groove made on an inner surface of the first base plate”, where the limitation is not properly described in the specification, in the drawings, and in the original presented claims, consequently raising doubt of the claim invention at the time of filing. Specifically, nowhere in the specification or the drawings does it indicate that the “three channels”. In addition, the Applicant's Remarks that were submitted on 03/17/2026 does not indicate where the amended limitation phrase “three channels” is supported in the specifications. Consequently, the added limitation phrase is raising doubt of the claimed invention at the time of filing since new matter has been added to claim 1.
Claims 2, 4-6, and 8-9 are rejected since the base independent claim 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 1st paragraph.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3 and 10-12 are allowed.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance:
Regarding independent claim 3, the prior art taken either singularity or in combination fails to anticipate or fairly suggest the limitations of the independent claim, in such a manner that a rejection under 35 U.S.C. 102 or 103 would be improper. The prior art fails to teach a combination of limitations of a door hinge apparatus for supplying power and data connectivity from indoors to electronic devices located outdoors, the door hinge apparatus is configured to be mounted to a door, the door hinge apparatus comprising: …wherein a depth of each channel corresponds to a thickness of the wire harness, wherein the depth is one-eight inches, and the thickness of the ribbon is one-sixteenth inches, as recited in combination in independent claim 3. After careful review of the specification and the claim in the application and a search of the prior art, considering the claim as a whole, the aforementioned recited limitations in combination in independent claim 3, it is believed to render the claim individually patentable over the prior art of record.
Regarding independent claim 10, the prior art taken either singularity or in combination fails to anticipate or fairly suggest the limitations of the independent claim, in such a manner that a rejection under 35 U.S.C. 102 or 103 would be improper. The prior art fails to teach a combination of limitations of a door apparatus for supplying power to a door, the door apparatus comprising: …the barrel comprises: a rotor, and a stator, wherein rotor is configured to rotate relative to the stator and with the door hinge, wherein the rotor has an exit port for a wire harness and the stator has an entry port for the wire harness, wherein the rotor rotates with the door and the wire harness exiting from the rotor does not flex or bend with door rotation, as recited in combination in independent claim 10. After careful review of the specification and the claim in the application and a search of the prior art, considering the claim as a whole, the aforementioned recited limitations in combination in independent claim 10, it is believed to render the claim individually patentable and the claims respectively dependent thereto patentable over the prior art of record. Therefore, claims 11-12 are allowed.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to GUILLERMO J EGOAVIL whose telephone number is (571)270-1325. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 8:00-5:00.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Timothy Thompson can be reached at (571) 272-2342. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/GUILLERMO J EGOAVIL/Examiner, Art Unit 2847
/TIMOTHY J THOMPSON/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2847