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 .
Foreign Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d). The certified copy has been filed in parent Application No. 17/913,366 filed on September 21, 2022.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDSs) submitted on October 10, 2024, February 3, 2025, and April 10, 2025, are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97 and 37 CFR 1.98. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements have been considered by the examiner.
Drawings
The drawings were received on October 10, 2024. These drawings are accepted.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
(i) 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.
Appropriate correction is required.
The lengthy specification has not been checked to the extent necessary to determine the presence of all possible minor errors. Applicant’s cooperation is requested in correcting any errors of which applicant may become aware in the specification.
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.
Claim 5 is 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.
With regard to claim 5, the recitation "wherein: the stopper portion includes a first stopper portion and a second stopper portion, the first stopper portion is disposed on a second side opposite to the first side of the first plane and on a front side of the second plane, the second stopper portion is disposed on the first side of the first plane and on the back side of the second plane, and the first stopper portion is disposed in front of the second stopper portion" (emphasis added) appears to be inconsistent with the Applicant's disclosure, thus rendering the metes and bounds of the claim, when viewed in light of the underlying specification, indefinite.
The specification discloses that the stopper portion includes a first stopper portion (e.g., 26a) and a second stopper portion (e.g., 26b), the first stopper portion (26a) is disposed on a second side opposite to the first side of the first plane and on the back side of the second plane (e.g. upper-left quadrant of Fig. 2A).
Amendment and/or clarification is required in order to provide consistency of the claims with respect to the disclosure.
Examiner Comments
The Examiner has cited particular columns and line numbers, paragraphs, or figures in the reference(s) as applied to the claims for the convenience of the Applicant. Although the specified citations are representative of the teachings in the art and are applied to the specific limitations within the individual claim, other passages and figures may apply as well. It is respectfully requested from the Applicant, in preparing responses, to fully consider the references in their entirety as potentially teaching all or part of the claimed invention, as well as the context of the passage as taught by the prior art or disclosed by the Examiner.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1-4, 6, 8, and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1) in view of Tanaka et al. (US 6,201,782 B1).
As per claims 1 and 9, Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1) discloses an optical disc drive (e.g., 200) comprising: an insertion port (e.g., see Fig. 1, the insertion slot depicted within the apparatus (100)) configured to receive an optical disc (e.g., 280, 290); a spindle motor (e.g., associated with turntable (222)) located behind and away from the insertion port (e.g., see Figs. 2, 6, 7); a mechanism (e.g., including components (257a-257e) - see Fig. 4 and roller (256)) configured to convey the optical disc (280, 290) through the insertion port; a frame (e.g., 231 and/or 210) including a stopper portion (e.g., 260a, 260b and/or 270a, 270b - see Figs. 6-9; paragraphs [0041-0042]) configured to come into contact with an outer edge of the optical disc (280, 290) having reached the position of the spindle motor (222) (see Figs. 7, 9), to restrict backward movement of the optical disc (see, inter alia, paragraphs [0041-0042]).
Additionally, as per claim 9, Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1) further discloses an electronic apparatus (e.g., 100) comprising a cabinet housing (e.g., 110) the optical disc drive.
As per claim 1 and claim 9, Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1) remains silent with respect to providing a bias member including a contact portion located on a side opposite to the stopper portion (e.g., 260a, 260b and/or 270a, 270b) across the optical disc (280, 290) having reached the position of the spindle motor (222) (see Figs. 7, 9), the bias member being configured to use the contact portion to push the optical disc (280, 290) toward the stopper portion (e.g., 260a, 260b and/or 270a, 270b), wherein: the bias member is rotatable around a first axis, the first axis is disposed on a first side of a first plane and on a back side of a second plane, the first plane extending along a front-back direction and through a rotational center axis of the spindle motor, the second plane extending along a lateral direction and through the rotational center axis of the spindle motor, and the bias member has a first portion extending from the first axis and through the first plane, and a second portion extending from the first axis in a curved manner and through the second plane.
Additionally, as per claim 8, Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1) further discloses wherein the mechanism configured to convey the optical disc includes a conveying roller (e.g., 256) configured to contact and convey the optical disc (280, 290), a loading motor (e.g., 257a) configured to rotate the conveying roller (256).
As per claim 8, Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1) does not expressly disclose a switch configured to detect a position of the optical disc, and the bias member includes a switch operation portion configured to operate the switch.
Such bias members and features as set forth in claims 1, 8, and 9, are well-known in the art.
As just one example, Tanaka et al. (US 6,201,782 B1) disclose an analogous optical disc drive, in the same field of endeavor as Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1), wherein, as per claims 1 and 9, a bias member (e.g., 11, 12) is provided which includes a contact portion (e.g., 21), that, when combined with Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1), would be located on a side opposite to the stopper portion (e.g., 260a, 260b and/or 270a, 270b of Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1)) across the optical disc having reached the position of the spindle motor (222- of Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1); 5 of Tanaka et al. (US 6,201,782 B1)), the bias member (11, 12) operating to rotate about a second axis, traverse to the first axis (when combined with Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1)), such that the contact portion (21) to moves and urges the optical disc toward the stopper portion (e.g., 260a, 260b and/or 270a, 270b of Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1)), when combined with Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1).
