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 .
Priority date of 06/09/2022 based on FR2205554 is acknowledged.
The Election/Restriction dated 12/16/2025 is hereby withdrawn in view that that the withdrawn claims have been canceled.
SET I:
Claims 1, 4-9, and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jensen et al. (9849055) in view of Choi (KR20120119695) or Schneider (3764433) or Carroll (7484275).
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(5) Conventional bags for the handling and transporting of contaminated material or of human remains generally comprise a tough, impermeable, preferably air- and fluid-tight, outer material.
(42) Thermal bonding can be used to form a continuous thermal seal 130 around the periphery of hazardous material containment bag 10, to form compartment 135 in hazardous material containment bag 10 that is self-contained and water-resistant/fluid-resistant. A preferred technique for thermal bonding is Radio Frequency (RF) welding technology. Alternatively, ultrasonic bonding or heat bonding techniques can create thermal seal 130. (30) Cover 80 can be a material selected from nylon, polymer (such as polypropylene or polyethylene), plastic, polyester, polyester blend, cloth (such as canvas, hemp, flax, or cotton fiber), or combinations of these materials
Preferably, closure 125 is a zipper having complementary male and female teeth 126, 128. Further, closure 125 is airtight and watertight
Regarding claim 1, Jensen teaches a cover for at least one article comprising: a flexible enclosure, the flexible enclosure being impermeable to liquids and gases and being made of fibers suitable for heat-bonding; and a closure (zipper 90) arranged to be moved between an open position in which the article can be introduced into the flexible enclosure, and a closed position in which the article is enclosed in an air and watertight manner in an internal space of the flexible enclosure, the movement of the closure from the open position to the closed position causing a quantity of air to become trapped in the internal space of the flexible enclosure so as to form a protective pocket of air around the article; wherein the flexible enclosure includes a front wall and a back wall (forming the bag 10), the internal space extends between the front wall and the back wall, and the front and back walls are bonded by continuous heat-bonding along a periphery (cited above) of the front and back walls without stitches; and wherein the closure is a sealed zipper (90) fastened to the flexible enclosure by continuous heat-bonding; and wherein the flexible enclosure has no opening, no stitches nor holes inside the internal space, with the exception of the closure. Jensen does not explicitly sealed zipper fastened to the flexible enclosure by continuous heat-bonding.
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On the other hand, the yeonghyeonbaek of the present invention is attached to the PVC airtight zipper (2) to the film fabric (1) to block the gas, liquid and aerosol and to improve the airtightness by heat bonding rather than sewing, the zipper
Flexible PVC zippers contain substantial amounts of migratory plasticizers. These oily compounds continuously bloom to the surface, which limits the heat-sealability of this class of polymers. The interface material of the present invention helps to obviate this limitation, thereby expanding the number of alternative materials to which a plasticized thermoplastic zipper can be heat-sealed. In this embodiment, the CPE/PVC alloy contains a sufficient amount of PVC that can readily absorb any migrating plasticizer while maintaining the heat seal to the outer surface of the zipper.
In addition, a transport handle 4 is connected to the film fabric 1 'constituting the bottom surface. The fabric material of the transport handle 4 is made of a polymer material such as nylon and polyester, and the film fabric 1 and heat It is attached through gluing or ultrasonic work.
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(10) The closure member 77 is constructed of a zipper 78 comprising a conventional fabric portion 80 having metal teeth 81 and a metal pull 82, the zipper 78 being heat sealed by engagement of the fabric portion 80 thereof with a strip 83 of moldable material having an elongated slot 84 therein and an elongated tab 85, forming a part thereof. The tab 85 has an end portion 86 which is foldable back upon itself as indicated in FIG. 4, to be sealed thereto to form a closed window 87 to receive an identification tag or the like. A hook 88 may also be carried by the strip 83 as illustrated in FIG. 4, for locking the zipper member 78 shut by locking the hook member 88 to the pull 82, in a conventional manner. When the zipper 78 is secured to the strip 83, and the heat sealing operation which is later to be described is completed, the zipper 78 is secured to the strip 83 along a continuous sealing line 90 which simulates stitching.
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Typical materials of construction include polyethylene sheeting, polyethylene laminates to woven or nonwoven support fabrics, or varying weights of supported and unsupported polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and/or polyurethane. Predominately rectangular in shape, seaming is accomplished via traditional needle and thread sewing, impulse welding, radio frequency welding, or other similar thermal seaming techniques.
