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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I, Species A (claim 2) in the reply filed on 01/22/2026 is acknowledged.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because: - Figs 1a, 1b, 1c labels are missing; - Figs. 1 – 5 have dark, blurry areas. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
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.
Claim(s) 1 – 4, 6, 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Santos (US 2016/0186717).
Santos discloses, regarding,
Claim 1, An apparatus for harvesting energy, the apparatus comprising: a) at least one cylindrical member 105, 135; b) a mounting member 120; c) a securing member 125, 102, wherein the securing member 125, flexibly couples the cylindrical member 135 to the mounting member120; and d) a mechanical- to-electrical energy conversion member [0064, 0066].
Claim 2, a plurality of the at least one cylindrical members are coupled to one another in a patch formation (see Fig. 1, 6B).
Claim 3, the mounting member comprises a corrosion resistant material [0069].
Claim 4, the corrosion resistant material is selected from the group consisting of stainless steel [0069], aluminum, copper [0069], bronze, brass, galvanized steel, copper steel, alloy steel, polypropylene, polytetrafluorethylene (PTFE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), and high-density polyethylene.
Claim 6, the mechanical-to-electrical energy conversion member is selected from the group consisting of an electric generator [0063, 0064], piezo-electric material, wind turbine, pelton wheel, and a hydraulic pump.
Claim 8, the mechanical-to-electrical energy conversion member is coupled to the mounting member (Figs. 1 – 7; 0066, 0068).
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.
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Santos in view of Gredy (US 2001/0036782).
Santos discloses all of the elements above. However, Santos does not disclose the elements below. It is noted that Santos does disclose that the securing member can be made of rubber [0066], which could be elastic.
On the other hand, Gredy discloses, regarding,
Claim 5, the securing member 104 is selected from the group consisting of elastic [0024], a linear spring, and a torsional spring.
It would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to design the apparatus as disclosed by Santos and to modify the invention per the limitations disclosed by Gredy for the purpose of providing an anchoring device that is secure and robust for a water placement device.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Julio C. Gonzalez whose telephone number is (571)272-2024. The examiner can normally be reached M-F.
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, Abdullah Riyami can be reached at 5712703119. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/Julio C. Gonzalez/
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2831
March 31, 2026