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
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 and 5-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Morizono et al. US 9,561,917 (“Morizono”).
Regarding claim 1, Morizono disclosed a sheet storage device configured to store a sheet, the sheet storage device comprising:
a stacking member (40) on which the sheet is stacked, the stacking member configured to lift and lower (Figures 4A and 4B); and
a first regulating unit (42, see Figures 3-6) that is arranged on the stacking member and configured to regulate a position of an end on an upstream side of the sheet in a feeding direction of the sheet, the first regulating unit including:
a fixing member (44) that is fixed to the stacking member and may be lifted and lowered together with the stacking member; a movable member (60) that is arranged to be movable in a lifting and lowering direction of the fixing member with respect to the fixing member and is able to abut the end on the upstream side of the sheet; and a biasing member (col. 8, line 58) that applies a force to the movable member in a lifting direction of the fixing member,
the sheet storage device comprising: a limiting portion (51) configured to limit movement of the movable member in the lifting direction when the stacking member rotates in the lifting direction.
Regarding claim 2, Morizono disclosed the movable member includes: a projection (62) that projects in a width direction orthogonal to the feeding direction and the lifting and lowering direction, and the limiting portion limits the movement of the movable member in the lifting direction by abutting the projection (Figures 4A-5B).
Regarding claim 3, Morizono disclosed the limiting portion may be separated from the projection when the stacking member lowers from an abutment position in which the limiting portion and the projection abut each other (see at least Figures 5A and 5B).
Regarding claim 5, a tab sheet may be the sheet that is stacked on the stacking member (see MPEP 2115), and the first regulating unit would regulate a position of an end on the upstream side of the tab sheet by abutting a tab of the tab sheet (Figure 2).
Regarding claim 6, Morizono disclosed the first regulating unit is detachably attached to the stacking member (Figures 3-6).
Regarding claim 7, Morizono disclosed a third regulating unit (30d) configured to regulate the sheet by abutting the end on the upstream side of the sheet, wherein a portion that can come into contact with the end on the upstream side of the sheet in the first regulating unit is longer in a width direction orthogonal to the feeding direction and the lifting and lowering direction than a portion that can come into contact with the end on the upstream side of the sheet in the third regulating unit (see Figure 3).
Regarding claim 8, Morizono disclosed the stacking member is configured to lift and lower by rotating about a rotation center arranged in an upstream side in the feeding direction of the sheet (Figure 2).
Regarding claim 9, Morizono disclosed the fixing member is able to abut the end on the upstream side of the sheet (Figure 4A).
Regarding claim 10, Morizono disclosed an image forming apparatus comprising: the sheet storage device according to claim 1 as mentioned above; and an image forming portion configured to form an image on the sheet stored in the sheet storage device (Figure 1).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 4 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Nikura US 2018/0346265 anticipates at least the independent claim.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HOWARD J SANDERS whose telephone number is (571)270-3096. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00-5:00.
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/HOWARD J SANDERS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3653