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 .
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: second protrusion 2.1.3.
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.
Claim Objections
Claim 7 objected to because of the following informalities: claim 7 refers to “the mounting block” after setting forth in claim 6 (from which 7 depends) that there is a first mounting block and a second mounting block.
Appropriate correction is required.
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 (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 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) 1-6, 15-17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by CN 104117165.
CN’165 discloses:
1. A fall protection apparatus (figure 1), characterized by comprising:
a first cover plate (5, figure 3) and a second cover plate (1, figure 3) opposite each other;
a rope clamping member (4, figure 3) located between the first cover plate (5) and the second cover plate (1, figure 3),
wherein the rope clamping member (4) is provided with a limit groove (see below), and the rope clamping member is provided with a locking position (fixed, [0008]) and an unlocking position (released, [0008]);
a shifting button (see below), wherein a first end of the shifting button is fixedly connected to the rope clamping member (figure 3), and a second end of the shifting button penetrates through the first cover plate (5) and is at least partially exposed from the first cover plate (figure 1); and
a brake assembly (3, figure 3), wherein the brake assembly comprises a pressing portion (end of brake shaft 3 that user presses; see below), a connecting portion (middle portion of shaft, see below), and a brake portion (head of brake shaft 3, see below) that are connected sequentially (see below), and the pressing portion is at least partially exposed from the second cover plate (figure 2); wherein
when the brake assembly is in an initial state (not pressed, figure 4), the brake portion limitedly fits with the limit groove to fix the rope clamping member (figure 4); and when the brake assembly is in a pressed state (when the end of 3 is pressed inwards), the brake portion is separated from the limit groove (the brake portion moves from position in figure 4 into the gap to the right in figure, see below) and the shifting button (as identified above) is suitable for driving the rope clamping member to switch between the locking position and the unlocking position ([0003]-[0006], [0008]).
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2. The fall protection apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the fall
protection apparatus further comprises a mounting block (see above), the pressing portion (see above), the connecting portion (see above), and the brake portion (see above) are mounted at the mounting block (see above), and the mounting block is mounted in correspondence to an end portion (top portion) of the first cover plate (5) and an end portion (top portion) of the second cover plate (1).
3. The fall protection apparatus according to claim 2, characterized in that a first
protrusion (rectangular protrusion that extends over 4 and abuts 5) and a second protrusion (bump out on lower edge of block best seen in figure 4) are respectively formed at edges on two opposite sides of the mounting block (figures 3-4), the first protrusion is connected to an edge of the first cover plate (figure 4), and the second protrusion is connected to an edge of the second cover plate (figure 4).
4. The fall protection apparatus according to claim 2, characterized in that
the connecting portion is sleeved with a first elastic member (2, figure 4, see below), and the first elastic member has a first end (top connection, circled below) abutting against the mounting block and a second end (bottom connection, circled below) abutting against the pressing portion (where the pressing portion extends from the outermost end of 3 until the spring 2, and the connection portion is the middle part of the shaft covered by the spring); and in the pressed state, the first elastic member is elastically deformed (operation of the spring when 3 is pressed inwards).
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5. The fall protection apparatus according to claim 2, characterized in that the rope clamping member (4) is connected to one end of a second elastic member (6, figure 3), and the other end of the second elastic member (6) abuts against the first cover plate (5); and
the mounting block is provided with a stop plate (end of channel in 4 that 6 is received in; figure 3) and an accommodating chamber of the second elastic member is formed between the stop plate and the first cover plate (figure 3).
6. The fall protection apparatus according claim 2, characterized in that the mounting block comprises a first mounting block disposed at the top of the first cover plate and the second cover plate (see above) and a second mounting block disposed
at the bottom of the first cover plate and the second cover plate (see above); and
the pressing portion, the connecting portion, and the brake portion are mounted at the first mounting block (see above) and/or the second mounting block.
15. The fall protection apparatus according to claim 3, characterized in that the mounting block comprises a first mounting block disposed at the top of the first cover plate and the second cover plate (see above) and a second mounting block disposed at the bottom of the first cover plate and the second cover plate (see above); and
the pressing portion, the connecting portion, and the brake portion are mounted at the first mounting block (see above) and/or the second mounting block.
16. The fall protection apparatus according to claim 4, characterized in that the mounting block comprises a first mounting block disposed at the top of the first cover plate and the second cover plate (see above) and a second mounting block disposed at the bottom of the first cover plate and the second cover plate (see above); and the pressing portion, the connecting portion, and the brake portion are mounted at the first mounting block and/or the second mounting block (see above).
17. The fall protection apparatus according to claim 5, characterized in that the mounting block comprises a first mounting block disposed at the top of the first cover plate and the second cover plate (see above) and a second mounting block disposed at the bottom of the first cover plate and the second cover plate (see above); and
the pressing portion, the connecting portion, and the brake portion are mounted at the first mounting block (see above) and/or the second mounting block.
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) 10-14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over CN ‘165 as applied to claims 1-5 above, and further in view of CN 103656914.
Re: claims 10-14, while CN ‘165 discloses the pressing portion (pressing end of 3, as identified above), the connecting portion (middle portion of 3, as identified above), and the brake portion (head of 3, as identified above) are all cylinder-shaped, and a diameter of the connecting portion (middle portion of 3) is smaller than a diameter of the brake portion (head of 3, figure 4), they do not disclose a diameter of the connecting portion to be smaller than a diameter of the pressing portion.
However, CN ‘914 teaches: a diameter of the connecting portion (6, figure 5) to be smaller than a diameter of the pressing portion (5, figure 5).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the pressing portion of CN ‘165 with a wider diameter connecting portion, as taught by CN ‘914, so as to provide a wider, and therefore more comfortable surface for a user to press their thumb or finger against, when activating brake assembly.
Re: claim 16, CN ‘165 discloses: the mounting block comprises a first mounting block disposed at the top of the first cover plate and the second cover plate (see images for CN ‘165 above with claim 1) and a second mounting block disposed at the bottom of the first cover plate and the second cover plate (see images for CN ‘165 above with claim 1); and the pressing portion, the connecting portion, and the brake portion are mounted at the first mounting block and/or the second mounting block (see images for CN ‘165 above with claim 1).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 7-9 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. NOTE: the Objection to claim 7 needs to be addressed as well.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to COLLEEN M CHAVCHAVADZE whose telephone number is (571)272-6289. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00AM-4:00PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Daniel Cahn can be reached at 571-270-5616. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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COLLEEN M. CHAVCHAVADZE
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3634
/COLLEEN M CHAVCHAVADZE/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3634
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