DETAILED ACTION
This action is in response to the application filed on 6/5/2024.
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 .
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d). The certified copy has been filed in parent Application No. GERMANY 10 2021 132 042.9, filed on 12/06/2021.
Claim Objections
Claims 2, 6 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 2, lines 3 – 4, recite “wherein a busbar section extends out of the insulation material housing”. It is unclear whether this limitation refers to the “first insulation material housing” or the “second insulation material housing”. For examination purposes, the Examiner will interpret as the “busbar extending out of the second insulation material housing”.
Claim 6, lines 2 – 3, recite “or an actuating lever or a push actuator, via which the first clamping leg is…”. It should be amended to “or an actuating lever or a push actuator, in which the first clamping leg is…”. It appears to be a typographical error.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 4, 5, 10, 15, 16 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 4 recites “wherein the second clamping section is arranged essentially and/or predominantly in parallel to the first clamping section”. The phrase “essentially and/or predominantly in parallel” renders the scope of the claim unclear because it is ambiguous whether the claim requires the second clamping section to be essentially in parallel to the first clamping section, predominantly in parallel to the first clamping section, or both. Furthermore, the terms “essentially” and predominantly” are relative terms for which the claim provides no objective boundaries. For examination purposes, the Examiner will interpret the claim as requiring the second clamping section being parallel to the first clamping section.
Claim 5, line 2, recites “in the region of the first side wall and/or wherein the second form…”. The phrase “and/or” renders the scope of the claim unclear because it is ambiguous whether the claim requires the first form coupling element to be arranged in the region of the first side wall, the second form fit coupling element to be arranged in the region of the second sidewall, or both limitations. For examination purposes, the Examiner will interpret “and/or” under the broadest reasonable interpretation as “or”.
Claim 10, lines 2 – 3 recite “coupleable to one another, and/or the second insulation material housing is made…”. The phrase “and/or” renders the scope of the claim unclear because it is ambiguous whether the claim requires the first insulation material housing to be made up of at least two separate housing parts that are coupleable to one another, the second insulation material housing to be made up of at least two separate housing parts that are coupleable to one another, or both limitations. For examination purposes, the Examiner will interpret “and/or” under the broadest reasonable interpretation as “or”.
Claim 15, line 3, recites “supporting the busbar and/or for supporting the first insulation material housing…”. The phrase “and/or” renders the scope of the claim unclear because it is ambiguous whether the support contour must support the busbar, the first insulation material housing, or both. For examination purposes, the Examiner will interpret “and/or” under the broadest reasonable interpretation as “or”.
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) 1 – 3, 5 – 7, 10 – 13, 15 – 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Chen (CN 111355049, cited in the IDS on 9/17/2024).
Regarding claim 1, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) a lead terminal (100, 200) having a modular design, the lead terminal comprising:
at least one connection module (100); and
a plug-in module (200) that is separate from the connection module (100),
wherein the connection module (100) has at least one first spring-loaded clamping connection (21) with a first clamping spring (211) to connect a first electrical conductor via an elastic force (i.e. disclosed spring is capable of connecting a first electrical conductor via an elastic force), and a first insulation material housing (11) that at least partially encloses the first clamping spring (211),
wherein the plug-in module (200) has at least one second spring-loaded clamping connection (i.e. see figure 3) with a second clamping spring (203) to connect a second electrical conductor via elastic force (i.e. disclosed spring is capable of connecting a first electrical conductor via an elastic force), and a second insulation material housing (201) that at least partially encloses the second clamping spring (203),
wherein the first insulation material housing (11) has at least one first form-fit coupling element (120),
wherein the second insulation material housing (201) has at least one second form-fit coupling element (2041) that is designed as a mating piece for the first form-fit coupling element (120) so that the second insulation material housing (201) is fastenable to the first insulation material housing (11) via a form-fit coupling between the first form-fit coupling element (120) and the second form-fit coupling element (2041),
the first clamping spring (21) has a first clamping leg (see leg of 21 contacting 11) for clamping the first electrical conductor to a first clamping point situated in the first insulation material housing (disclosed leg is capable of clamping a first electrical conductor to a clamping point in the housing), and a first contact leg (211) via which the first clamping spring (21) is supported against the clamping force of the first clamping leg (see leg of 21 contacting 11),
wherein the first insulation material housing (11) has a first side wall (see wall where 11 points to in figure 5) arranged on a side of the first clamping leg (see leg of 21) facing away from the first contact leg (211), and a first opening (120 in figure 5) being arranged in the first side wall (see figure 5), wherein the second insulation material housing (201), at a second side wall (see wall where 201 points to in figure 12) facing the first side wall (see figure 2), has a second opening (opening in 2041) that is aligned with the first opening (see figure 3),
wherein the lead terminal (100, 200) has a shared busbar (205), which in the connected state of the connection module (100) to the plug-in module (200) extends from the first spring-loaded clamping connection (21) through the first and the second openings (120 and opening in 2041) to the second spring-loaded clamping connection (i.e. 205 contacts spring 207 as seen in figure 3), and wherein the busbar (205) has a first clamping section (see figure 3), which together with the first clamping leg (207), forms the first clamping point (see figure 3).
