DETAILED ACTION
Application Status
Claims 1-20 are pending and have been examined in this application.
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 § 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 4-10 and 19-20 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 claims 4-5, 8, and 19, the term, “the rear suspension” lacks proper antecedent basis.
In claim 7, the term, “the mount” lacks proper antecedent basis.
In claim 9, the recitation of a “third portion” and “third surface” makes it unclear if the applicant intended to also recite a first and second portion and a first and second surface.
Regarding claim 10, it is unclear to what degree an arm must be bent to be considered, “sufficiently bent”.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-3 and 11-18 are allowed.
Claims 4-10 and 19-20 would be allowable if rewritten 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 and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Regarding claims 1, 11, and 19, the closest prior art made of record is Laugen (US 20240043076 A1). Laugen discloses a snowmobile (30, Fig. 1) fitted with an ice scratcher (33) assembly comprising: a coiled structure (83, Fig. 7), a scratcher end (38) connected to the coiled structure via an arm (63). The “hand structure” of claims 1, 11, and 19 is known at least from Bedard (US 20150034403 A1) and is illustrated at 166 in Figure 5.
None of the cited art teaches or renders obvious the hand structure being interconnected to a second portion of the base by a joint, wherein the joint is configured to receive at least one rotating component that when coupled to the at least one joint provides a rotational axis that is colinear with the first axis of the at least one joint.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure and discloses ice scratchers for snowmobiles and vehicles having means for removing ice from roads in general.
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/MATTHEW D LEE/ Examiner, Art Unit 3617
/JOHN OLSZEWSKI/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3617
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