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 .
Priority
Examiner acknowledges claims to priority under 35 U.S.C. 120 or 121 for U.S. application 18808520 to U.S. provisional application serial No. 63533691 filed on 8/20/2023.
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.
Claims 1-2, 4-7 and 10-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Maher (US 4458415).
Regarding claim 1, Maher teaches a tool comprising:
a shaft (14) having a top end (bottom end in Figure 1) and a bottom end (top end in Figure 1);
a handle (handle attached to 16) attached to the bottom end of the shaft (see Figure 1), the handle having a bottom side (top side in Figure 1) and a top side (bottom side in Figure 1);
a blade holder (holder for 12) attached to the top end of the shaft (see Figure 1), the blade holder being configured to receive a cutting blade (12);
a slide hammer (15/15a) having a bottom side (top side in Figure 1), a top side (bottom side in Figure 1), and a through hole (19) extending from the bottom side of the slide hammer to the top side of the slide hammer (see Figures 2-4), the slide hammer being configured to slide along the shaft between the top side of the handle and a bottom side of the blade holder (see Figures 1-4).
Regarding claim 2, Maher teaches the handle is cylindrical and includes protrusions (protrusions on the two sides at 18, see figure 2) configured to facilitate a user's grip of the tool (which can be grip by the user, see Figure 2).
Regarding claim 4, Maher teaches the top side of the handle extends radially beyond a middle portion of the handle, the top side of the handle including a first striking surface (16, see Figure 2).
Regarding claim 5, Maher teaches the blade holder is cylindrical and includes a mounting face (at the cylindrical connection for the holder of 12, see Figure 1).
Regarding claim 6, Maher teaches the cutting blade is configured to extend radially from the blade holder (see Figure 1), the cutting blade having at least one cutting edge and a cutting tip (tip of 13 and cutting edge of 13, see Figure 1).
Regarding claim 7, Maher teaches the cutting blade is configured to extend radially from the blade holder when received by the blade holder (see Figure 1).
Regarding claim 10, Maher teaches the slide hammer is cylindrical and includes protrusions (22 and 20) configured to facilitate a user's grip of the slide hammer (see Figure 3).
Regarding claim 11, Maher teaches the bottom side of the slide hammer is a second striking surface (top 22 of 15a, see Figure 3).
Regarding claim 12, Maher teaches the top side of the slide hammer is a third striking surface (bottom 20 of 15a, see Figure 3).
Regarding claim 13, Maher teaches the third striking surface is radially wider than the second striking surface (see Figure 3).
Regarding claim 14, Maher teaches the slide hammer is configured to slide along the shaft such that the second striking surface of the slide hammer strikes the first striking surface of the handle and the third striking surface of the slide hammer strikes the bottom side of the blade holder (see Figures 3-4).
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 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Maher (US 4458415) in view of Dvorak (US 5699864).
Regarding claim 3, Maher teaches all elements of the current invention as set forth in claim 2 above.
Maher fails to teach the bottom side of the handle extends radially beyond a middle portion of the handle, the bottom side of the handle including a conical tip facing outward from the bottom side of the handle.
Dvorak teaches a slide hammer tool with tools on both ends, including the bottom side of the handle extends radially beyond a middle portion of the handle (28 on top, with 34 extends out, see Figure 7), the bottom side of the handle including a conical tip (26) facing outward from the bottom side of the handle (see Figure 7).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Maher to change the tool head, as taught by Dvorak, in order to use the tool to set up a tent (abstract of Dvorak).
Claims 8-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Maher (US 4458415) in view of Weaver (US 20210277674 A1).
Regarding claims 8-9, Maher teaches all elements of the current invention as set forth in claim 6 above.
Maher fails to clearly teach the cutting blade is configured to be affixed to the blade holder by at least one fastener (as required by claim 8), the at least one fastener is a nut and bolt (as required by claim 9).
Weaver teaches a tool slide hammer tool with the cutting blade (200) is configured to be affixed to the blade holder by at least one fastener (see Figures 6=10), the at least one fastener is a nut and bolt (paragraph 0048, see Figures 6-10).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the device of Maher to use a nut and bolt, as taught by Weaver, in order to better secure the blade (see Figures 6-10 of Weaver).
Conclusion
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/LIANG DONG/Examiner, Art Unit 3724 1/07/2026