DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Specification
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
Election/Restrictions
Claims 7-9 withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 7/23/26.
Applicant's election with traverse of Species I in the reply filed on 7/23/26 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the grounds that there is no serious burden in examining claims 7-9. This is not found persuasive because
Due to their mutually exclusive characteristics, the species require a different field of search (e.g., searching different classes/subclasses or electronic resources, or employing different search queries); and/or the prior art applicable to one species would not likely be applicable to another species; and/or the species are likely to raise different non-prior art issues under 35 U.S.C. 101 and/or 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph. For instance, the construction of Species I, II, III and IV is unique and would require employing different search queries for each species.
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
Claim Objections
Claim 3 is objected to because of the following informalities: In line 4, delete the second consecutive occurrence of “of”. Appropriate correction is required.
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)(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 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Arizono et al. US Publication 2024/0326476 (hereafter “Arizono”).
Referring to claim 1, Arizono discloses an image reading apparatus that reads image information of a sheet after image formation, the image reading apparatus comprising:
an image reader that is disposed movable in a sheet width direction orthogonal to a sheet conveyance direction and that reads the image information of the sheet (paragraph 74, Also, the colorimeter 64 measures color in a spot manner in a small region at a predetermined position in the print image, and is provided with a colorimeter movement mechanism 641 for moving the colorimeter to a position where colorimetry is to be performed. The colorimeter movement mechanism 641 is configured so that the colorimeter 64 can move in the paper width direction at least over the entire width of the printing paper 5); and
a guide member that forms a sheet conveyance path (paragraph 74, The colorimeter movement mechanism 641 includes, for example, a guide member that guides the colorimeter 64),
wherein the guide member moves in accordance with a movement of the image reader in the sheet width direction (paragraph 74, The colorimeter movement mechanism 641 is configured so that the colorimeter 64 can move in the paper width direction at least over the entire width of the printing paper 5).
Referring to claim 2, Arizono discloses wherein when the sheet is conveyed, an image reading section that reads the image information is disposed at a position that is shifted from a center of the sheet conveyance path in the sheet width direction and that faces the sheet conveyance path (paragraph 90, When the relative position of the reading spot is displaced to the left from P0 (That is, when the printing paper 5 is displaced to the right toward the conveyance direction, and as a result, the position on which the positional displacement detection chart 530 is printed by the recording unit 223 is displaced to the left in the nozzle arrangement direction), the colorimetric value obtained by colorimetry of the second positional displacement detection patch 534 (the colorimetric value of the second predetermined color) increases as the positional displacement amount increase).
Referring to claim 10, Arizono discloses an image forming system comprising:
an image forming apparatus that forms an image on a sheet (paragraph 69, a recording unit 223 for recording a print image on the printing paper 5); and
the image reading apparatus according to claim 1 (paragraph 70, a colorimeter 64 that measures a color of a predetermined portion of the print image recorded on the printing paper 5 by the recording unit 223).
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.
Claims 3-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Arizono et al. US Publication 2024/0326476 as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Nakata US Publication 2015/0239269 (hereafter “Nakata”).
Referring to claim 3, Arizono discloses the guide member, but does not disclose expressly that the guide member comprises a first and second guide.
Nakata discloses wherein the guide member comprises:
a first guide extending on one side of the image reader in the sheet width direction; and
a second guide extending on an opposite side of the one side of the image reader in the sheet width direction, wherein a length of the first guide and a length of the second guide are asymmetric with respect to the image reading section (paragraph 55, Specifically, the first edge guide 46 is provided so as to slide in synchronization with the second edge guide 48 by the rack and pinion mechanism as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to configure a guide member as two edge guides. The motivation for doing so would have been to improve alignment of the sheet to improve print quality. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Nakata with Arizono to obtain the invention as specified in claim 3.
Referring to claim 4, Arizono discloses wherein the image reader is provided on the first guide or the second guide (paragraph 74, The colorimeter movement mechanism 641 includes, for example, a guide member that guides the colorimeter 64).
Referring to claim 5, Nakata discloses wherein in the guide member, the first guide and the second guide are disposed to be slidable along with the sheet width direction by stretching and contracting (paragraph 55, Specifically, the first edge guide 46 is provided so as to slide in synchronization with the second edge guide 48 by the rack and pinion mechanism as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13).
Referring to claim 6, Arizono discloses the guide member, but does not disclose expressly wherein the guide member includes a stretchable member.
Nakata discloses wherein the guide member includes a stretchable member (paragraph 55, Specifically, the first edge guide 46 is provided so as to slide in synchronization with the second edge guide 48 by the rack and pinion mechanism as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to configure a guide member to include a stretchable member. The motivation for doing so would have been to improve alignment of the sheet to improve print quality. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Nakata with Arizono to obtain the invention as specified in claim 6.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PETER K HUNTSINGER whose telephone number is (571)272-7435. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:30 - 5:00.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Benny Q Tieu can be reached at 571-272-7490. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/PETER K HUNTSINGER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2682
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