Flexible PVC zippers contain substantial amounts of migratory plasticizers. These oily compounds continuously bloom to the surface, which limits the heat-sealability of this class of polymers. The interface material of the present invention helps to obviate this limitation, thereby expanding the number of alternative materials to which a plasticized thermoplastic zipper can be heat-sealed. In this embodiment, the CPE/PVC alloy contains a sufficient amount of PVC that can readily absorb any migrating plasticizer while maintaining the heat seal to the outer surface of the zipper.
In this embodiment, the barrier fabric comprises a high barrier, multi-layer film incorporating EVOH (ethylene vinyl alcohol) laminated to a spunbonded polyester substrate. The fabric of this embodiment is a five-layer construction with a layer of EVOH in the middle, bracketed by water-resistant bonding resin layers and outer layers of polyethylene or polyester.
Carroll, KR’695, and Schneider, each teaches that it is known in the art to provide zipper fastened to the flexible enclosure by continuous heat-bonding as cited above. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to provide the zipper fastened to the flexible enclosure by continuous heat-bonding as taught by to provide added protection against air/liquid.
Regarding claim 4, note the zipper extends from an upper end of the flexible enclosure to a lower end.
Regarding claim 5, note the zipper extends substantially centrally on the front wall as claimed.
Regarding claim 6, Jensen does not teach the folding line along a transverse line. it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to provide a folding line along a transverse line to enable one to fold the bag for easy storage.
Regarding claim 8, note the pocket 106 comprises the support on an inner surface of the flexible enclosure, i.e., it supports the inside contents. Regarding the heat bonding. Jensen, Carroll, KR’695, and Schneider, each teaches the heat bonding method. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to use heat bonding to attach the support to the inner surface of the enclosure to provide the desired method for attaching the support.
Regarding claim 9, note that the cover can container garment and “garment bag” does not impart any structure over the device of Jensen.
Regarding claim 18, note the material of polyester.
SET II:
Claims 1, 4-6, 8-9, and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Knight (4790051) in view of Jensen’380 or Carroll’275.
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The outer edges of the outer envelope and the inner liner are shown meeting at the periphery of the pouch where the edges are heat sealed to each other.
the outer edges of inner liner 11 are sealed, preferably by heat sealing
Regarding claim 1, Knight teaches a cover for at least one article comprising: a flexible enclosure, the flexible enclosure being impermeable to liquids and gases (waterproof and odor proof) and suitable for heat-bonding, and a closure (zipper 90) arranged to be moved between an open position in which the article can be introduced into the flexible enclosure, and a closed position in which the article is enclosed in an air and watertight manner in an internal space of the flexible enclosure, the movement of the closure from the open position to the closed position causing a quantity of air to become trapped in the internal space of the flexible enclosure so as to form a protective pocket of air around the article; wherein the flexible enclosure includes a front wall and a back wall (forming the bag 10), the internal space extends between the front wall and the back wall, and the front and back walls are bonded by continuous heat-bonding along a periphery (cited above) of the front and back walls without stitches; and wherein the closure is a sealed zipper (90) fastened to the flexible enclosure by continuous heat-bonding (cited above); and wherein the flexible enclosure has no opening, no stitches nor holes inside the internal space, with the exception of the closure. Jensen does not explicitly sealed zipper fastened to the flexible enclosure by continuous heat-bonding. Carroll or Jensen, each teaches that it is known in the art to provide a zipper that can be heat bonded to the material. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to provide the zipper heat bond to the material to provide added protection. Also, Carroll or Jensen, each teaches the use of polyester fiber. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to provide polyester fiber to provide the desired material for manufacturing.
Regarding claim 4, note the zipper extends from upper to lower portion.
Regarding claim 5, note the zipper has two portions extends substantially centrally. In the alternative, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to provide a zipper extending substantially centrally as taught by Carroll to provide the desired zipper structure and/or for saving material.
Regarding claim 6, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to provide a fold line extending along a transverse axis of the cover, the fold line allowing the cover to be folded by rotation about the transverse axis to keep the device folded for storage.
Regarding claim 8, note support portion 11 being heat bonded as claimed.
Regarding claim 9, note the bag is capable of storing a garment bag.
Regarding claim 18, note the polyester fibers taught by Jensen and Carroll.
