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
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- is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by JP 06-071987 to Kazuhiro (Kazuhiro – cited in applicant filed IDS 06/13/2024 2 pages – English translation provided).
With regard to claim 1, Kazuhiro discloses a pipe attachment structure (Kazuhiro, elements 1 and 2 shown in the figure) mounted on a moving object (Kazuhiro, background section paragraph 0002 disclosing the field on intended use to be an automotive hose bracket such as for a brake hose) and including a pipe (3, figure) through which a fluid flows is attached via a bracket (1 and 2, figure) to a predetermined component (paragraph 0013 – disclosing the mounting member 1 fixed to the hose and then fixed to the intermediate holding member 2 which is fixed to the vehicle), wherein the bracket includes a flange portion (21, figure, paragraph 0010) that is formed into a flange shape by bending an end portion of a part of the bracket such that the end portion is separated from an outer peripheral surface of the pipe (shown in the figure, the part 21 includes a cylindrical portion that is aligned with the outer circumference of the pipe and a bent end portion that extends perpendicular to the pipe, the flow direction and the cylindrical portion), the part of the bracket being attached to the outer peripheral surface of the pipe (shown in the figure the cylindrical portion of part 21 in attached to the outer peripheral surface of the pipe), the end portion being an end portion in a flow direction of the fluid (the end portion of the bracket 21 is offset in a flow direction from the beginning of the cylindrical portion of the bracket).
With regard to claim 2, Kazuhiro discloses the pipe attachment structure according to claim 1 as set forth above, and further discloses to wherein the end portion is an end portion on a downstream side in the flow direction of the fluid (the designation of a downstream side can be set in either direction since the attachment structure is an intermediate part of a closed fluid system. The end portion of the bracket is located on a downstream side in the flow direction of the fluid).
With regard to claim 3, Kazuhiro discloses the pipe attachment structure according claim 1 as set forth above, and further discloses wherein the end portion is bent at a right angle with respect to the outer peripheral surface of the pipe (as shown in the figure).
With regard to claim 4, Kazuhiro discloses the pipe attachment structure according to claim 1 as set forth above, and further discloses wherein a portion at which the end portion is bent is curved (as shown in the figure, the end portion of bracket 21 that is around hole 22 is curved).
With regard to claim 5, Kazuhiro discloses the pipe attachment structure according to claim 1 as set forth above, but does not further discloses the pipe attachment structure according to wherein the bracket is attached to the outer peripheral surface of the pipe by brazing (this limitation is considered to be a product by process limitation that does not further limit the claimed structure absent some evidence of a distinctive characteristic imparted to the claimed apparatus that would exist over other types of attachments—if this claim is interpreted to require the byproducts of the brazing process, an alternative obviousness rejection is set forth below in the next section).
With regard to claim 7, Kazuhiro discloses a bracket (Kazuhiro, elements 1 and 2 shown in the figure) mounted on a moving object and used for attaching a pipe through which a fluid flows to a predetermined component, the bracket comprising:
a flange portion (21, figure, paragraph 0010) that is formed into a flange shape by bending an end portion of a part of the bracket such that the end portion is separated from an outer peripheral surface of the pipe (shown in the figure), the part of the bracket being attached to the outer peripheral surface of the pipe (shown in the figure), the end portion being an end portion in a flow direction of the fluid (shown in the figure).
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 5-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over JP 06-071987 to Kazuhiro (Kazuhiro – cited in applicant filed IDS 06/13/2024 2 pages – English translation provided).
With regard to claim 5, Kazuhiro discloses the pipe attachment structure according to claim 1 as set forth above, but arguably does not further discloses the pipe attachment structure according to wherein the bracket is attached to the outer peripheral surface of the pipe by brazing.
Kazuhiro does not disclose the manner in which the bracket is attached to the automotive hose but brazing, welding, press fitting and in situ formation are all known methods of attaching a flanged part to an automotive hose and it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to test the various methods of attachment of the structure including brazing in order to conduct quality control testing of the final product to determine suitability for use in an automotive setting.
With regard to claim 6, Kazuhiro discloses the pipe attachment structure according to claim 1 as set forth above, but does not further disclose wherein the fluid is cooling water for cooling an internal combustion engine of the moving object.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to use the automotive hose attachment apparatus of Kazuhiro on the other component systems within a vehicle once it was determined to be an effective mechanism for attaching brake lines where access is limited by space constraints and to use the same convenient attachment mechanism to locate and secure the hoses for functionality.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. USPNs 2020/0325885 and 2005/0247294 discloses bracket extensions useful for attaching conduits within an engine.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DAVID R DEAL whose telephone number is (469)295-9216. The examiner can normally be reached M-F generally 8-4 pm CST.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisors can be reached at: Craig M Schneider (571) 272-3607 and Ken Rinehart (571) 272-4881. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/DAVID R DEAL/ Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3753
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