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 .
This is the First Office action on the Merits from the examiner in charge of this application.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because Figs. 1 and 2 include three-dimensional shading (grayscale) and are not simply black line drawings (see the cited references for examples). Per MPEP 608.02(VII)(A), “Black and white drawings are normally required in utility patent applications. India ink, or its equivalent that secures solid black lines, must be used for drawings.” Moreover, per MPEP 608.02(VII)(B), “Black And White Photographs And Grayscale Drawings” are only acceptable “in lieu of India ink drawings . . . to illustrate inventions which are incapable of being accurately or adequately depicted by India ink drawings”. Examples of such situations include “electrophoresis gels, blots, (e.g., immunological, western, Southern, and northern), autoradiographs, cell cultures (stained and unstained), histological tissue cross sections (stained and unstained), animals, plants, in vivo imaging, thin layer chromatography plates, crystalline structures, metallurgical microstructures, textile fabrics, grain structures and, in a design patent application, ornamental effects.” The structure disclosed in the instant application is not “incapable of being accurately or adequately depicted by India ink drawings,” and clearly does not fall into any of the above categories. Applicant is therefore required to furnish line drawing(s) in place of the aforementioned shaded drawings.
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.84 (u) (1) because Figure 1 shows different views (exploded pallet assembly 100 and magnified view of snap towers 114A-B) within the same Figure. Per 37 CFR 1.84 (u) (1), “The different views must be numbered in consecutive Arabic numerals, starting with 1, independent of the numbering of the sheets and, if possible, in the order in which they appear on the drawing sheet(s). Partial views intended to form one complete view, on one or several sheets, must be identified by the same number followed by a capital letter. View numbers must be preceded by the abbreviation "FIG." Where only a single view is used in an application to illustrate the claimed invention, it must not be numbered and the abbreviation "FIG." must not appear.”
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 § 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 1-3, 5-7, 12, 13, 16, 17, 19, 20, and 22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Apps (U.S. Pub. No. 20120325125).
With respect to claim 1, a pallet assembly, comprising: a reinforcement structure (Fig. 12, reinforcement members 22), formed substantially of a first material (Paragraph 0036, “reinforcement member 22 may be steel or some other metal”); a top deck (upper deck 12), formed substantially of a second material (Paragraph 0034, “upper deck 12… integrally molded as a single piece of plastic”), comprising: a generally flat platform for receiving, storing, or transporting one or more goods (upper deck 12 has a substantially flat top “for racking” (Paragraph 002)), and a top pedestal portion (Fig. 8, upper column portions 34) including an upper receiving track (Fig. 8, channels 32); and a bottom deck (Fig. 3, lower portion 14), formed substantially of a third material (Paragraph 0034, “lower portion 14… integrally molded as a single piece of plastic”), comprising a generally flat base (base of lower portion 14 extends along a flat plane), and a bottom pedestal portion (Fig. 12, columns 16) including a lower receiving track (channels 21); wherein together the upper receiving track (channels 32) and the lower receiving track (channels 21) define a channel for receiving the reinforcement structure (channels 32 and 21 are aligned and together receive reinforcement members 22); and wherein the top deck (upper deck 12) and the bottom deck (lower portion 14) define a plurality of apertures (see modified Fig. 1 below, apertures).
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With respect to claim 2, Apps further discloses wherein at least a portion of the plurality of apertures are capable of receiving a fork on a fork lift or pallet jack (apertures as shown in modified Fig. 1 above are capable of receiving a fork of a pork lift or pallet jack).
With respect to claim 3, Apps further discloses wherein the second material and the third material are the same material (Paragraph 0034, material of upper deck 12 and lower portion 14 are both plastic).
With respect to claim 5, Apps further discloses wherein the reinforcement structure forms a quadrilateral (Fig. 12 shows reinforcement members 22).
With respect to claim 6, Apps further discloses wherein the reinforcement structure includes one or more cross braces (Fig. 14 shows reinforcement assembly 20 includes reinforcement members 22 and outer cases 24 forming a cross brace as the center of the assembly).
