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 .
Drawings
New corrected drawings in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in this application because the handwritten drawings and references numbers a difficult to decipher. Applicant is advised to employ the services of a competent patent draftsperson outside the Office, as the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office no longer prepares new drawings. The corrected drawings are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. The requirement for corrected drawings will not be held in abeyance.
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.
Claim(s) 1-26, 30, and 32 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Biddle (US 3941151).
Regarding claims 1-26, 30, and 32, Biddle teaches (claims 1 and 11) a housing element 20 (fig. 2) including an opening, wherein the housing element further includes at least one connecting element 16 for connecting the housing element to the closed system 16; (claim 2) a lid 30 (fig. 2) adapted for fluid tight sealing engagement with an opening in a closed system where a pressure on an outside of the closed system is higher than a pressure on an inside of the closed system (vacuum pressure; col. 1, lines 25-34), wherein the lid 30 is arranged to perform a pivoting movement around a pivot axis for opening the lid; (claims 3 and 12) wherein the lid 30 is fluid tight held in place in the opening by balancing the forces on the lid (Biddle teaches the structural limitations and thus, is capable of meeting the recitation of due to a pressure difference between the inside and the outside of the closed system); (claims 4 and 13) wherein the pivot axis is arranged in a middle part of the lid (via shaft 31); (claims 5 and 14) wherein the pivot axis divides an area of the lid 30 in a first area and a second area, and wherein the first area is equal to or about equal to the area of the second area; (claims 6 and 15) the pivot axis is provided by a longitudinal element 31, a geometry in the lid or a geometry in the opening (a geometry in the lid); (claims 7 and 23) wherein the closed system is a vacuum system (vacuum sewer system); wherein the opening (nearest screen cap 27) in the system is an opening in a pipe or a tank (opening in a pipe 21); (claims 8-10, 17, 18) wherein the pivoting movement for opening the lid is initiated by a force (negative force) applied on a part of the lid in an area near or on a periphery of the lid 30 away from the pivot axis; wherein the lid 30 is provided with a fluid tight sealing element around a periphery of the lid for sealing engagement between the opening in the closed system and the lid; (claims 10 and 19) the periphery of the lid is arranged to be able to slide on a surface of the opening for at least a part of the pivoting movement (Biddle teaches the claimed structural elements and is therefore, capable of meeting the functional “slide” on a surface; (claim 16) wherein the opening in the housing is provided with two opposing pivot areas defining the pivot axis (pivot areas divided by stem 31); (claims 21 and 22) wherein the opening in the housing extends up from the closed system (extends from pipe 16); a perimeter of the opening increases in a direction away from the closed system (perimeter increases from pipe 16 towards screen cap 27).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Vogler teaches a pivoting valve.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to P. MACADE NICHOLS whose telephone number is (571)270-5428. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 9:00-5:00 P.M..
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Kenneth Rineahart can be reached at 571-272-4881. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/P. MACADE NICHOLS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3753
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