DETAILED ACTION
Non Final
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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 10/29/2024 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Interpretation
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(f):
(f) Element in Claim for a Combination. – An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph:
An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof.
The claims in this application are given their broadest reasonable interpretation using the plain meaning of the claim language in light of the specification as it would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. The broadest reasonable interpretation of a claim element (also commonly referred to as a claim limitation) is limited by the description in the specification when 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is invoked.
As explained in MPEP § 2181, subsection I, claim limitations that meet the following three-prong test will be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph:
(A) the claim limitation uses the term “means” or “step” or a term used as a substitute for “means” that is a generic placeholder (also called a nonce term or a non-structural term having no specific structural meaning) for performing the claimed function;
(B) the term “means” or “step” or the generic placeholder is modified by functional language, typically, but not always linked by the transition word “for” (e.g., “means for”) or another linking word or phrase, such as “configured to” or “so that”; and
(C) the term “means” or “step” or the generic placeholder is not modified by sufficient structure, material, or acts for performing the claimed function.
Use of the word “means” (or “step”) in a claim with functional language creates a rebuttable presumption that the claim limitation is to be treated in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph. The presumption that the claim limitation is interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is rebutted when the claim limitation recites sufficient structure, material, or acts to entirely perform the recited function.
Absence of the word “means” (or “step”) in a claim creates a rebuttable presumption that the claim limitation is not to be treated in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph. The presumption that the claim limitation is not interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is rebutted when the claim limitation recites function without reciting sufficient structure, material or acts to entirely perform the recited function.
Claim limitations in this application that use the word “means” (or “step”) are being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action. Conversely, claim limitations in this application that do not use the word “means” (or “step”) are not being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action.
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 2-18 are 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.
The following Claims recite limitations which have insufficient antecedent basis. The Claims and respective limitations include the following: Claim 2, "the body portion" in line 4; Claim 16 "the plurality of opening/closing bodies" in line 3; Claim 18, "the opening/closing bodies" in line 3. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
(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.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
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.
Claim(s) 1-18 is/are rejected (with claims 2-18 as indefinitely understood) under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(1)/(a)(2) as being anticipated by Buseth (US 4007909);
Claim(s) 19 and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wanner (US 374766) in view of Buseth.
Buseth discloses in claim 1: (see at least annotated figures 1 and 2 below)
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A connector (figure 1) for connecting a first pipeline (at 10 end) and a second pipeline (at 12 end), the connector comprising: a connector body (body of 10) including a connection passage (via 18) configured (via ball detent and stop adjacent 112 figure 2) to connect the first pipeline and the second pipeline (when inserted therein see figure 2); an opening/closing body (26) movably coupled to the connector body to be movable between an opening position (figure 2), in which the connection passage is opened, and a closing position (figure 1), in which the connection passage is closed; and an elastic body (spring 34) coupled to the connector body and configured to elastically support the opening/closing body toward the closing position (figure 1, spring 34 biases the valve closed.)
Buseth discloses in claim 2: The connector of claim 1, wherein the connector body includes a hollow body portion (portion of 18) including an opening (at end of 76) on one side of the connector body, and wherein the opening/closing body is located on an inside (at 24) of the body portion.
Buseth discloses in claim 3: The connector of claim 2, wherein the connector body further includes: a movement restricting portion (as previously indicated inwardly protruding stop 112 and detents 68) configured to restrict the opening/closing body from being moved from the closing position toward the opening of the body portion (the features lock the valve 26 into the open position.)
Buseth discloses in claim 4: The connector of claim 3, wherein the movement restricting portion protrudes (112 extends/protrudes radially inward) from an internal peripheral surface (that of 18) of the body portion so that the opening/closing body is stopped (axially) by the movement restricting portion.
Buseth discloses in claim 5: The connector of claim 2, wherein the opening/closing body includes: a rotation shaft (28) coupled to the body portion to be rotatable (there about); and an opening/closing portion (body of 40) connected to the rotation shaft to be rotatable about the rotation shaft, and configured to block an interior (the interior of 14 at 1000) of the body portion in the closing position.
Buseth discloses in claim 6: The connector of claim 5, wherein the opening/closing portion is formed in a plate shape (26 is concave-plate shaped, see figure 3 and 4.)
Buseth discloses in claim 7: The connector of claim 6, wherein a cross-section of the body portion, which is perpendicular to a flow direction of a fluid in the body portion, is circular or elliptical (figure 4 shows in viewpoint perpendicular to the central axis, a circular cross section during open position, figure 3 shows the elliptical surface in the closed position), and wherein the opening/closing portion is formed of a circular or elliptical plate (as discussed.)
Buseth discloses in claim 8: The connector of claim 7, wherein the opening/closing body further includes: a sealing portion (o-ring seal 24 or seal surface 52) provided on a peripheral side of the opening/closing portion.
