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 .
Detailed Action
Clam Rejection - 35 U.S.C. 112(b)
1. 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.
2. Claims 8 and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
(1) In claim 8, lines 2 and 3, “the pin” has no antecedent basis. It appears claim 8 should depend from claim 7.
(2) In claim 11, line 2, “the operating element” and “the resting position” lack antecedent basis.
Claim Rejection - 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)
1. 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.
2. Claims 1, 3-6 and 9 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by CN 108340015 (cited in the 10/31/2024 IDS with English transition provided in the attached PTO-892).
Regarding claim 1, CN ‘015 discloses a hand-held circular saw (100, see Fig.1) comprising:
a housing (11);
a drive motor (12, see Fig.3) disposed in the housing (11) and configured to drive a circular saw blade (14);
a handle (112) disposed on the housing (11); and
a hanging device (60) disposed on the handle (112) and including a rotation axis portion (611, see Fig.10), and a hook element (62),
wherein the hook element (62) is disposed perpendicular to the rotation axis portion (611, see Fig.13 as annotated below),
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wherein the rotation axis portion (611) is configured to form an axis of rotation (104) and is rotatably mounted on the housing (11),
wherein the hook element (62) is configured to pivot about the axis of rotation (104, see Fig.8 and the annotated Fig.13) in an associated plane, and
wherein the associated plane is aligned parallel to a center of gravity plane (e.g., any plane that passes through the center of gravity of the circular saw and is aligned parallel to the associated plane) of the hand-held circular saw (100).
Regarding claim 3, the rotation axis portion (611, see the annotated Fig.13) of CN ‘015 is disposed parallel to an axis of rotation of the circular saw blade (14).
Regarding claim 4, the hook element (61) of CN ‘015 is configured to be rotated on the handle (112) by a predetermined rotation angle, and the predetermined rotation angle ranges from 90° to 210° (see the fourth full paragraph on page 7 of the English translation).
Regarding claim 5, the hook element (62) of CN ‘015 is U-shaped or L-shaped (see Fig.10).
Regarding claim 6, the hand-held circular saw (100) of CN ‘015 further comprises a bushing (612) which is configured to lock the rotation axis portion (611) at least in an associated locking position.
Regarding claim 9, the hanging device (60) of CN ‘015 is disposed on a side of the handle (112) facing toward the circular saw blade (14) or the hanging device (60) is disposed on a side of the handle (112) facing away from the circular saw (14).
Claim Rejection - 35 U.S.C. 103
1. 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.
2. Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over CN 108340015.
Regarding claim 2, in CN ‘015, there is a space/distance defined between the associated plane (in which the hook element 62 pivots) and the center of gravity plane (of the hand-held circular saw), but it is unclear if the space/distance being at most 40 mm.
However, the claimed space of at most 40 mm is not patentably distinct over CN ‘015 because the space between the associated plane and the center gravity plane depends more upon the location of the hook element (62) and the weight distribution of the hand-held circular saw (100) than on any inventive concept.
3. Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over CN 108340015 in view of Nakashima (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015/0266201).
Regarding claim 10, the hand-held circular saw (100) of CN ‘015 as set forth shows all the claimed limitations except it lacks a receptacle configured to receive the hook element (62) in a resting position.
Nakashima shows a hand-held circular saw (10) comprising a hook element (31) for hanging the circular saw (10), and a receptacle (23h) for accommodating the hook element (31) when the hook element (31) is positioned at a resting position.
Thus, it would have been obvious to one skilled in the art to modify CN ‘015 by providing the circular saw (100) with a receptacle for accommodating the hook element (62) so that a user can easily grasp a front handle (112) and a rear handle (113) of the circular saw (100) without being interfered by the hook element (62) as taught by Nakashima (see paragraph [0050], lines 27-33).
Indication of Allowable Subject Matter
1. Claim 7 is 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.
2. Claims 8 and 11 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Prior Art Citations
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
U.S. Patent Application Publication Nos. 2021/0001418 and 2024/0359244 and CN 12075517 each shows a hand-held circular saw equipped with a hanging device for allowing the circular saw to be hung when not in use.
U.S. Patent No. 7,306,052, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2024/0058938 and JP 4672438 each shows a hook assembly for a power tool.
Point of Contact
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HWEI-SIU PAYER whose telephone number is (571)272-4511. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday – Friday from 6:00 AM to 2:00 PM.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Boyer Ashley, can be reached at telephone number 571-272-4502. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/HWEI-SIU C PAYER/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3724