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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
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 bayonet of claim 17 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.
The drawings are objected to because the components and elements shown in Figure 4 are indiscernible; Examiner is unable to see what is depicted within Figure 4. 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.
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they include the following reference character(s) not mentioned in the description: Figure 7 includes element “3131” but is not mentioned in the specification. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d), or amendment to the specification to add the reference character(s) in the description in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(b) 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. 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 § 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.
Claims 8-13 and 17 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.
Regarding claim 8, it is unclear what is being imparted into the claimed invention due to the recitation of “voluntarily” and “voluntary rotation”. Please amend the claim to reflect Applicant’s intent.
Regarding claim 11, recitation of “the rotary clutch” does not have antecedent basis.
Regarding claim 17, recitations of the inner housing and the outer housing do not have proper antecedent basis. Furthermore, it is unclear what is structurally imparted by recitation of a bayonet. As addressed in the objection to the Drawings above, a bayonet is not labeled within the Figures. When seeking to ascertain the intended structure, Examiner reflected upon the specification, however, the specification only reiterates the claim language in [0031]. A bayonet is known as a knife, dagger, or spike shaped weapon/structure, and it is unclear what structure is intended to be imparted into the claims. Lastly, “a bayonet” is recited twice; please amend the claim to differentiate the bayonets from one another for clarification purposes, i.e. a first bayonet and a second bayonet.
Any claim listed as rejected above but not specifically addressed above has inherited the rejection of a claim specifically addressed above due to dependency therefrom.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-4, 14, 15, and 17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Lamoureux (US 12,082,675).
Regarding claim 1, Lamoureux discloses a hand-held straight grinder (see abrasion and grinding bit disclosed in Col. 2, lines 53-60), comprising
an elastic collet assembly, an output shaft, a clutch assembly and a power assembly (see collet chuck 122, spindle sleeve 123, dog clutch 121 and release unit 130 and tensioning sleeve 129, and motor 110 having motor shaft 111, Figure 1B), wherein
the elastic collet assembly contains an elastic collet and a collet connector (see collect chuck 122 connected to clamping sleeve 126), and a tail of the elastic collet is connected to a front end of the collet connector (wherein the rear end of the collet chuck 122 is connected to the clamping sleeve 126);
an opening is formed in one end of the elastic collet, and the opening communicates with an internal space of the elastic collet (see Figure 1B regarding the opening of the collet chuck 122);
one end of the output shaft is in transmission connection to the power assembly, and the other end of the output shaft axially sleeves the elastic collet assembly in a sliding manner, and is radially and fixedly connected to the elastic collet assembly (wherein spindle sleeve 123 is transmission connected to the motor 110 and motor shaft 111, and the other end is sleeved over the collet chuck 122 such that the collet chuck 122 slides therein, and wherein the sleeve collet chuck 122 and coupling 121 are connected to the spindle sleeve 123 by fastening means 126; see also Col. 3, line 54-Col. 4, line 24);
the other end initially extends to the opening (wherein as can be seen in Figure 1A, the sleeve 123 extends to and over the collet 122), and the opening is in a radial contracted or expanded state through cooperation (see at least the tensioning and relaxing of the collet chuck 122 in Col. 6, line 62-Col. 7, line 30);
the clutch assembly comprises a toggling unit (130’), a first clutch unit (129) and a second clutch unit (130’’; see release unit 130 comprising sliding sleeve 130’ and rotary sleeve 130’’, as well as tensioning sleeve 129), wherein
the toggling unit (130’) is located between the first clutch unit (129) and the second clutch unit (130’’), and when the toggling unit moves, the elastic collet can be driven through the first clutch unit to axially move relative to the output shaft, whereby the opening is in the radial expanded state (wherein movement of the sliding sleeve 130’ takes place, the collet chuck 122 can be tensioned or relaxed by the tensioning sleeve 129, whereby the collet chuck 122 moves in either direction of the arrow shown in Figure 1A; see also Col. 7, line 31-Col. 8, line 16); and
the toggling unit (130’) also receives restoring force from the second clutch unit (130’’) when moving (wherein there is a compression spring 127, a tension spring 128, and restoring spring 144; see Figures 1A, 1B, and 4; wherein rotary sleeve 130’’ serves to provide forces to the sliding sleeve 130’ when moving, see Col. 7, line 31-Col. 8, line 16; Col. 3, lines 33-53).
