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
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) 26-32 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Cauchy (US 7,082,773). Cauchy discloses:
With regard to claim 26 - A storage compartment for a vehicle, the storage compartment comprising:
a base 124A;
a plurality of walls 122A, 123A extending from the base to define a storage space 125A; and
at least one cooling device 36 disposed inside the storage space, wherein at least one of the walls is configured to receive the at least one cooling device 36.
With regard to claim 27 - wherein the storage space is covered by a lid 30.
With regard to claim 28 - wherein the at least one of the walls has one or more first cut out portions 128A to receive a wiring harness 44A of the at least one cooling device.
With regard to claim 29 - wherein the at least one cooling device 36 comprises at least one front plate 36A and at least one rear plate 72 positioned opposite the front plate 36A, and
the at least one rear plate 72 is a hot plate and faces the at least one of the walls (see Fig. 3).
With regard to claim 30 - wherein the at least one of the walls has one or more second cut out portions 48A to dissipate the heat of the at least one rear plate 72 into environment, and
the at least one rear plate 72 is operatively connected to one or more heat exchangers 56A (see Fig. 3).
With regard to claim 31 - an article holding device 130 connected to at least one of the walls 122A such that at least one surface of an article stored in the article holding device is in contact with the front plate 36 of the at least one cooling device, wherein the front plate 36 of the at least one cooling device is a cold plate and faces the storage space (“Heat transfer connection means 130, such as protuberances, can be provided on the L-shaped heat exchanger 36 in order to thermally and physically connect an optional, removable phase change module 131 thereto through receptors provided therein.” – column 3, lines 43-47).
With regard to claim 32 - a primary storage compartment 125A; and
a secondary storage compartment 66A, wherein the secondary storage compartment has at least one cooling device 56A.
Claim(s) 35 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Lacher (DE 10 2016 001 468). Lacher discloses:
With regard to claim 35 - A straddle type vehicle comprising:
a seat 5 on which an occupant sits;
an article storage compartment 4 positioned beneath the seat 5, the article storage compartment 4 having a base and walls extending from the base in a vehicle upward direction to define a storage space 6; and
at least one cooling device 28 disposed inside the storage space, wherein at least one of the walls is configured to receive the at least one cooling device 28 (“The cooling device 17 can also have a heat sink 28 with cooling fins 29 exhibit. The cooling fins 29 protrude into the environment 7 , A wind 30 cools the cooling fins 29 as a further cooling air flow. The heat sink 28 represents a heat-conducting body, through which the interior 6 , in particular a bearing surface 31 for the terminal 3 , thermally over the cooling fins 29 with the environment 7 is coupled. The heat sink 28 may for example be formed from a metal, in particular aluminum or copper.” – see Translation).
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) 36-38 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lacher in view of Cauchy. Lacher fails to explicitly disclose the structural details of the cooling device. As seen above, Cauchy teaches wherein the at least one of the walls has one or more first cut out portions 128A to receive a wiring harness 44A of the at least one cooling device, the at least one cooling device 36 comprises at least one front plate 36A and at least one rear plate 72 positioned opposite the front plate 36A, and the at least one rear plate 72 is a hot plate and faces the at least one of the walls (see Fig. 3). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to modify the vehicle of Lacher with the teaching of Cauchy so as to include the cooling device structure of Cauchy to ensure proper heating and cooling control of the compartment.
With regard to claim 37, Cauchy teaches wherein the at least one of the walls has one or more second cut out portions 48A to dissipate the heat of the at least one rear plate 72 into environment, and
the at least one rear plate 72 is operatively connected to one or more heat exchangers 56A (see Fig. 3).
With regard to claim 38, Cauchy teaches an article holding device 130 connected to at least one of the walls 122A such that at least one surface of an article stored in the article holding device is in contact with the front plate 36 of the at least one cooling device, wherein the front plate 36 of the at least one cooling device is a cold plate and faces the storage space.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 33, 34, 39, and 40 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
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/TIMOTHY WILHELM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3617 August 8, 2026
