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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 9/28/25 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Regarding Applicant’s arguments against the Objections to the Drawings and Specification, it is noted that the drawings as filed do not contain the details Applicant alleges in their response. Applicant is advised to review the submitted figures in the application file or to reference the application’s publication US 2024/0368870.
In response to applicant's argument that the references fail to show certain features of the invention, it is noted that the features upon which applicant relies (i.e., that none of the axes are coplanar or colinear) are not recited in the rejected claim(s). Although the claims are interpreted in light of the specification, limitations from the specification are not read into the claims. See In re Van Geuns, 988 F.2d 1181, 26 USPQ2d 1057 (Fed. Cir. 1993).
Applicant’s arguments allege that the first axis, second axis and lever arm axis can not be coplanar and/or must otherwise be distinct/unique axes to which the Examiner disagrees as the claim language does not require such a limitation. This is further supported by Applicant’s dependent claim 35 which further defines the claimed invention by requiring that the axes be different from one another.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
The Specification cites to a bill of materials however no such bill of materials is present in the figures.
Appropriate correction is required.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they do not include the following reference sign(s) mentioned in the description:
“Items” 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11
Figs. 22A-29B do not appear to include any references
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. 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.
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(4) because reference character “10” has been used to designate both a prior art device (Para. 0073) and a different part of applicant’s invention (Para. 00115). 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. 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.
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the:
A component arm
First component of the component arm
Second component of the component arm
Interlocking teeth mechanism of the first and second components of the component arm
“First lever arm” (Claim 23 – if this is another arm besides the ‘adjustable length lever arm’ and ‘flush lever arm’)
First longitudinal member of the first component of the component arm
Receptacle of the first component of the component arm
First opening and second opening of the receptacle, wherein the receptacle is configured to couple to the second component with either the first opening or the second opening
Longitudinal member of the first component comprising a first member first end configured to engage with the flush lever arm
Receptacle of the first component being at a first member second end of the first longitudinal member of the first component
Receptacle extending in a perpendicular direction with respect to the first longitudinal member along the second axis
must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
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 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 21-30, 33 and 37-40 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 2006/0225196 (Yang) in view of WO 2017/007540 (Mallela).
Regarding claim 21, Yang discloses a toilet flush lever arm assembly comprising:
a flush lever arm (10);
a component arm (22); and
a lever arm (21);
wherein the flush lever arm is configured to couple to the component arm (11/2223; Figs. 1, 2);
wherein the component arm is configured to couple to the lever arm (214/2213; Figs. 1, 2);
wherein rotation of the flush lever arm about a flush lever arm axis is configured to raise or lower the lever am via the component arm;
wherein the component arm is configured to enable the lever arm to be rotated about a first axis to a first angle (When the flush lever arm is rotated it rotates the component arm which rotates the lever arm about a first axis to a first angle – angle between flushing and not in use);
wherein at least a portion of the component arm is configured to be rotated about a second axis to a second angle (221 and 222 are configured to rotate about a second axis to a second angle; Fig. 4, annotate below); and
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wherein a rotation of the flush lever arm is configured to rotate the second axis about the flush lever arm axis (The second axis about which the components 221/222 of the component arm rotate is perpendicular to the flush lever arm axis and rotates about the flush lever arm axis during a flush/activation).
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Yang, however, does not disclose that the lever arm is an adjustable length lever arm.
Mallela teaches a toilet flush lever arm assembly (10) comprising a flush lever arm (20), a component arm (100) and an adjustable length lever arm (40).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide an adjustable length lever arm, as taught by Mallela, to facilitate use of the flush lever assembly on different flush reservoir designs.
Regarding claim 22, Yang states that the component arm (221/222/223/224) is separable into a first component and a second component (Fig. 1, 5) wherein the first component and the second component are configured to be coupled with an interlocking teeth mechanism (2216/2225/A/A1) along the second axis (Fig. 1, 5) to provide adjustability to the lever arm (Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 23, Yang states that the interlocking teeth mechanism is configured to enable the component arm to be adjustable (Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 24, Yang states that the first component includes a first longitudinal member (224) and a receptacle (221), wherein the receptacle comprises a first opening (2215) and a second opening (2217). The receptacle is configured to enable the second component to be coupled to either the first opening or the second opening (Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 25, the adjustable length lever arm as taught by Mallela comprises an inner shaft (50) and a hollow outer slider (52). Wherein the hollow outer slider is configured to receive the inner shaft and a length of the adjustable length lever arm is configured to be adjusted by moving the inner shaft back and forth within the hollow outer slider (Figs. 2A-3B).
Regarding claim 26, Mallela further teaches that the inner shaft of the adjustable length lever arm further comprises an inner shaft projection (62) configured to lock the inner shaft at a desired position along the length of the hollow outer slider (Figs. 3A-3B) and a hollow mid-section (51) configured to enable the inner shaft projection to flex inwardly when depressed (Para. 0045).
Regarding claims 27-28, Mallela further teaches that the hollow outer slider comprises one or more aperture (65a/65b) wherein the one or more apertures are configured to enable the inner shaft projection to protrude through (Figs. 3A-3B). The adjustable length lever arm is configured to be at a maximum length when the inner shaft projection passes through one of the one or more apertures (Fig. 3A) and at a minimum length when the inner shaft projection passes through another of the one or more aperture (Fig. 3B).