Regarding claim 2, Lamoureux discloses the claimed invention as applied above, wherein Lamoureux further discloses wherein at least one notch axially extending to an end surface is formed in an opening end of the elastic collet (see the end of the collet chuck 122 in Figure 1B, comprising notches which may be tensioned and relaxed as disclosed in Col. 7 lines 8-10 and 43-46).
Regarding claim 3, Lamoureux discloses the claimed invention as applied above, wherein Lamoureux further discloses wherein a wall surface cooperating with the output shaft, of the opening end of the elastic collet is a conical surface (wherein the spindle sleeve 123 has an interior in which the collet 123 is accommodated, see Figures 1A, 1B, as well as Col. 7, lines 20-30, wherein in Figure 1B the opening of the collet 123 is shown as conical).
Regarding claim 4, Lamoureux discloses the claimed invention as applied above, wherein Lamoureux further discloses further comprising a pin (126 or 126’), wherein the pin radially penetrates through the collet connector (Col. 7, lines 1-30, Figures 1A and 1B), chutes (124, see plural bores 124 in Figure 1B) axially extending are formed in the output shaft, and the pin extends into the chutes, and slides along the chutes along with the elastic collet assembly (Col. 7, lines 1-30).
Regarding claim 14, Lamoureux discloses the claimed invention as applied above, wherein Lamoureux further discloses wherein the power assembly comprises a motor (motor 110), a main control circuit board (circuit board 162) and a power supply (see connection line 102 in Figure 2A, which is disclosed as having the electricity supply in Col. 8, lines 30-40), an output end of the motor and one end of the output shaft (123) are in transmission connection (Col. 8, lines 17-29; Col. 9, line 64-Col. 10, line 6), the power supply is connected to the main control circuit board, and the main control circuit board is connected to the motor (wherein the electricity supplied to the device is within connection 102, see Col. 9 lines 24-45; Col. 10 lines 24-45; wherein there is at least a physical connection between circuit board 162 and the motor 110, as well as the circuit board 162 and connection 102; see Figures 2A and 6).
Regarding claim 15, Lamoureux discloses the claimed invention as applied above, wherein Lamoureux further discloses wherein the main control circuit board is mounted between a left housing and a right housing of the hand-held straight grinder, a charging port of the power supply is formed in a tail of the circuit board, and the charging port of the power supply is a through hole penetrating through a tail of a rear housing of the hand-held straight grinder (please see Figures 2A and 6; wherein the circuit board 162 is located between housing elements 171 and 101, and wherein the charging port which receives the electrical power supply 102 is formed in the end of the housing element 101 and circuit board 162, and wherein the charting port of the power supply element 102 is a through hole which penetrates housing 101, as the electrical and additional connections have interior access to the hand tool).
Regarding claim 17, Lamoureux discloses the claimed invention as applied above, wherein Lamoureux further discloses further comprising the inner housing (110), the outer housing (170, 171) and a rotary shell (172),
wherein the outer housing comprises a front housing (170) and a rear housing (171), the front housing (170) sleeves a front position of the inner housing, and is connected to the inner housing through a bayonet (wherein the front sleeve 170 sleeves a front position of the motor housing element 110 and is indirectly connected to 110 through fastening, see at least retaining ring 180, o ring 181, spacer sleeve 182);
the rear housing (171) sleeves a rear position of the inner housing, and is connected to the front housing through a bayonet (wherein rear sleeve 171 sleeves a rear position of the motor housing element 110 as it is located axially more proximal to motor housing 110 than front sleeve 170, and wherein the rear sleeve 171 is connected to front sleeve 170 through at least O-rings 173, see Figure 4); and
the rotary shell (172) movably sleeves the inner housing, is located between the front housing (front sleeve 170) and the rear housing (rear sleeve 171, see Figure 6), and can drive the toggling unit (130’) to rotate (see at least Col. 7, lines 14-30 and 36-42 disclosing that the element 130’ has a helicoid structure and can be twisted, i.e. rotated; wherein Col. 9, lines 46-62 disclose that rotation of the central sleeve 171 drives a collar chuck to be tensioned or relaxed, i.e. thereby imparting the rotation of element 130’ to rotate as described in the Col. 7 citations above).
