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 .
Election/Restrictions
Restriction to one of the following inventions is required under 35 U.S.C. 121:
Group I. Claims 1-14, drawn to a tee fitting, classified in F16L41/00.
Group II. Claims 15-17, drawn to a method of using a tee fitting, classified in A01G27/008.
The inventions are independent or distinct, each from the other because:
Group I and II are related as product and process of use. The inventions can be shown to be distinct if either or both of the following can be shown: (1) the process for using the product as claimed can be practiced with another materially different product or (2) the product as claimed can be used in a materially different process of using that product. See MPEP § 806.05(h). In the instant case, the product as claimed can be used in a materially different process such as any fluid handling method e.g. routing multiple chemical solutions through a just in time mixing process; providing water to a fountain or dishwasher.
Restriction for examination purposes as indicated is proper because all the inventions listed in this action are independent or distinct for the reasons given above and there would be a serious search and/or examination burden if restriction were not required because one or more of the following reasons apply:
The groups are separately classified and require a different field of search (e.g. searching different classes/subclasses or electronic resources, or employing different search strategies or search queries).
For example, in searching for group II one would necessarily need to search for the particulars steps of using the tee fitting such as surrounding a plant with the tubing not required in the search for group I.
Applicant is advised that the reply to this requirement to be complete must include (i) an election of an invention to be examined even though the requirement may be traversed (37 CFR 1.143) and (ii) identification of the claims encompassing the elected invention.
The election of an invention may be made with or without traverse. To reserve a right to petition, the election must be made with traverse. If the reply does not distinctly and specifically point out supposed errors in the restriction requirement, the election shall be treated as an election without traverse. Traversal must be presented at the time of election in order to be considered timely. Failure to timely traverse the requirement will result in the loss of right to petition under 37 CFR 1.144. If claims are added after the election, applicant must indicate which of these claims are readable upon the elected invention.
Should applicant traverse on the ground that the inventions are not patentably distinct, applicant should submit evidence or identify such evidence now of record showing the inventions to be obvious variants or clearly admit on the record that this is the case. In either instance, if the examiner finds one of the inventions unpatentable over the prior art, the evidence or admission may be used in a rejection under 35 U.S.C. 103 or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) of the other invention.
During a telephone conversation with Stephen Beu on 02/10/2026 a provisional election was made without traverse to prosecute the invention of Group II, claims 15-17. Affirmation of this election must be made by applicant in replying to this Office action.
Claims 1-14 are withdrawn from further consideration by the examiner, 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a non-elected invention.
Applicant is reminded that upon the cancelation of claims to a non-elected invention, the inventorship must be corrected in compliance with 37 CFR 1.48(a) if one or more of the currently named inventors is no longer an inventor of at least one claim remaining in the application. A request to correct inventorship under 37 CFR 1.48(a) must be accompanied by an application data sheet in accordance with 37 CFR 1.76 that identifies each inventor by his or her legal name and by the processing fee required under 37 CFR 1.17(i).
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.
Claim(s) 17 is(are) 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 17 recites “wherein the tee is a member of a kit and/or product line of different flow-rate tees with different supply port interior diameters”. However, this renders the claim vague and indefinite because claim 15 recites a method of using a single tee and claim 17 broadens the scope by reciting that the tee is a member of a kit and/or product line of different flow-rate tees. Further, it seems that the recited method steps are all related to the different flow-rate tees and not the tee recited in claim 15 thereby rendering the claim indefinite. Additionally, the metes and bounds of what constitutes the kit and/or product line is indefinite. It is not clear to one of ordinary skill in the art what the kit and/or the product line entails. Lastly, the scope of the claim is indefinite since it is unclear if the claim is directed towards a system of parts, method, or apparatus.
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) 15-17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Primeus (NPL 07/04/2022 Wayback-Introducing the Pot-Dripper Drip Ring) in view of Keegan (US 12120990 B2) .
