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 .
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.
Claim(s) 1-3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Tolley (GB2539505 A1, cited by applicant).
With respect to Claim 1, Tolley discloses a clamping tool 10,20 for separating a manway cover 12 from an associated manway flange (portion of 18 that faces or contacts the inner surface of member 12) of a manway, the manway cover having inward (in contact with surface of 18) and outward surfaces (surface of 12 facing member 40), the manway flange having rear and front flange surfaces, the front flange surface of the manway flange and the inward surface of the manway cover defining opposing portions when in a closed state (see Fig. 1), the clamping tool comprising: a pair of clamps, one of the clamps 26 removably securable to the manway flange and the other of the clamps 30,42 removably securable to the manway cover; and a frame 52 secured between the two clamps, the frame having portions 28,58 interconnecting the two clamps to be moveable relative to each other; wherein each of the clamps have respective inner 48,66 and outer jaws (42 and unnumbered portion of 26 facing 66,68); wherein the inner jaws of each of the clamps are configured to be positionable between the opposing portions of the manway flange and the manway (in Fig. 7, jaws 42,48,68 are between opposing portion of the flange and manway cover) cover to retain the manway cover in position relative to the manway flange and permit selective separation therefrom.
With respect to Claim 2, Tolley discloses the tool of claim 1, wherein one of the clamps comprises a cover clamp 22,42, the inner jaw 48 of the cover clamp being configured to be removably securable to the inward surface of the manway cover (see for example, Fig. 5, wherein members 48,50 are removably secured to portion 14 of cover 12); wherein the other of the clamps comprises a manway flange clamp 26, the inner jaw of the manway flange clamp configured to be removably securable to the front flange surface of the manway flange (see for example, Fig. 7, wherein clamp 26,66,68 is removably secured to member 18).
With respect to Claim 3, Tolley discloses the tool of claim 2, wherein the outer jaw 42 of the cover clamp is configured to be removably securable to the outward surface (at 16) of the manway cover; and wherein the outer jaw of the manway flange clamp is configured to be removably securable to the rear flange surface of the manway flange (see Fig. 7, for example).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-19 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 20-22 are allowed over the prior art of record.
Claim 4 is allowed over the prior art of record because the prior art of record fails to teach or fairly suggest the entire combination of elements set forth including a manway in which the manway cover and the manway flange have respective circumferences and, in the closed state of the manway, the manway flange and the manway cover are secured to each other by a plurality of manway cover fasteners received through corresponding, circumferentially spaced holes of a predetermined size, the holes passing through the manway flange and the manway cover; wherein the clamps of the clamping tool are removably securable to the manway cover and the manway flange, respectively, by clamp fasteners configured to engage the holes of predetermined size of the manway cover and the manway flange.
Claims 5-12 are allowed by virtue of their dependence from claim 4.
Claim 13 is allowed over the prior art of record because the prior art of record fails to teach or fairly suggest the entire combination of elements set forth including the frame includes a davit, the davit having a mast member and an arm extending orthogonally to the mast member, the mast being rotatable about an axis of rotation adjacent the manway, the arm extending adjacent the manway to swing out from the manway when the mast is suitably rotated; wherein the cover clamp is connected to the davit arm; and wherein the manway flange clamp is connected to the mast.
Claim 14 is allowed over the prior art of record because the prior art of record fails to teach or fairly suggest the entire combination of elements set forth including a hub defining an axis of rotation adjacent the manway when the tool is secured thereto, the frame further comprising a pair of arms extending radially from the hub to attach to respective ones of the jaws, whereby the clamps are movable arcuately about the axis and relative to each other when the manway cover is opened and closed relative to the manway flange.
Claims 15-17 are allowed by virtue of their dependence from claim 14.
