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 § 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.
Claims 1-2, 4-5 and 7-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
Claim 1 contains the following issues:
The recitation of “the internal space” (in line 20 of page 2) lacks proper antecedent basis. It is unclear which internal space is required for anticipation or infringement. For examination purposes, the recitation will be construed as –an internal space—.
The recitation of “the upper surface” (in line 4 of page 3) lacks proper antecedent basis. It is unclear which upper surface is required for anticipation or infringement. For examination purposes, the recitation will be construed as –an upper surface—.
Claim 2 contains the following issues:
The recitation of “an internal space” (in line 20 of page 2) renders the scope of the claim unclear since one of ordinary skill in the art would not be able to ascertain whether a separate and distinct internal space from claim 1 is required for anticipation or infringement. For examination purposes, the recitation will be construed as –the internal space—.
Claim 4 contains the following issues:
The recitation of “an upper surface” (in line 4 of page 3) renders the scope of the claim unclear since one of ordinary skill in the art would not be able to ascertain whether a separate and distinct upper surface from claim 1 is required for anticipation or infringement. For examination purposes, the recitation will be construed as –the upper surface—.
Claim 8 contains the following issues:
The recitation of “the internal space” (in line 20) lacks proper antecedent basis. It is unclear which internal space is required for anticipation or infringement. For examination purposes, the recitation will be construed as –an internal space—.
Claim 10 contains the following issues:
The recitation of “the internal space” (in line 20) lacks proper antecedent basis. It is unclear which internal space is required for anticipation or infringement. For examination purposes, the recitation will be construed as –an internal space—.
Any remaining claims are rejected at least by virtue of their dependency.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MIGUEL A DIAZ whose telephone number is (313)446-6587. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM Eastern Time.
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, Jianying C. Atkisson can be reached at (571) 270-7740. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MIGUEL A DIAZ/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3763
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