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 .
DETAILED ACTION
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 18, 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Davies US 9065203 B2.
In reference to claim 18, Davies teaches a method of wedging an electrical coupling between a pickup truck (see fig. 1, 2) or car and a trailer, the electrical coupling including a female socket (102; fig. 9) on the pickup truck or car and a male plug (202; fig. 9) extending from the trailer, the method comprising: pushing a wedge (200; fig. 5, 9) onto the male plug (see fig. 9) such that the male plug extends beyond the wedge (see fig. 9 where the rear end of the male plug extends beyond rear portion of 200); then pushing the male plug into the female socket to matingly connect terminals and pins on the male plug and in the female socket; then pushing the wedge into the female socket until a snug fit is established between the male plug and the female socket.
In reference to claim 20, Davies teaches the method of claim 18 wherein the wedge is pushed further into the female socket when the fit between the male plug and the female socket loosens.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 19 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: The prior art of record does not teach or suggest the combination of elements including:
(Claim 1) a flexible finger residing in one of the gaps.
(Claim 11) the wedge comprising: first and second spaced apart semi-circular collar portions having forward and rearward ends.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TRAVIS SLOAN CHAMBERS whose telephone number is (571)272-6813. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30a.m.-5:00p.m..
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, Abdullah A Riyami can be reached at 571-270-3119. 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.
/TRAVIS S CHAMBERS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2831 09/26/2026
Prosecution Insights