Moreover, the bias member (11, 12) is rotatable around a first axis (e.g., 20b), the first axis (20b) is disposed on a first side (e.g., left-side of a plane that extends up-down in Figs. 2, 11-13 that crosses through the axis of the turntable (5), as depicted in Figs. 2, 11-13) of a first plane (a plane that extends up-down in Figs. 2, 11-13 that crosses through the axis of the turntable (5), as depicted in Figs. 2, 11-13) and on a back side of a second plane (e.g., upper-side of a plane that extends right-left in Figs. 2, 11-13 that crosses through the axis of the turntable (5), as depicted in Figs. 2, 11-13), the first plane extending along a front-back direction (up-down direction as depicted in Figs. 2, 11-13) and through a rotational center axis of the spindle motor (turntable (5)), the second plane extending along a lateral direction (right-left direction as depicted in Figs. 2, 11-13) and through the rotational center axis of the spindle motor (turntable (5)), and the bias member (11, 12) has a first portion (e.g., portion of (12) that extends to the right, past the aforementioned first plane - see Fig. 2) extending from the first axis and through the first plane, and a second portion (e.g., portion of (11 and 12) that extends downward, past the aforementioned second plane - see Fig. 2) extending from the first axis (20b) in a curved manner (curved bottom portion of (12) and through the second plane. See Figs. 2, 11-13.
Additionally, as per claim 3, Tanaka et al. (US 6,201,782 B1) further discloses the first portion (e.g., portion of (12) that extends to the right, past the aforementioned first plane - see Fig. 2) is disposed on the back side of the second plane (e.g., upper-side of a plane that extends right-left in Figs. 2, 11-13 that crosses through the axis of the turntable (5), as depicted in Figs. 2, 11-13), and the second portion (e.g., portion of (11 and 12) that extends downward, past the aforementioned second plane - see Fig. 2) is disposed on the first side of the first plane (e.g., left-side of a plane that extends up-down in Figs. 2, 11-13 that crosses through the axis of the turntable (5), as depicted in Figs. 2, 11-13).
Additionally, as per claim 4, Tanaka et al. (US 6,201,782 B1) further discloses wherein the contact portion (21) is disposed in a front side of the second plane (e.g., lower-side of the plane that extends right-left in Figs. 2, 11-13 that crosses through the axis of the turntable (5), as depicted in Figs. 2, 11-13).
Further, as per claim 6, Tanaka et al. (US 6,201,782 B1) discloses the number of bias members is one (11, 12). That is, the components (11, 12) are not duplicated, and function as a single unit)
Further, as per claim 8, Tanaka et al. (US 6,201,782 B1) discloses a switch (e.g., 42a) configured to detect a position of the optical disc (e.g., D), and the bias member (e.g., 11, 12) includes a switch operation portion (e.g., 29) configured to operate the switch (42a) (e.g., see, inter alia, col. 6, ll., 4-16 of Tanaka et al. (US 6,201,782 B1)).
Thus, given the express teachings and motivations, as espoused by Tanaka et al. (US 6,201,782 B1), 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 optical disc drive of Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1) with the features of claims 1, 3, 4, 6, 8 and 9, as discussed above, as taught by Tanaka et al. (US 6,201,782 B1), in order to simply assist the optical disc with being directed during an insertion operation, to the turntable, to be correctly aligned therewith.
Additionally, as per claim 2, the combination of Tanaka et al. (US 6,201,782 B1) with Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1), would provide the mechanism of Inoue et al. (US 2004/0042372 A1) (e.g., including components (257a-257e) - see Fig. 4 and roller (256))
configured to convey the optical disc includes a conveying roller (e.g., 256) configured to contact and convey the optical disc (e.g., 280), and a front edge of the second portion (e.g., front most portion of (11) of Tanaka et al. (US 6,201,782 B1)) would be disposed in front of the conveying roller (256).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 7 is tentatively objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but, pending an updated search, amendments or arguments presented by the Applicant and considered by the Examiner in reply to this office communication, would be favorably considered if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Citation of Prior or Relevant Art on enclosed PTO-892
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
The cited art made of record (see the enclosed PTO-892), not applied to the rejection of the claims, supra, each disclose aspects of the claimed invention, including wherein optical disc drives are provided with internal disc loading mechanisms.
The best prior art has been applied to the claimed invention (see the rejection of the claims on the applied prior art, supra). However, if Applicant chooses to amend the claims in a manner to obviate the applied prior art, as noted in the rejection, supra, the Applicant is advised to not only carefully review the applied prior art for all it teaches and/or suggests, but also the cited prior art of record in order to obviate any potential rejections based on potential amendment(s); by doing so, compact prosecution on the merits can be enhanced.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to William J Klimowicz whose telephone number is (571)272-7577. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday, 8:00AM-6PM, ET.
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, Steven Lim can be reached at (571)270-1210. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/WILLIAM J KLIMOWICZ/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2688