CTNF 18/830,289 CTNF 89205 DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA. Specification 06-14 AIA Applicant is reminded of the proper content of an abstract of the disclosure. A patent abstract is a concise statement of the technical disclosure of the patent and should include that which is new in the art to which the invention pertains. The abstract should not refer to purported merits or speculative applications of the invention and should not compare the invention with the prior art. If the patent is of a basic nature, the entire technical disclosure may be new in the art, and the abstract should be directed to the entire disclosure. If the patent is in the nature of an improvement in an old apparatus, process, product, or composition, the abstract should include the technical disclosure of the improvement. The abstract should also mention by way of example any preferred modifications or alternatives. Where applicable, the abstract should include the following: (1) if a machine or apparatus, its organization and operation; (2) if an article, its method of making; (3) if a chemical compound, its identity and use; (4) if a mixture, its ingredients; (5) if a process, the steps. Extensive mechanical and design details of an apparatus should not be included in the abstract. The abstract should be in narrative form and generally limited to a single paragraph within the range of 50 to 150 words in length. See MPEP § 608.01(b) for guidelines for the preparation of patent abstracts. The abstract of the disclosure is objected to because it lists the purported merits of the invention. A corrected abstract of the disclosure is required and must be presented on a separate sheet, apart from any other text. See MPEP § 608.01(b). Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status. 07-07-aia AIA 07-07 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 – 07-08-aia AIA (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. 07-15 AIA Claim s 12-15 and 17-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102( a)(1 ) as being anticipated by White et al. (U.S. PGPub 2008/0317559) . Claim 12: White et al. discloses a flexible drill bit assembly (10) for a power drill (15) comprising: a flexible shaft (11 - paragraph 37) extending from a first end (13) to an opposing second end (16); a driving tool engaging shank (12) detachably (by set screws 17 - Id.) coupled to the first end of the flexible shaft, the driving tool engaging shank is configured to detachably couple to a power drill (Id.); and a tool head receiver (14) coupled to the second end of the flexible shaft, the tool head receiver is configured to detachably couple to a tool head (18 - Id.). Claim 13 : The driving tool engaging shank (12) comprises an endpiece (25) and a receiver opening opposite the endpiece (unlabeled but evident in Fig. 2), the endpiece defining a hexagonal cross-section (paragraph 37). Claim 14: The driving tool engaging shank (12) comprises a concave recess between the endpiece and the receiver opening (unlabeled but evident in Fig. 2 - noting this is a feature common in standard hexagonal drill bits and used for detent locking within certain receivers). Claim 15: The receiver opening defines a cylindrical opening (evident in Fig. 2, noting the end 13 of shaft 11 is configured to be received therein as described in paragraph 37). Claim 17: White et al. discloses a flexible drill bit assembly (10) for a power drill (15) comprising: a flexible shaft (11 - paragraph 37) extending from a first end (13) to an opposing second end (16); a driving tool engaging shank (12) coupled to the first end of the flexible shaft, the driving tool engaging shank is configured to detachably couple to a power drill (Id.); a tool head receiver (14) detachably (by set screws 17 - Id.) coupled to the second end of the flexible shaft, the tool head receiver is configured to detachably couple to a tool head (18 - Id.). Claim 18: The tool head receiver (14) comprises an endpiece (20) and a receiver opening (opening of 21) opposite the endpiece, the endpiece defining a hexagonal cross-section opening (23 - paragraph 38). Claim 19: The receiver opening defines a cylindrical opening (implied by its receiving the cylindrical rod - paragraph 38 and Figs. 2 and 4). Claim 20: The tool head receiver (14) comprises a channel (21) that extends away from the receiver opening (Fig. 4), and a fastener hole (for set screws 17) in fluid communication with the receiver opening via the channel (unlabeled but evident in Figs. 2-4) . Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 07-20-aia AIA 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. 07-21-aia AIA Claim 16 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over White et al . Claim 16: The driving tool engaging shank comprises a channel that extends away from the receiver opening (implied in that the end 13 must be received by some depth beyond the immediate opening), and a fastener hole (for set screws). It is unclear from Fig. 2 if the fastener holes are in fluid communication with the receiver opening via the channel. However, Fig. 4 depicts such a structure for the similarly structured head 14. It thus would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have provided a similar channel and hole structure in the shank 12 in order to have allowed for the set screws 17 to engage the shaft 11 for secure assembly . 