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 .
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.
Claims 1, 9-16 and 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent No. 9,989,268, hereafter referred to as ‘Spanger’ in view of U.S. Patent No. 11,609,003, hereafter referred to as ‘White.’ Regarding claim 1, Spanger teaches a wall cap (figures 1—14) for installation on a wall (IWP, see figures 1, 7-9 and 13), the wall cap comprising: an intake pipe (13, 213, figures 3, 8, 10 and 13), a wall mounting connector portion (10 & 15, 210 & 215) comprising a connecting flange 15, 215 which is adapted to engage with the wall (see col. 4, lines 58-67 and col. 9, lines 14-45, see figures 2-4, 7-9 and 13); the intake pipe 13, 213 is integral with the connecting flange 15, 213, figures 3, 8, 10 and 13); an extension member (100, 200, see figures 1-4, 7-10 and 13) with first and second ends (first end is where connector portion 10 & 15, 210 & 215 is located, see figures 1-4, 7-10 and 13 and second end is where hood connector 25, 225 is located, see figures 1-4, 7-10 and 13), the extension member (100, 200) comprising the connector portion (10 & 15, 210 & 215), extending from the first end (see figures 1-4, 7-10 and 13), the connector portion comprising one or more connector portion walls (see one or more connector portions walls 15, 215 protruding outwardly from the connector portion 10 & 15, 210 & 215, figures 1-4, 7-10 and 13) extending from the first end (see figures 1-4, 7-10 and 13,) the one or more connector portion walls defining, at least in part, a connector portion opening (figures 1-4, 7-10 and 13), wherein the one or more connector portion walls (10, 15) are adapted to engage with the wall (see col. 4, lines 58-67 and col. 9, lines 14-45, see figures 2-4, 7-9 and 13 and figures 1, 7-9 and 13); and a variable portion (20, 220, see figures 1-4, 7-10 and 13), extending from the second end and connected to the connector portion (see figures 1-4, 7-10 and 13), the variable portion comprising one or more variable portion walls (see one cylindrical wall 20, 220 in figures 1-4, 7-10 and 13), wherein at least one of the one or more variable portion walls comprises a plurality of markings (21a-21f, figures 2 and 10) at pre-set intervals along at least a portion of a length of the variable portion (see figures 2 and 10 and col. 5, lines 22-36); and a hood assembly (30, 230) detachably connected to the extension member proximate to the second end (see figures 1-7, 9-10 and 12-13 and col. 5, line 37 to col. 7, line 35 and col. 10, line 18 to col. 12, line 65).
However, Spanger fails to explicitly teach a plate comprising a pipe opening, the intake pipe attached to the plate proximate to the pipe opening, wherein the plate is adapted to engage with the wall; one or more plate walls extending from the plate, the one or more plate walls defining, at least in part, a plate opening; wherein the one or more connector portion walls are adapted to detachably engage with the one or more plate walls and wherein the one or more connector portion walls are adapted to detachably engage with the one or more plate walls.
White teaches a wall cap 100 for installation on a wall (see claim 1 of White), the wall cap comprising: an intake pipe 108; a plate 102 comprising a pipe opening (figure 3), the intake pipe 108 attached to the plate 102 proximate to the pipe opening (intake pipe 108 indirectly attached to plate 102 through extension member 104), wherein the plate 102 is adapted to engage with the wall (see claim 1 of White); one or more plate walls 102b extending from the plate 102 (fig. 3), the one or more plate walls defining, at least in part, a plate opening (fig. 3); an extension member 104 with first and second ends (first end is located at 104a & 104b and the second end is located at 108a, figures 6-7), the extension member 104 comprising: a connector portion (104a & 104b) extending from the first end (fig. 3), the connector portion comprising one or more connector portion walls 104a extending from the first end (fig. 3), the one or more connector portion walls defining, at least in part, a connector portion opening (fig. 3) and wherein the one or more connector portion walls 104a are adapted to detachably engage with the one or more plate walls 102b (figures 3 and 6-7 and col. 7, line 14 to line 33).
It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of applicant’s claimed invention to substitute the wall cap connector assembly of White for the wall cap connector assembly Spanger in order to provide an alternative way of efficiently attaching and detaching the wall cap from the wall.
