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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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 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.
(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) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 11, 12, and 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being Anticipated by Knowlton et al. (US 20050121057 A1).
Regarding Claim 1, Knowlton discloses:
A cart treatment system (22 & 284), comprising:
a pre-treatment module (100A & 102A & 286) for cart treatment [0042 & 0045 & 0048 & 0073 & 0074];
an intermediate module (100B & 102B & 196) provided to receive and treat the cart which is treated in the pre-treatment module [0042 & 0045 & 0048 & 0049 & 0061 & 0070 & 0073 & 0074 & 0077]; and
a post-treatment module (100C & 288) provided to receive and treat the cart which is treated in the intermediate module [0042 & 0045 & 0046 & 0048 & 0049 & 0070 & 0074],
wherein the intermediate module is provided to be put in either a coupled state in which the pre-treatment module is coupled to the post-treatment module (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9) or a detached state in which the pre-treatment module is detached from the post- treatment module (Fig. 5A) [Abstract & 0008 & 0009 & 0042 & 0043 & 0044 & 0045 & 0046 & 0047 & 0048 & 0049 & 0050 & 0051 & 0052 & 0053 & 0054 & 0057 & 0058 & 0061 & 0062 & 0063 & 0064 & 0065 & 0066 & 0067 & 0070 & 0071 & 0073 & 0076].
Regarding Claim 2, Knowlton discloses:
the pre-treatment module, the intermediate module, and the post-treatment module are arranged in order while moving forward (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9), and
wherein when transitioning from the coupled state to the detached state, the intermediate module is detached from the pre-treatment module and the post-treatment module along directions crossing front and back directions (Fig. 5A).
Regarding Claim 3, Knowlton discloses:
the intermediate module includes:
an intermediate body having an internal space through which the cart passes, the internal space being opened along the front and back directions (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9),
a front end coupling part coupled to a front end of the intermediate body (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9), and
a rear end coupling part coupled to a rear end of the intermediate body (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9),
wherein the pre-treatment module includes a pre-treatment body having the internal space where the cart is treated (Fig. 1C & Fig. 7A & Fig. 8A & Fig. 10A), and a pre-treatment coupling part coupled to a rear end of the pre-treatment body (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9),
wherein the post-treatment module includes a post-treatment body having the internal space where the cart is treated (Fig. 1C & Fig. 7A & Fig. 8A & Fig. 10A), and a post-treatment coupling part coupled to a frond end of the post-treatment body (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9), and
wherein in the coupled state, the pre-treatment coupling part and the rear end coupling part couple the pre-treatment body and the intermediate module, and the post-treatment coupling part and the front end coupling part couple the post- treatment body and the intermediate module (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9).
Regarding Claim 4, Knowlton discloses:
when transitioning from the detached state to the coupled state, in a case where the intermediate module moves along a first direction which is one of the left and right directions (Fig. 5A),
the pre-treatment coupling part is located on the first direction side of the rear end of the pre-treatment body, and the post-treatment coupling part is located on the first direction side of a rear end of the post-treatment body (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9),
the front end coupling part is located on a second direction side that is an opposite side to the first direction of the front end of the intermediate body, and the rear end coupling part is located on a second direction side of the rear end of the intermediate body (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9), and
the pre-treatment coupling part and the rear end coupling part surround a boundary between the pre-treatment body and the intermediate body, and the post-treatment coupling part and the front end coupling part surround a boundary between the post-treatment body and the intermediate body (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9).
Regarding Claim 5, Knowlton discloses:
the pre-treatment coupling part surrounds a portion of a pre-treatment flange formed at the front end of the pre-treatment body, being coupled to the pre-treatment flange, and surrounds a portion of a rear end flange formed at the rear end of the intermediate body in the coupled state (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9), and
the rear end coupling part surrounds a remaining portion of the rear end flange, being coupled to the rear end flange, and surrounds a remaining portion of the pre-treatment flange in the coupled state (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9).
Regarding Claim 6, Knowlton discloses:
the pre-treatment coupling part includes:
a pre-treatment coupling rear end member contacting a rear surface of the pre-treatment flange (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9),
a pre-treatment coupling intermediate member extending forward from the pre-treatment coupling rear end member and contacting a circumferential surface of the pre-treatment flange (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9), and
a pre-treatment coupling front end member extending radially inward from a front end of the pre-treatment coupling intermediate member to form a space into which the rear end flange is inserted together with the pre-treatment coupling intermediate member between a front surface of the pre-treatment flange (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9).
Regarding Claim 7, Knowlton discloses:
the pre-treatment module includes a pre-treatment body and a pre-treatment shutter (292) selectively dividing an internal space of the pre-treatment body along front and rear directions (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9) [0016 & 0076], and
wherein the post-treatment module includes a post-treatment body and a post-treatment shutter (292) selectively dividing an internal space of the post-treatment body along the front and rear directions (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9) [0016 & 0076].
