CTNF 18/943,898 CTNF 66306 DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia 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 § 102 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 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. 07-07-aia AIA 07-07 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 – 07-08-aia AIA (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. 07-15 AIA Claim s 1-3 and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102( a)(1 ) as being anticipated by JP 2009-286246 . Regarding claim 1, JP 2009-286246 discloses: A vehicle hood (50; Fig. 5) comprising: an outer panel (51; Fig. 5); an inner panel (52; Fig. 5); and a bracket (53; Fig. 5) disposed in a space between the outer panel and the inner panel, wherein the bracket is a folded-plate member having a hat-shape cross section (open upwardly as shown in Figure 5) and including a web (see dashed oval labelled in annotated Fig. 5 below) , two flanges (see dashed ovals labelled in annotated Fig. 5 below) rising from opposite ends of the web (as can be seen in annotated Fig. 5 below), and two arms (see dashed ovals labelled in annotated Fig. 5 below) respectively extending outward from corresponding upper edges (as labelled in annotated Fig. 5 below) of the respective flanges (see dashed ovals labelled in annotated Fig. 5 below) , the bracket being mounted on the inner panel such that each of the two arms faces the outer panel (such mounting and orientation can be seen in annotated Fig. 5 below) , and at least one of the two arms (see dashed ovals labelled in annotated Fig. 5 below) includes a protrusion (as labelled in annotated Fig. 4 below) having an inverted U-shape (as shown in annotated Fig. 4 below) and extending outward from the upper edge of the corresponding flange (as can be seen in annotated Figs. 4 and 5 below) and an outer edge portion having a planar shape and extending outward from an outward edge of the protrusion (such planar outer edge portion is labeled in annotated Fig. 4 below). PNG media_image1.png 870 1070 media_image1.png Greyscale PNG media_image2.png 772 872 media_image2.png Greyscale Regarding claim 2, JP 2009-286246 discloses: The vehicle hood according to claim 1 , as explained above, wherein a tangent (pointed out in annotated Fig. 4 above) connecting a distal end of the outer edge portion (such end pointed out in annotated Fig. 4 above) and a face of the protrusion (the surface thereof facing upward and to the right in annotated Fig. 4 above) facing the outer panel (51; Fig. 5) is substantially parallel to a direction in which the outer panel extends, where such parallel relationship can be seen in annotated Fig. 4 above. Regarding claim 3, JP 2009-286246 discloses: The vehicle hood according to claim 2, as explained above, wherein the outer edge portion (pointed out in annotated Fig. 4 above) is inclined downward (generally toward the bottom left corner of annotated Fig. 4 above) of a vehicle as the outer edge portion extends toward the distal end (as shown in annotated Figs. 4 and 5 above). Regarding claim 5, JP 2009-286246 discloses: A bracket (53; Fig. 5) comprising a web (see dashed oval labelled in annotated Fig. 5 above) , two flanges (see dashed ovals labelled in annotated Fig. 5 above) rising from opposite ends of the web (as can be seen in annotated Fig. 5 above), and two arms (see dashed ovals labelled in annotated Fig. 5 above) respectively extending outward from corresponding upper edges (as labelled in annotated Fig. 5 above) of the respective flanges (see dashed ovals labelled in annotated Fig. 5 above) , wherein the bracket is a folded-plate member having a hat-shape cross section (open upwardly as shown in Figure 5 above) and at least one of the two arms (see dashed ovals labelled in annotated Fig. 5 above) includes a protrusion (as labelled in annotated Fig. 4 above) having an inverted U-shape (as shown in annotated Fig. 4 above) and extending outward from the upper edge of the corresponding flange (as can be seen in annotated Figs. 4 and 5 above) and an outer edge portion having a planar shape and extending outward from an outward edge of the protrusion (such planar outer edge portion is labeled in annotated Fig. 4 above) . 