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 .
This communication is in response to application No. 18/820,615, filed on 8/30/2024. Claims 1-10 are currently pending and have been examined. Claims 1 and 9 have been rejected as follows. Claims 2-8 and 10 are objected to.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
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 and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kojima (US 2007/0278814).
Regarding claim 1, Kojima discloses a walk-in device for a vehicle seat, the walk-in device comprising a rear link (32, Fig. 1-2) having one end (top end of 32, Fig. 1-2) connected to a seat cushion frame (1a, Fig. 1-2) by a first hinge shaft (top fulcra of 32, Fig. 1-2), and another end (4a, Fig. 1-2) connected to an upper rail (52, Fig. 1-2) by a second hinge shaft (4a, Fig. 1-2), the rear link being capable of rotating in a first unlocking direction about the second hinge shaft ([0035]); and an unlocking device (6, 8, Fig. 1 & 4; [0043]) having at least one bracket (6/8, Fig. 1-2) that is configured to operate in conjunction with a rotational operation of the rear link (via 7), wherein the at least one bracket (6, Fig. 4) is configured to press a locking pin (61, Fig. 4; [0047], lines 20-26; 61 to 55 to 57c, Fig. 5b; [0048], lines 25-32) in a state in which the at least one bracket (6, Fig. 4) is elastically supported (broadly interpreted as biasing of 9, [0047], lines 29-39) by an elastic member to implement an unlocked state.
Regarding claim 9, Kojima further discloses wherein a front link (31, Fig. 1-2; [0035], lines 1-4) is disposed at an interval from the rear link (32, Fig. 1-2), one end (top end of 31, Fig. 1-2) of the front link (31, Fig. 1-2) is connected to the seat cushion frame (1a, Fig. 1-2), and another end (3a, Fig. 1-2) of the front link is connected to the upper rail (52, Fig. 1-2).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-8 and 10 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
The primary reason for indication of allowable subject matter in claim 2 is the combination including an unlocking device of a multi-bracket configuration having the first bracket connection to a second bracket and the inclusion of “a third bracket elastically supported by a second elastic member and configured to press the locking pin while rotating in a second unlocking direction by being pressed by the second bracket.” The closest prior art of Kojima discloses an unlocking device comprising a first bracket (8, Fig. 4) having one end rotatable in the first unlocking direction; and a second bracket (6, Fig. 4) having one end (6b, Fig. 4) connected to the another end (8a, Fig. 4) of the first bracket (8, Fig. 4), the second bracket being rotatable in the first unlocking direction (para [0047]) together with the first bracket. However, Kojima does not expressly disclose the multi-bracket combination where the first bracket is being pressed by the rear link (32) supported by a first elastic member and including a third bracket as claimed that is elastically supported by a second elastic member and configured to press the locking pin while rotating in a second unlocking direction. Kojima’s second bracket (6) is configured to press the locking pin (61, Fig. 4 & 5). Applicant’s rear link rotation to drive a three multi-bracket unlocking device presses the locking pin more completely. The third bracket presses the locking pin downward while being elastically supported so that the locking pin is driven to a fully released position, making the rail unlock more completely and move more smoothly. Such limitations, in combination with the rest of the limitations of the claim, are not disclosed or suggested by the prior art of record. Claims 3-7 and 10 contain allowable subject matter by virtue of dependency as they depend from claim 2.
The primary reason for indication of allowable subject matter in claim 8 is the rear link and bracket configuration in combination with a restraining device including “a gear portion is defined on an outer-diameter portion of the one end of the rear link…a restraining device having a restraining gear, wherein the gear portion is configured to implement a restrained state of the rear link when the restraining gear of the restraining device engages with the gear portion, and wherein the gear portion and the restraining gear are configured to be disengaged when the restraining device performs a release operation, and the rear link is configured to rotate about the second hinge shaft in the first unlocking direction by a rotation device that elastically supports the rear link when the gear portion and the restraining gear are disengaged.” It would not be possible to modify the rear link (32) and restraining device (4, 4a, 43) of Kojima to include the link gear portion and restraining gear engagement (for example, as disclosed in Lee et al, KR10-2022-0143298 or Hwang et al US 2022/0332222) without destroying how the Kojima reference operates. Such limitations, in combination with the rest of the limitations of the claim, are not disclosed or suggested by the prior art of record.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Kim (US 2024/0336170) discloses a walk-in vehicle seat device with a bracket (90) located above a locking pin (111) operably connected to a seat rail unlocking device (110, para [0056]). Yamada et al (US Patent No. 9,227,528) discloses a seat slide for a vehicle including a memory pin engaging with a lower rail in a protruding state and disengaging in a retracted state.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Denise L Esquivel whose telephone number is (703)756-5825. The examiner can normally be reached Monday- Thursday 7:30 am-5:00 pm, alternate Fridays 7:30 am-4:00 pm.
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/D.L.E./Examiner, Art Unit 3612
/AMY R WEISBERG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3612
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