Regarding Claim 11, Knowlton discloses:
a pre-treatment transfer member (48A & 56) arranged inside the pre-treatment module to transfer the cart [0035];
an intermediate transfer member (48B & 60) arranged inside the intermediate module to transfer the cart [0035]; and
a transfer part including a post-treatment transfer member (54) arranged inside the post-treatment module to transfer the cart [0035].
Regarding Claim 12, Knowlton discloses:
the pre-processing transfer member, the intermediate transfer member, and the post-processing transfer member are arranged to be spaced apart along the front and back directions (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9) [0035].
Regarding Claim 15, Knowlton discloses:
the intermediate module includes an intermediate body having an internal space through which the cart passes and being opened along the front and rear directions (Fig. 10A), and
the intermediate body includes a hard treatment body divided into two parts (Fig. 9) [0061] and a soft treatment body (292) made of an expandable or stretchable material and connecting the two divided parts of the hard treatment body [0061 & 0076].
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 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 of this title, 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) 8, 9, 10, 13, and 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Knowlton et al. (US 20050121057 A1) in view of Nitta et al. (JP H05146644 A).
Regarding Claim 8, Knowlton does not teach:
the pre-treatment shutter includes a pre-treatment shutter covering part, a pre-treatment shutter lower housing in which a pre-treatment opening opened and closed by the pre-treatment shutter covering part is formed, and a pre-treatment shutter upper housing in which the pre-treatment shutter covering part is located when the pre-treatment opening is opened,
wherein the pre-treatment shutter upper housing is detachedly coupled to an upper side of the pre-treatment shutter lower housing.
Nitta teaches:
an article treatment system (10 & 11 & 12 & 13 & 14 & 15 & 16 & 20 & 121 & 122 & 135 & 136 & 141 & 142 & 143 & 151 & 152 & 171 & 181 & 182 & 200 & 201 & 202 & 212 & 221 & 222), comprising:
a module (10 & 200) provided to receive and treat an article (100); and
a treatment shutter (12 & 221 & 222) includes a treatment shutter covering part [0017 & 0033 & 0034 & 0036 & 0038], a treatment shutter lower housing in which a treatment opening opened and closed by the treatment shutter covering part is formed, and a treatment shutter upper housing in which the treatment shutter covering part is located when the pre-treatment opening is opened [0017 & 0033 & 0034 & 0036 & 0038],
wherein the treatment shutter upper housing is detachedly coupled to an upper side of the treatment shutter lower housing [0006 & 0017 & 0018 & 0037 & 0039].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the article treatment system with modular treatment chambers for treating articles taught by Knowlton with the article treatment system comprising a module provided to receive and treat an article; and a treatment shutter includes a treatment shutter covering part, a treatment shutter lower housing in which a treatment opening opened and closed by the treatment shutter covering part is formed, and a treatment shutter upper housing in which the treatment shutter covering part is located when the pre-treatment opening is opened a treatment shutter includes a treatment shutter covering part, a treatment shutter lower housing in which a treatment opening opened and closed by the treatment shutter covering part is formed, and a treatment shutter upper housing in which the treatment shutter covering part is located when the pre-treatment opening is opened wherein the treatment shutter upper housing is detachedly coupled to an upper side of the treatment shutter lower housing taught by Nitta in order to provide a treatment system with chamber isolation means to prevent contamination from one chamber to another in order to prevent faults in the treatment process.
Regarding Claim 9, Knowlton does not teach:
a module movement device that is coupled to the intermediate module to move the intermediate module so that the intermediate module is put in either the coupled state or the detached state.
Nitta teaches:
an article treatment system (10 & 11 & 12 & 13 & 14 & 15 & 16 & 20 & 121 & 122 & 135 & 136 & 141 & 142 & 143 & 151 & 152 & 171 & 181 & 182 & 200 & 201 & 202 & 212 & 221 & 222), comprising:
a module (10 & 200) provided to receive and treat an article (100); and
a module movement device that is coupled to the module to move the intermediate module so that the intermediate module is put in either the coupled state or the detached state [0035 & 0036 & 0037].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the article treatment system with modular treatment chambers for treating articles taught by Knowlton with the article treatment system comprising a module provided to receive and treat an article; and a module movement device that is coupled to the module to move the intermediate module so that the intermediate module is put in either the coupled state or the detached state taught by Nitta in order to provide a treatment system with chamber access means to facilitate maintenance on the chambers in order to prevent failure in the system.
Regarding Claim 10, Knowlton does not teach:
the module movement device includes a moving rail to which the intermediate module is slidably coupled.
