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 .
Status of Application
This communication is responsive to the applicant's application filed 08/13/2024.
Claims 1-20 are pending.
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, 8, 9, 10, 18, and 19-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tian et al (CN 209852158, cited in IDS filed 03/12/2025; hereinafter, Tian) in view of McGregor et al (US-4,098,370, hereinafter, McGregor).
Regarding claim 1, 9, and 19, Tian discloses a vehicle, comprising a vehicle-mounted restroom that including walls for the vehicle mounted restroom (see Figs. 1 and 3, para [0034], or para [0039] in translation). However, Tian does not disclose the vehicle-mounted restroom including a resonance sound producing device.
McGregor discloses a resonance sound-producing device (see Figs. 1-3), including one or more resonance drivers (40) embedded within walls (see embodiment of Fig. 5), the one or more resonance drivers being configured to emit sound by driving the walls to resonate sound emitted into the wall (see col. 4, lines 29-45); and a processing device (20, 30; 70) configured to perform controlling at least one of the one or more resonance drivers (40) in the resonance sound-producing device to drive at least one corresponding wall to emit sound, thereby masking sounds within the wall (see Figs. 1,and 2; col. 4, lines 29-45; col. 4, line 58-col. 5, line 40).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effect filing date of the claimed invention to modify the vehicle-mounted restroom of Tian with a resonance sound-producing device, as taught by McGregor, in order to provide an improved vehicle-mounted restroom that is capable of masking and suppressing the unpleasant noise presented within the vehicle-mounted restroom.
Regarding claims 8 and 18, It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effect filing date of the claimed invention to utilizes multiple resonance drivers or speakers having specific mechanical arrangement for the resonance drivers or speakers, such as an array, for the improved vehicle-mounted restroom taught by the combinations of Tian and McGregor in order to further provide better noise masking function.
Regarding claim 10, the wall discloses by Tian in Fig. 2, and wall structure member 50 discloses by McGregor are soundproofing material. See also Fig. 5 of McGregor.
Regarding claim 20, see Fig. 5, col. 6, line 53-col. 7, line 15 of McGregor.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-6, and 11-17 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Branham, Marti, Uetabira et al, Krasnov et al, Horrall et al, Borgmann et al, and Orfield disclose various sound masking systems having acoustic signal control that is pertinent to the instant application.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to XU MEI whose telephone number is (571)272-7523. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday 10-6:30 est.
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/XU MEI/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2695 07/23/2026
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