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.
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 3-5 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.
Claim 3 recites that a vent hole is drilled in four corner portions. It is unclear if there are multiple vent holes are just a single vent hole.
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, 6-10, 12 and 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Lee et al. (US-8953281-B1).
Lee discloses:
1. A fixing device (1) comprising: a case main body (10) including, inside a peripheral wall portion (12, 13, 14) standing from a bottom wall portion (11), an accommodation space configured to accommodate a fixed object (col. 2, lines 32-35); a pair of retaining portions (a, b, Fig. 4 labeled below be the examiner) rotatably connected to the case main body and extending across an upper opening of the peripheral wall portion on a side opposite to the bottom wall portion 9Fig. 1); and a joint portion (26) coupling rotational distal ends of the pair of retaining portions, wherein the peripheral wall portion includes a front wall portion (14) and a rear wall portion (13) facing each other with the accommodation space sandwiched therebetween, the pair of retaining portions each have a curved surface (at 21) protruding into the accommodation space (col. 3, lines 45-52), and have a rotational proximal end connected to the rear wall portion by a hinge portion (24), and the joint portion includes a lock claw (at 142) configured to be engaged with the front wall portion from an inside of the accommodation space (Fig. 1).
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6. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein the hinge portion includes a contact portion configured to allow a first contact surface (at 121) and a second contact surface (at 241) to come into slidable contact with each other, the first contact surface being a surface extending from an upper end of the rear wall portion toward a side opposite to the accommodation space (Fig. 3), and a second contact surface being provided on an end portion of the retaining portion on a side opposite to the joint portion (Fig. 4).
7. The fixing device according to claim 6, wherein when the lock claw is inserted into an outside of the front wall portion, a reaction force from the first contact surface toward the second contact surface acts on the contact portion, and the joint portion is in a disengaged state of not being engaged with the front wall portion (col. 4, ll. 59 – col. 5, ll. 13).
8. The fixing device according to claim 7, wherein the case main body includes, at a substantially central portion (at 142) of the front wall portion, a recessed portion formed by cutting out in a concave curved shape from an upper portion (Fig. 3), the joint portion includes an engaging plate portion (at 21)that couples the rotational distal ends of the pair of retaining portions (Fig. 4), and when the joint portion is in the disengaged state, the engaging plate portion is in point contact with the recessed portion at two points (Fig. 1, when 143 is disengaged).
9. The fixing device according to claim 6, wherein the first contact surface is a curved surface (Fig. 3).
10. The fixing device according to claim 7, wherein when the retaining portion is viewed from a side wall portion direction of the case main body in the disengaged state, the joint portion on the rotational distal end is positioned higher relative to a placement surface of the fixing device than the hinge portion on the rotational proximal end as viewed from a direction of the side wall portion of the case main body (depending on orientation).
12. The fixing device according to claim 11, wherein when the lock claw is inserted into an outside of the front wall portion and the recess and the protrusion come into contact with each other, a reaction force from the protrusion toward the recess acts on a contact surface at which the recess and the protrusion come into contact with each other, and the joint portion is in a disengaged state of not being engaged with the front wall portion (col. 4, l. 59 – col. 5, ll. 13).
13. A storage device comprising: the fixing device according to claim 1; and a storage medium (8) that is the fixed object to be fixed to the fixing device (Fig. 6).
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) 3-5 and 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee et al. (US-8953281-B1).
Lee discloses:
3. The fixing device according to claim ,1 including a vent hole (111) configured to open the accommodation space to outside is drilled in the bottom wall portion and in four corner portions at which four sides of the bottom wall portion intersect with the peripheral wall portion (Fig. 2).
Lee fails to teach wherein the bottom wall portion is formed in a square shape.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to have manufactured the device with square shape, in order to accommodate square shaped storage mediums and since such a modification would have been a change in shape of an existing component. A change in shape is generally recognized as being within the level of ordinary skill in the art.
4. The fixing device according to claim 3, wherein an inner wall surface of the peripheral wall portion is provided with a plurality of ribs (at 144) that protrude into the accommodation space and come into contact with the fixed object.
5. The fixing device according to claim 3, wherein the vent hole formed in the corner portion at which the bottom wall portion intersects with the front wall portion (Fig. 3) includes a flexible space (under 143) for the lock claw of the joint portion to be engaged with the front wall portion.
11. The fixing device according to claim 1, wherein the hinge portion includes a recess (121) and a protrusion (241) provided in a manner of protruding toward a side of the rear wall portion opposite to the accommodation space of the case main body.
Lee fails to teach thew recess provided on an end portion of the retaining portion on the rear wall portion.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to have reversed the recess and protrusion locations, since the hinge would still function in the same manner and since it has been held that a mere reversal of the essential working parts of a device involves only routine skill in the art
Claim(s) 2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee et al. (US-8953281-B1) in view of Lin et al. (US-20150116864-A1).
Lee discloses:
2. The fixing device according to claim 1, but fails to teach wherein a cushion material configured to come into contact with the fixed object is adhered to at least a part of the bottom wall portion and the retaining portion.
Lin teaches that it is known in the art to manufacture a fixing device with cushion materials around an interior of the device (par. 0028).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to have manufactured the device with cushion materials throughout, as taught by Lin, in order to better protect the storage medium.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JEFFREY R ALLEN whose telephone number is (571)270-7426. The examiner can normally be reached 9:00 am - 5:00 pm, Monday-Friday.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Nathan Jenness can be reached at (571)270-5055. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JEFFREY R ALLEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3733
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