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
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.
Claims 1, 2 and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Prignitz. Prignitz discloses in the Figures and specification (see in particular col. 2, line 54 to col. 3, line 10) a bugle tube 20 for use on game calling comprising multiple tube portions 22, 24 and 26, where the tube portions are extendible to a first in-use configuration where the portion combine to form an air passageway, and collapsible to a transport configuration such that the tube portions are coaxially nested together and the transport configuration has a length less than half of the length of the in-use configuration. With respect to claim 2, Prignitz discloses at col. 5, line 50-60 that the tube portions are rigid. With respect to claim 9, the portions are extendible to the in-use configuration by telescoping.
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 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Prignitz in view of Browne. Prignitz discloses the claim limitations with the exception of the tube portions being threadably connected together. This feature is known in the art, as disclosed for example by Brown at col. 4, lines 44-50, and would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill as an obvious substitution of one known element for another to achieve predictable results and for the purpose of allowing a user to attach and detach the tube portions as desired.
Claims 4, 5 and 8 are is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Prignitz in view of Primos (US 6,767,270), and further in view of Palmer. Prignitz discloses the claim limitations with the exception of the provision of a bottom bell tube and an endcap as recited. Primos discloses in Fig. 1 and in the specification a game call device comprising a plurality of tube portions including a bottom bell tube 26. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to modify the teachings of Prignitz to provide a bottom bell tube as an obvious substitution of one known element for another to achieve predictable results and for the purpose of providing a desired sound quality to the device. Palm discloses in Fig. 1 and at col. 2, lines 21-29 of the specification a game call device comprising a plurality of tube portions including an end cap 130 extending partway across the end of the bottom tube (see aperture 139). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill to modify the teachings of Prignitz to provide an end cap as taught by Palmer for the purpose of creating back pressure for creating resonance. With respect to claim 5, the recited proportion of coverage of the endcap is considered to be an obvious variation on the teachings of Palmer to adjust the amount of back pressure and resonance as desired. With respect to claim 8, the combined teachings of the Prignitz and Primos references suggest an in-use configuration where the interior passageways comprise the interior passageway of a bottom bell tube.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 6, 7 and 10-15 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.
Claims 16-21 are allowed.
Conclusion
The 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 KURT FERNSTROM whose telephone number is (571)272-4422. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 10-6.
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/KURT FERNSTROM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3715
May 28, 2026
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