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 Objections
Claim 8 is objected to because of the following informalities: The claim depends from canceled claim 7. It appears that claim 8 should depend from claim 1. In line 2, the recitation “material” should be “member”.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claim 16 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b), as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
With respect to claim 16: The preamble of the claim states the anti-tip device is “for a refrigeration appliance having refrigeration appliance components positioned in a central region of a top wall of the refrigeration appliance, the anti-tip device comprising…”.
Due to the use of “for”, the refrigeration appliance, refrigeration appliance components, central region, and/or top wall are not positively recited. The preamble of the claim, as written, suggests the claim is drawn to the anti-tip device only.
The body of the claim recites “wherein the first tip prevention leg and the second tip prevention leg are separated by a distance sufficient to position the refrigeration appliance components laterally between the first tip prevention leg and the second tip prevention leg when the anti-tip device is mounted to a vertical wall surface adjacent the refrigeration appliance”.
The body of the claim also recites “wherein neither the first tip prevention leg nor the second tip prevention leg overlies the refrigeration appliance components when the anti-tip device is mounted to the vertical wall surface adjacent the refrigeration appliance”.
The two recitations in the body of the claim suggest that the refrigeration appliance, refrigeration appliance components, and/or vertical wall surface is/are positively recited and included in the claimed invention.
The scope of claim 16, as written, is indefinite. It is unclear is the claimed invention is to the anti-tip device only, or if other component(s) is/are included in the claimed invention. If component(s) beyond the anti-tip device are included in the claimed invention, it is unclear which component(s) are included and which component(s) are excluded. If the claim is to the anti-tip device only, the two recitations above should be amended to make clear that the refrigeration appliance, refrigeration appliance components, central region, top wall, and vertical wall surface are not positively recited.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-6, 8-10, and 13-15 are allowed. Claim 8 is allowed contingent on correcting the claim objection made in this Office action.
Claim 16 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) set forth in this Office action.
Response to Arguments
The claim objections and claim rejections made in the previous Office action are withdrawn, as being overcome by the latest claim amendments. The new claim objections and claim rejections made in this Office action are necessitated by the latest claim amendments.
No prior art rejections remain. The claims are allowable except for objections to claim 8 and one indefiniteness rejection under 35 U.S.C. § 112(b). Below are the examiner’s suggestions (not requirements) for overcoming the § 112(b) rejections.
Regarding the first recitation in the § 112 rejection:
wherein the first tip prevention leg and the second tip prevention leg are separated by a distance such that the anti-tip device is configured to be mounted to a vertical wall surface adjacent the refrigeration appliance with the refrigeration appliance components positioned laterally between the first tip prevention leg and the second tip prevention leg
Regarding the second recitation in the § 112 rejection:
wherein configured to be mounted to the vertical wall surface adjacent the refrigeration appliance with neither the first tip prevention leg nor the second tip prevention leg overlying the refrigeration appliance components
The amendments above are merely suggestions by the examiner. The Applicant may amend the claims in other ways to overcome the rejections under 35 U.S.C. § 112(b).
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 ANDREW ROERSMA whose telephone number is (571)270-3185. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00-4:00.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Daniel Troy can be reached at 571-270-3742. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ANDREW ROERSMA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3637
