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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 10/29/2024 is being considered.
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.
Claims 21-39 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hollman (US 4,318,202) in view of Conrad (US 2013/0269146)
Regarding claim 21, Holman discloses a surface cleaning apparatus comprising:
(a) a surface cleaning head (Item 12) having a surface cleaning head front end, a surface cleaning head rear end (Figure 3, right to left respectively), a surface cleaning head axis extending centrally between the front and rear ends and a dirty air inlet (item 58);
(b) an upper portion moveably mounted to the surface cleaning head between a storage position and a floor cleaning position, the upper portion comprising a drive handle (Item 94); and,
(c) a portable cleaning unit removably mounted to the surface cleaning head (Item 11), the portable cleaning unit comprising:
(ii) a suction motor having a suction motor axis (Column 3 Lines 53-60); and,
(iii) a portable cleaning unit air outlet downstream from the suction motor,
wherein the surface cleaning apparatus is operable in a floor cleaning mode in which the portable cleaning unit is provided as part of the surface cleaning head, and wherein the portable cleaning unit is useable in an above floor cleaning mode in which the portable cleaning unit is removed from the surface cleaning head (Column 4 Lines 8-13).
Holman fails to explicitly disclose (i) an air treatment member assembly comprising an air treatment chamber that is removably mounted to the portable cleaning unit, the air treatment chamber having an air treatment chamber air inlet and an air treatment chamber air outlet, the air treatment member assembly having first and second opposed openable doors
Conrad teaches a vacuum wherein an air treatment member assembly (Item 16) comprising an air treatment chamber (Item 18) that is removably mounted to the portable cleaning unit, the air treatment chamber having an air treatment chamber air inlet (Item 12) and an air treatment chamber air outlet (Item 38), the air treatment member assembly having first and second opposed openable doors (Item 31 and 34). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to simply substitute the portable cleaner of Holman with the cleaner taught by Conrad. Holman relies upon one skilled in the art to know how to appropriately set up a vacuum. Conrad further teaches vacuum with an air treatment member that is easy to empty (Paragraph 6).
Regarding claim 22 and 32, Holman in view of Conrad disclose the apparatus of claim 21 wherein the portable cleaning unit further comprises a suction motor housing and the air treatment member assembly is removably mounted to the suction motor housing (Conrad Figure 14).
Regarding claim 23 and 33, Holman in view of Conrad disclose the apparatus of claim 21 wherein the portable cleaning unit further comprises a pre-motor filter and the pre-motor filter is accessible when the treatment member assembly is removed (Conrad Item 40).
Regarding claim 24 and 34, Holman in view of Conrad disclose the apparatus of claim 21 wherein, when the portable cleaning unit is provided as part of the surface cleaning head, the first and second opposed openable doors are laterally spaced apart in a direction that is transverse to the surface cleaning head axis (Conrad, the doors are vertical from each other).
Regarding claim 25 and 35, Holman in view of Conrad disclose the apparatus of claim 24 wherein, when the portable cleaning unit is provided as part of the surface cleaning head and the surface cleaning apparatus is in operation, air exits the air treatment chamber air outlet in a flow direction that extends in the direction that is transverse to the surface cleaning head axis (vertical).
Regarding claim 26 and 36, Holman in view of Conrad disclose the apparatus of claim 21 wherein the first openable door is provided at one end of the air treatment chamber and second openable door is provided at an opposed end of the air treatment chamber (Conrad; top and bottom, Figures 8 and 10).
Regarding claim 27 and 37, Holman in view of Conrad disclose the apparatus of claim 21 wherein the air treatment chamber air inlet and the air treatment chamber air outlet are provided at a common end of the air treatment chamber (Conrad; Figure 7 top end).
Regarding claim 28,29, 38, and 39, Holman in view of Conrad disclose the apparatus of claim 27 wherein the air treatment chamber is a cyclone chamber (Conrad Abstract).
Regarding claim 30, Holman in view of Conrad disclose the apparatus of claim 21 wherein an accessory cleaning tool is removably mountable to the portable cleaning unit when the portable cleaning unit is removed from the surface cleaning head (Conrad Paragraph 123).
Regarding claim 31, Holman discloses a surface cleaning apparatus comprising:
(a) a surface cleaning head (Item 12) having a surface cleaning head dirty air inlet (Item 58);
(b) an upper portion moveably mounted to the surface cleaning head between a storage position and a floor cleaning position, the upper portion comprising a drive handle (Item 94); and,
(c) a portable cleaning unit removably mounted to the surface cleaning head (Item 11), the portable cleaning unit comprising an air treatment member assembly and a suction motor (Column 3 Lines 53-60), ,
wherein the surface cleaning apparatus is operable in a floor cleaning mode in which the portable cleaning unit is provided as part of the surface cleaning head, and wherein the portable cleaning unit is useable in an above floor cleaning mode in which the portable cleaning unit is removed from the surface cleaning head (Column 4 Lines 8-13), and
Holman fails to explicitly disclose the air treatment member assembly comprising an air treatment chamber having an air treatment chamber air inlet and an air treatment chamber air outlet, the air treatment member assembly having first and second opposed openable doors AND wherein an accessory cleaning tool is removably mountable to the portable cleaning unit when the portable cleaning unit is removed from the surface cleaning head.
Conrad teaches a vacuum wherein the air treatment member assembly comprising an air treatment chamber having an air treatment chamber air inlet (Item 12) and an air treatment chamber air outlet (Item 38), the air treatment member assembly having first and second opposed openable doors (item 31 and 34) AND wherein an accessory cleaning tool (Item 74)is removably mountable to the portable cleaning unit when the portable cleaning unit is removed from the surface cleaning head. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to simply substitute the portable cleaner of Holman with the cleaner taught by Conrad. Holman relies upon one skilled in the art to know how to appropriately set up a vacuum. Conrad further teaches vacuum with an air treatment member that is easy to empty (Paragraph 6).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TOM R RODGERS whose telephone number is (313)446-4849. The examiner can normally be reached Monday thru Friday 8AM-5PM EST.
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/TOM RODGERS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3723
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