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 .
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Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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) 1-4, 10-11, 32-33 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shimizu US 20140150505 and further in view of Cho US 20050104380.
Regarding claim 1, Shimizu teaches a latch assembly comprising:
a base (20);
a paddle (73) rotatably connected to the base to pivot about a paddle axis (through 75), the paddle having a drive surface (77) located at a position offset (see fig1) from the paddle axis, the drive surface being movable, upon rotation of the paddle about the paddle axis, through a first travel path (see fig11) extending between a first drive surface position (closed) and a second drive surface position (open position); and
a catch assembly (50) connected to the base, the catch assembly having:
a catch (51) rotatably connected to the base to rotate about an axis (through 52) that is generally perpendicular to the paddle axis (see fig1), the catch pinion comprising a plate (can be considered 51 fig4a) facing the paddle and having a concave recess (interior space shown in fig4a which 55 and 52 protrudes from and encases, see annotated figure for clarification) to receive at least a portion of the drive surface when the drive surface moves between the first drive surface position and the second drive surface position, and
an activation surface (55) extending from the plate at a location offset (see fig4a) from the axis, the activation surface being movable, upon rotation of the catch about the axis, through a second travel path extending between a first activation surface position (when paddle is not actuated) adjacent the first drive surface position and a second activation surface position adjacent (when paddle is actuated) the second drive surface position, wherein the second travel path intersects the first travel path such that the drive surface can contact at least a portion of the activation surface throughout the first travel path.
Shimizu does not teach the catch is a catch pinion.
Cho teaches a latch assembly wherein the catch (30) is a catch pinion (pinion is defined as a small gear, therefore 30 can be considered a pinion).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to modify the catch of Shimizu to be a catch pinion (thus having gear), as taught by Cho, in order to improve the efficiency of the mechanism (paragraph 17, Cho)
Regarding claim 2, Shimizu in view of Cho teaches the latch assembly of claim 1, further comprising at least one release member (Shimizu 60,61) movably mounted to the base to move between a first release member position (closed) and a second release member position (open), wherein the catch pinion is operatively connected to the at least one release member to move the at least one release member from the first release member position to the second release member position upon rotation of the catch pinion from the first activation surface position to the second activation surface position. (Shimizu paragraph 53)
Regarding claim 3, Shimizu in view of Cho further teaches the latch assembly of claim 2, further comprising a release member return spring (Shimizu, 58) connected between the base and the at least one release member (Shimizu, fig1) and configured to generate a restoring force to move the at least one release member towards the first release member position (closed/ engaged with engagement holes, paragraph 53, Shimizu)
Regarding claim 4, Shimizu in view of Cho further teaches the latch assembly of claim 3, wherein the release member return spring is connected between the base and the catch pinion (fig1).
Regarding claim 10, Shimizu in view of Cho further teaches latch assembly of claim 1, further comprising a lock (Shimizu 90) movably mounted to the paddle and comprising a first lock surface (Shimizu 95) that is selectively movable to a locking position at which the lock engages the catch pinion to prevent rotation of the catch pinion in at least one direction about the pinion axis. (Shimizu fig1)
Regarding claim 11, Shimizu in view of Cho further teaches the latch assembly of claim 1, wherein the activation surface comprises a post (Shimizu body of 55, fig1) extending from the pinion plate.
Regarding claim 32, Shimizu in view of Cho further teaches a door assembly (Shimizu) comprising a door (Shimizu, lid) and the latch assembly of claim 1 coupled to the door. (Shimizu paragraph 1-2)
Regarding claim 33, Shimizu in view of Cho further teaches the door assembly of claim 32, the door being an automobile glove box door. (Shimizu paragraph 2)
Annotated Figure
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Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5,12-13 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 14-15,17,19-30,34-35 are allowed.
Regarding claim 14, references do not teach the lock contacts and engages the catch pinion. The lock (95) of Shimizu does not contact it’s catch so even in combination with Cho (teaches catch pinion), the references do not read on amended claim 1. Examiner can find no reason to combine or modify references without the use of impermissible hindsight.
Regarding claims 5 and 21, references of record do not teach that the chamber receives at least a portion of a release member, the release member in Shimizu is located out of said chamber (fig9). Examiner can find no reason to combine or modify references of record without the use of impermissible hindsight.
Regarding claim 12, since reference figures are not drawn to scale, it would be considered hindsight to assume the two distances in the Shimizu reference are different from each other. The pinion axis and the activation surface remain in the same distance apart from one another (Shimizu fig4a), therefore relative to the pinion axis, which runs parallel to the axis of the component of the activation surface, there does not seem to be an apparent change in distance between the two activation surface positions. Examiner can find no reason to combine or modify references of record without the use of impermissible hindsight.
Regarding claims 24, 27 references of record do not teach an additional drive gear as well as catch pinion as well as independent claim language.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments, regarding claim 1, filed 04/13/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. An annotated figure has been added to clarify what is the concave recess of Shimizu. It shows that the drive surface (77) is ‘received’ by said recess. Rejection maintained.
Amended claim 14 overcomes the previous prior art rejection.
Previous nonstatutory double patenting rejection of claims 1,2,10,14,15,17,20,24,25 is overcome by approved terminal disclaimer filed 04/13/2026.
Current status of claims:
Claims 1-4, 10-11, 32-33 are rejected.
Claims 5,12,13 remain objected to.
Claims 14-15, 17,19-30,34-35 are allowed.
Claims 6-9, 16,18,31 remain withdrawn.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Art is related to latch assemblies.
Related but not relied upon prior art: US 10738511, US 8141398, US 1964066.
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/F.F.A./
Examiner
Art Unit 3675
/CHRISTINE M MILLS/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3675
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