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 . 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 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.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election of Group I, claims 1-10 in the reply filed on 02/20/2026 is acknowledged. Because applicant did not distinctly and specifically point out the supposed errors in the restriction requirement, the election has been treated as an election without traverse (MPEP § 818.01(a)). Claims 11-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Group II, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.
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 “matching notch” of claim 4 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.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
Claims 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Gifford (U.S. Patent No. 6,546,833).
Regarding claim 1, Gifford teaches a product cutting system, comprising:
a cutting device (10) disposed at a cutting station for cutting a product (32); and
a conveying device (42) transporting the product to be cut to the cutting station (Figure 1), the cutting device is separate from the conveying device and can cooperate with a plurality of different conveying devices to cut a plurality of different products (Figure 1; Col. 5, Lines 44-61 noting different conveying systems may also be utilized as needed).
Regarding claim 2, Gifford teaches the product cutting system according to claim 1, wherein the cutting device includes: an installation frame (18)(Figure 2);
a pair of cutting dies (22,23,25) installed on the installation frame and capable of being opened and closed in a vertical direction to cut the product; and
a first driving device (24) installed on the installation frame to drive the pair of cutting dies to open and close (Figure 1; Col. 5, Lines 1-10).
Regarding claim 3, Gifford teaches the product cutting system according to claim 2, wherein the conveying device includes a conveying channel (46, 48) guiding the product along a predetermined path to the cutting station, the conveying channel is separable from the installation frame so that different products can be transported to the cutting station by replacing the conveying channel (Figure 1; Col. 5, Lines 44-61 noting different conveying systems may also be utilized as needed).
Regarding claim 4, Gifford teaches the product cutting system according to claim 3, wherein the pair of cutting dies includes a lower cutting die (20) fixed on the installation frame and an upper cutting die (26) movably installed on the installation frame, the conveying channel has a matching notch that matches with the lower cutting die, the lower cutting die is matched into the matching notch of the conveying channel so that the product can be transported to the lower cutting die (Figures 1-3; Col. 6, Lines 6-14; note Figure 2 allowing the conveying device through the support elements 60 within the overall cutting system to provide the matching elements for the lower cutting die)
Regarding claim 5, Gifford teaches the product cutting system according to claim 4, wherein the first driving device is connected to the upper cutting die and drives the upper cutting die to move in the vertical direction to cut the product at the lower cutting die (Figures 1-2 and Col. 5, Lines 1-10, Col. 6, Lines 6-14).
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 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gifford (U.S. Patent No. 6,546,833) in view of Miyakawa (U.S. Patent No. 2022/0098000).
Regarding claim 6, Gifford teaches the product cutting system according to claim 5, further comprising a first control device controlling the cutting system but does not provide the control device controlling an output force and an output speed of the first driving device to ensure that the upper cutting die can cut the product with a predetermined cutting force and a predetermined cutting speed.
Miyakawa teaches it is known in the art of product cutting systems with punches to provide a control unit (17) controlling an output force and an output speed of a driving device to ensure that a cutting member can cut the product with a predetermined cutting force and a predetermined cutting speed (Figure 1; Paragraphs 0038-0040, 0078-0079).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to have modified the device of Gifford to incorporate the teachings of Miyakawa to provide the control unit with predetermined cutting forces and speeds. In doing so, it allows for the workpiece to be appropriately cut as desired.
Claims 7-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gifford (U.S. Patent No. 6,546,833) in view of D’Agostino (U.S. Patent No. 3,992,966).
Regarding claim 7, Gifford teaches the product cutting system according to claim 4, but does not provide wherein a slot hole is formed in and vertically passes though the lower cutting die, the upper cutting die has a protrusion suitable for matching with the slot hole, a plurality of edges of the slot hole and the protrusion form cutting edges for cutting the product.
D’Agostino teaches it is known in the art of product cutting systems to incorporate an upper cutting element (11) and a lower cutting element (16) wherein a slot hole (68) is formed in and vertically passes though the lower cutting element, the upper cutting element (11) has a protrusion suitable for matching with the slot hole, a plurality of edges of the slot hole and the protrusion form cutting edges for cutting the product, thereby allowing for ejection of the workpiece through a channel (43)(Figures 2 and 3; Col. 4, Lines 1-40).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to have modified the device of Gifford to incorporate the teachings of D’Agostino to provide a slot hole is formed in and vertically passes though the lower cutting die, the upper cutting die has a protrusion suitable for matching with the slot hole, a plurality of edges of the slot hole and the protrusion form cutting edges for cutting the product. In doing so, it allows for the workpiece to be cut completely through and ejected therefrom.
Regarding claim 8, the modified device of Gifford teaches the product cutting system according to claim 7, wherein, when a portion to be cut of the product is moved and positioned into the slot hole of the lower cutting die, the protrusion of the upper cutting die is inserted into the slot hole of the lower cutting die to cut the portion to be cut of the product (D’Agostino Figure 3 noting the removal of product 43).
Regarding claim 9, the modified device of Gifford teaches the product cutting system according to claim 8, further comprising: a waste channel (43), an inlet of the waste channel is connected to an outlet of the slot hole of the lower cutting die to receive waste generated during cutting the product; and a waste recycling bin (note attachment of a bin/bag member via attached chain member 45) connected to the outlet of the waste channel to receive waste discharged from the waste channel, the waste channel and the waste recycling box are fixed to the installation frame (D’Agostino Figure 3; Col. 4, Lines 41-58).
Regarding claim 10, the modified device of Gifford teaches the product cutting system according to claim 9, wherein the installation frame includes (18):
a support body (28) extending to a predetermined height in the vertical direction;
a top plate (26) fixed to a top of the support body;
a bottom plate (12) fixed to a bottom of the support body; and
a support plate (16) fixed to a top surface of the bottom plate (12), the first driving device (24) is installed on the top plate, the upper cutting die is movably installed on the support body, the lower cutting die is fixed to the support plate (Gifford Figures 1 and 2), the waste channel and the waste recycling box are respectively fixed to the support plate and the bottom plate (Gifford Figure 2 and D’Agostino Figure 3).
Related Prior Art
Below is an analysis of the relevance of references cited but not used
- "892 cited references A-J on page 1 establish the state of the art with a variety punching devices with associated conveyor mechanisms.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to RICHARD D CROSBY JR whose telephone number is (571)272-8034. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:00-4:00.
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/RICHARD D CROSBY JR/ 03/12/2026Examiner, Art Unit 3724