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 .
Claim Objections
Claim 1 is objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 1 recites “the case (R1; R1’)” in line 9 but all the other reference characters in the parenthesis are removed through amendment. This leads to inconsistent claim form. Therefore, the reference characters for “the case” should be also be removed.
Appropriate correction is required.
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 2-17 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.
Claim 2 recites the limitation "the thrust parts” and “the bearing parts” in line 6. Claim 2 recites “a thrust part” and “a bearing part” in line 2. Therefore, it is not clear whether these limitations are the same or different due to them being referred to with different terminologies. Therefore, there is insufficient antecedent basis for these limitation in the claim.
Claims 3-17 are also rejected under the same grounds for being dependent on claim 2 directly or indirectly.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-18 are allowable, if the 35 U.S.C. 112(b) rejections are overcome. The primary reason for allowance is the inclusion of limitations “the bearing of the spring is movable relative to the case between an active position in which the spring is compressed and a rest position in which the spring is relaxed, thus making it possible to connect the reservoir module to the dispensing module with the bearing in the rest position, then to move the bearing in the active position” in claim 1. The prior arts do not anticipate or render the claimed recitation obvious along with other claimed subject matter.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The following prior arts disclose spring-loaded dispensers with cartridge or containers with movable walls to dispense the fluids: US PN 8,215,857, US PN 8,727,650, US PN 8,845,221, US PG PUB 2014/0323993, US PN 10,278,476, and US PG PUB 2020/0268978.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to VISHAL J PANCHOLI whose telephone number is (571)272-9324. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Thursday (9 am - 7 pm).
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, Paul Durand can be reached at 571-272-4459. 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.
/Vishal Pancholi/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3754
Prosecution Insights