With respect to claim 7, Apps further discloses wherein one or both of the top deck (upper deck 12) and the bottom deck (lower portion 14) cover at least a portion of the reinforcement structure (Fig. 12 shows reinforcement members 22 are situated within channels 21 and covered by columns 12).
With respect to claim 12, Apps further discloses wherein i) the top deck, ii) the bottom deck, or iii) a combination thereof form a region (channels 32 of upper deck 12 align with channels 21 of lower portion 14 to form a region that surrounds reinforcement members 22 at each of the columns 16 and column portions 34).
With respect to claim 13, Apps further discloses wherein the region is formed outside of a perimeter of the reinforcement structure (Fig. 13 channels 21 of the column 16 of lower portion 14 is formed on outside the perimeter of reinforcement members 22, Fig. 2 shows channels 32 of the upper deck 12 align with the lower deck 14 to further surround the tops of reinforcement members 22 at an outside of their perimeter).
With respect to claim 16, Apps further discloses wherein the first material is a metal, and the metal is corrosion susceptible (Paragraph 0036, “reinforcement member 22 may be steel or some other metal” and steel is susceptible to corrosion).
With respect to claim 17, Apps discloses a top deck (Fig. 20, upper deck 112) configured to be affixed to a bottom deck (lower portion 114) to encapsulate a reinforcement structure (reinforcement members 122 encapsulated between channels 140 and 132), thereby forming a pallet assembly (pallet 110), the top deck (upper deck 112) comprising: a generally flat platform (Paragraph 0046, “upper deck includes a planar upper panel portion 128”) for receiving, storing, or transporting one or more goods (upper deck 112 has a substantially flat top “for racking” (Paragraph 002)); and a top pedestal portion (Fig. 23, upper column portions 134) including an upper receiving track (channels 132), the upper receiving track configured to accept the reinforcement structure (Paragraph 0046, “Channels 132 are formed in the ribs 130 to accommodate the reinforcement members 122”).
With respect to claim 19, Apps further discloses wherein the top deck is formed substantially of plastic (Paragraph 0044, “upper deck 112 and the lower portion 114 in this example are each integrally molded as a single piece of plastic”).
With respect to claim 20, Apps discloses a bottom deck (Fig. 20, lower portion 114) configured to be affixed to a top deck (upper deck 112) to encapsulate a reinforcement structure (reinforcement members 122 encapsulated between channels 140 and 132), thereby forming a pallet assembly (pallet 110), the bottom deck (lower portion 114) comprising: A generally flat base (base of lower portion 114 extends along a flat plane), and a bottom pedestal portion (columns 116) including a lower receiving track (channels 140), the lower receiving track (channels 140) configured to accept the reinforcement structure (Paragraph 0045, “channels 140 are molded integrally with the columns 116 and accommodate the reinforcement members 122”).
With respect to claim 22, Apps further discloses wherein the bottom deck (lower portion 114) is formed substantially of plastic (Paragraph 0044, “upper deck 112 and the lower portion 114 in this example are each integrally molded as a single piece of plastic”).
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 8 and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Apps (U.S. Pub. No. 20120325125).
With respect to claim 8, Apps discloses the limitation set forth above except wherein the top deck and the bottom deck collectively fully cover the reinforcement structure.
In an alternate embodiment (Figs. 18-26), Apps discloses wherein the top deck (Fig. 20, upper deck 112) and the bottom deck (lower portion 114) collectively fully cover the reinforcement structure (reinforcement members 122 are fully enclosed between channels 140 of lower portion 114 and channels 132, Paragraph 0047 “the reinforcement members 22, 122 are hidden and protected”).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the lower portion of Apps (first embodiment) to include integrally formed channels such as taught by the alternate embodiment with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to impede potential corrosion of the reinforcement members by fully enclosing them between the lower portion and upper deck.
With respect to claim 14, Apps discloses the limitation set forth above. Apps further discloses wherein the top deck (upper deck 12, with channels 32 on upper column portions 34) is affixed to the bottom deck (Paragraph 0037, “upper column portions 34, which mate with the columns 16 of the lower portion 14”), partially enclosing the reinforcement structure (reinforcement members 22).
Apps fails to disclose the top and bottom decks encapsulate the reinforcement structure.
