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 § 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 6 and 11 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.
Claims 6 and 11 recite a side portion which implies a specific meaning without clearly or distinctly stating the meaning. The side portion isn’t defined. It isn’t clear what makes a portion a side portion as opposed to any side of any portion.
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)(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.
Claims 1-3, 6-8, and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 as being anticipated by JP 3049000.
With regard to claim 1 JP 3049000 discloses a watch (2 figure 3) comprising:
an exterior case (2) having a pair of strap-attaching parts with insertion holes formed so as to face each other (page 6 lines 2-3 “spring rod which is easily attached to and detached from a watch and does not cause the loss of the spring rod” in combination with the figure shown immediately below);
a pin (6, 7 figure 3, see 2c, 2d figure 3) having both ends inserted in the insertion holes of the pair of strap-attaching parts and thereby being held by the strap-attaching parts (see figure 3);
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a connecting block (4 figure 1; 9 figure 2; no reference numeral figure 4) disposed at one end of a strap and having a bottom surface with a groove formed therein (see figures 1, 2, and 4b), the connecting block connecting the strap to the exterior case by the pin held by the strap-attaching parts being housed in the groove (figure 3); and
a cover (9) covering the groove housing the pin (6), wherein the pin includes an elastic body (no reference numeral but see figure 3) pressing the ends to enable the ends to be translated in an axial direction (figure 3), an operating part (6 extends out figures 1-3) to be operated to translate the ends toward the center of the pin is formed on a side surface of the pin so that the pin is removable from the strap-attaching parts, and the cover leaves a position corresponding to the operating part open so that the operating part is operable from outside with the pin housed in the groove (figures 1-3 and abstract).
With regard to claim 2 JP 3049000 discloses the watch according to claim 1, wherein the cover covers (9) the whole length of the groove (figure 1), and the cover has an opening formed at the position corresponding to the operating part (6 figure 1; the cover part 9 is the full length of the element including the groove portion).
With regard to claim 3 JP 3049000 discloses the watch according to claim 2, wherein the operating part projects from the opening to the outside of the cover (6, 9 figure 3).
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With regard to claim 6 JP 3049000 discloses the watch according to any one of claim 2, wherein the cover (9) is formed separately from the connecting block (figure 1) and includes an extending part (6) extending on a side surface of the connecting block (figure 3), the extending part has an insertion hole in which the pin (8 figure 2) housed in the groove is inserted (figure 1), and the cover is held on the connecting block (figure 3), with the groove covered, by the pin being inserted in the insertion hole of the extending part (figures 1-3).
With regard to claim 7 JP 3049000 discloses the watch according to claim 1, wherein the cover is joined to the connecting block and covers part of the length of the groove so as to restrain the pin housed in the groove from falling off the groove (9, figures 1-3; the cover works with the connecting block to contain the pin).
With regard to claim 8 JP 3049000 discloses a strap (1 figure 2) comprising:
a pin (6, 7 figures 2, 3) having both ends inserted in insertion holes formed in a pair of strap-attaching parts (2) included in an exterior case (2) and thereby being held by the strap-attaching parts (2; abstract, figures 2, 3);
a connecting block (no reference numeral figure 4b) disposed at one end of a strap and having a bottom surface with
a groove formed therein (figures 1, 2, 4, the groove itself isn’t labeled with a clear reference numeral), the connecting block connecting the strap to the exterior case by the pin held by the strap-attaching parts being housed in the groove (abstract, figure 3); and
a cover (9) covering the groove housing the pin (6, 7), wherein the pin includes
an elastic body (no reference numeral but see figure 3) pressing the ends to enable the ends to be translated in an axial direction (abstract, figure 3),
an operating part (6) to be operated to translate the ends toward the center of the pin is formed on a side surface of the pin so that the pin is removable from the strap-attaching parts (figures 2, 3; abstract), and the
cover (9) leaves a position corresponding to the operating part open so that the operating part is operable from outside with the pin housed in the groove (6 extends out, see figures 2, 3).
With regard to claim 10 JP 3049000 discloses the watch according to claim 3, wherein the cover (9) is formed separately from the connecting block (figure 1) and includes an extending part extending on a side surface of the connecting block (figure 3), the extending part has an insertion hole in which the pin housed in the groove is inserted (figure 1), and the cover is held on the connecting block (figure 3), with the groove covered, by the pin being inserted in the insertion hole of the extending part (figures 1-3).