07-21-aia AIA Claim s 1-2, 6-8, 10-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over White et al. in view of Klein et al. (U.S. PGPub 2004/0173059) Claim 1: White et al. discloses a flexible drill bit assembly (10) for a power drill (15) comprising: a flexible shaft (11 - paragraph 37) extending from a first end (13) to an opposing second end (16); a driving tool engaging shank (12) coupled to the first end of the flexible shaft, the driving tool engaging shank is configured to detachably couple to a power drill (Id.); and a tool head receiver (14) coupled to the second end of the flexible shaft, the tool head receiver is configured to detachably couple to a tool head (18 - Id.). White et al. does not disclose a collar defining an interior channel through which the flexible shaft extends, wherein the collar is axially slidable along the flexible shaft, and wherein the collar is rotatable with respect to the flexible shaft. However, Klein teaches a similar drill bit extension shaft having a collar (23) defining an interior channel through which a shaft (10) extends (implied in that the collar 23 slips over the shaft 10 - paragraph 13), wherein the collar is axially slidable along the flexible shaft (Id.), and wherein the collar is rotatable with respect to the flexible shaft (e.g. claim 5). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have provided a collar as taught by Klein et al. in order to have given the user a means for controlling the shaft of the assembly (paragraph 18). Claim 2: Klein further teaches that the collar freely rotates with respect to the flexible shaft (as cited above) such that lateral forces can be applied by a user to the flexible shaft via the collar while the flexible shaft is in use rotating (implied by its function to allow the user to “control” the shaft in use. Furthermore there is no reason to believe the collar would not be capable of serving this function). Claims 6-8: Klein further teaches that the length of the shaft 10 (analogous to the shaft of White) can be made longer or shorter to suit a particular need (paragraph 12). To the extent that the ratio of the length of the collar to the length of the shaft is dependent on at least one of these two variables (i.e. altering one alters the ratio), and assuming a consistent collar length regardless of shaft length, then the ratio of collar length to shaft length is a variable dependent on at least the shaft length, where the shaft length (and thus the length ratio) can be selected based on the needs of the tool. It thus would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have chosen the claimed ratio based on the needed length of the shaft. Claim 10: Given that the flexible shaft is specifically intended to be flexible while the collar is a relatively short handle or gripping member that is not, it is implicit or obvious that the collar is more resistant to bending than the flexible shaft. Additionally, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have used a more bending-resistant material for the collar since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select a known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice. In re Leshin , 277 F.2d 197, 125 USPQ 416 (CCPA 1960). Please note that in the instant application, (paragraph 50), Applicant has not disclosed any criticality for the material or relative bendability of the collar. Claim 11: The collar comprises a sleeve (generally the body of 23 or a central portion thereof) and tube ends (the ends thereof) coupled (the instant application notes that “coupled” may include an integral/unitary body configuration - paragraph 77) to both ends of the sleeve, each of the tube ends comprising an opening through which the flexible shaft extends (evident from the passage of the tube 10 therethrough) . 07-22-aia AIA Claim s 3-5 and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over White et al. and Klein et al . as applied to claim s 1 and 8 above, and further in view of Courvoisier (WO2011080104) . White et al. and Klein et al. are silent with regard to the ratio of collar diameter to shaft diameter. However, Courvoisier teaches a flexible shaft bit/driver assembly wherein a ratio of collar (handle) diameter to flexible shaft diameter is between 4:1 and 2:1, most preferably around 3:1 (pages 3 and 8). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have used such a ratio since it facilitates gripping (page 8) or would improve ergonomics of the tool, noting “[i]n the case where the claimed ranges ‘overlap or lie inside ranges disclosed by the prior art’ a prima facie case of obviousness exists”. In re Wertheim, 541 F.2d 257, 191 USPQ 90 (CCPA 1976) . Conclusion 07-96 AIA The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. U.S. PGPub 2011/0280676 and 2007/0264093 are similar to White et al. U.S. Patents 6,257,808, 3,016,073, 2,958,349, and 2,747,384, U.S. PGPubs 2015/0016906 and 20070053754, FR1545394, and DE102005007228, disclose additional examples of flexible shaft assemblies for drilling tools, including some with handles or gripping portions on the shaft. Contact Information Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MATTHEW P TRAVERS whose telephone number is (571)272-3218. The examiner can normally be reached 10:00AM-6:30PM. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Sunil K. Singh can be reached at 571-272-3460. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /Matthew P Travers/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3726 Application/Control Number: 18/830,289 Page 2 Art Unit: 3726 Application/Control Number: 18/830,289 Page 3 Art Unit: 3726 Application/Control Number: 18/830,289 Page 4 Art Unit: 3726 Application/Control Number: 18/830,289 Page 5 Art Unit: 3726 Application/Control Number: 18/830,289 Page 6 Art Unit: 3726 Application/Control Number: 18/830,289 Page 7 Art Unit: 3726
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