Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
This office action is in response to the amendment filed 6/24/26. Claims 1, 4-10, 13-17 and 20 are pending. Claims 2, 3, 11, 12 18 and 19 have been canceled. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
The replacement drawings filed 6/24/26 are approved and overcome the previous drawing objection.
The drawings are objected to because it appears that in at least figures 4-7 and 9 that the designation of the upper and lower links in reversed. Throughout the specification reference number 128 is used to designate the lower links and reference number 130 is used to designate the upper links. The figures show the links 128 above the links 130. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. This could alternatively be resolved by amending the specification to change all occurrence so the upper links to 128 and lower links to 130. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claims 1, 4-6, 8, 9 and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by FR 2,294,667 to Bremshey (an English translation has been provided on the attached PTO-892 form).
With respect to claims 1 and 17,Bremshey provides an aircraft passenger seat S, comprising: a frame subassembly including fixed spreaders 3 and at least one transverse beam (see U-shaped cross section represented in figures under ref. # 12, or element 17);
a seat back 1 positioned between the fixed spreaders;
a seat pan 2 positioned between the fixed spreaders, the seat pan and the seat back coupled together at a shifting pivot 6 (see page 5 of the translation which recites the cushion 2 and backrest 1 are connected to each other by a common articulation point);
lower links 7 positioned on opposite lateral sides of the seat back, each lower link pivotably attached at a first end to one of the fixed spreaders and pivotably attached at a second end to the shifting pivot;
and upper links 8 positioned on opposite lateral sides of the seat back, each upper link pivotably attached at a first end to one of the fixed spreaders and pivotably attached at a second end to the seat back.
One of the fixed spreaders 3, the seat back 1, one of the lower links 7, and one of the upper links 8 forms a four-bar linkage on each lateral side of the aircraft passenger seat; and in use, the four-bar linkages control seat motion between an upright sitting position (Fig.1) and a cradled recline sitting position (Fig. 2) (see [0005] of the translation which recites the backrest and seat cushion move jointly in a mutually dependent manner);
wherein: as the aircraft passenger seat transitions from the upright sitting position to the cradled recline sitting position, motion of the shifting pivot includes synchronous downward and forward motion; and as the aircraft passenger seat transitions from the cradled recline sitting position to the upright sitting position, motion of the shifting pivot includes synchronous upward and aft motion. See figure 6 and page 6 of the translation which recites: the extreme rest position of the seat is indicated in the solid line on figure 6, while the dashed line indicates the basic positions of the seat” where the rest position is considered the reclined position and the basic position is considered the upright position.
With respect to claim 4, each of the upper links and the lower links are inclined in a forward direction as shown in Figs. 1, 3 and 6.
With respect to claim 5, in the seat pan 2 is pivotably attached to a link 7 pivotably attached to the shifting pivot 6.
With respect to claim 6, see spring 20 in Fig. 8 and page 6 of the translation which recites elements 11 and 20 can be springs or any known energy accumulators.
With respect to claim 8, the frame subassembly comprises: a forward transverse beam 17 supporting a forward end of the seat pan from below; an aft transverse beam (the inverted U-shaped channel below reference 12 in the figures) mechanically decoupled from the seat pan and the seat back; and each of the forward and aft transverse beams attached to the fixed spreaders 3.
With respect to claim 9, the aircraft passenger seat further comprises an armrest 5 pivotably attached to each of the fixed spreaders.
Claims 7, 10, 13-16 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over FR 2,294,667 to Bremshey in view of U.S. 2013/0249257 to Suhre et al.
Bremshey provides each of the elements of the claims as noted above except for the meal table support arms and plural seats provided in a row between fixed spreaders.
Suhre teaches that at the time of the effective filing date of the invention both the provision of meal table 40 support arms 34 attached the end of an upper link 32 and plural seats in row between fixed frame spreaders 22 were known.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date of the invention the seat S of Bremshey could have been provided with a meal table and meal table support arms as taught by Suhre and further duplicated into plural seats in a row as also taught by Suhre.
It has been held that a mere duplication of parts, such as the duplication of the --, has no patentable significance unless a new and unexpected result is produced. A duplication of parts is generally recognized as being within the level of ordinary skill in the art. In re Harza, 274 F.2d 669, 124 USPQ 378 (CCPA 1955).
Moreover, all the claimed elements are known in the prior art and one skilled in the art would have combined the elements at the time of the effective filing date of the invention as claimed by known methods with a reasonable expectation of success with no change to their respective functions, and the combination would have yielded predictable results to one having ordinary skill in the art of providing a meal table and plural seats in a row, both of which are old and well known in the aircraft passenger seat art and taught by Suhre.
Applicant's arguments filed 6/24/26 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that there is no four bar linkage and the shifting point of Bremshey does not move synchronously downward and forward during recline and synchronously upward and aft during return to the upright sitting position.
This not found persuasive as frame 3, links 7 and 8 and seatback 1 form a four-bar linkage and the common pivot 6 shifts in the claimed manner as shown in figure 6 where the extreme rest position (or reclined position) of the seat is indicated in the solid line on figure 6, while the dashed line indicates the basic position (or upright position) of the seat as described on page 6 of the translation.
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ROBERT CANFIELD whose telephone number is (571)272-6840. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 10-6, some Saturdays.
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, David Dunn can be reached at 571-272-6670. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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ROBERT CANFIELD
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3636
/Robert Canfield/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3636
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