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
Claims 8-11 and 17-18 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 8/28/26.
Applicant's election with traverse of claims 1-7, and 12-16 in the reply filed on 8/28/26 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that examination of the entire application would not place a serious burden on the examiner. This is not found persuasive because the examination of the non-elected method claims would require additional searching in the metal working art and a separate determinations of patentability.
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1-7 and 12-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Morita et al. US 2020/0282932 in view of JP H0725296.
Regarding claim 1, and with reference to annotated Figures 2A, 2B and 2C below, Morita et al. disclose:
A bumper reinforcement (11; Fig. 2A) member made of an aluminum alloy extruded shape material (see para. [0014], lines 1-3) extending along a vehicle left-right direction (left to right in Fig. 2A), comprising:
an outer flange (3; Figs. 2A and 2B) and an inner flange (2; Figs. 2A and 2B) separated from each other in a vehicle front-rear direction (up and down in Fig. 2B);
a web group (4, 5 and 6; Figs. 2A and 2B) connecting the outer flange (3; Figs. 2A and 2B) and the inner flange (2; Figs. 2A and 2B); a central portion (of the bumper 11 as labeled in Fig. 2A) in which the outer flange (3; Figs. 2A and 2B) and the inner flange (2; Figs. 2A and 2B) are separated from each other by a first flange distance (do; as labelled at the left edge of Fig. 2B), the central portion (of the bumper) being a portion positioned at a center in the vehicle left-right direction (see Fig. 2A); and
both end portions (1b; Fig. 2A) in which the outer flange (3; Figs. 2A and 2B) and the inner flange (2; Figs. 2A and 2B) are separated from each other by a second flange distance (d; as labeled at the left edge of Fig. 2C) shorter than the first flange distance (do; as labelled at the left edge of Fig. 2B; the shorter distance is a result of the deformation of webs 4, 5 and 6 in Fig. 2C), each of both the end portions being a portion positioned at either end in the vehicle left-right direction (see Fig. 2A),
wherein the web group (4, 5 and 6; Figs. 2A and 2B; “located with a distance in a body vertical direction”; see para. [0014], lines 6-8) includes
a first web (6; Figs. 2B and 2C) connected to the outer flange (3; Figs. 2A and 2B) at a first outer connection portion (labeled at the top of the right edge of Fig. 2B) and connected to the inner flange (2; Figs. 2A and 2B) at a first inner connection portion (labeled at the bottom of the right edge of Fig. 2B), and
a second web (5; Figs. 2B and 2C) adjacent to the first web (6; Fig. 2B; see the adjacent position in Figs. 2B and 2C), connected to the outer flange (3; Figs. 2A and 2B) at a second outer connection portion (labeled towards the top left corner of Fig. 2B), and connected to the inner flange (2; Figs. 2A and 2B) at a second inner connection portion (labeled towards the bottom left corner of Fig. 2B), and
the first web (6; Figs. 2B and 2C) and the second web (2; Figs. 2A and 2B) are respectively curved (see Fig. 2C) so as to have protruding shapes (6a, 5a, Fig. 2C) facing each other at both the end portions (as shown in Fig. 2C which is a view of a cross section taken along section IV-IV at the end portion 1b of the bumper 11 in Fig. 2A).
