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 .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the recess of claim 15 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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) 1-4, 8, 10, 11 and 14-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hess et al. (US 2022/0235812) in view of Duran et al. (US 5037259).
Regarding claims 1 and 18, Hess et al. discloses a nut plate assembly 100 Fig. 5B (and method of assembling) comprising: a plate 106 comprising an aperture defined therethrough; a shell 108 attached to the plate and extending along a center axis 120; and a nut 114 retained within the shell and comprising an inner surface and an engagement surface that extends at an angle relative to the inner surface, the inner surface defining an inner bore 116, wherein the nut plate assembly is configured to receive a fastener 102 extending through the aperture of the plate and into the inner bore in the nut, wherein in a locked orientation, the engagement surface 140 of the nut engages the fastener 102 and prevents the fastener moving axially relative to the nut. However, Hess et al. fails to disclose the bore having a groove extending along the inner bore and parallel to the center axis. Duran et al., a nut plate assembly 300 Fig. 9 discloses a bore 32 having a groove 303, 307 extending along the inner bore and parallel to the center axis. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to provide Hess et al. bore with a groove as taught by Duran et al. in order to more freely insert fastener from a locked to an unlocked position.
Regarding claim 2, the combination discloses wherein the fastener 102 is rotated within the inner bore 116 between the locked orientation and the unlocked orientation (Para. 0054).
Regarding claim 3, the combination discloses wherein the unlocked orientation Fig. 5B and the locked orientation Fig. 5A are 90° apart.
Regarding claim 4, the combination discloses wherein the groove (303, 307 of Duran et al.) is sized to receive a protuberance 156 on the fastener 102, and wherein the engagement surface 140 is configured to engage the protuberance when the nut plate assembly is in the locked orientation Fig. 5A.
Regarding claim 8, the combination discloses wherein the nut 114 includes a first end, a second end, and a shoulder, the shoulder 145 is shaped to engage the shell and fix the nut against rotation within the shell 108.
Regarding claim 10, the combination discloses wherein the nut 114 includes an inner surface defining the inner bore 116, the inner surface having a groove (303, 307 of Duran et al.) extending along the inner bore and parallel to the center axis.
Regarding claim 11, the combination discloses wherein the fastener 102 includes a protuberance 156 sized to move through the groove, wherein the protuberance engages the engagement surface 140 of the nut 114 when the fastener is in the locked orientation. Regarding claim 14, the combination discloses wherein the nut 114 includes a first end, a second end, and a shoulder, the shoulder 145 is shaped to engage the shell and fix the nut against rotation within the shell.
Regarding claim 19, the combination discloses positioning a bias member 132 within a shell 108, the nut configured to engage the bias member, wherein the bias member is arranged to bias the nut 114 toward an end of the shell, and wherein the nut is tiltable within the shell and relative to the center axis 120 to engage the fastener 102 if the fastener extends at an angle relative to the center axis.
Regarding claim 20, the combination discloses fixing the nut 114 against rotation within the shell, wherein the fastener 102 is rotatable relative to the nut between an unlocked orientation and a locked orientation Fig. 5A, 5B when the fastener is engaged with the nut, the nut includes an engagement surface 140 that engages the fastener when the fastener is in the locked orientation.
Claim(s) 5, 6, 12, 13 and 15-17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hess et al. in view of Duran et al. and further in view of Hess et al. (US 2018/0252256).
Regarding claims 5 and 12, Hess et al. and Duran et al. disclose the invention as claimed above but fail to explicitly disclose a bias member disposed within the shell and engaged with the nut disposed between the plate and the nut. Hess et al. ‘256, a nut plate assembly 100 Fig. 3 discloses a bias member 108 disposed within the shell 104 and engaged with the nut 106 disposed between the plate 110 and the nut 106. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the nut plate assembly of Hess et al. with a biasing member as taught by Hess et al. ‘256 in order to bias the nut towards an end of the shell. (Para. 0065 of Hess et al. ‘256)
Regarding claims 6 and 13, the combination discloses wherein the nut 106 is tiltable within the shell 104 and relative to the center axis to engage the fastener 102 if the fastener extends at an angle relative to the center axis. Regarding claim 15, the combination discloses wherein the first end of the nut (106 of Hess et al. ‘256) has a recess 158 arranged to receive the bias member 108.
Regarding claim 16, the combination discloses wherein the bias member (108 of Hess et al. ‘256) comprises a wire spring formed of a flexible and resilient wire.
Regarding claim 17, the combination discloses wherein the bias member (340 of Hess et al. ‘256) includes a main body 342 and wings 344 extending outward from the main body Fig. 19.
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) 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Hess et al. (US 2022/0235812).
Regarding claim 9, Hess et al. discloses a fastener assembly 100 Fig. 5A comprising: a plate 106 comprising an aperture defined therethrough; a shell 108 attached to the plate and extending along a center axis 120; a nut 114 retained within the shell and comprising an inner bore; a fastener 102 extending through the plate and into the shell to engage the nut; and a bias member 130 disposed within the shell and engaged with the nut, wherein the fastener is rotatable between an unlocked orientation and a locked orientation when the fastener is engaged with the nut, the nut includes an engagement surface that engages the fastener when the fastener is in the locked orientation, wherein the unlocked orientation and the locked orientation are 90° apart.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Relevant references, such as Launay (US 2748825) disclose a nut plate assembly Fig. 4, having a nut 1 with biasing member 5, 6, and a recess (recess having 14).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to EUGENE G BYRD whose telephone number is (571)270-1824. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9am-5:30pm.
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, Kristina Fulton can be reached at 5712727376. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/EUGENE G BYRD/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3675
Prosecution Insights