Regarding claim 15:
Primeus discloses:
A method of using the tee fitting of claim 1, comprising (entire document)
a tee fitting (Fig 4) for a tubing ring (fig 3)
for irrigating a plant in a container, (fig 1+2)
the tubing ring including tubing (tubing ring, fig 3)
comprising: one or more output ports configured to communicate with the tubing; (tubing ring connection, fig 3+4)
a supply port configured to communicate with supply tubing, (supply connection, fig 4)
the supply port having an internal diameter configured to determine, for a given water supply pressure, a flow rate of water emitted from the tubing, (fig 5, see various diameter sizes which determine a flow rate of water emitted from supply connection to the tubing)
comprising: surrounding the plant of the container with the tubing; (fig 1+2, see plants surrounded by the tubing)
attaching the tubing to the one or more output ports of the tee; (fig 2+3+4, see tubing attached to the output ports of the tee i.e. tubular ring connection)
attaching supply tubing to the supply port of the tee; (Fig 1+2, see supply tubing attached to “supply connection” of fig 4)
supplying water to the tubing via the supply tubing and the supply port; (Figs 1+2+3+4 “supply connection” receives water from the supply tubing)
emitting water from the tubing to irrigate the plant. (“The Pot-Dripper applies water and nutrients evenly to your entire container with ZERO OVERSPRAY”)
Primeus doesn’t explicitly disclose:
The tubing having a plurality of spaced holes configured to emit water;
Keegan discloses:
The tubing having a plurality of spaced holes configured to emit water; (114, fig 1, col 3 ln 11-14)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the tubing of the method of Primeus such that it comprises a plurality of spaced holes configured to emit water as disclosed by Keegan to provide water to the plant (Keegan).
Primeus as modified by the plurality of spaced holes of Keegan discloses:
the supply port having an internal diameter configured to determine, for a given water supply pressure, a flow rate of water emitted from the plurality of spaced holes of the tubing, emitting water from the tubing to irrigate the plant via the plurality of spaced holes. (the internal diameter of the supply port and tubing of Primeus modified with the spaced holes 114 of Keegan determines the flow rate of water emitted onto the plant)
Regarding claim 16:
Primeus as modified discloses claim 15 and Primeus further discloses:
wherein the tee includes a solid nipple through which water cannot flow, the solid nipple configured to receive the supply tubing and function as a temporary holder of the supply tubing while blocking water flow from the supply tubing to the tubing ring, and the method further comprising detaching the supply tubing from the supply port and attaching the supply tubing to the solid nipple so as to temporary hold the supply tubing while blocking water flow from the supply tubing to the tubing ring. (shutoff, Fig 4+5, “a shutoff which allows you to stop water flow when you remove a plant.”)
Regarding claim 17:
Primeus as modified discloses claim 15 and Primeus as modified further discloses:
wherein the tee is a member of a kit and/or product line of different flow-rate tees with different supply port interior diameters, (fig 1+2+5, see different tees)
and the method further comprising: surrounding a different plant of a different container with different tubing; (fig 1+2+5, a different plant of a different container is surrounded by different tubing)
attaching the different tubing to the one or more output ports of a different flow-rate tee of the kit and/or product line; (Fig 1+2+5, see different tubing attached to output ports of different flow-rate tee of the kit/product line)
attaching different supply tubing to the supply port of the different flow-rate tee; (Fig 1+2+5, see different supply tubing attached to the supply port of fig 4 of the different flow-rate tee)
supplying water to the different tubing via the different supply tubing and the supply port of the different flow-rate tee; (Fig 1+2+5, see different tubing supplied water via different supply tubing and supply port of the different flow-rate tee)
emitting water from the different tubing at a different flow rate to irrigate the different plant via the plurality of spaced holes of the different tubing. (Fig 1+2+5, water is emitted from the different tubing at different flow rates discussed in fig 5 to irrigate the different plant via the plurality of spaced holes of the different tubing as modified by Keegan)
Conclusion
The cited prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SHADA M ALGHAILANI whose telephone number is (571)272-8058. The examiner can normally be reached M-F (7:30am - 4:30pm 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, Peter Poon can be reached on 571-272-6891. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/SHADA MOHAMED ALGHAILANI/ Examiner, Art Unit 3643
/PETER M POON/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3643