In an alternate embodiment (Figs. 18-26), Apps discloses wherein the top and bottom decks (Fig. 20, upper deck 112 and lower portion 114) encapsulate the reinforcement structure (reinforcement members 122 are fully enclosed between channels 140 of lower portion 114 and channels 132, Paragraph 0047 “the reinforcement members 22, 122 are hidden and protected”).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the lower portion of Apps (first embodiment) to include integrally formed channels such as taught by the alternate embodiment with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to impede potential corrosion of the reinforcement members by fully enclosing them between the lower portion and upper deck.
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Apps (U.S. Pub. No. 20120325125) in view of Blanchard (WO2023211745).
With respect to claim 4, Apps discloses the limitation set forth above. Apps further discloses the first material is a metal (Paragraph 0036, “reinforcement member 22 may be steel or some other metal”); the second and third materials are plastic (Paragraph 0034, material of upper deck 12 and lower portion 14 are both plastic).
Apps fails to explicitly discloses the second and third materials being different plastics.
Blanchard discloses the top deck (Figs. 3A and 3B, pallet deck 102) comprises a second material that is a first plastic (Page 3, lines line 20, “pallet deck 102 may be molded from thermoplastic”); and the bottom deck (lower deck surface 112) comprises a third material that is a second plastic (Page 3, lines 20-23, “the pallet deck 102 may be molded from thermoplastic or other polymer materials, such as high-density polyethylene (HDPE), polypropylene (PP), etc. The upper deck surface 110 may comprise polymer material that is different from that of the lower deck surface 112”).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the upper and lower decks of Apps to be made of different plastics such as taught by Blanchard with a reasonable level of success, in order to provide customized mechanical properties of the pallet such as a lower deck comprising a high-strength plastic for supporting a load, and the upper deck comprising an antimicrobial or food safe plastic for transportation or possible contact with food or pharmaceutical products. It is further noted that it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended used as a matter of obvious design choice. See MPEP 2144.07.
Claims 9, 11, 18, and 21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Apps (U.S. Pub. No. 20120325125) in view of Assadi (U.S. Pub. No. 20030115820).
With respect to claim 9, Apps discloses the limitation set forth above. Apps further discloses the top deck and bottom deck (upper deck 12 and lower portion 14) are aligned by a male-female connection of the upper and lower columns (column 16 is inserted into upper column portion 34).
Apps fails to disclose wherein the top deck and the bottom deck are configured to be aligned by one or more tongue-and-groove connections.
Assadi discloses a pallet wherein the top deck (Figs. 3-5, platform 2) and the bottom deck (platform 12) are configured to be aligned by one or more tongue-and-groove connections (Figs. 2 and 4 show that platforms 2 and 12 connect via protrusion post 4 and engaging protrusion post 8, which each have a “concave round” groove at 16 and 20, and a “convex round” tongue at 14 and 18 to create “an interference-fit post system” as described in Paragraph 0012).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the mating columns of Apps to include concave and convex rounds such as taught by Assadi with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to provide a tight fit between the columns without the need for fasteners or thermal/chemical bonding, and to further provide water tightness “allowing the pallet to be used in hygienic applications wherein cavities must be sealed from ingress of fluid and dirt” (Assadi, Paragraph 0017).
With respect to claim 11, Apps in view of Assadi discloses the limitation set forth above. The combination further discloses wherein a first tongue-and-groove connection (one set of mating columns 16 and 34 of Apps as modified to include concave/convex rounds of Assadi) of the one or more tongue-and-groove connections is capable of preventing direct water ingress to the upper receiving track or the lower receiving track (Assadi, Paragraph 0017, “When the posts are joined by interference fit, they are essentially water tight allowing them to be used in hygienic applications wherein cavities must be sealed from ingress of fluid and dirt” which would prevent the columns of Apps from disconnecting, further preventing water from entering the column channels 21 and 32, especially in combination with outer case 24a of Fig.17, which covers reinforcement members 22 and fills in the channels 21 and 32).
With respect to claim 18, Apps discloses the limitation set forth above. Apps further discloses a mating connection between top and bottom decks (column 16 of lower portion 114 is inserted into upper column portion 34 of upper deck 114).