Buseth discloses in claim 9: The connector of claim 8, wherein the sealing portion is provided in an external circumferential surface facing an internal peripheral surface of the body portion in the closing position (in the closed position, both 24 and 52 face the inside peripheral surfaces of the body 10 when closed.)
Buseth discloses in claim 10: The connector of claim 9, wherein the sealing portion includes an O-ring (24 is an o-ring) surrounding the opening/closing portion.
Buseth discloses in claim 11: The connector of claim 5, wherein the connector body further includes: an accommodation portion (at area 1002) formed at a side portion of the body portion, and including an accommodation space (at 1004) connected to an interior of the body portion, and wherein at least a part (44 and 34 and portion of 26) of the opening/closing portion is disposed in the accommodation space in the opening position.
Buseth discloses in claim 12: The connector of claim 11, wherein the accommodation portion includes a recess (1004 is a space that is…) recessed in an outward (radial) direction of the body portion on an internal wall (that of inside surface of 1002) of the body portion.
Buseth discloses in claim 13: The connector of claim 11, wherein the opening/closing portion includes an opening/closing surface (42 and 38) disposed to face the opening of the body portion in the closing position, and configured to block an interior (at 1000) of the body portion, and wherein the opening/closing surface includes a concave shape (see figure 4) recessed in an outward (radial) direction of the body portion in the opening position.
Buseth discloses in claim 14: The connector of claim 5, wherein the elastic body is a torsion spring (30 figure 3) coupled to the rotation shaft (28.)
Buseth discloses in claim 15; The connector of claim 14, wherein the elastic body includes: a pair of spring portions (left and right portions 30) coupled to opposite end portions of the rotation shaft, respectively; a pair of fixed portions (34) extending from the pair of spring portions, respectively, and fixed to the body portion (34 bears to the body figure 1 or 2); and an elastic support portion (at 32 either side) provided between the pair of spring portions so that the opening/closing portion is supported toward the closing position by use of elasticity of the spring portion.
Buseth discloses in claim 16: The connector of claim 1, wherein the opening/closing body is in plural (upper and lower 26), and wherein the plurality of opening/closing bodies are provided to open or close a portion of the connection passage.
Buseth discloses in claim 17: The connector of claim 16, wherein a plurality of elastic bodies (34) are provided to correspond to a number of the plurality of opening/closing bodies (two each) to elastically support the plurality of opening/closing bodies, respectively.
Buseth discloses in claim 18: The connector of claim 16, wherein when a cross-section of the connection passage, which is perpendicular to a flow direction of a fluid, is defined as a flow surface (surface of 18), the opening/closing bodies are configured to open or close different portions of the flow surface (upper and lower surface portions), respectively so that the plurality of opening/closing bodies open or close the flow surface.
Wanner discloses in claim 19: (see at least annotated figure 1 below)
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A movable object (figure 1) comprising: a vehicle body (train engine -A-) including a wheel (wheels at 2002) for traveling; a first circulation system (pipe -D4- and see page 1 ln 64-82) supported by the vehicle body; a structure (cars -B-) coupled to the vehicle body; a second circulation system (via -E’-) supported by the structure; and a connector (F) detachably connecting a first pipeline (-E-) of the first circulation system and a second pipeline (-E’-) of the second circulation system, wherein the connector includes: a connector body (body of -F-) including a connection passage (via -F1-) configured to connect the first pipeline and the second pipeline; an opening/closing body (-F2-) coupled to be movable from an opening position (as seen in figure 5), in which the connection passage is opened, to a closing position, in which the connection passage is closed (with -F4- removed), in the connector body; Wanner does not disclose, although Buseth teaches: an elastic body (34) coupled to the connector body (10) and configured to elastically support the opening/closing body (26) toward the closing position (all for the purpose of ensuring for example, the valve remains closed when not in use by biasing to the closing position the valve rotatably around the central axis of the hinge.)
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing of the invention to provide Wanner as taught in Buseth, an elastic body spring as taught in Buseth coupled to the connector body and configured to elastically support the opening/closing body toward the closing position as taught in Buseth, and all for the purpose of ensuring for example, the valve remains closed when not in use by biasing to the closing position the valve rotatably around the central axis of the hinge.
Wanner discloses (as modified for the reasons discussed above) in claim 20: The movable object of claim 19, wherein the structure is coupled to be attached to or detached from the vehicle body (page 1 ln 43-45 where the car and engine are attachable and detachable from one another via the tender and the coupling F), and wherein the opening/closing body is configured to open the connection passage in response that the structure (of -E’-) is coupled to the vehicle body (at least via -E-), and close the connection passage in response that the structure is decoupled from the vehicle body (as is the case when -F4- is removed from -F-.)
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MATTHEW W JELLETT, whose telephone number is 571-270-7497. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday (9:30AM-6:00PM EST).
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisors can be reached by phone. Ken Rinehart can be reached at (571)-272-4881, or Craig Schneider can be reached at (571) 272-3607. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/Matthew W Jellett/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3753