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 § 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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-2 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Kasper (US 6,056,150).
Claim 1, Kasper discloses a lottery-ticket issuing device (fig.24), comprising: a ticket issuing mechanism (figs.24-26) comprising a first base frame (201) and a conveyance assembly (325,327) disposed on the first base frame (201), wherein the first base frame (201) has a ticket issuing channel (201 inherently has a ticket issuing channel required for exit rollers 325,327 to enable tickets to leave 201 and proceed towards 673), and the conveyance assembly (325,327) is configured to drive lottery-tickets to move along the ticket issuing channel (201 inherently has a ticket issuing channel required for exit rollers 325,327 to enable tickets to leave 201 and proceed towards 673); and a ticket receiving mechanism (673) comprising a second base frame (673) connected to the first base frame (203), wherein the second base frame (673) has a ticket receiving cavity (673-1) communicating with the ticket issuing channel (), the ticket receiving cavity (673-1) has a guide surface (fig.26; vertical sidewalls of 673) and a supporting surface (673-2, 673-3), and the guide surface (fig.26; vertical sidewalls of 673) is configured to guide the lottery-tickets output from the ticket issuing channel to change a movement direction, so that the lottery-tickets are stacked on the supporting surface (673-2, 673-3) in a direction at an angle from a vertical direction (fig.24-26; dispensing of tickets will be stacked on the support surface at an angle from a vertical direction).
Claim 2, Kasper discloses wherein the supporting surface (673-2, 673-3) comprises a first surface (673-3) and a second surface (673-2) disposed at an obtuse angle (this is apparent from fig.26) from the first surface (673-3), the first surface (673-3) is configured to support front ends of the lottery-tickets, and the second surface (673-2) is configured to support surfaces of the lottery-tickets (figs.24-26; this depends on how the lottery ticket falls onto the supporting surface).
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.
Claim 2 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kasper (US 6,056,150).
Claim 2, Kasper discloses wherein the supporting surface (673-2, 673-3) comprises a first surface (673-3) and a second surface (673-2) disposed at an angle from the first surface (673-3), the first surface (673-3) is configured to support front ends of the lottery-tickets, and the second surface (673-2) is configured to support surfaces of the lottery-tickets (figs.24-26; this greatly depends on how the lottery ticket falls onto the supporting surface).
Although Kasper does not explicitly disclose a first surface (673-2) and a second surface (673-3) disposed at an obtuse angle from the first surface, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to implement such a configuration with wherein the second surface is disposed at an obtuse angle since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art. In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-20 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to AYODEJI H OJOFEITIMI whose telephone number is (571)272-6557. The examiner can normally be reached 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM.
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, GENE CRAWFORD can be reached at (571) 272-6911. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/AYODEJI H OJOFEITIMI/Examiner, Art Unit 3651
Prosecution Insights