Apps fails to discloses the top deck comprises a tongue, configured to connect to a groove of the bottom deck.
Assadi discloses a pallet top deck (platform 2) comprises a tongue (Fig. 2, protrusion post section 4 has a downward-extending portion that ends in convex round 18) configured to connect to a groove of the bottom deck (concave round 20 of protrusion post 8 of platform 12 receives the convex round 18 of upper platform 2).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the mating columns of Apps to include concave and convex rounds such as taught by Assadi with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to provide a tight fit between the columns without the need for fasteners or thermal/chemical bonding, and to further provide water tightness “allowing the pallet to be used in hygienic applications wherein cavities must be sealed from ingress of fluid and dirt” (Assadi, Paragraph 0017).
With respect to claim 21, Apps discloses the limitation set forth above. Apps further discloses a mating connection between top and bottom decks (column 16 of lower portion 114 is inserted into upper column portion 34 of upper deck 114).
Apps fails to disclose the bottom deck comprises a groove configured to connect to a tongue of the top deck.
Assadi discloses a pallet bottom deck (platform 12) comprises a groove (Fig. 2, protrusion post 8 has concave round 20) configured to connect to a tongue of the top deck (protrusion post section 4 has a downward-extending portion that ends in convex round 18 that is received by concave round 20 of platform 12).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the mating columns of Apps to include concave and convex rounds such as taught by Assadi with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to provide a tight fit between the columns without the need for fasteners or thermal/chemical bonding, and to further provide water tightness “allowing the pallet to be used in hygienic applications wherein cavities must be sealed from ingress of fluid and dirt” (Assadi, Paragraph 0017).
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Apps (U.S. Pub. No. 20120325125) in view of Assadi (U.S. Pub. No. 20030115820) in further view of Ritzberger (U.S. Pub. No. 20230166885).
With respect to claim 10, Apps in view of Assadi discloses the limitation set forth above except a locking channel formed by a flange of the top deck abutting a shoulder of the bottom deck, wherein the locking channel is configured to prevent the top deck from separating from the bottom deck.
Ritzberger discloses a locking channel formed by a flange of the top deck (Figs. 4B, 5A, and 5B, recess 23 of latch element 7 on outer foot 21 of pallet upper part 2) abutting a shoulder of the bottom deck (snap hooks 8 with hook heads 9 on foot part 5 of skid 3), wherein the locking channel is configured to prevent the top deck from separating from the bottom deck (Paragraph 0053, “snap hooks 8 with hook head 9 and the associated latch elements 7 are shown, which engage with each other when the upper part 2 is assembled to the skids and lock the upper part 2 with the skids 3”).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the columns of Apps in view of Assadi to include snap hooks and latch elements such as taught by Ritzberger with a reasonable expectation of success, in order to prevent unwanted separation of the upper and lower decks while still providing the option for separating the upper and lower decks in the case of repair or replacement of one of the decks or reinforcement members.
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Apps (U.S. Pub. No. 20120325125) in view of Ritzberger (U.S. Pub. No. 20230166885).
With respect to claim 15, Apps discloses the limitation set forth above except wherein the top deck and the bottom deck snap together to form the pallet assembly.
Ritzberger discloses wherein the top deck (Fig. 4B, upper part 2) and the bottom deck (skid 3) snap together to form the pallet assembly (Paragraph 0053, “snap hooks 8 with hook head 9 and the associated latch elements 7 are shown, which engage with each other when the upper part 2 is assembled to the skids and lock the upper part 2 with the skids 3” forming plastic pallet 1).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the columns of Apps to include snap hooks and latch elements such as taught by Ritzberger with a reasonable expectation of success in order to assemble the upper and lower decks without the need of additional fasteners or tools and prevent unwanted separation of the upper and lower decks, and to further provide the option for separating the upper and lower decks in the case of repair or replacement of one of the decks or reinforcement members.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ELIZABETH IRENE ARTALEJO whose telephone number is (571)272-4292. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8-6.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Daniel Troy can be reached at (571) 270-3742. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/E.I.A./Examiner, Art Unit 3637 /DANIEL J TROY/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3637