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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of group I in the reply filed on 6/10/26 is acknowledged. Claims 1-19 are examine below.
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(s) 1-19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent No. 10,513,849 to Pearson et al.
Regarding claims 1, 10, 12, Pearson discloses a structural assembly having a foundation (column 10, line 51) with inherent top, a support column in a longitudinal dimension comprising a plurality of outer hollow longitudinal channel structures (fig. 2: 112A, 112B) with longitudinal ends and inner members (170) with longitudinal ends, the outer hollow channel structures aligned end to end along a axis to define an interior and the inner members aligned end to end along the axis within the interior of the outer structures and being offset from the exterior structures (figs. 4, 6D) a hold down bracket (fig. 4: 340) with base (bottom) and mounting plate (middle vertical portion and/or side plates) extending perpendicularly from the base plate, the base plate secured to a foundation, the mounting plates to a support column (fig. 4), the column extends upward and beyond a horizontal beam (800), the support column and beam held together by fasteners (650 and fasteners, fig. 4).
However, the beam is not disclosed as being part of a composite deck or first floor. Pearson discloses the beam as being “any conventional beam known in the art”. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Pearson by using a deck floor beam, as deck flooring is well known for use with conventional beams and known for being used in building with multiple floors. This would allow the building to house multiple people than with just one level.
Regarding claim 2, the ends of the beams are either below or above the beam (fig. 4).
Regarding claims 3, 14, the use of light gauge steel is disclosed (column 1, lines 55-58).
Regarding claim 4, the bracket (340) is a plurality, more than two, and has legs (left and right sides) secured to the base plate (bottom of bracket 340).
Regarding claim 5, Pearson does not disclose the legs as welded to the base plate and the mounting plate. However, Pearson discloses the use of welding to the bracket (column 10, lines 53-55). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Pearson by using welding for securing parts of the bracket since welding is already used for securing the bracket to other components. This would save time and costs.
Regarding claims 6, 15, Pearson discloses each outer hollow longitudinal structure comprises a first channel member (fig. 2: 112A) having a first longitudinal end and an opposed second longitudinal end, wherein the first channel member has a length in the longitudinal dimension and defines an inner channel extending along the length; and a second channel member (112B) having a first longitudinal end and an opposed second longitudinal end, wherein the second channel member has a length in the longitudinal dimension and defines an inner channel extending along the length; and wherein each of the first channel member and the second channel member, in a cross sectional plane perpendicular to the longitudinal dimension, comprises a base wall (106A, 106B) having an inner surface, an outer surface, a first end, and a second end, a first side wall (110A, 108B) extending from the first end of the base wall, and a second side wall (102A, 102B) extending from the second end of the base wall, wherein the base wall, the first side wall, and the second side wall cooperate to define the inner channel, wherein the first and second channel members are positioned with respect to each other so that the inner surface of the base wall of the first channel member opposes the inner surface of the base wall of second channel member, and so that the inner channels of the first and second channel members cooperate to define the interior passage extending in the longitudinal dimension.
Regarding claim 7, the mounting plate is secured to a side wall of both sides.
Regarding claim 8, the inner channel member extends from a wall of one to the other outer longitudinal structures (fig. 2: 170).
Regarding claim 9, the inner member has two parallel walls (fig. 2: 172, 174) and are attached to first and second walls (106A, 106B) of the outer hollow structure.
Regarding claim 11, the floor beam is secured to the structural member by fasteners (fig. 4: 650 and fasteners not numbered).
Regarding claim 13, the length of the inner member is greater than half of the length of the first and second channel members (fig. 4).
Regarding claim 16, the channel members have flanges (130A, 132A, 132B, 130B) extending from the side walls.
Regarding claim 17, the channel member lengths are substantially equal (fig. 4: 102A, 102B).
Regarding claim 18, the ends of the channel members are spaced from the end of the inner member by at least 12 inches (column 2, lines 16-21).
Regarding claim 19, the length of the inner member may be greater than the length of the two channel members (column 2, lines 22-25).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Basil Katcheves whose telephone number is (571)272-6846. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday, 8:00 am to 6:30pm EST.
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/BASIL S KATCHEVES/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3633
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