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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 7/8/2026 has been entered.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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)(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) 1 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Marshall (US PgPub #2013/0229038).
For Claim 1, figures 1-4 of Marshall ‘038 disclose an aircraft seat comprising: a seat pan (4), and a seat cushion, wherein the seat pan is arranged to be fixed to an aircraft seat base and to support the seat cushion of the aircraft seat, wherein: the seat pan comprises a corrugated portion (16) formed of a deformable material, the corrugated portion comprising a plurality of corrugations, the seat pan comprises a planar portion (10) positioned under a front part of the seat cushion, the corrugated portion is positioned further from the front part of the seat cushion than the planar portion, the deformable material is plastically deformable, the corrugated portion is configured to permanently deform under a vertical impact force to absorb energy from the vertical impact force, and the corrugated portion extends from a back edge of the seat pan such that the corrugated portion is positioned at the rear of the aircraft seat.
For Claim 2, figures 1-4 and paragraph [0012] of Marshall ‘038 disclose that the corrugated portion is formed from metal sheet.
For Claim 6, figures 1-4 of Marshall ‘038 disclose that the corrugations of the corrugated portion extend from a first side to a second side of the seat pan, the first side and the second side extending between a front edge and a back edge of the seat pan.
For Claim 7, figures 1-4 of Marshall ‘038 disclose that each corrugation has a longitudinal axis, wherein a longitudinal axis of each corrugation is parallel to a front edge of the seat cushion when the seat cushion is in position on the seat pan.
For Claim 8, figures 1-4 of Marshall ‘038 disclose that the corrugations are parallel to each other.
For Claim 9, figures 1-4 of Marshall ‘038 disclose that each of the plurality of corrugations comprises vertically extending walls; and a distance between adjacent vertically extending walls of adjacent corrugations is the same or less than the distance between the vertically extending walls of each of the adjacent corrugations.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Marshall (US PgPub #2013/0229038).
Marshall ‘038 discloses the claimed invention except for the planar portion and the corrugated portion being separable. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to make the planar and corrugated portions separately and fixed together, since it has been held that constructing a formerly integral structure in various elements involves only routine skill in the art. Nerwin v. Erlichman, 168 USPQ 177, 179.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 4-6, filed 6/1/2026, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1 under 102 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of Marshall ‘038.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Marshall (US Patent #8266450) is included in the PTO-892 as being the patent of the Marshall ‘038 reference used above in the rejection.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PHILIP J BONZELL whose telephone number is (571)270-3663. The examiner can normally be reached 9-5.
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/PHILIP J BONZELL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3642 7/21/2026
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