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However, Morita et al. do not disclose that the first outer connection portion is separated from the second outer connection portion by an outer web distance shorter than the first flange distance, and the first inner connection portion is separated from the second inner connection portion by an inner web distance shorter than the first flange distance,
Notwithstanding, JP H0725296 discloses alternate embodiments for the construction of a cross section of a bumper. Namely, the embodiment of Fig. 2, which is analogous to the bumper construction shown in Figure 2C of Morita et al., and an alternate embodiment shown in Fig. 3. The embodiment shown in Figure 3 is being relied upon in this 103 rejection as a teaching to modify the construction of the bumper shown in Figure 2C of Morita et al. More specifically, JP H0725296 (with reference to annotated Figs. 1 and 3 below) discloses:
A bumper reinforcement member (Fig. 3) made of an extruded shape material (see the Abstract, lines 1-3 of the translation) extending along a vehicle left-right direction (the left to right direction in Fig. 1) comprising:
an outer flange (3; Fig. 3) and an inner flange (2; Fig. 3) separated from each other in a vehicle front-rear direction (up and down in Fig. 3);
a web group (first, second, third (4) and fourth (5); as labeled in Fig. 3 below) connecting the outer flange (3; Fig. 3) and the inner flange (2; Fig. 3); a central portion (of the bumper beam as labeled in annotated Fig. 1 below) in which the outer flange (3; Fig. 3) and the inner flange (2; Fig. 3); are separated from each other by a first flange distance (which is the distance between the outer and inner flanges of Fig. 3 prior to the deformation of the webs), the central portion (of the bumper beam as labeled in annotated Fig. 1 below) being a portion positioned at a center in the vehicle left-right direction (the left and right direction in Fig. 1); and
both end portions (1a; Fig. 1) in which the outer flange (3; Fig. 3) and the inner flange (2; Fig. 3) are separated from each other by a second flange distance (as labeled at the left edge of annotated Fig. 3 below) shorter than the first flange distance (which is the distance between the inner and outer flanges prior to the deformation of the webs), each of both the end portions being a portion positioned at either end in the vehicle left-right direction (see Fig. 1),
wherein the web group includes
a first web (as labeled near the right edge of annotated Fig. 3 below) connected to the outer flange (3; Fig. 3) at a first outer connection portion (labeled at the top right corner of annotated Fig. 3 below) and connected to the inner flange (2; Fig. 3) at a first inner connection portion (labeled at the bottom right corner of annotated Fig. 3 below), and
a second web (as labeled near the left edge of annotated Fig. 3 below) adjacent to the first web (see annotated Fig. 3 below), connected to the outer flange (3; Fig. 3) at a second outer connection portion (labeled near the top left corner of annotated Fig. 3 below), and connected to the inner flange (2; Fig. 3) at a second inner connection portion (labeled near the bottom left corner of annotated fig. 3 below),
in a vehicle vertical direction, the first outer connection portion (labeled at the top right corner of annotated Fig. 3 below) is separated from the second outer connection portion (labeled near the top left corner of annotated Fig. 3 below), by an outer web distance (as labeled at the top edge of annotated Fig. 3 below) shorter than the first flange distance (which is the distance between the inner and outer flanges prior to the deformation of the webs), and the first inner connection portion (labeled at the bottom right corner of annotated Fig. 3 below), is separated from the second inner connection portion (labeled near the bottom left corner of annotated fig. 3 below) by an inner web distance (as labeled at the bottom edge of annotated Fig. 3 below) shorter than the first flange distance (which is the distance between the inner and outer flanges prior to the deformation of the webs), and
the first web (as labeled near the right edge of annotated Fig. 3 below) and the second web (as labeled near the left edge of annotated Fig. 3 below) have protruding shapes facing each other (as can be seen in annotated Fig. 3 below) at both the end portions.
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Therefore, it 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 to reconfigure the web group of Morita et al. to include a total of four webs, rather than three, where the inner most two webs, the first and second webs, protrude towards and face each other at the end portions of the bumper so that a first outer connection portion is separated from a second outer connection portion by an outer web distance shorter than a first flange distance between the inner and outer flanges prior to being deformed, and a first inner connection portion is separated from a second inner connection portion by an inner web distance shorter than the first flange distance, between the inner and outer flanges prior to being deformed, where the facing protrusions remain curved, as taught by JP H0725296 with a reasonable expectation of success as an alternate cross sectional construction where a fourth web increases the strength of the bumper as compared to three webs.
Regarding claim 2, Morita et al., as modified by JP H0725296, disclose:
The bumper reinforcement member according to claim 1, as explained above, wherein the outer web distance (annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) is shorter than a second flange distance, and the inner web distance (annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) is shorter than a second flange distance because the outer web distance (annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) is substantially shorter than the first flange distance (which is the distance between the inner and outer flanges prior to the deformation of the webs of annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296), and the inner web distance (annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) is substantially shorter than the first flange distance (which is the distance between the inner and outer flanges prior to the deformation of the webs of annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296), so that at the beginning of the gradual deformation (which creates “a second flange distance”) of the webs of JP H0725296 moving from the central portion towards the end portion, the outer web distance (annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) is shorter than such a created second flange distance, and the inner web distance (annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) is shorter than such a created second flange distance.
Regarding claim 3, Morita et al., as modified by JP H0725296, disclose:
The bumper reinforcement member according to claim 1, as explained above,
wherein the first web (in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) includes a first protruding portion (in the rectangular box in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) closest to the second web (in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) at both the end portions (1a, Fig. 1 above of JP H0725296), the second web (in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) includes a second protruding portion (in the rectangular box in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) closest to the first web (in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) at both the end portions (1a, Fig. 1 above of JP H0725296), and the first protruding portion and the second protruding portion (both of which are in the rectangular box in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) are respectively positioned at an identical distance from the outer flange (as can be seen in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) in a cross-section perpendicular to an extending direction of the aluminum alloy extruded shape material.
