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 .
Abstract
The abstract of the disclosure is objected to because:
Phrases which can be implied, such as “Disclosed is” (see line 1) should not be present therein; and
The abstract should be limited to 150 words or less.
A corrected abstract of the disclosure is required and must be presented on a separate sheet, apart from any other text. See MPEP § 608.01(b).
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because:
Reference characters 149 (see paragraph 0094, line 5) and 151 (see paragraph 0095, line 6) are not present in any of the drawings.
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 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 6 and 11 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.
In regard to claims 6 and 11, the term “substantially” (see claim 6, line 3 and claim 11, line 2) is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “substantially” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention.
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 26-28 and 32 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by WO 2017/194929 (as cited by the Applicant, hereinafter ‘929) in view of EP 3 162 757 ( as cited by the Applicant, hereinafter ‘757).
In regard to claim 26, the’929 reference discloses a connector assembly 18 (see Figures 1 and 3) for connecting a beverage flow path to a beverage supply 4, the connector assembly comprising:
a housing 36 defining an internal cavity (see Figure 3);
a connector 23 for releasable connection to a beverage supply 4 and comprising a beverage passage 31 for flow of beverage from the beverage supply 4;
a sensor 21 comprising two spaced probes 32, 33 (see page 22, lines 28-30 and Figure 3) arranged so as to be in contact with beverage flowing through the beverage passage in use to measure a parameter of the beverage.
Although the ‘929 reference does not disclose the use of an insulator element within the internal cavity and having one or more recesses wherein the connector and sensor are positioned within the one or more recesses, as claimed, attention is directed to the ‘757 reference, which discloses another connector assembly for connecting a beverage flow path to a beverage supply wherein various components of the connector assembly are positioned within recess 26’, 26”, etc., of an insulating element (see Figure 1B) in order to enable the various components to be insulated. Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made the various components, i.e., the portion of connector 23 positioned within the housing 36 and sensor 21, can be positioned within recesses of an insulating element (which element would obviously be positioned within the internal cavity of the housing) in order to enable those elements to be insulated.
In regard to claim 27, the various elements in the ‘757 device form an interference fit within the recesses of the insulating member.
In regard to claim 28, the housing comprises an opening (at the end thereof through which connector 23 passes) for receipt of an insulated carrier (defined by the portion of element 23 passing through the opening). Although the opening is not discloses as being shaped as claimed, it is the examiner’s position it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made the opening (and anything passing therethrough) can be designed to have any suitable shape, including that claimed, without effecting the overall operation of the device, especially since the ‘929 reference does not limit the shape of the opening.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-5, 7-9, 13, 14, 16-18 and 22 are allowed.
Claims 6 and 11 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejections under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action.
Claim 32 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The Bursey et al. and Caputo references are cited as being directed to the state of the art as teachings of other dispensing systems employing sensor arrangements.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DAVID J WALCZAK whose telephone number is (571)272-4895. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 6:30-4:00.
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, David Angwin can be reached at 571-270-3735. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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DJW
6/1/26
/DAVID J WALCZAK/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3754
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