Nitta teaches:
an article treatment system (10 & 11 & 12 & 13 & 14 & 15 & 16 & 20 & 121 & 122 & 135 & 136 & 141 & 142 & 143 & 151 & 152 & 171 & 181 & 182 & 200 & 201 & 202 & 212 & 221 & 222), comprising:
a module (10 & 200) provided to receive and treat an article (100); and
a module movement device that is coupled to the intermediate module to move the intermediate module so that the intermediate module is put in either the coupled state or the detached state [0035 & 0036 & 0037];
the module movement device includes a moving rail (20 & 181 & 182) to which the intermediate module is slidably coupled [0035 & 0036 & 0037].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the article treatment system with modular treatment chambers for treating articles taught by Knowlton with the article treatment system comprising a module provided to receive and treat an article; and a module movement device that is coupled to the module to move the intermediate module so that the intermediate module is put in either the coupled state or the detached state, the module movement device includes a moving rail to which the intermediate module is slidably coupled taught by Nitta in order to provide a treatment system with chamber access means to facilitate maintenance on the chambers in order to prevent failure in the system.
Regarding Claim 13, Knowlton teaches:
the pre-treatment module includes a pre-treatment body having a system inlet which is opened along the front and rear directions at the rear end (Fig. 1C & Fig. 5B & Fig. 7A & Fig. 8A & Fig. 10A), and an inlet coupling part installed at a rear end of the pre-treatment body,
wherein the cart treatment system further comprises a pre-treatment door (292), and
wherein the inlet coupling part and the pre-treatment door coupling part couple the pre-treatment module and the pre-treatment door when the pre-treatment door covering part closes the system inlet (Fig. 1B & Fig. 5B & Fig. 9).
Knowlton does not teach:
a pre-treatment door covering part which is arranged adjacent to a rear end of the pre-treatment body to open and close the system inlet, and a pre-treatment door coupling part installed on the pre-treatment door covering part.
Nitta teaches:
an article treatment system (10 & 11 & 12 & 13 & 14 & 15 & 16 & 20 & 121 & 122 & 135 & 136 & 141 & 142 & 143 & 151 & 152 & 171 & 181 & 182 & 200 & 201 & 202 & 212 & 221 & 222), comprising:
a module (10 & 200) provided to receive and treat an article (100); and
the treatment module includes a treatment body having a system inlet (50) which is opened along the front and rear directions at the rear end (Fig. 1 & Fig. 2), and an inlet coupling part (11 & 14 & 121 & 122 & 141 & 142) installed at a rear end of the treatment body (Fig. 1 & Fig. 2),
wherein the cart treatment system further comprises a pre-treatment door (12 & 135 & 136 & 221 & 222) including a pre-treatment door covering part which is arranged adjacent to a rear end of the pre-treatment body to open and close the system inlet [0017 & 0033 & 0034 & 0036 & 0038], and a pre-treatment door coupling part installed on the pre-treatment door covering part (Fig. 1 & Fig. 2), and
wherein the inlet coupling part and the pre-treatment door coupling part couple the pre-treatment module and the pre-treatment door when the pre-treatment door covering part closes the system inlet (Fig. 1 & Fig. 2) [0017 & 0033 & 0034 & 0036 & 0038].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the article treatment system with modular treatment chambers for treating articles taught by Knowlton with the article treatment system comprising a module provided to receive and treat an article; a pre-treatment door covering part which is arranged adjacent to a rear end of the pre-treatment body to open and close the system inlet, and a pre-treatment door coupling part installed on the pre-treatment door covering part taught by Nitta in order to provide a treatment system with chamber isolation means to prevent contamination from one chamber to another in order to prevent faults in the treatment process.
Regarding Claim 14, Knowlton does not teach:
the pre-treatment door further includes a pre-treatment door support part to which the pre-treatment door covering part is coupled so as to be able to rotate axially in the front and back directions when opening and closing the system inlet.
Nitta teaches:
the pre-treatment door further includes a pre-treatment door support part to which the pre-treatment door covering part is coupled so as to be able to rotate axially in the front and back directions when opening and closing the system inlet [0017 & 0033 & 0034 & 0036 & 0038].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the article treatment system with modular treatment chambers for treating articles taught by Knowlton with the article treatment system comprising a module provided to receive and treat an article; a pre-treatment door covering part which is arranged adjacent to a rear end of the pre-treatment body to open and close the system inlet, and a pre-treatment door coupling part installed on the pre-treatment door covering part, the pre-treatment door further includes a pre-treatment door support part to which the pre-treatment door covering part is coupled so as to be able to rotate axially in the front and back directions when opening and closing the system inlet taught by Nitta in order to provide a treatment system with chamber isolation means to prevent contamination from one chamber to another in order to prevent faults in the treatment process.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Patent publications US 7146748 B2, US 7346956 B2, US 9561296 B1, US 10800357 B2, US 11845407 B1, and US 12502447 B2 have been cited by the examiner as pertinent to the applicant’s disclosure because they teach: cart sanitizing systems.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRENDAN P TIGHE whose telephone number is 571-272-4872. The Examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Thursday, 7:00-5:30 EST
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, SAUL RODRIGUEZ can be reached on 571-272-7097. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BRENDAN P TIGHE/Examiner, Art Unit 3652
/SAUL RODRIGUEZ/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3652