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lamoureux (US 12,082,675) in view of Johnson (US 8,430,003).
Regarding claim 16, Lamoureux discloses the claimed invention as applied above. However, Lamoureux does not explicitly teach further comprising a magnet I, a magnet II and a dust cover,
wherein the dust cover is in abutted connection to a tail of an outer housing of the hand-held straight grinder, a pit I is formed in the tail of the outer housing, and the magnet I is fixedly mounted in the pit I;
a pit II is formed in one side of the dust cover, and the magnet II is fixedly mounted in the pit II; and
the magnet I adsorbs the magnet II to close the dust cover, and at this time, the dust cover covers an outer side of the charging port of the power supply.
However, from the same or similar field of endeavor, Johnson teaches of magnet configured to assemble and secure components within the context of a hand tool, i.e. a magnet I, a magnet II (see plugs 32, 34 configured to be magnets as described in Col. 5, lines 31-63), a dust cover, wherein the dust cover is in abutted connection to a tail of an outer housing (see at least handle sections 10, 11 formed as a cover element and the interior components within Figure 3), a pit I is formed in the tail of the outer housing, and the magnet I is fixedly mounted in the pit I (regarding the tail limitations, please refer to the tail portion of Lamoureux, such as the end connected to power cord 102; see also holes 31, 33 in Figure 3 for accommodating the plugs 32, 34);
a pit II is formed in one side of the dust cover, and the magnet II is fixedly mounted in the pit II (wherein Johnson teaches there are respective hole provisions 31, 33 which accommodate the plugs 32, 34; see also the handle sections 10, 11 as well as Col. 5, lines 6-30); and
the magnet I adsorbs the magnet II to close the dust cover, and at this time, the dust cover covers an outer side of the charging port of the power supply (see at least Lamoureux Figure 2A regarding the tail portion 101 and power supply port for cord 102, i.e. the combination of Johnson into the invention of Lamoureux teaches the incorporated magnets are configured to perform the claimed function, see at least Col. 5, lines 31-63).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have incorporated the teachings of Johnson to employ magnets within the context of mating housing components into the invention of Lamoureux. One would be motivated to do so in order to provide a more secure mating arrangement as a result of the attracting forces between the magnets, see Col. 5, lines 26-53.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5-7 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 8-13 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Claims 5-13 are allowable. Claims 5 recites the structure of an additional chuck and relation to the pin/chute(s), which is neither disclosed nor taught by Lamoureaux. Modifying the apparatus to include the structure would require extensive reconstruction which may hinder the ability of the apparatus to function, i.e. the interior components as they move relative to one another. Claim 8 recites subject matter directed towards the toggling unit, claim 11 recites subject matter directed towards the structure of the second clutch unit. The prior art does not anticipate, teach, or suggest the combination of elements disposed in and functioning as required by the claimed invention.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Duesing (US 20070114730), see collet chuck 11 having clamping segments 11a, as well as [0043]
Lohn (US 7033039), please see the Abstract as well as Figure 1.
Yaksich (US 6729812), please see Figure 4A
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MAKENA S MARKMAN whose telephone number is (469)295-9162. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 8:00 am-6:00pm.
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/MAKENA S MARKMAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3723
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