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 § 102
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(s) 1-4, 7, 11-14, and 17-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US 2020/0284291 to Doherty (hereinafter “Doherty”).
-From Claim 1: Doherty discloses a bearing for a socket joint, comprising:
an inner shell surface 52 configured to at least partially contact a stud 36 of the socket joint, the inner shell surface extending at least partially between an end side (bottom of 52 in Fig. 3) and an exit side (top of 52 in Fig. 3);
an outer shell portion 42 located at least partially radially outward with respect to the inner shell surface;
a first grease groove (see rounded/spherical channels in Figs. 4-6) extending along the inner shell surface; and
a second grease groove (see rounded/spherical channels in Figs. 4-6) extending along the inner shell surface,
wherein at least one of the first grease groove or the second grease groove extend between one or more of the end side and the exit side of the inner shell surface, and wherein the first grease groove and the second grease groove at least partially intersect at a groove junction (i.e., the round opening at the bottom of 52 in Fig. 5) along the inner shell surface.
-From Claim 2: Doherty discloses wherein the inner shell surface 52 is made of a metal-based material and the outer shell portion 42 is made of a plastic-based material. (¶31)
-From Claim 3: Doherty discloses wherein the groove junction (the round opening in 52) defines a side-mounted grease entry/exit point (Examiner notes the bottom side of a thing qualifies as a side, such that the opening in 58 could be a “side-mounted grease entry/exit point”).
-From Claim 4: Doherty discloses wherein an outer profile of the outer shell portion 42 is configured to at least partially conform to an internal bore of a housing 26, the outer profile having an axially extending surface and a radially extending surface.
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Reproduced from Doherty (Examiner Annotated)
-From Claim 7: wherein the outer shell portion 42 has an overhanging retention lip (see below) configured to engage an edge extending from the inner shell surface.
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Reproduced from Doherty (Examiner Annotated)
-From Claim 11: Doherty discloses wherein the groove junction has three or more offshoots.
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Reproduced from Doherty (Examiner Annotated)
-From Claim 12: Doherty discloses wherein the groove junction has two or more offshoots that join at an edge of the inner shell surface (see arrows in immediately above figure).
-From Claim 13: Doherty discloses wherein the first grease groove, the second grease groove, or both the first grease groove and the second grease groove at least partially follow a geodesic path. ("’Geodesic’" as used herein means the shortest possible line/curve between two points on the inner shell surface.” Spec., ¶38)
-From Claim 14: Doherty discloses wherein the first grease groove and the second grease groove extend into the inner shell surface to form a reservoir side and a backside, wherein the backside of each grease groove interlocks the outer shell portion (via 54).
-From Claim 17: Doherty discloses a socket joint 22 comprising the bearing of claim 1.
-From Claim 18: Doherty discloses a bearing for a socket joint, comprising:
an inner shell surface 52 configured to at least partially contact a stud 36 of the socket joint;
an outer shell portion 42 located at least partially radially outward with respect to the inner shell surface, the outer shell portion having an exit side (top of 52 in Fig. 3) and an end side (bottom of 52 in Fig. 3); and
a grease groove (see rounded/spherical channels in Figs. 4-6) having a reservoir side and a backside, wherein the grease groove at least partially follows a geodesic path ("’Geodesic’" as used herein means the shortest possible line/curve between two points on the inner shell surface.” Spec., ¶38) between a point on an edge of the exit side and a point on an edge of the end side, wherein the reservoir side of the grease groove extends into the inner shell portion and the backside extends toward the outer shell portion (via 54) so as to lock the outer shell portion with respect to the inner shell portion.
-From Claim 19: Doherty discloses a bearing for a socket joint, comprising:
an inner shell surface 52 configured to at least partially contact a stud 36 of the socket joint, the inner shell surface having an edge; and
an outer shell portion 42 located at least partially radially outward with respect to the inner shell surface, the outer shell portion having an overhanging retention lip 56 configured to engage the edge of the inner shell surface, wherein the overhanging retention lip has a grease channel.
-From Claim 20: Doherty discloses wherein the grease channel is fluidly connected to one or more grease grooves in the inner shell surface.
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.
Claim(s) 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Doherty in view of US 5772337 to Maughan et al. (hereinafter “Maughan”).
-From Claim 16: Doherty does not disclose a third grease groove and a fourth grease groove, wherein the first grease groove, the second grease groove, the third grease groove, and the fourth grease groove form a lattice pattern.
Maughan teaches a bearing with an inner shell surface comprising a lattice pattern of grease grooves 86, 90.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Doherty by adding additional grease grooves in the form of a lattice pattern as taught by Maughan in order to provide additional lubrication surface/coverage.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5, 6, 8-10, and 15 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure, as the cited references include structure similar to that of the presently claimed invention.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DANIEL J WILEY whose telephone number is (571)270-7324. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm PST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Amber Anderson can be reached at 5712705281. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/DANIEL J WILEY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3678 4/28/2026
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