Regarding claim 29, Mallela further teaches that the hollow outer slider can comprise more than two apertures with that the additional apertures provide intermediate lengths for the adjustable length lever arm (Para. 0046).
Regarding claim 30, Yang states a flush lever assembly comprising a component arm having a first component and a second component wherein the second component (221) is configured to mate to the lever arm (Figs. 1, 5) and Mallela teaches the formation of the lever arm as an adjustable lever arm having a hollow outer slider that couples to a component arm as previously discussed. As such Yang in view of Mallela results in the hollow outer slider being configured to mate with the second component.
Regarding claim 33, Yang discloses a toilet flush lever arm assembly comprising:
a flush lever arm (10);
a component arm (22); and
a lever arm (21);
wherein the flush lever arm is configured to couple to the component arm (11/2223; Figs. 1, 2);
wherein the component arm is configured to couple to the lever arm (214/2213; Figs. 1, 2);
wherein rotation of the flush lever arm about a flush lever arm axis is configured to raise or lower the lever am via the component arm;
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wherein the component arm comprises a first component and a second component (Figs. 1, 5; 221/222/223/224);
wherein the first component (221) is configured to couple to the flush lever arm (Figs. 2, 6 – the component arm and both components couples to the flush lever arm and lever arm);
wherein the second component (222) is configured to couple to the lever arm (Figs. 2, 6 – the component arm and both components couples to the flush lever arm and lever arm)’
wherein the second component is configured to enable the lever arm to be rotated about a first axis (the second component couples the lever arm back to the component arm so it rotates about a first axis with the component arm);
wherein the first component and the second component are configured to be rotatable relative to each other about a second axis (Fig. 4); and
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wherein rotating the second component relative to the first component is configured to change an angle of the lever arm (Fig. 4; Para. 0014-0016).
Yang, however, does not disclose that the lever arm is an adjustable length lever arm.
Mallela teaches a toilet flush lever arm assembly (10) comprising a flush lever arm (20), a component arm (100) and an adjustable length lever arm (40).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide an adjustable length lever arm, as taught by Mallela, to facilitate use of the flush lever assembly on differing flush tank reservoirs.
Regarding claim 37, the adjustable length lever arm as taught by Mallela comprises an inner shaft (50) and a hollow outer slider (52). Wherein the hollow outer slider is configured to receive the inner shaft and a length of the adjustable length lever arm is configured to be adjusted by moving the inner shaft back and forth within the hollow outer slider (Figs. 2A-3B).
Regarding claim 38-40, Mallela further teaches that the hollow outer slider comprises one or more aperture (65a/65b) wherein the one or more apertures are configured to enable an inner shaft projection (62) to protrude through (Figs. 3A-3B). The adjustable length lever arm is configured to be at a maximum length when the inner shaft projection passes through one of the one or more apertures (Fig. 3A) and at a minimum length when the inner shaft projection passes through another of the one or more aperture (Fig. 3B).
Claim 35 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yang in view of Mallela as applied to claim 33 above, and further in view of US 7,861,330 (Tau).
Regarding claim 35, Yang does not state that the second component of the component arm is coupled to the adjustable lever arm in a manner such that the adjustable lever arm can rotate about a first axis different than the flush lever arm axis and the second axis of the component arm components.
Tau teaches a flush lever arm assembly for a toilet tank comprising a flush lever arm (12) which rotates about a flush lever arm axis, a component arm (30a) and a lever arm (38a). The component arm is configured to be adjustably coupled at a first end to the flush lever arm to change the angle of the component arm relative to the flush lever arm (C3 L1-16). An opposing end of the component arm (48) is configured to couple to the lever arm in such a manner that the lever arm is rotatable about a ‘first’ axis which is different from the flush lever arm axis of the flush lever arm so as to further provide positioning of the lever arm.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to configure the second component of the component arm to couple to the adjustable flush lever arm in a rotatable manner such that the ‘first axis’ and ‘flush lever arm axis’ are different, as taught by Tau, to provide further control over the positioning of the flush lever assembly within the tank.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 31-32 and 36 are 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
The prior art of record does not disclose a flush lever assembly comprising a flush lever arm rotatable about a flush lever arm axis, a component arm comprising first and second components which are separable and rotatable relatively about a second axis perpendicular to the first, the component arm coupled to an adjustable lever arm such that the adjustable lever arm can rotate about a ‘first axis’, the adjustable lever arm comprising an inner shaft and a hollow outer slider, the second component comprises an internal ratchet and external ratchet surface, and the hollow outer slider comprises an internal ratchet surface and an external ratchet arm.
The prior art of record does not disclose a flush lever assembly comprising a flush lever arm rotatable about a flush lever arm axis, a component arm comprising first and second components which are separable and rotatable relatively about a ‘second’ axis perpendicular to the first, the component arm coupled to an adjustable lever arm such that the adjustable lever arm can rotate about a ‘first axis’, wherein the first, second and flush lever arm axis are all different from each other, wherein the first component includes a longitudinal member having a first member first end configured to engage the flush lever arm and a receptacle at a first member second end which extends perpendicular to the longitudinal member and along the second axis and the second component couples to the receptacle.
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 NICHOLAS A ROS whose telephone number is (571)270-3577. The examiner can normally be reached Mon.-Fri. 9:00-6:00.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, David Angwin can be reached at 571-270-3735. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/NICHOLAS A ROS/Examiner, Art Unit 3754
/ERIN DEERY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3754