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 .
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 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.
DETAILED ACTION
This is in response to Application filed on 11/22/2024 in which claims 1-20 were presented for examination.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species A and subspecies I corresponding to Figs. 3-10 and claims 1-20 in the reply filed on 11/24/2025 is acknowledged.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 11/22/2024 was considered by the examiner.
Claim Objections
Claim 10 is objected to because of the following informalities: line 3, change “well” to –wall--. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
Claims 1-3, 6-7, 9-11 and 16-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Pratt (U.S. Patent No. 6,151,714).
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Regarding claim 1, Pratt discloses a knee pad (See Fig. 3 identifier 103) comprising:
an upper support (See Figs. 1-2 identifier 42 above the knee) configured to couple to a leg of a user above a knee (See Fig. 1);
a lower support (See Figs. 1-2 identifier 42 below the knee) configured to couple to the leg of the user below the knee (See Fig. 1);
a shell (24) coupled to the upper support and the lower support and positioned between the upper support and the lower support (See Fig. 4); and
a single, integral padding layer (34) comprising:
an outer surface (facing away from the wearer when worn) interfacing against the shell (24) (See Fig. 4);
an inner surface (facing the wearer when worn); and
a plurality of cells (See annotated Fig. A above), each of the plurality of cells (See Fig. A) extending between the outer surface and the inner surface (See Figs. 2-4), each of the plurality of cells (See Fig. A) comprising:
a channel connecting the outer surface and the inner surface (See above and Fig. A wherein the channel is the cavity surrounded by the six walls);
a longitudinal axis extending along the channel (See Fig. A); and
a cell wall enclosing the channel (See Fig. A), the cell wall (See Fig. A) comprising a plurality of segments (See Fig. A) angled relative the longitudinal axis (See Fig. A).
Regarding claim 2, Pratt discloses a knee pad wherein a portion of plurality of segments are angled inward, toward the channel (See Fig. A) and a portion of the plurality of segments are angled outward, away from the channel (See Fig. A).
Regarding claim 3, Pratt discloses a knee pad wherein half of the plurality of segments are angled inward and half of the plurality of segments are angled outward (because the axis is dividing cells in half).
Regarding claim 6, Pratt discloses a knee pad wherein the shell further comprises: a front wall; and a pair of lateral walls, each lateral wall extending from an opposing side of the front wall (See Fig. A).
Regarding claim 7, Pratt discloses a knee pad wherein the padding layer further comprises: a central section positioned against the front wall of the shell; and side sections positioned against the pair of lateral walls of the shell (See Fig. A).
Regarding claims 9-10, Pratt discloses a knee pad (See Fig. 3 identifier 103) comprising:
an upper support (See Figs. 1-2 identifier 42 above the knee) configured to couple to a leg of a user above a knee (See Fig. 1);
a lower support (See Figs. 1-2 identifier 42 below the knee) configured to couple to the leg of the user below the knee (See Fig. 1);
a shell (24) coupled to the upper support and the lower support and positioned between the upper support and the lower support (See Fig. 4); and
a single, integral padding layer (34) comprising:
an outer surface (facing away from the wearer when worn) positioned along the shell (24) (See Fig. 4);
an inner surface (facing the wearer when worn); and
a plurality of cells (See annotated Fig. A above), each of the plurality of cells (See Fig. A) extending between the outer surface and the inner surface (See Figs. 2-4), each of the plurality of cells (See Fig. A) comprising:
a channel connecting the outer surface and the inner surface (See above and Fig. A wherein the channel is the cavity surrounded by the six walls);
a longitudinal axis extending along the channel (See Fig. A); and
a cell wall enclosing the channel (See Fig. A), the cell wall (See Fig. A) comprising a plurality of segments (See Fig. A) angled relative the longitudinal axis (See Fig. A);
wherein a portion of plurality of segments are angled inward, toward the channel (See Fig. A) and a portion of the plurality of segments are angled outward, away from the channel (See Fig. A).
Regarding claim 11, Pratt discloses a knee pad wherein the cell wall comprises two inward angled segments and two outward angled segments (See Fig. A).
