DETAILED ACTION
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 09/11/2026 has been entered.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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) 1-11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Warmke et al. De 10200503588, hereinafter referred to as Warmke and further in view of Bruce US 6749234, hereinafter referred to as Bruce.
Regarding claim 1, Warmke discloses a door latch device (fig1) for an automotive vehicle door (40, see fig3) comprising :
a striker (5) can be inserted (see fig1),
a holding fork (2), rotatable between a holding position (fig1) in which the holding fork holds and immobilizes the striker and a releasing position (not explicitly shown, when striker is released) in which its hold on the striker is released, and
a locking claw (3) rotatable between a locking position (fig1) in which the locking claw locks the fork into the holding position and an unlocking position (not explicitly shown, when striker is released) in which the locking claw unlocks the fork, the locking claw being biased from the unlocked position towards the locked position,
wherein the holding fork comprises a first locking protrusion (7) facing a locking recess (annotated figure) provided in the locking claw and delimited on one side by an inner side ( annotated figure) of a protruding portion (annotated figure) of the locking claw, such that engagement of the first locking protrusion in the locking recess (fig1) locks the locking claw and the holding fork together, and a second locking protrusion (8) separated from the first locking protrusion by a concavity (annotated figure) configured to receive the protruding portion of the locking claw, the second locking protrusion being configured to come into contact with an outer side (annotated figure) of the protruding portion of the locking claw when the locking claw is in its locking position but the first locking protrusion is not in contact with a bottom surface (see annotated figure) of the locking recess to provide a backup in case the first locking protrusion is unable to secure a hold of the holding fork by the locking claw (NOTE: contact occurs between 8 and outer side of protruding portion (11 essentially) when there is extra force applied to the latch which occurs, for example, during an accident (Warmke paragraph 24) wherein then the contact of 8 and 11 serves as a “back up” in case the first locking protrusion is unable to secure a hold of the holding fork.), and
wherein the outer side of the protruding portion of the locking claw is separated by the inner side of the protruding portion of the locking claw by a tip (annotated figure) of the protruding portion of the locking claw. (Warmke, fig1 & annotated figure)
Warmke does not explicitly teach the latch housing components of the latch device (see col. 2 lines 3-4) although does acknowledge that other components of the latch housing exist. Warmke does not teach: a base member having an insertion slot through which striker can be inserted; the holding fork disposed on the base member, a locking claw disposed on the base member.
Bruce teaches a door latch device (fig1) for an automative vehicle door (abstract) comprising:
a base member (12) having an insertion slot (15) through which striker (11) can be inserted;
a holding fork (18) disposed on the base member (see fig4),
a locking claw (17) disposed on the base member (fig4).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the latch device of Warmke to be mounted explicitly on latch housing component such as a base member with an insertion slot, a concept as taught by Bruce, in order to provide a reduced noise and rattle housing (Bruce) since Warmke acknowledges that the housing exists but does not explicitly detail its parts, and the device of Warmke would remain functionally equivalent. (Bruce col 1 lines 5-10, 50-55)
Regarding claim 2, Warmke in view of Bruse teaches the door latch device according to claim 1, further comprising a latch mechanism (Warmke – the latch mechanism comprises the holding fork and locking claw and striker) that may be switched from a latched state (Warmke, when striker is enclosed by holding fork) preventing the vehicle door from being opened, to an unlatched state (Warmke, when striker is released) allowing the vehicle door to be opened and wherein, when the second locking protrusion (Warmke) is in contact with the opposing outer side of the locking claw, said second locking protrusion is subjected to the load received by the holding fork such that the locking claw is still engaged with the holding fork and the latch mechanism will not switch to the unlatched state (Warmke, second locking protrusion is engaged by 11 on locking claw during accident -i.e. when extra load is placed on the latch mechanism, paragraph 24). (Warmke fig1 & annotated figure, Bruce fig1-4)
Regarding claim 3, Warmke in view of Bruce further teaches the door latch device according to claim 1, wherein, when the claw is in its locking position, the second locking protrusion is located a distance from the fork on a side perpendicular to the direction in which the insertion slot extends. (Warmke fig1 & annotated figure, Bruce fig1-4)
Regarding claim 4, Warmke in view of Bruce further teaches the door latch device according to claim 1, wherein the second locking protrusion is located towards an outer side (depending on frame of reference, the second locking protrusion is always ‘towards’ an outer side of the vehicle – the top, or the side of vehicle, Warmke fig1) of the vehicle in a vehicle width direction (in and out of page, Warmke fig 1) with respect to the first locking protrusion. (Warmke fig1 & annotated figure, Bruce fig1-4)
Regarding claim 5, Warmke in view of Bruce further teaches the door latch device according to claim 1, wherein the protruding portion (Warmke) of the locking claw fits into a recessed portion (Warmke fig1 & annotated figure) of the holding fork.
