CTNF 18/716,752 CTNF 93445 DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA. Election/Restrictions 08-06 Claims 3-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to nonelected Groups II-III and Species A2-A6, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 05/19/2026. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 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. 07-20-aia AIA 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. 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 1 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Abe (US 20160297244) and Lung et al . (US 20200376789) (of record), as evidenced by Nakajima (JP 2007322259, see machine translation) . Regarding claim 1, Abe discloses a method of making a non-pneumatic tire, the method comprising: providing a tire structure including: a lower ring (Figs. 1-5, 7-8, 10-11: 12) having a first diameter and a first width, an upper ring (Figs. 1-5, 7-8, 10-11: 13) having a second diameter greater than the first diameter and a second width, the upper ring being substantially coaxial with the lower ring (Figs. 1-5, 7-8, 10-11), and a support structure (Figs. 1-5, 7-8, 10-11: 15, 21) extending between the lower ring (Figs. 1-5, 7-8, 10-11: 12) and the upper ring (Figs. 1-5, 7-8, 10-11: 13), the support structure (Figs. 1-5, 7-8, 10-11: 15, 21) having a third width that is less than the second width (Figs. 5, 7-8, 10-11), such that a first side of the upper ring (Figs. 1-5, 7-8, 10-11: 13) extends outward from a first side of the support structure (Figs. 1-5, 7-8, 10-11: 15, 21), thereby defining a first ledge, and such that a second side of the upper ring (Figs. 1-5, 7-8, 10-11: 13) extends outward from a second side of the support structure (Figs. 1-5, 7-8, 10-11: 15, 21), thereby defining a second ledge; and providing an elastomeric tread (Figs. 1-2, 4, 7: 16) circumferentially about a top of the upper ring (Figs. 1-5, 7-8, 10-11: 13). Abe further discloses the tread is vulcanized rubber ([0056]). However, Abed does not expressly recite securing a curing envelope about the elastomeric tread, including the steps of securing a first side of the curing envelope to a bottom of the first ledge of the upper ring and securing a second side of the curing envelope to a bottom of the second ledge of the upper ring, and applying heat within the curing envelope. Lung discloses a method of making a non-pneumatic tire, the method comprising: providing a tire structure including: a lower ring (Figs. 1, 2B, 3, 10: 30) having a first diameter and a first width, an upper ring (Figs. 1, 2A, 3, 10: 20) having a second diameter greater than the first diameter and a second width, the upper ring (Figs. 1, 2A, 3, 10: 20) being substantially coaxial with the lower ring (Figs. 1, 2B, 3, 10: 30), and a support structure (Figs. 1, 2C, 3, 10: 40) extending between the lower ring (Figs. 1, 2B, 3, 10: 30) and the upper ring (Figs. 1, 2A, 3, 10: 20); providing an elastomeric tread circumferentially about a top of the upper ring ([0048]); securing a curing envelope (Fig. 10: 200) about the elastomeric tread ([0072]); and applying heat within the curing envelope ([0072]). In this manner, the non-pneumatic tire is provided with a tread and all contents within the envelope are exposed to a curing operation such that all components are fixedly connected to each other ([0072]). One of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have found it obvious to subject the non-pneumatic tire disclosed by Abe to a generally known curing method of providing the tire within a curing envelope for the advantages discussed above, as taught by Lung. Lung further discloses the curing bladder may be any desired curing bladder, including single or multi-piece bladders, and that the curing bladder encapsulates the assembly within to seal it from the surrounding atmosphere and creates a vacuum within to evacuate substantially all gas or air within the bladder ([0072]). As the envelope will be evacuated of substantially all gas or air within, it will be fixed in place on the tire and not loose, and thereby “secure.” In other words, the curing envelop will conform to the shape of the tire to secure around the profile of the tire, including the steps of securing a first side of the curing envelope to a bottom of the first ledge of the upper ring and securing a second side of the curing envelope to a bottom of the second ledge of the upper ring. This is further evidenced by Nakajima which discloses how in a tire vulcanization envelope creating a vacuum within the envelop causes it to conform to the shape and profile of the tire (Figs. 1, 3) (Page 4 lines 15-30). Accordingly, one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date would have recognized, or at least found obvious, that surrounding the non-pneumatic tire having ledges disclosed by Abe with a curing envelope and creating a vacuum within said envelope will cause the envelope to press against and conform to the outer profile shape of the tire in a secure fashion, and thereby will also secure a first side of the curing envelope to a bottom of the first ledge of the upper ring and secure a second side of the curing envelope to a bottom of the second ledge of the upper ring . Allowable Subject Matter 12-151-08 AIA 07-43 12-51-08 Claim 2 is 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. 13-03-01 AIA The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: no prior art of record is considered to teach or suggest the combination of limitations of claims 1-2. In particular, the limitation “the securing of the curing envelope about the elastomeric tread includes securing each end of the curing envelope to the first ledge and the second ledge with an arc adjustable band.” The closest prior art of record is considered to be Abe (US 20160297244), Lung et al . (US 20200376789) (of record), Nakajima (JP 2007322259, see machine translation), Detwiler (GB 2210001), and Detwiler (US 5053094). Abe in view of Lung, as evidenced by Nakajima, discloses the limitations of claim 1 as discussed above. However, the prior art of record discloses securing the curing envelope to the tire surfaces, and thereby the first ledge and the second ledge, due to creating a vacuum in the envelope. The prior art of record does not teach or suggest additional components, such as adjustable arc bands, to secure two opposing ends of a curing envelope to respective bottom (i.e., radially inner) surfaces of a first ledge of the upper ring and a second ledge of the upper ring. Moreover, the prior art of record generally discloses using adjustable arc bands with curing envelopes on a radially outer surface of the envelope (See GB Detwiler Figs. 5, 7; See US Detwiler Figs. 1-2). No prior art of record is considered to teach or suggest using an adjustable arc band to secure a curing envelope to radially outer upper ring first and second axial ledges from their respective bottom sides. Contact Information Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SEDEF PAQUETTE whose telephone number is (571) 272-5031. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday - Friday 8:00 AM EST - 4:00 PM EST. 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 supervisor, KATELYN SMITH can be reached on (571) 270-5545. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is (571) 273-8300. The fax phone number for the examiner is (571) 273-5031. Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /SEDEF E PAQUETTE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1749 Application/Control Number: 18/716,752 Page 2 Art Unit: 1749 Application/Control Number: 18/716,752 Page 4 Art Unit: 1749 Application/Control Number: 18/716,752 Page 5 Art Unit: 1749 Application/Control Number: 18/716,752 Page 6 Art Unit: 1749
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