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 .
Election/Restrictions
Claims 6-8 and 14-24 withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Invention/Species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 04/28/2026.
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) 1-5 and 9-13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ziegenfelder et al. (US 2016/010913) in view of Herlin et al. (US 2019/0177055).
In re claim 1: Ziegenfelder et al. discloses a container 10 for holding at least one article, the container 10 comprising: a body 12 extending at least partially around an interior of the container 10; a closed bottom 16 engaged with the body 12; and a reclosable lid 14 engaged with the body 12, the reclosable lid 14 including a base portion 30 connected to a lid portion 28, the base portion 30 comprising at least one wall 34 forming a body receiving space (space receiving 18) at least partially receiving the body 12 of the container 10 (see figures 1-2B of Ziegenfelder et al.).
Ziegenfelder et al. discloses the claimed invention as discussed above with the exception of the following claimed limitation that is taught by Herlin et al.:
a base portion 108 hingably 110 connected to a lid portion 109 (see figures 1 and 3 of Herlin et al.).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to modify the lid of Ziegenfelder et al. with a hinged opening portion as taught by Herlin et al. in order to allow a user to open and close the container as desired and prevent damage to the body when opening (see figures 1 and 3 of Herlin et al.).
Ziegenfelder et al. further discloses:
In re claim 2: an upper marginal portion 18 of the body 12 is at least partially received in the body receiving space (space receiving 18) such that the reclosable lid is coupled to the body without adhesive (see figure 2A of Ziegenfelder et al.).
In re claim 3: the body comprises a paperboard material and the reclosable lid comprises a polymeric material (see [0026]-[0027] of Ziegenfelder et al.).
In re claim 4: the reclosable lid 109 is reconfigurable between an open position (figure 3), in which the lid portion is at least partially raised away from the base portion 108, and a closed position (figure 1), in which the lid portion 109 is at least partially received in the base portion 108.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to modify Ziegenfelder et al.in view of Herlin et al. for the same reason as discussed above in claim 1.
In re claim 5: a ledge 40 extends from the at least one wall into the body receiving space (space receiving 18), and the upper marginal portion 18 of the body 12 is at least partially curled in the body receiving space (space receiving 18) to contact the ledge 40 (see [0029] of Ziegenfelder et al.).
In re claim 9: A combination for forming a container 10 for holding at least one article, the combination comprising: body blank 12 for forming a body 12 extending at least partially around an interior of the container 10 formed from the combination; a bottom blank 16 for forming a closed bottom 16 engaged with the body 12 of the container 10 formed from the combination; and a reclosable lid 14 for being engaged with the body 12 of the container 10 formed from the combination, the reclosable lid 14 comprising a base portion 30 connected to a lid portion 28, the base portion 30 comprising at least one wall 34 forming a body receiving space (space receiving 18) for at least partially receiving the body 12 of the container 10 formed from the combination.
Ziegenfelder et al. discloses the claimed invention as discussed above with the exception of the following claimed limitation that is taught by Herlin et al.:
a base portion 108 hingably 110 connected to a lid portion 109 (see figures 1 and 3 of Herlin et al.).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to modify the lid of Ziegenfelder et al. with a hinged opening portion as taught by Herlin et al. in order to allow a user to open and close the container as desired and prevent damage to the body when opening (see figures 1 and 3 of Herlin et al.).
Ziegenfelder et al. further discloses:
In re claim 10: an upper marginal portion 18 of the body blank 12 is for being at least partially received in the body receiving space (space receiving 18) for of the reclosable lid 14 when the container 10 is formed from the combination such that the reclosable lid 14 is coupled to the body 12 without adhesive when the container 10 is formed from the combination (see figure 2A of Ziegenfelder et al.).
In re claim 11: the body blank 12 comprises a paperboard material and the reclosable lid 14 comprises a polymeric material (see [0026]-[0027] of Ziegenfelder et al.).
In re claim 12: the reclosable lid 109 is reconfigurable between an open position (figure 3), in which the lid portion is at least partially raised away from the base portion 108, and a closed position (figure 1), in which the lid portion 109 is at least partially received in the base portion 108.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was effectively filed to modify Ziegenfelder et al.in view of Herlin et al. for the same reason as discussed above in claim 1.
In re claim 13: a ledge 40 extends from the at least one wall into the body receiving space (space receiving 18), and the upper marginal portion 18 of the body blanks12 is at least partially curled in the body receiving space (space receiving 18) to contact the ledge 40 when the container 10 is formed from the combination(see [0029] of Ziegenfelder et al.).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See the attached PTO-892 for prior art that teaches and discloses structural limitations of the claimed and disclosed invention.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ERNESTO A GRANO whose telephone number is (571)270-3927. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7:00-3:30 EST.
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, Anthony Stashick can be reached at (571)272-4561. 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.
/ERNESTO A GRANO/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3735
Prosecution Insights