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.
Claims 4, 5, 9, 11, 12, and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over JP 3049000 in view of Ikegami (US 4564308).
With regard to claim 4 (depends from claim 3) JP 3049000 does not disclose the claimed: wherein the pin is housed in the groove so as to be circumferentially rotatable, the opening has a notch formed in a rotating direction of the pin, and the cover restrains the operating part from being operated to shorten the pin, with the operating part housed in the notch.
Ikegami teaches a groove with separate tracks including a notch; figures 11-12 including other embodiments.
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Before the earliest effective filing date it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art to configure JP 3049000’s system with a pin is housed in the groove so as to be circumferentially rotatable, the opening has a notch formed in a rotating direction of the pin, and the cover restrains the operating part from being operated to shorten the pin, with the operating part housed in the notch, as taught by Ikegami. The reason for doing so would have been to prevent the pin from moving in the wrong direction when desirable to not move in that direction as taught by Ikegami to facilitate insertion and removal of the parts in a controlled fashion as taught by Ikegami.
With regard to claim 5 (depends from claim 3) JP 3049000 does not disclose the claimed: wherein the pin is housed in the groove so as to be circumferentially rotatable, the opening has a notch formed in a rotating direction of the pin, and the cover restrains the pin that has been shortened from elongating, with the operating part housed in the notch.
Ikegami teaches a groove with separate tracks including a notch; figures 11-12 including other embodiments.
Before the earliest effective filing date it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art to configure JP 3049000’s system with a pin is housed in the groove so as to be circumferentially rotatable, the opening has a notch formed in a rotating direction of the pin, and the cover restrains the pin that has been shortened from elongating, with the operating part housed in the notch, as taught by Ikegami. The reason for doing so would have been to prevent the pin from moving in the wrong direction when desirable to not move in that direction as taught by Ikegami to facilitate insertion and removal of the parts in a controlled fashion as taught by Ikegami.
With regard to claim 9 (depends from claim 4) JP 3049000 does not disclose the claimed:
wherein the pin is housed in the groove so as to be circumferentially rotatable, the opening has a notch formed in a rotating direction of the pin, and the cover restrains the pin that has been shortened from elongating, with the operating part housed in the notch.
Ikegami teaches a groove with separate tracks including a notch; figures 11-12 including other embodiments.
Before the earliest effective filing date it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art to configure JP 3049000’s system with a pin is housed in the groove so as to be circumferentially rotatable, the opening has a notch formed in a rotating direction of the pin, and the cover restrains the pin that has been shortened from elongating, with the operating part housed in the notch, as taught by Ikegami. The reason for doing so would have been to prevent the pin from moving in the wrong direction when desirable to not move in that direction as taught by Ikegami to facilitate insertion and removal of the parts in a controlled fashion as taught by Ikegami.
With regard to claim 11 JP 3049000 and Ikegami teach the watch according to claim 4, wherein the cover (9) is formed separately from the connecting block (figure 1) and includes an extending part extending on a side surface of the connecting block (figure 3), the extending part has an insertion hole in which the pin housed in the groove is inserted (figure 1), and the cover is held on the connecting block (figure 3), with the groove covered, by the pin being inserted in the insertion hole of the extending part (figures 1-3).
With regard to claim 12 JP 3049000 and Ikegami teach the watch according to claim 5, wherein the cover (9) is formed separately from the connecting block (figure 1) and includes an extending part extending on a side surface of the connecting block (figure 3), the extending part has an insertion hole in which the pin housed in the groove is inserted (figure 1), and the cover is held on the connecting block (figure 3), with the groove covered, by the pin being inserted in the insertion hole of the extending part (figures 1-3).
With regard to claim 13 JP 3049000 and Ikegami teach the watch according to claim 9, wherein the cover (9) is formed separately from the connecting block (figure 1) and includes an extending part extending on a side surface of the connecting block (figure 3), the extending part has an insertion hole in which the pin housed in the groove is inserted (figure 1), and the cover is held on the connecting block (figure 3), with the groove covered, by the pin being inserted in the insertion hole of the extending part (figures 1-3).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SEAN KAYES whose telephone number is (571)272-8931. The examiner can normally be reached 10-6.
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/SEAN KAYES/Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2831
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