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 § 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.
Claims 1-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph.
As to claim 1, limitations of “a distal end side in the axial direction” in lines 17-18 of claim 1 and limitations of “a rear end side in the axial direction” in lines 19-20 of claim 1 render the claim indefinite. A distal end side of what? A distal end side of the hollow member? A rear end side of what? A rear end side of the hollow member? Hence, it is unclear.
As to claim 1, claim 1 recites limitations “the inside” in line 4 of claim 1. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Claim 1 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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention. The claim languages “the inside” appear for the first time, however, read as though they have already been recited. See MPEP 2173.05(e).
Claims 2-14 are also rejected because they are dependent on the rejected claim 1 as set forth above.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-14 are allowable once 112b rejections are corrected.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
The closest prior art of record is Kume-Translate_JP2010266361A, which teaches a gas sensor (page 3 and fig.1) comprising:
a sensor element 10 extending in an axial direction and having a connector electrode 60 on a rear end side (fig.1 and page 3: terminal fittings 60 and 61 are electrically connected to the electrode extraction portions 10e of the sensor element 10; hence, terminal fitting 60 corresponds to “connector electrode”);
a tubular main metal fitting 2 in which the sensor element 10 penetrates an inside in the axial direction (page 5: a cylindrical metal shell 2 corresponds to “a tubular main metal fitting”); a tubular outer tube 90 extending in the axial direction and attached to an outer peripheral surface on a rear end side of the main metal fitting 2 (see described fig.1);
a terminal metal fitting extending in the axial direction and including an element contact portion electrically connected to the connector electrode 60 on a distal end side (described fig.1 and page 3: terminal fittings 60 and 61 are electrically connected to the electrode extraction portions 10e of the sensor element 10; thus “a terminal metal fitting extending in the axial direction and including an element contact portion electrically connected to the connector electrode on a distal end side”);
a ceramic housing 70 accommodating the connector electrode 60 and the element contact portion and disposed inside the outer tube 90 (page 7 and fig.1);
an elastic body 5 (page 3: rubber grommet 5 corresponds to “an elastic body”) disposed to seal an open end on a rear end side of the outer tube 90 (fig.1).
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Kume fails to teach a hollow member disposed inside the outer tube, in which
the sensor element penetrates the inside in the axial direction, a distal end side in the axial direction is in contact with the rear end side of the main metal fitting, and a rear end side in the axial direction is in contact with a distal end side of the ceramic housing, when in combination with all other elements of gas sensor as claimed in the claim 1.
Hence the prior art of record fails to teach the invention as set forth in claims 1-14 and Examiner cannot find specific teaching of the invention, nor reasons within the cited art to combine and/or modify the elements of the prior art of record other than applicant's own reasoning.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TRUONG D PHAN whose telephone number is (571)272-8883. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday.
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/TRUONG D PHAN/Examiner, Art Unit 2855
/JOHN E BREENE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2855
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