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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant's election with traverse of Species D (Fig. 9) in the reply filed on 06 April 2026 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that there is no undue burden to consider all claims in a single application. This is not found persuasive because the claims to the different species present a search and/or examination burden due to the species requiring separate search queries and consideration of the prior art related to the distinct structural characteristics, such as the expansion member being an inner stretching mechanism (see Claim 1); a pulling mechanism (see Claim 5); and a pushing mechanism (see Claim 9). The prior art applicable to one species is likely not applicable to all three types of expansion mechanisms, thus creating a serious search and/or examination burden.
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
Claims 1-4 and 9-12 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 06 April 2026.
Claim Objections
Claims 6 and 8 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 6, line 2, “pushing rod” should read --the pushing rod--
Claim 6, line 4, “longitudinal chute” should read --the longitudinal chute--
Claim 8, line 4, “the other end” should read --another end--
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 5-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
In regards to claim 5, lines 7 and 11 recite “a cover body”. It is unclear if the claim is referring to the same cover body, or to different bodies of a cover. It appears Applicant should recite --the cover body-- in line 11. Appropriate explanation or correction is required.
Further regarding claim 5, the term “a parallel mechanism” in lines 21-22 is indefinite because it is unclear what parts of the recited structures are parallel. It appears Applicant should replace “forming a parallel mechanism” with --the left swing rod and the right swing rod being parallel to form a parallel mechanism--. Appropriate correction is required.
Claims 6-8 are rejected based on their respective dependencies.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5-8 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: The prior art of record does not anticipate or make obvious an expansion mechanism for a medal storage box having the combination of structural and functional limitations of Applicant’s claimed invention. Shimajiri (US Pat. No. 8,757,571 B2) teaches an expansion mechanism for a medal storage box, being linked directly to change between a storage posture and a display posture of the medal by exerting a single action force, comprising a storage box (10), which is provided with a lower box unit (12), with an interior of the lower box unit being an operating space, an upper surface of the operating space being a flat surface, and a rear side of the lower box unit being connected to a cover body (20) through a connection pivot (26); an expansion mechanism, which is assembled in the operating space, with a working plane of the expansion mechanism being parallel to a direction in which a cover body is opened and closed, the expansion mechanism being provided with an extension strut (64), an outer end of the extension strut being connected outward with a support structure (60), and the expansion mechanism being a pulling mechanism which further includes a left swing rod (52) and a right swing rod (54) through a left pivot (42) and a right pivot (55) respectively, forming a parallel mechanism; a longitudinal chute (74), which is parallel to and assembled with the extension strut; and a radial slide bar (25) is slidingly disposed in the longitudinal chute in a radial direction.
Shimajiri does not teach a bottom fixing rod which is fixed on a side of the operating space, with two ends of the bottom fixing rod being connected to the left swing rod and the right swing rod through a left pivot and a right pivot respectively; a free end of the left swing rod and the right swing rod being connected to two ends of a floating lever through a left connection point and a right connection point respectively, forming a parallel mechanism; a pushing rod, an end of which is coaxially connected at the right connection point, with the other end of the pushing rod being connected to an inner end of the extension strut through a variable connection point; and the radial slide bar coaxially assembled at the left connection point.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Please see the PTO-892 for additional prior art related to the Applicant’s disclosed invention.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to STANTON L KRYCINSKI whose telephone number is (571)270-5381. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 10:00AM-5:00PM ET.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jonathan Liu can be reached at (571)272-8227. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/Stanton L Krycinski/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3631
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