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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The IDS filed on November 27, 2024 is hereby acknowledged and has been placed of record. Please find attached a signed copy of the IDS.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because of the following issues:
In Fig. 15, the lead line for reference number “10” appears to indicate the disclosed “spherical part”, while the lead line for reference number “22” appears indicate the disclosed “control element”; each of which is opposite to what is described in the specification and shown in the other drawing figures.
In Fig. 17, towards the lower-right side of the page, reference number “42” is rotated 90 degrees relative to how all of the reference numbers are presented throughout the drawing figures.
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 Objections
Claims 5, 14-17 and 28-31 are objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 5, on line 2, “is” should be deleted (grammar).
In claim 28, on line 1, --the -- should be inserted between “wherein ” and “control”.
Appropriate correction is required.
Applicant is advised that should claim 21 be found allowable, claim 33 will be objected to under 37 CFR 1.75 as being a substantial duplicate thereof. When two claims in an application are duplicates or else are so close in content that they both cover the same thing, despite a slight difference in wording, it is proper after allowing one claim to object to the other as being a substantial duplicate of the allowed claim. See MPEP § 608.01(m).
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 8, 10 and 24 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.
Regarding claim 8, the recitation, “wherein the coupling element and the mating coupling element are adapted to be connected to one another by actuation of the main body” is unclear. First, claim 8 depends directly from claim 6, and claim 6 only requires one or the other of the “coupling element” and the “mating coupling element”. Thus, claim 8 is unclear because the claim seems to indicate that both of the aforementioned elements are required. Also, “...by actuation of the main body” is unclear. What exactly are the metes and bounds of “actuation of the main body”?
Regarding claim 10, the recitation, “wherein the coupling element and the mating coupling element are designed such that the actuation part is tiltable” is unclear. Claim 10 depends directly from claim 9, which depends directly from claim 6, and neither claim 6 nor claim 9 requires more than one or the other of the “coupling element” and the “mating coupling element”. Thus, claim 10 is unclear because the claim seems to indicate that both of the aforementioned elements are required.
Regarding claim 24, on lines 3-4, the recitation, “the outwardly protruding mating projection” lacks clear antecedent basis. It is noted that claim 22 provides antecedent basis for “the mating projection”, but not for “the outwardly protruding mating projection”.
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, 5-11, 13, 21, 25-27, 32 and 33 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Shen, US Patent Application Publication No. 2002/0079471.
As to claim 1, Shen (see Figs. 1-12) shows a sanitary insert that is designed to be installed on a water outlet of a fitting (100, 200), the sanitary insert comprising: a main body (1, 3 and 7); and a movable actuation part (6) that makes contact with the main body, wherein the main body has a switching mechanism (2), and the actuation part is adapted to actuate the switching mechanism via a control element (5), and the actuation part forms an abutment (where portion 61 pivots about the inner ledge region at the corner between 1 and 7; see Figs. 4, 5, 7 and 8) that defines a pivot point with respect to a lateral application of load, and an operative connection to the control element is created which transforms the lateral application of load into an axial movement.
As to claim 5, Shen shows the sanitary insert of claim 1, and further comprising a splitter unit (23) arranged between the main body and the actuation part.
As to claim 6, Shen shows the sanitary insert of claim 1, and further comprising at least one of a coupling element (for example, the coupling between features 11 and 31) formed on the main body or a mating coupling element formed on the actuation part.
As to claim 7, Shen shows the sanitary insert of claim 6, and further comprising an insertion aid (for example, the taper feature formed on each of elements 11) formed on at least one of the coupling element or on the mating coupling element.
As to claim 8, Shen shows the sanitary insert of claim 6. Also, in light of the indefiniteness issue(s) raised above in paragraph 7 of the instant Office action, the claim can be interpreted so as to only require, for example, the “coupling element”. Thus, since the coupling element is met by Shen, the recitations of claim 8, as they are presented, are not required to be met by the prior art.
As to claim 9, Shen shows the sanitary insert of claim 6, and wherein at least one of the coupling element or the mating coupling element have recesses (31).
As to claim 10, Shen shows the sanitary insert of claim 9. Also, in light of the indefiniteness issue(s) raised above in paragraph 7 of the instant Office action, the claim can be interpreted so as to only require, for example, the “coupling element”. Thus, since the coupling element is met by Shen, and the actuation part (6) of Shen is clearly tiltable (see again, Figs. 4, 5, 7 and 8), then claim 10 is also met.
