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 § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 4, 11, and 15-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding claims 4 and 11: It is unclear what “to allow the passage a component of the aerial structure” means. Should it read “to allow the passage of a component of the aerial structure”. It is assumed so and will be examined accordingly.
The term “safe access and egress” in claim 15 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “safe access and egress” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention. It is unclear what the applicant would consider “safe access and egress”.
Additional claims rejected under 35 USC 112 but not addressed are rejected as being dependent on a rejected base claim and failing to further remedy the issue(s).
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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 15-18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Halberg et al. (US Patent No 11,536,039) (“Halberg”).
Referring to claim 15: Halberg teaches a modular containment system for deployment on an aerial structure, the system comprising: a support structure (item 10) configured for attachment to the aerial structure; a fabric (item 68) configured to capture particulate contaminants; a work platform (items 12 and 14) integrated into the support structure, providing safe access and egress for workers maintaining the aerial structure.
Referring to claim 16: Halberg teaches all the limitations of claim 15 as noted above. Additionally, Halberg teaches wherein the support structure includes one or more armatures configured to extend horizontally outward from the aerial structure (figure 7 and the components of items 12 and 14 would extend outward).
Referring to claim 17: Halberg teaches all the limitations of claim 15 as noted above. Additionally, Halberg teaches a pan (item 68) that encloses the containment system from below to prevent contaminants from falling to the ground.
Referring to claim 18: Halberg teaches all the limitations of claim 17 as noted above. Additionally, Halberg teaches the pan comprises a configurable membrane to allow the passage a component of the aerial structure (col 9, lines 37-40).
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) 1-5, 8-12, and 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Halberg.
Referring to claim 1: Halberg teaches a containment system for an aerial structure, comprising: a support structure (item 10) configured to attach to various configurations of aerial structures; a modular membrane (item 68) that substantially surrounds a portion of the aerial structure to contain contaminants; and an attachment system (item 56) for securing the support structure to the aerial structure, wherein the attachment system accommodates a plurality of cross-sections of structural members of the aerial structure (col 4, lines 7-8). Halberg does not specifically teach the support structure is configured to attach to various configuration of aerial structures. However, It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to recognize that the frame would be configurable to different shapes and the teaching of a different sized base of the tower would qualify as a plurality of cross-sections under broadest reasonable interpretation.
Referring to claim 2: Halberg teaches all the limitations of claim 1 as noted above. Additionally, Halberg teaches wherein the support structure includes one or more armatures configured to extend horizontally outward from the aerial structure (figure 7 and the components of items 12 and 14 would extend outward).
Referring to claim 3: Halberg teaches all the limitations of claim 1 as noted above. Additionally, Halberg teaches a pan (item 68) that encloses the containment system from below to prevent contaminants from falling to the ground.
Referring to claim 4: Halberg teaches all the limitations of claim 3 as noted above. Additionally, Halberg teaches the pan comprises a configurable membrane to allow the passage a component of the aerial structure (col 9, lines 37-40).
Referring to claim 5: Halberg teaches all the limitations of claim 4 as noted above. Halberg does not specifically teach wherein the configurable membrane includes an aperture or a channel configured to conform to the component of the aerial structure. However, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to recognize that the membrane would conform to the outer portion of the scaffolding and the bottom of the floor taught by Halberg and would therefore conform to the shape of the aerial component in order to prevent debris from leaving the area without interfering with the operation of the system up and down the tower.
Referring to claim 8: Halberg teaches all the structural limitations of the instant claim such as the support structure, modular membrane, and attachment system as noted above. While Halberg does not explicitly teach a method, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to recognize that by providing the final product, Halberg teaches attaching a support structure to an aerial structure, configuring a modular membrane around a portion of the aerial structure, and utilizing the attachment system to secure the support structure to the aerial structure.
Referring to claim 9: Halberg teaches all the limitations of claim 8 as noted above. Additionally, Halberg teaches wherein the support structure includes one or more armatures configured to extend horizontally outward from the aerial structure (figure 7 and the components of items 12 and 14 would extend outward).
Referring to claim 10: Halberg teaches all the limitations of claim 8 as noted above. Additionally, Halberg teaches a pan (item 68) that encloses the containment system from below to prevent contaminants from falling to the ground.
Referring to claim 11: Halberg teaches all the limitations of claim 10 as noted above. Additionally, Halberg teaches the pan comprises a configurable membrane to allow the passage a component of the aerial structure (col 9, lines 37-40).
Referring to claim 12: Halberg teaches all the limitations of claim 11 as noted above. Halberg does not specifically teach wherein the configurable membrane includes an aperture or a channel configured to conform to the component of the aerial structure. However, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to recognize that the membrane would conform to the outer portion of the scaffolding and the bottom of the floor taught by Halberg and would therefore conform to the shape of the aerial component in order to prevent debris from leaving the area without interfering with the operation of the system up and down the tower.
Referring to claim 19: Halberg teaches all the limitations of claim 17 as noted above. Halberg does not specifically teach wherein the configurable membrane includes an aperture or a channel configured to conform to the component of the aerial structure. However, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to recognize that the membrane would conform to the outer portion of the scaffolding and the bottom of the floor taught by Halberg and would therefore conform to the shape of the aerial component in order to prevent debris from leaving the area without interfering with the operation of the system up and down the tower.
Claim(s) 6, 7, 13, 14, and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Halberg in view of Long (US Patent No 10,883,286).
Referring to claims 6, 13, and 20: Halberg teaches all the limitations of claims 1, 8, and 15 as noted above. Halberg does not specifically teach wherein the modular membrane comprises at least one fabric attachment structure. However, Long teaches wherein the modular membrane comprises at least one fabric attachment structure (figure 21).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to create the device taught by Halberg with the fabric attachment structure of Long in order to allow for disassembly and transportation of the device.
Referring to claims 7 and 14: Halberg and Long teach all the limitations of claims 6 and 13 as noted above. Additionally, Long teaches wherein the fabric attachment structure comprises a loop (figure 21). A loop provides easy toolless attachment and detachment.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PATRICK J MAESTRI whose telephone number is (571)270-7859. The examiner can normally be reached M-Th 7-3.
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/PATRICK J MAESTRI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3635