Regarding claim 6, Warmke in view of Bruce further teaches the door latch device according to claim 5, wherein the protruding portion (Warmke) of the locking claw is formed in a portion (the inner side of the protruding portion of Warmke, annotated figure) of the locking recess that is adjacent to an outer side (Warmke annotated figure) of the locking recess in the vehicle width direction. (Warmke, fig1 & annotated figure)
Regarding claim 7, Warmke in view of Bruce further teaches the door latch device according to claim 5, wherein the recessed portion of the holding fork is adjacent to an inner side (Warmke, annotated figure) of the first locking protrusion (Warmke) in the vehicle width direction. (Warmke fig1 & annotated figure)
Regarding claim 8, Warmke in view of Bruce further teaches the door latch device according to claim 5, wherein the second locking protrusion (Warmke) comes into contact with an outer side (Warmke annotated figure) of the protruding portion of the locking claw in the vehicle width direction. (Warmke fig1 & annotated figure, Bruce fig1-5)
Regarding claim 9, Warmke in view of Bruce further teaches the door latch device according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the first locking protrusion (Warmke) and the second locking protrusion (Warmke) has a generally triangular shape (Warmke fig1 & annotated figure).
Regarding claim 10, Warmke in view of Bruce further teaches the door latch device according to claim 1, wherein a portion of the locking claw has an arc shape (Warmke annotated figure) centered about an axis of rotation (Warmke at 9) of the locking claw.
Regarding claim 11, Warmke in view of Bruce further teaches the door latch device according to claim 1, further comprising a cover plate (Bruce, 13) disposed on one side of the base member (see Bruce, fig5, base member of Bruce is 12) on which the holding fork (Warmke 2) and the locking claw (Warmke 3) are disposed and supporting a first end of a rotation shaft (Warmke’s rotation shafts are located at 4 and 9, for the holding fork and locking claw respectively, the first end of each of these rotation shafts are not explicitly shown but would be the top end of each shaft.) of each of the holding fork and the locking claw, and a set plate (Bruce 14) arranged on a second side (behind 12, Bruce fig5) of the base member (Bruce 12) opposite to a first side (front of 12, Bruce fig5) and supporting a second side of the holding fork and the locking claw opposite to the first end of the rotation shaft. (Bruce fig5)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the latch device of Warmke to be mounted explicitly on latch housing comprising further of a cover plate and set plate, a concept as taught by Bruce, in order to provide a reduced noise and rattle housing (Bruce) since Warmke acknowledges that the housing exists but does not explicitly detail its parts, and the device of Warmke would remain functionally equivalent. (Bruce col 1 lines 5-10, 50-55)
Annotated Figure
PNG
media_image1.png
719
990
media_image1.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image2.png
730
990
media_image2.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image3.png
777
946
media_image3.png
Greyscale
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1-11 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. A new primary reference, Warmke, has been applied in light of Applicant’s claim amendments.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Art is related to door latch devices.
Previous PTO892 lists related but not relied upon prior art such as US 20230349203, US 12054974, US 20150097378.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FARIA F. AHMAD whose telephone number is (571)270-1334. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:30 am - 5:30 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, Christine M. Mills can be reached at (571) 272-8322. 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.
/F.F.A./
Examiner
Art Unit 3675
/CHRISTINE M MILLS/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3675