Claim 18 is allowed over the prior art of record because the prior art of record fails to teach or fairly suggest the entire combination of elements set forth including manways having manways flanges and manway covers of predetermined diameters selected from the group consisting of 16, 18, 20, and 24 inches, the predetermined diameters terminating in corresponding, arcuate, circumferential edges, the clamping tool comprising: four of the pairs of clamps, each of the pairs configured to be securable to a corresponding one of the manway covers and the manway flanges having the predetermined diameters; wherein the inner jaws of each of the pairs of clamps have transverse, arcuate, jaw portions extending over associated arc-lengths, the arc-lengths having radii corresponding to respective ones of the predetermined diameters to engage the corresponding arcuate circumferential edges of the manway covers and the manway flanges of the predetermined diameters.
Claim 19 is allowed over the prior art of record because the prior art of record fails to teach or fairly suggest the entire combination of elements set forth including the manway is oriented substantially vertically, wherein the frame comprises a base portion with a davit mast rotatably secured thereto and defining an axis of rotation adjacent the manway when the tool is secured to the manway, the frame having a davit arm connect to the davit mast and extending outwardly from the axis of rotation; the tool further comprising a lift assembly with a length-adjustable interconnector connected to the davit arm, the lift assembly having at least two arms connectable to the manway cover at respective arcuately spaced locations; wherein the tool comprises three of the clamps, the first and second clamps comprising manway cover clamps, the third claim comprising a manway flange clamp, the frame interconnecting the manway cover clamps to be moveable relative to the manway flange clamp; wherein the manway cover clamps are disposed at respective ends of the arms of the lift assembly and are removably securable to the manway flange; wherein the manway flange clamp is disposed at the base portion of the frame and is removably securable to the manway flange; wherein the interconnector is configured so that selective shortening thereof by a predetermined amount lifts the manway cover relative to the manway flange sufficiently to permit rotation of the davit mast to move the manway cover from over the manway flange to open the manway.
Claim 20 is allowed over the prior art of record because the prior art of record fails to teach or fairly suggest the entire combination of elements set forth including a plurality of manway flange clamps removably securable to the manway flange at respective arcuate locations about the manway flange, the manway flange clamps having inner jaws with lip portions insertable between the opposing portions of the manway flange and the manway cover; a lift assembly having arms terminating in respective fingers, the respective fingers being insertable between the opposing portions of the manway flange and the manway cover at respective arcuate locations about manway cover; a frame interconnecting the manway flange clamps and the lifting assembly; wherein the frame comprises a base portion with a davit mast rotatably secured thereto and defining an axis of rotation adjacent the manway when the tool is secured thereto, the frame having a davit arm connected to the davit mast and extending outwardly from the axis of rotation; wherein the lift assembly includes a length-adjustable interconnector connected to the davit arm, wherein the manway flange clamp is disposed on the base portion of the frame; wherein the interconnector is configured so that selective shortening thereof by a predetermined amount lifts the manway cover relative to the manway flange sufficiently to permit rotation of the davit mast to move the manway cover from over the manway flange to open the manway; an extraction system secured to the frame and positionable above the manway when the manway flange clamps are secured to the manway flange, whereby the extraction system may be secured to personnel entering the manway after the manway has been opened.
Claim 21 is allowed over the prior art of record because the prior art of record fails to teach or fairly suggest the entire combination of elements and steps set forth including inserting first clamp fasteners through manway flange holes of a predetermined size formed on a rear surface of the manway flange, the insertion occurring without altering the predetermined size of the manway flange holes; inserting a lip portion of the manway flange clamp between a front flange surface of the manway flange and an inward surface of the manway cover; and tightening the manway flange clamp to clamp the manway flange; wherein the step of removably securing the manway cover clamp includes the steps of: inserting second clamp fasteners through manway cover holes of a predetermined size formed on an outward surface of the manway cover, the insertion occurring without altering the predetermined size of the manway cover holes; inserting a lip portion of the manway cover clamp between the inward surface of the manway cover and the front flange surface of the manway flange; and tightening the manway cover clamp to clamp the manway cover.
Claim 22 is allowed by virtue of its dependence from claim 21.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The cited prior art shows various manway cover removal tools.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to EMMANUEL M MARCELO whose telephone number is (571)272-6949. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 6:00 am-3:30pm EST.
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/EMMANUEL M MARCELO/
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3654
/emm/