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Knight rejection, as set forth above, and further in view of Choi’695. Choi teaches the two handles including the first and second handles being symmetrical (either two handles each symmetrically arranged on each side of the axis of the bag or each handle has its own transverse axis) with respect to the transverse axis except for the handle fastened to an outer surface of the flexible enclosure by heat bonding. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to provide handle heat bonded to the cover as taught by Choi ‘695 to provide the desired attachment method.
SET III:
Claims 1, 4-6, 9, and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shapiro (4206835) in view of Jensen and Carroll or Schneider.
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The garment bag comprises first and second panels 10, 12 of flexible material connected to one another at their peripheral edges 14. The edges are sewn or heat sealed to one another
(3) The flexible material of which the panels 10 and 12 are made preferably is weather- or water-resistant, sewable and/or heat sealable, for example, plastic sheet material such as vinyl sheeting, or a coated fabric such as canvas or the like coated with a suitable waterproofing composition. Various waterproofing compositions may be used, for example, polyvinyl chloride, copolymers of vinyl chloride and vinyl acetate, copolymer and terpolymers of styrene, etc.
Regarding claim 1, Shapiro teaches a flexible enclosure, the flexible enclosure being impermeable to liquids and gases (waterproof) and being made of fibers suitable for heat-bonding; and a closure (zipper 24) arranged to be moved between an open position in which the article can be introduced into the flexible enclosure, and a closed position in which the article is enclosed in an air and watertight manner in an internal space of the flexible enclosure, the movement of the closure from the open position to the closed position causing a quantity of air to become trapped in the internal space of the flexible enclosure so as to form a protective pocket of air around the article; wherein the flexible enclosure includes a front wall (10) and a back wall (12), the internal space extends between the front wall and the back wall, and the front and back walls are bonded by continuous heat-bonding along a periphery of the front and back walls without stitches and the flexible enclosure has no opening. Shapiro does not teach a sealed zipper fastened to the flexible enclosure by continuous heat-bonding and the flexible enclosure has no opening, no stitches nor holes inside the internal space, with the exception of the closure.
Regarding the zipper, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to provide the zipper fastened to the flexible enclosure by continuous heat-bonding as taught by Jensen and Carroll or Schneider to provide the desired attachment manufacturing method for saving cost. Regarding no stitches nor holes inside the internal space, Shapiro teaches the enclosure having no holes. Regarding no stitches it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to provide all other attachment structures to use heat bonding or sealing since heat bonding or sealing is a well known alternative manufacturing method for saving cost as cited by Shapiro and supported by the Jensen and Carroll or Schneider. Regarding the enclosure being impermeable to liquids and gases, note the material cited above. Also note that the claimed functionality does not impart any structure over the device in Shapiro. Also, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to provide the zipper of Jensen and Carroll or Schneider to provide the enclosure being impermeable to liquids and gases to provide added protection.
Regarding claim 4, note the zipper extends from upper to lower portion.
Regarding claim 5, note the zipper has two portions extends substantially centrally as claimed.
Regarding claim 6, note the folding line about the suitcase.
Regarding claim 9, note the bag is a garment bag.
Regarding claim 18, note the polyester fibers taught by Jensen and Carroll.
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shapiro rejection, as set forth above, and further in view of Choi’695. Choi teaches the two handles including the first and second handles being symmetrical (either two handles each symmetrically arranged on each side of the axis of the bag or each handle has its own transverse axis) with respect to the transverse axis except for the handle fastened to an outer surface of the flexible enclosure by heat bonding. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to provide handle heat bonded to the cover as taught by Choi ‘695 to provide the desired attachment method.
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shapiro rejection, as set forth above, and further in view of Gendreau(5090559) or Marbury et al. (2454630) . Shapiro meets all claimed limitations except for the support. Gendreau (at 60) or Marbury (at 15 or at ties holding structure), each teaches that it is known in the art to provide a support for hanger. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to provide a support as taught by Gendreau or Marbury to support a hanger for hangers and/or other garments (ties).
SET IV:
Claims 1 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Choi’695 in view of
Applicant’s arguments with respect to the claims have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejections.
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 TRI M MAI whose telephone number is (571)272-4541. The examiner can normally be reached 8am-5pm (Mon-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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TRI M. MAI
Examiner
Art Unit 3733
/TRI M MAI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3733
