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
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) 14 and 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Huang et al. (CN 114249208 A). Huang discloses an elevator system (title) including:
Re claim 14, an elevator car with a transportation compartment (spec describes a car); a rack (16) or rail along which the elevator car is configured to be driven; and an elevator drive mechanism (fig. 1 and the motor described in the spec) configured to drive the elevator car along the rack or rail, wherein the elevator drive mechanism includes at least one elevator drive motor (spec describes a motor, which would be upstream of shaft 1) and at least one elevator drive cassette (fig. 1) configured for use in driving the movement of the elevator car along the rail or rack, the elevator drive cassette including: a driven pinion (14) and drive shaft (1) configured to be driven by the at least one drive motor; a mechanical coupling (3); at least one further pinion (15) configured to be driven by the driven pinion or drive shaft via the mechanical coupling, wherein the elevator drive cassette comprises a main body (13) configured to support, at least in part, the driven pinion and the at least one further pinion (fig. 1), the driven pinion and the at least one further pinion being mounted to the main body in a linear array with teeth of the driven pinion and at least one further pinion protruding from a side of the main body (fig. 1 shows the teeth of 14,15 protruding from the left side), wherein both the driven pinion and at least one further pinion are configured to engage the same rail or rack (fig. 2).
Re claim 6, wherein the elevator drive cassette is configured to be secured and removed from a frame of the elevator drive mechanism as a unitary piece (the cassette is assembled as a unitary piece within a housing and could be attachably removed via the bolts shown at the right side in fig. 2).
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(s) 2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Huang et al. (CN 114249208 A) in view of Zhang et al. (CN 101870429 A). Huang discloses the elevator system (as cited above). Huang does not disclose:
Re claim 2, wherein the mechanical coupling includes: a first transfer gear configured to be driven by the drive shaft; an idler gear configured to be driven by the first transfer gear; and a second transfer gear configured to be driven by the idler gear, the second transfer gear being configured to drive the at least one further pinion.
However, Zhang teaches an elevator system (fig. 1A):
Re claim 2, wherein the mechanical coupling (fig. 2) includes: a first transfer gear (103) configured to be driven by the drive shaft (201); an idler gear (111) configured to be driven by the first transfer gear; and a second transfer gear (121) configured to be driven by the idler gear, the second transfer gear being configured to drive the at least one further pinion (123).
It would have been obvious to person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to employ the claimed gear train, as taught by Zhang, to better modify the gear ratio thereby the speed of the vertical movement.
Claim(s) 4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Huang et al. (CN 114249208 A) in view of Shohet (US 3,924,710). Huang discloses the elevator system (as cited above). Huang does not disclose:
Re claim 4, further including one or more rollers configured to engage a part of the rail or rack, and/or another part of the elevator system with which the elevator drive cassette is used.
However, Shohet teaches an elevator system (fig. 2):
Re claim 4, further including one or more rollers (124,125) configured to engage a part of the rail or rack (25), and/or another part of the elevator system with which the elevator drive cassette is used.
It would have been obvious to person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to employ the rollers, as taught by Shohet, to provide a counter force to prevent slipping.
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Huang et al. (CN 114249208 A). Huang discloses the elevator system (as cited above). Huang does not disclose:
Re claim 5, wherein the at least one further pinion includes at least two further pinions.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to employ additional pinions to increase the contact surface for better weight distribution, since it has been held that mere duplication of the essential working parts of a device involves only routine skill in the art. St. Regis Paper Co. V. Bemis Co., 193 USPQ 8.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 3 is 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.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 2-6 and 14 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
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 MINH D TRUONG whose telephone number is (571)270-3014. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9-5 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, Robert Hodge can be reached at (571) 272-2097. 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.
/Minh Truong/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3654
Prosecution Insights