Regarding claim 2, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) the lead terminal according to claim 1, wherein the busbar (205) in the unassembled state of the connection module (100) with the plug-in module (200) is fastened to the connection module or to the plug-in module (200), and wherein a busbar section (see 205 in figure 1) extends out of the insulation material housing (201).
Regarding claim 3, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) the lead terminal according to claim 1, wherein the busbar (205) has a curved section (i.e. see 2051) adjoining the first clamping section (see section near 207 in figure 3), in which the busbar merges in a curved manner (i.e. busbar curves as seen in 2051 from one connector housing to the other), directly or via at least one further section of the busbar (205), into a second clamping section (i.e. section that clamps with 22), which with a second clamping leg (leg of 203) of the second clamping spring (203), forms a second clamping point (i.e. point in which 22 contacts 205) for clamping the second electrical conductor (i.e. disclosed clamping point is capable of clamping a second electrical conductor).
Regarding claim 5, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) the lead terminal according to claim 1, wherein the first form-fit coupling element (120 in figure 5) is arranged in the region of the first side wall (see figure 5) and/or wherein the second form-fit coupling element (2041) is arranged in the region of the second side wall (see figure 12).
Regarding claim 6, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) the lead terminal according to claim 1, wherein the connection module (100), as a further component, has an actuating element (212) or an actuating lever or a push actuator, via which the first clamping leg (see leg of 21 contacting 11) is deflectable by manual actuation in order to open the first clamping point (see figure 3).
Regarding claim 7, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) the lead terminal according to claim 1, wherein the first side wall (wall on top of 120; see figure 5) rests against the second side wall (see figure 12), at least in a first subarea (i.e. see figure 2 showing both sidewalls resting against each other).
Regarding claim 10, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) the lead terminal according to claim 1, wherein the first insulation material housing (11) is made up of at least two separate housing parts (see figure 5) that are coupleable to one another (see coupled state in figure 8), and/or the second insulation material housing is made up of at least two separate housing parts that are coupleable to one another.
Regarding claim 11, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) the lead terminal according to claim 1, wherein the first insulation material housing (11) has a first conductor insertion opening (114) for introducing the first electrical conductor (i.e. disclosed opening is capable of introducing/receiving the first electrical conductor), and the second insulation material housing (201) has a second conductor insertion opening (opening where 205 goes through in figure 12) for introducing the second electrical conductor (i.e. disclosed opening is capable of introducing/receiving the first electrical conductor), the first conductor insertion opening (114) being arranged on the side of the lead terminal facing away from the second conductor insertion opening (opening where 205 goes through in figure 12; see second opening on top of 201 in figure 3).
Regarding claim 12, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) the lead terminal according to claim 1, wherein the first insulation material housing (11) has a first main housing part (i.e. part in figure 3 where 21 sits on) with an assembly opening (i.e. see opening where 21 is inserted on figure 5) for inserting the first spring-loaded clamping connection (21) into the first main housing part (i.e. part in figure 3 where 21 sits on), and a first cover part (116) for at least partially closing the assembly opening (i.e. see opening where 21 is inserted on figure 5), the first cover part (116) being insertable into the first main housing part (11) from the side opposite the first side wall (see wall where 11 points to in figure 5).
Regarding claim 13, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) the lead terminal according to claim 1, wherein the second insulation material housing (201) has a second main housing part (i.e. part in figure 3 where 207 sits on) with an assembly opening (i.e. see figure 9) for inserting the second spring-loaded clamping connection (203, 207) into the second main housing part (i.e. part in figure 3 where 207 sits on), and a second cover part (206) for at least partially closing the assembly opening (i.e. see figure 9), the second cover part (206) being insertable into the second main housing part (part in figure 3 where 207 sits on) from a side facing away from the second conductor insertion opening (i.e. opening where 205 goes through in figure 12).
