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 Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 16-21 and 31-35 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by EP 2896735 to Kajihara et al. (“Kajihara”).
Regarding claims 16-21 and 31-35, Kajihara (in Figs. 1-6 and associated text) discloses a laundry treating apparatus for performing a processing operation for laundry, the laundry treating apparatus comprising:
a main body (1) configured to accommodate the laundry;
a cover (5,20) defining an exterior of the main body, the cover including a first through hole (21) at a front upper end portion of the cover; and
a control panel (22,25,26,27) located at an inner surface of the cover, the control panel being partially exposed to an exterior of the cover through the first through hole to allow a user to input a control signal for the processing operation, the control panel including:
a bracket (23) having a first bracket hole corresponding to the first through hole, the bracket being located at the inner surface of the cover (see Figs. 4 and 6);
a window (22) having a front surface contacting a rear surface of the bracket at an area other than the first through hole and the first bracket hole (see Fig. 4);
a touch screen (24,25) located at a rear surface of the window; and
a coating guide (26) configured to support the window and the touch screen at a rear surface of the touch screen, the coating guide being coupled to the bracket (see Fig. 4).
wherein the control panel further includes a first sealing member interposed between the window and the coating guide (not structures between the window and coating guide which read on the broad recitation of a sealing member),
wherein the control panel further includes a board cover located at a rear surface of the coating guide, the board cover including a printed circuit board (PCB) connected to the touch screen (see control board unit 27,32),
wherein the control panel further includes a second sealing member interposed between the coating guide and the board cover (note the contact structure between the coating guide and board cover in Fig. 4, which reads on the broad recitation of a second sealing member),
further comprising a panel frame (33) configured to press a rear surface of the control panel, the panel frame being located at the inner surface of the cover,
wherein the panel frame includes a frame protrusion protruding from a front surface of the panel frame, the frame protrusion being configured to press a rear surface of the board cover (see Fig. 4),
wherein the control panel includes: a fixed UI section including a first control UI having a fixed display; and a variable UI section including a second control UI having a variable display (see user interface sections in Fig. 8),
wherein the variable display is configured to display an on/off input (128 in Fig. 8),
wherein the variable display is configured to display a variable laundry setting input (121 in Fig. 8),
wherein the window includes an area corresponding to the first through hole, a first portion of the area being a transmissive area, a remaining portion of the area being a non-transmissive area, and wherein the touch screen is located at a rear surface of the window, the touch screen being visible through the transmissive area (see exposed portions of window 22 in Fig. 4 as transmissive and non-exposed portions being non-transmissive; see also Fig. 8 with transmissive and non-transmissive portions),
wherein the control panel further includes a shield layer located on the window, the shield layer defining the non-transmissive area (note the non-transmissive portions of the window in Kajihara are readable on a “shield layer” as they are shielded).
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.
Claim(s) 29-30 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kajihara in view of US 2017/0121884 to Kwon et al. (“Kwon”).
Kajihara discloses the claimed invention including a control panel provided with a conventional printed circuit board for electronic control panels. Kwon teaches an art-related laundry machine with a control panel and further including a wireless communicator (136) configured to transmit and receive wireless signals to and from an outside of the laundry treating apparatus, the wireless communicator being located at the inside surface of the cover and coupled to a bottom of the control panel (see Figs. 15-16 and ¶ [0140]-[0144]).
Therefore, the position is taken that it would have been obvious at the time of effective filing to provide the control panel of Kajihara with the wireless communicator, such as that taught in Kwon, to yield the same and predictable results of communicating wirelessly with the laundry treating appliance.
Regarding the precise location of the wireless communicator of Kwon, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time of effective filing to rearrange the location of the wireless communicator as desired to achieve the same and predictable wireless communication results, since it has been held that rearranging parts of an invention involves only routine skill in the art. In re Japikse, 86 USPQ 70.
Regarding claim 29, Kwon further discloses wherein the wireless communicator is configured to transmit and receive the wireless signals for controlling the processing operation from and to the controller (see ¶ [0140]-[0141]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 22-28 are 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
US 9,940,857 to Heater et al, which discloses a laundry appliance with control panel having touch screen and PCB assembly.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOSEPH L PERRIN whose telephone number is (571)272-1305. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7:30-4:00.
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, Michael E. Barr can be reached at 571-272-1414. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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Joseph L. Perrin, Ph.D.
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1711
/Joseph L. Perrin/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1711
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