As to claim 11, Shen shows the sanitary insert of claim 9, and wherein the recesses of the coupling element or of the mating coupling element widen radially (as shown in at least Fig. 3, recesses 31 of the coupling element, when “hooks 11” are inserted thereinto, widen in a radial direction)
As to claim 13, Shen shows the sanitary insert of claim 1, and wherein the actuation part is pivotable (see again, Figs. 4, 5, 7 and 8).
As to claim 21, Shen shows the sanitary insert of claim 1, and wherein a force-displacement ratio of the control element is a function of a deflection angle of the actuation part from a rest position (recited “wherein” clause follows the construction shown by Shen).
As to claim 25, Shen shows the sanitary insert of claim 1, and wherein part of the actuation part touches the main body at a contact point (where portion 61 contacts the corner region between 1 and 7) upon a maximum lateral application of load to the actuation part (see, for example, Fig. 5).
As to claim 26, Shen shows the sanitary insert of claim 1, and wherein the actuation part is adapted to both be subject to lateral application of load and raised axially (although not discussed by Shen, there does not appear to be any inherent or implicit evidence within the four corners of the publication which would suggest that the actuation part of Shen cannot also be pushed upwardly in an axial direction).
As to claim 27, Shen shows the sanitary insert of claim 26, and wherein a force-displacement ratio of the control element is constant during axial raising of the actuation part (recited “wherein” clause follows the construction shown by Shen).
As to claim 32, Shen shows the sanitary insert of claim 1, and wherein the main body has at least one of an external thread (18) or an externally encircling sealing element (9).
As to claim 33, Shen shows the sanitary insert of claim 1, and wherein a force-displacement ratio of the control element is a function of a deflection angle of the actuation part from a rest position (recited “wherein” clause follows the construction shown by Shen).
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 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shen, in view of Huang et al., US Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0002906.
As to claim 4, Shen shows all of the recited limitations as set forth in claim 1. However, Shen does not show or describe inclusion of a flow regulator arranged ahead of the main body on an upstream side.
It should first be noted that it was old and well known in the art of sanitary inserts which are installed on a water outlet of a fitting, to include a flow regulator element/feature on an upstream side of the sanitary insert, in order to automatically adjust the incoming flow when the pressure of the water supply varies. Indeed, Huang shows a sanitary insert device (see Figs. 1-15) having a similar design, function and effect, as compared to that of Shen, and the device of Huang includes a flow regulator (260, 261, 262, 263) arranged ahead of the corresponding main body (230, 240) on an upstream side thereof, in order to automatically adjust the incoming flow when the pressure of the water supply varies (see paragraph [0043]). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include a flow regulator, as taught by Huang, with the sanitary insert shown by Shen, thus facilitating automatic incoming flow adjustments when the pressure of the water supply varies.
As to claim 20, Shen shows all of the recited limitations as set forth in claim 1. However, while the switching mechanism of Shen is shown to include a ratcheting-type arrangement (25, 251, 32) which permits several different valving positions of the switching mechanism to essentially be locked at least temporarily, the arrangement of Shen is not expressly shown or described so as to have a ballpoint mechanism or a pilot valve/main valve mechanism.
It should first be noted that Applicant’s own specification lacks criticality with respect to the switching mechanism including either of a ballpoint mechanism or a pilot valve/main valve mechanism (see paragraphs [0083] and [0109] of the instant application specification). Regardless, and as mentioned previously, Huang shows a sanitary insert device (see Figs. 1-15) having a similar design, function and effect, as compared to that of Shen, and the device of Huang also includes a ratcheting-type arrangement of the corresponding switching mechanism, which permits several different valving positions of the switching mechanism to essentially be locked at least temporarily, and which is expressly shown and described as including a ballpoint mechanism (see paragraph [0047]). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to alternatively include at least a ballpoint mechanism, as taught by Huang, for the ratcheting-type arrangement of the switching mechanism shown by Shen, since both arrangements essentially provide the same function of at least temporarily locking a particular valve position, and there would be a reasonable expectation of success if the ballpoint mechanism taught by Huang were to be employed with the switching mechanism of the sanitary insert shown by Shen.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2, 3, 12, 14-19, 22, 23, 28-31, 34 and 35 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claim 24 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
As allowable subject matter has been indicated, applicant's reply must either comply with all formal requirements or specifically traverse each requirement not complied with. See 37 CFR 1.111(b) and MPEP § 707.07(a).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US Patent to Katz, US Patent Application Publications to Schurle et al., Kao et al. and Tempel, and Foreign Patent Publications to Deiss and Dalferth, are cited as of interest.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DARREN W GORMAN whose telephone number is (571)272-4901. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 6:30-4:30.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Arthur Hall can be reached at (571)270-1814. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/DARREN W GORMAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3752
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