Regarding claim 15, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) the lead terminal according to claim 1, further comprising a support contour (see contour on left side of 2051 in figure 3, where 2012 comes into contact with) that protrudes from the second side wall (see wall where 201 points to in figure 12) in the direction of the first insulation material housing (11) and that is configured for supporting the busbar (disclosed contour is capable of supporting 205) and/or for supporting the first insulation material housing on the second insulation material housing is arranged at the second side wall.
Regarding claim 16, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) the lead terminal according to claim 15, wherein the support contour (see contour on left side of 2051 in figure 3, where 2012 comes into contact with) extends through the first opening or at least into the first opening (120 in figure 5).
Regarding claim 17, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) a modular system for forming different lead terminals that are configurable as needed, the system comprising a plurality of connection modules having the same or different designs, and a plurality of plug-in modules having the same or different designs, a lead terminal of the lead terminals being the lead terminal according to claim 1, wherein a single-pole or multi-pole lead terminal (i.e. as seen in figure 3) is formed by joining one or more connection modules with one or more plug-in modules of the system, at a user's option.
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) 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen (CN 111355049, cited in the IDS on 9/17/2024).
Regarding claim 4, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) the lead terminal according to claim 3, wherein the second clamping section (section of 205 that clamps with 22) is arranged essentially and/or predominantly in parallel to the first clamping section (see section near 207 in figure 3).
It would have been obvious to modify the perpendicular arrangement of Chen so that the first and second clamping sections are arranged in parallel to one another because parallel and perpendicular orientations represent known alternative geometric arrangements for positioning clamping members. Such modification would have merely involved the use of a known alternative configuration to achieve the same clamping function.
Claim(s) 9, 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen (CN 111355049, cited in the IDS on 9/17/2024) in view of Wilkner (US 9022813).
Regarding claim 9, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) the lead terminal according to claim 1.
But Chen does not explicitly disclose wherein the first side wall does not rest against the second side wall, at least in a second subarea, and wherein, in the second subarea, a first open space or a wedge-shaped first open space is formed between the first and second side walls.
Wilkner teaches (figure 3) a connector wherein the first side wall (10) does not rest against the second side wall (20), at least in a second subarea (see area near 30 where there is a gap), and wherein, in the second subarea, a first open space (see open space between 14 and 30) or a wedge-shaped first open space is formed between the first and second side walls (10 and 20).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Chen with the connector as disclosed by Wilkner to provide wherein the first side wall does not rest against the second side wall, at least in a second subarea, and wherein, in the second subarea, a first open space or a wedge-shaped first open space is formed between the first and second side walls, to allow relative movement between the side walls and reducing mechanical stress in the components when applying force to the module.
Regarding claim 14, Chen teaches (figures 1 – 12) the lead terminal according to claim 13.
But Chen does not explicitly disclose wherein the second side wall is formed by a wall section of the second main housing part facing the first side wall, and a wall section of the second cover part, the second opening being formed between the wall sections.
Wilkner teaches (figure 3) a connector wherein the second side wall (20) is formed by a wall section of the second main housing part (200) facing the first side wall (10), and a wall section (30) of the second cover part (23), the second opening (opening that 220 inserts into) being formed between the wall sections (opening that 220 inserts into is formed between the two module housings 100, 200 when together as seen in figure 3)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Chen with the connector as disclosed by Wilkner to provide wherein the second side wall is formed by a wall section of the second main housing part facing the first side wall, and a wall section of the second cover part, the second opening being formed between the wall sections, to allow relative movement between the side walls and reducing mechanical stress in the components when applying force to the module.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 8 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 8, the prior art of record fails to teach wherein the second insulation material housing is fastenable to the first insulation material housing by a displacement movement in which the second insulation material housing is displaced at an acute angle relative to the first insulation material housing, and a subsequent swivel movement in which the second side wall is oriented substantially in parallel to the first side wall via the form-fit coupling between the first form-fit coupling element and the second form-fit coupling element in combination with the remaining limitations of the claim.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Carlos E. Lopez-Pagan whose telephone number is (703)756-5734. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 7:30a - 5:00p.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Tulsidas Patel can be reached at (571) 272-2098. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CARLOS E LOPEZ-PAGAN/Examiner, Art Unit 2834
/THO D TA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2834
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