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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Invention I in the reply filed on 07/31/2025 is acknowledged.
Claims 12-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Invention (Invention II, drawn to a method of manufacturing), there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 07/31/2025.
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.
Claim(s) 1-11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as anticipated by or, in the alternative, under 35 U.S.C. 103 as obvious over Del Biondi et al. (US 2017/0367438).
Regarding Claim 1, Del Biondi et al. teaches a footwear article (1) comprising: at least a portion of one or more of a sole, an insole, a midsole, an outsole, or an upper (fig. 1 shows the footwear article comprising at least a portion of an insole and an outsole); and at least one corrective feature (8) configured to stimulate a foot of a user to move and roll in accordance with a pattern based on a target center of pressure (COP) curve, wherein the at least the portion of the one or more of the sole, the insole, the midsole, the outsole, or the upper comprises the at least one corrective feature (fig. 1 shows the portion of the outsole having the corrective feature (8), wherein the corrective feature at least appears to be capable of stimulating a wearer’s foot to move in accordance with a pattern based on a target center of pressure curve, as the corrective features (8) are clearly arranged in a particular pattern. Additionally, or in the alternative, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Del Biondi et al. such that the corrective features were capable of performing this function, as humans will always ideally walk along the center of pressure curve (see extrinsic evidence: US 20140305008)) .
Regarding Claim 2, Del Biondi et al. teaches all of the limitations of the footwear article of Claim 1, as discussed in the rejections above. Del Biondi et al. further teaches wherein the footwear article comprises a visible contour (20), in a surface texture of the footwear article, that follows a shape of a center of pressure curve or the target center of pressure curve (fig. 1 shows a visible contour that at least appears to follow a shape of a center of pressure curve. Examiner notes that as these are different for different wearers, this limitation is considered functional and as the contour follows a center of the sole, it would clearly follow the shape of at least one wearer’s center of pressure)
Regarding Claim 3, Del Biondi et al. teaches all of the limitations of the footwear article of Claim 1, as discussed in the rejections above. Del Biondi et al. further teaches wherein the at least one corrective feature (8) comprises: a surface texture at least partially on at least one surface of the footwear article (fig. 8 shows the corrective feature (8) being sipes that clearly form a surface texture on at least one surface of the footwear article).
Regarding Claim 4, Del Biondi et al. teaches all of the limitations of the footwear article of Claim 3, as discussed in the rejections above. Del Biondi et al. further teaches wherein the surface texture comprises a surface texture pattern configured to be deformed along one or more coordinates based on the target COP curve or another COP curve (fig. 1 shows the surface texture formed by corrective feature (8) being sipes, which are clearly capable of deforming by bending, and as the sipes transverse the sole the deformation coordinates clearly can occur based on a COP curve).
Regarding Claim 5, Del Biondi et al. teaches all of the limitations of the footwear article of Claim 1, as discussed in the rejections above. Del Biondi et al. further teaches wherein the at least one corrective feature (8) comprises: a directional-stiffness layer that includes one or more of a series of bending lines, ribs, cuts, striations, waves, grooves, or other patterns (figs. 1 and 2B show the corrective feature being a series of cuts that form bending lines and therein create a directional stiffness layer).
Regarding Claim 6, Del Biondi et al. teaches all of the limitations of the footwear article of Claim 1, as discussed in the rejections above. Del Biondi et al. further teaches a stability layer (see annotated Fig.) configured to flex or flatten in different regions (annotated fig. 1 shows the sipes (8) that cause the stability layer for flex or flatten in different regions in response to movement by the wearer).
Regarding Claim 7, Del Biondi et al. teaches all of the limitations of the footwear article of Claim 1, as discussed in the rejections above. Del Biondi et al. further teaches a forefoot support (see annotated Fig.) (annotated fig. 1 shows a forefoot support).
Regarding Claim 8, Del Biondi et al. teaches all of the limitations of the footwear article of Claim 1, as discussed in the rejections above. Del Biondi et al. further teaches wherein the at least one corrective feature (8) is selected from: one or more bending lines, ribs, cuts, striations, waves, or grooves (figs. 1 and 2B shows the corrective feature (8) being bending lines formed by cuts).
Regarding Claim 9, Del Biondi et al. teaches all of the limitations of the footwear article of Claim 1, as discussed in the rejections above. Del Biondi et al. further teaches a groove (8), channel, rib, or visible break in a pattern, texture or tread of the footwear article that follows a shape of the target COP curve or another COP curve (fig. 1 shows a groove (20) that clearly follows a COP curve. Examiner notes that COP curves vary from person to person, therein the curve shown in fig. 1 could clearly be one wearer’s COP).
Regarding Claim 10, Del Biondi et al. teaches all of the limitations of the footwear article of Claim 1, as discussed in the rejections above. Del Biondi et al. further teaches wherein the footwear article is configured to be less resistant to bending around an axis tangential to the target COP curve than around an axis perpendicular to a direction of the target COP curve (fig. 1 shows the groove following the COP curve being wide, therein allowing bending along a tangent to the curve that would clearly be less resistant to bending than along an axis perpendicular to the COP curve when the axis does not coincide with sipes (8)).
Regarding Claim 11, Del Biondi et al. teaches all of the limitations of the footwear article of Claim 1, as discussed in the rejections above. Del Biondi et al. further teaches wherein the footwear article comprises the insole (see annotated Fig.) (annotated fig. 1 shows the article comprising an insole).
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Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HALEY A SMITH whose telephone number is (571)272-6597. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Thursday 7:00 am - 5:00 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Khoa Huynh can be reached at (571)272-4888. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/HALEY A SMITH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3732
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