07-15 AIA Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102( a)(1 ) as being anticipated by JP 2011-121400 . Regarding claim 5, JP 2011-121400 discloses: A bracket (as labelled in annotated Fig. 2 below) mounted within a vehicle hood (2; Fig. 2) , comprising: a web (as labelled in annotated Fig. 2 below) , two flanges (as labelled in annotated Fig. 2 below) rising from opposite ends of the web, and two arms (as labelled in annotated Fig. 2 below) respectively extending outward from corresponding upper edges (as labelled in annotated Fig. 2 below) of the respective flanges wherein the bracket is a folded-plate member having a hat-shape cross section (open upwardly as shown in annotated Figure 2 below) , and at least one of the two arms (the leftmost arm in annotated Fig. 2 below) includes a protrusion having an inverted U-shape (as labelled in annotated Fig. 2 below) extending outward from the upper edge of the corresponding flange (as shown in annotated Fig. 2 below) and an outer edge portion having a planar shape extending outward from an outward edge of the protrusion (such planar outer edge portion is labeled in annotated Fig. 2 below) . . PNG media_image3.png 793 878 media_image3.png Greyscale Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 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. 07-20-aia AIA 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. 07-23-aia AIA 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. 07-21-aia AIA Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over JP 2009-286246 . Regarding claim 4, JP 2009-286246 discloses: The vehicle hood according to claim 3, as explained above, where the angle of inclination of the outer edge portion (as labelled in annotated Fig. 2 above) is greater than zero degrees as seen in annotated Fig. 2 above. However, JP 2009-286246 fails to disclose that the angle of inclination of the outer edge portion is 40 degrees or smaller. Notwithstanding, section 2144.04 IV. A. of the MPEP sets forth the Federal Circuit case of In Gardner v. TEC Syst., Inc., 725 F.2d 1338, 220 USPQ 777 (Fed. Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 830, 225 USPQ 232 (1984), which held that, where the only difference between the prior art and the claims was a recitation of relative dimensions of the claimed device and a device having the claimed relative dimensions would not perform differently than the prior art device, the claimed device was not patentably distinct from the prior art device. Therefore, it 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 to construct the angle of inclination of the outer edge portion of JP 2009-286246 to be less than 40 degrees with a reasonable expectation of success since it has been held that “where the only difference between the prior art and the claims was a recitation of relative dimensions of the claimed device and a device having the claimed relative dimensions would not perform differently than the prior art device, the claimed device was not patentably distinct from the prior art device” In Gardner v. TEC Syst., Inc., 725 F.2d 1338, 220 USPQ 777 (Fed. Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 830, 225 USPQ 232 (1984). Pertinent Prior Art 07-96 AIA The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Tanaka et al. US 10,017,213 discloses a hood 18 with a bracket 26 that has a U-shape and is mounted to an inner panel 14 of the hood. Reference Fig. 2. However, the bracket is not hat shaped and does not include a U-shape protrusion on an arm of a hat shape. Inoue et al. US 2016/0152280 disclose a vehicle hood with a hat shaped bracket 16 having arms 16A and 32. Reference Figure 1. However, the arms of the bracket do not include a U-shape protrusion on an arm of the hat shape. Ikeda et al. US 8,403,405 disclose a vehicle hood 14 with a bracket 30. Reference Figure 2. However, the bracket is not hat shaped and does not include a U-shape protrusion on an arm of a hat shape. JP 2009-40168 discloses a hood 10 with a bracket 40. Reference Figure 1. However, the arms of the bracket do not include a U-shape protrusion on an arm of a hat shape . Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Joseph D. Pape whose telephone number is (571)272-6664. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday 7 AM-3:30 PM. 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, Amy Weisberg can be reached at (571)270-5500. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /Joseph D. Pape/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3612 Application/Control Number: 18/943,898 Page 2 Art Unit: 3612 Application/Control Number: 18/943,898 Page 3 Art Unit: 3612 Application/Control Number: 18/943,898 Page 4 Art Unit: 3612 Application/Control Number: 18/943,898 Page 5 Art Unit: 3612 Application/Control Number: 18/943,898 Page 6 Art Unit: 3612 Application/Control Number: 18/943,898 Page 7 Art Unit: 3612 Application/Control Number: 18/943,898 Page 8 Art Unit: 3612
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