Regarding claim 9, Spanger in view of White teaches the wall cap of claim 1. However, Spanger in view of White fails to explicitly teach that the connection portion walls and the variable portion walls define, at least in part, a passageway within the extension member.
It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of applicant’s claimed invention to make the connection walls of the wall cap connector assembly of White and the variable portion walls of Spanger so they define, at least in part, a passageway within the extension member of Spanger in order to efficiently vent the wall cap.
Regarding claim 10, Spanger in view of White teaches the wall cap of claim 1 and further teaches wherein the plurality of markings (21a-21f) comprises lines (figures 2 and 10).
Regarding claim 11, Spanger in view of White teaches the wall cap of claim 10, wherein the lines (21a-21f) *are etched or scored onto the one or more variable portion walls (20, 220).
*NOTE: The text in bold is a product by process claim and not given any patentable weight.
Regarding claim 12, Spanger in view of White teaches the wall cap of claim 1 and further teaches wherein the pre-set intervals are approximately 1 inch apart from each other (see col. 5, lines 28-36).
Regarding claim 13, Spanger in view of White in view of White teaches the wall cap of claim 1 and further teaches wherein all of the variable portion walls comprise the plurality of markings (since the variable walls are defined as one or more variable walls in claim 1, ‘all variable walls’ is one variable wall (20, 220) and the one variable wall 20, 220 comprises a plurality of markings 21a-21f).
Regarding claim 14, Spanger in view of White teaches the wall cap of claim 1. However, Spanger in view of White fails to explicitly teach that the plurality of markings extend along substantially an entire perimeter of the variable portion walls.
It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of applicant’s claimed invention to modify the variable portion wall of Spanger so that the plurality of markings extend along substantially an entire perimeter of the variable portion wall in order to enable an installer to more easily cut the variable portion to the desired length.
Regarding claim 15, Spanger in view of White teaches the wall cap of claim 1 and further teaches wherein the hood assembly (30, 230) comprises a hood base (hood base is the area of hood which is connected to flange 25, 225 of the variable portion wall 20, 220, see figures 1-4, 7-10 and 13), adapted to engage with the variable portion walls (20, 220).
Regarding claim 16, Spanger in view of White teaches the wall cap of claim 15 and further teaches wherein the hood base comprise one or more base openings (see base openings or holes to receive screws in fig. 10), wherein the extension member (100, 200) comprises one or more fastener tubes (see figure 10, fastening tubes are the holes formed in extension member’s connecting flange 225, the tubes accept fastening screws, see col. 6, lines 42-46 and col. 11, lines 31-35) aligned with the one or more base openings (figure 10) and extending along at least a portion of the variable portion walls (see fig. 10 as an installer positions screws in fastening tubes to be fastened between hood base and variable portion, the tubes would extend along at least a portion of the variable portion walls 20, 220) and wherein the base openings and the fastener tubes are adapted to receive one or more fasteners for securing the hood base to the variable portion walls (fasteners are screws, see col. 6, lines 42-46 and col. 11, lines 31-35 and figure 10).
Regarding claim 19, Spanger in view of White teaches the wall cap of claim 1 and further teaches wherein the one or more connector portion walls 104a comprises one or more tabs (fig. 3), and wherein the one or more plate walls comprises one or more protrusions 102b adapted to detachably engage with the one or more tabs (col. 7, line 14 to line 33).
Regarding claim 20, Spanger in view of White teaches the wall cap of claim 1 and further teaches the wall cap of claim 1, wherein the wall cap *is constructed, at least in part, from injection-moulded plastic (col. 4, lines 55-57).
*NOTE: Even though Spanger clearly teaches claim 20, the text in bold is a product by process claim and not given any patentable weight.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-8 and 17-18 are 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. Edwards and Schulz disclose wall caps which are similar to applicant’s invention.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THOMAS M SEMBER whose telephone number is (571)272-2381. The examiner can normally be reached flexing generally from 7 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. M-F.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, ABDULMAJEED Aziz can be reached at 571-270-5046. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/THOMAS M SEMBER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2875
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