Regarding claim 4, Morita et al., as modified by JP H0725296, disclose:
The bumper reinforcement member according to claim 3, as explained above,
wherein the first protruding portion and the second protruding portion (both of which are in the rectangular box in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) are in contact with each other given a sufficient magnitude of force to continue the deformation of the first and second webs beyond the deformation shown in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296 to the point that they contact one another.
Regarding claim 5, Morita et al., as modified by JP H0725296, disclose:
The bumper reinforcement member according to claim 1, as explained above, wherein both the end portions (1b; Fig. 2A of Morita et al.) are bent toward a vehicle body (as shown in Fig. 2A of Morita et al.).
Regarding claim 6, Morita et al., as modified by JP H0725296, disclose:
The bumper reinforcement member according to claim 3, as explained above, wherein both the end portions (1b; Fig. 2A of Morita et al.) are bent toward a vehicle body (as shown in Fig. 2A of Morita et al.).
Regarding claim 7, Morita et al., as modified by JP H0725296, disclose:
The bumper reinforcement member according to claim 4, as explained above, wherein both the end portions (1b; Fig. 2A of Morita et al.) are bent toward a vehicle body (as shown in Fig. 2A of Morita et al.).
Regarding claim 12, Morita et al., as modified by JP H0725296, disclose:
The bumper reinforcement member according to claim 2, as explained above,
wherein the first web (in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) includes a first protruding portion (in the rectangular box in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) closest to the second web (in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) at both the end portions (1a, Fig. 1 above of JP H0725296), the second web (in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) includes a second protruding portion (in the rectangular box in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) closest to the first web (in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) at both the end portions (1a, Fig. 1 above of JP H0725296), and the first protruding portion and the second protruding portion (both of which are in the rectangular box in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) are respectively positioned at an identical distance from the outer flange (as can be seen in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) in a cross-section perpendicular to an extending direction of the aluminum alloy extruded shape material.
Regarding claim 13, Morita et al., as modified by JP H0725296, disclose:
The bumper reinforcement member according to claim 12, as explained above,
wherein the first protruding portion and the second protruding portion (both of which are in the rectangular box in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296) are in contact with each other given a sufficient magnitude of force to continue the deformation of the first and second webs beyond the deformation shown in annotated Fig. 3 above of JP H0725296 to the point that they contact one another.
Regarding claim 14, Morita et al., as modified by JP H0725296, disclose:
The bumper reinforcement member according to claim 2, as explained above, wherein both the end portions (1b; Fig. 2A of Morita et al.) are bent toward a vehicle body (as shown in Fig. 2A of Morita et al.).
Regarding claim 15, Morita et al., as modified by JP H0725296, disclose:
The bumper reinforcement member according to claim 12, as explained above, wherein both the end portions (1b; Fig. 2A of Morita et al.) are bent toward a vehicle body (as shown in Fig. 2A of Morita et al.).
Regarding claim 16, Morita et al., as modified by JP H0725296, disclose:
The bumper reinforcement member according to claim 13, as explained above, wherein both the end portions (1b; Fig. 2A of Morita et al.) are bent toward a vehicle body (as shown in Fig. 2A of Morita et al.).
Pertinent Prior Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Stewart et al. US 5,340,178 disclose a bumper construction with a cross section having a
web (40; Fig. 2) including two curved shapes (42, 44; Fig. 2). However, the reference fails to disclose a second be as recited in claim 1.
Arai et al. US 5,407,239 disclose a bumper construction with curved facing surfaces opposite projections (5C, 5B; Fig. 3). However, the reference lacks an inner flange as recited in claim 1.
Baccouche et al. US 8,205,921 disclose a bumper construction with an outer flange 36, an inner flange 38, a first web 46, a second web 40 and curved surface shapes 42, 44, 28 and 50. Reference Figure 5. However, the reference does not disclose that the web distances are less than a first flange distance or that there is a second flange distance at the ends of the bumper as required by claim 1.
Terada et al. US 9,238,444 disclose a bumper construction with curved webs (5, 6; Fig. 3). However, the references does not disclose that the webs connect the inner and outer flanges as required by claim 1.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Joseph D. Pape whose telephone number is (571)272-6664. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday 7 AM-3:30 PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Amy Weisberg can be reached at (571)270-5500. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/Joseph D. Pape/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3612
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