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 Objections
Claims 6 and 20 are objected to because of the following informalities: claim 6, line 8, change “a protruding portion” to –the protruding portion--; claim 20, line 8, change “a protruding portion” to –the protruding portion--. 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) 1-3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Hashiguchi (US 9680252 B2).
Regarding claim 1, Hashiguchi discloses a socket 50, comprising:
a connecting groove 510 comprising:
an outer groove portion (above 526, between 542 and 520), and
an inner groove portion 526 in communication with the outer groove portion, and a limiting surface 542 being formed between the inner groove portion and the outer groove portion;
a socket terminal 600 arranged in the inner groove portion; and
a first magnetic component 700 arranged in the inner groove portion,
wherein the socket is configured in such a way that when a plug 20 having a protruding portion 240 and a second magnetic component 400 is placed into the connecting groove, the plug 20 is movable relative to the socket 50 under the interaction between the first magnetic component 700 and the second magnetic component 400, such that the protruding portion 240 is clamped onto the limiting surface 542 of the socket 50, and the socket terminal 600 comes into electrical contact with a plug terminal 300 of the plug 20, so as to transmit at least one of data and electric energy.
Regarding claim 2, Hashiguchi discloses the outer groove portion has an outer groove opening, the inner groove portion has an inner groove opening in communication with the outer groove portion, and the outer groove opening and the inner groove opening are arranged in one of the following two ways: projections of the outer groove opening and the inner groove opening on a horizontal plane have a rotational angle difference; and projections of the outer groove opening and the inner groove opening on a horizontal plane have a displacement difference (see fig. 4).
Regarding claim 3, Hashiguchi discloses both the outer groove opening and the inner groove opening are strip-shaped, and the projections of the inner groove opening and the outer groove opening on the horizontal plane have a distance difference in any of a length direction and a width direction of the outer groove opening (see fig. 4).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 10-13, 16-22 are allowed.
Claims 4-9 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
In regard to claim 4, the prior art fails to provide, teach or suggest
the inner groove portion has a main groove portion and an extension clamping groove; the main groove portion is in communication with the outer groove portion, the extension clamping groove is in communication with an end of the main groove portion in the length direction, and the limiting surface is formed between the extension clamping groove and the outer groove portion;
In regard to claim 5, the prior art fails to provide, teach or suggest
the projections of the outer groove opening and the inner groove opening on the horizontal plane have a rotational angle difference, and a rotation center is arranged in one of the following two ways: the rotation center is a center point of the projections of the outer groove opening and the inner groove opening on the horizontal plane; and the rotation center is an intersection point of outer contour lines of the projections of the outer groove opening and the inner groove opening on the horizontal plane.
In regard to claim 8, the prior art fails to provide, teach or suggest
the first magnetic component is disposed circumferentially along a rim of the inner groove portion, a recess is defined along a rim of a bottom wall of the inner groove portion, and the first magnetic component is embedded in the recess.
In regard to claim 9, the prior art fails to provide, teach or suggest
the first magnetic component is arranged in the main groove portion and the extension clamping groove, and the first magnetic component is located closer to an outer edge of the socket than the socket terminal.
In regard to claims 10 and 13, the prior art fails to provide, teach or suggest
a plug body having a plug terminal and a second magnetic component surrounding the plug terminal, the second magnetic component being formed with a protruding portion.
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See PTO-892 form.
Conclusion
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Tdt
9/15/2026
/THO D TA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2834
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