Regarding claim 16, Pratt discloses a knee pad (See Fig. 3 identifier 103) comprising:
an upper support (See Figs. 1-2 identifier 42 above the knee) configured to couple to a leg of a user above a knee (See Fig. 1);
a lower support (See Figs. 1-2 identifier 42 below the knee) configured to couple to the leg of the user below the knee (See Fig. 1);
a shell (24) coupled to the upper support and the lower support and positioned between the upper support and the lower support (See Fig. 4); and
a single, integral padding layer (34) comprising:
an outer surface (facing away from the wearer when worn) positioned along the shell (24) (See Fig. 4);
an inner surface (facing the wearer when worn); and
a plurality of cells (See annotated Fig. A above), each of the plurality of cells (See Fig. A) extending between the outer surface and the inner surface (See Figs. 2-4), each of the plurality of cells (See Fig. A) comprising:
a channel connecting the outer surface and the inner surface (See above and Fig. A wherein the channel is the cavity surrounded by the six walls);
a longitudinal axis extending along the channel (See Fig. A); and
a cell wall surrounding the channel (See Fig. A), the cell wall (See Fig. A) comprising a plurality of segments (See Fig. A) angled relative the longitudinal axis (See Fig. A);
wherein a portion of plurality of segments are angled inward, toward the channel (See Fig. A) and a portion of the plurality of segments are angled outward, away from the channel (See Fig. A).
Regarding claim 17, Pratt discloses a knee pad wherein one of the pair of outward angled segments is positioned between the pair of inward angled segments (See Figs. 1-4, A).
Regarding claim 18, Pratt discloses a knee pad wherein the shell further comprises: a front wall; and a pair of lateral walls, each lateral wall extending from an opposing side of the front wall (See Fig. A);
wherein the padding layer further comprises: a central section positioned against the front wall of the shell; and side sections positioned against the pair of lateral walls of the shell (See Fig. A).
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 of this title, 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.
Claims 4-5, 12-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Pratt (U.S. Patent No. 6,151,714).
Regarding claim 4, Pratt discloses a knee pad having a thickness of the padding layer defined between the outer surface and the inner surface (See Fig. 4).
Pratt does not disclose that the thickness of the padding layer is less than 40 mm.
However, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have a thickness of the padding layer is less than 40 mm in order to customize the intended use of the pad, for example a pad made for children may be thinner than a pad made for adults, since where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art. In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233. Please note that in the instant application, applicant has not disclosed any criticality for the claimed limitations.
Regarding claims 5 and 14, Pratt discloses a knee pad having a thickness of the padding layer defined between the outer surface and the inner surface (See Fig. 4).
Pratt does not disclose that the thickness of the padding layer is less than 25 mm.
However, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have a thickness of the padding layer is less than 25 mm in order to customize the intended use of the pad, for example a pad made for children may be thinner than a pad made for adults, since where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art. In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233. Please note that in the instant application, applicant has not disclosed any criticality for the claimed limitations.
Regarding claim 12, Pratt discloses a knee pad wherein an interior surface of the inward angled segment at an angle (See Fig. A).
Pratt does not disclose that the interior surface of the inward angled segment is at a 30-degree angle relative to an axial axis of the cell.
However, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the degree at 30 in order to obtain optimum configuration and to maximize functionality of the device, since discovering an optimum value of a result effective variable involves only routine skill in the art. In re Boesch, 617 F.2d 272, 205 USPQ 215 (CCPA 1980). Please note that in the instant application, applicant has not disclosed any criticality for the claimed limitations.
Regarding claim 13, Pratt discloses a knee pad having a thickness of the padding layer defined between the outer surface and the inner surface (See Fig. 4).
Pratt does not disclose that the thickness of the padding layer is 2 mm.
However, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have a thickness of the padding layer is 2 mm in order to customize the intended use of the pad, for example a pad made for children may be thinner than a pad made for adults, since where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art. In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233. Please note that in the instant application, applicant has not disclosed any criticality for the claimed limitations.
Regarding claim 15, Pratt discloses a knee pad wherein each cell has a height defined between the outer surface and the inner surface of the padding layer (See Fig. 4)
Pratt does not disclose that the height is about 17.5 mm.
However, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have a height at about 17.5 mm in order to customize the intended use of the pad, for example a pad made for children may be thinner than a pad made for adults, since where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art. In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233. Please note that in the instant application, applicant has not disclosed any criticality for the claimed limitations.
Claims 8 and 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Pratt (U.S. Patent No. 6,151,714) in view of Iglesias et al. (U.S. Patent No. 7,018,351 B1).
Regarding claims 8 and 19, Pratt discloses the invention substantially as claimed above.
Pratt does not disclose that the plurality of cells in the central section have a first dimension and the plurality of cells in the side sections have a second dimension, and wherein the first dimension is greater than the second dimension.
However, Iglesias et al. “Iglesias” teaches yet another knee pad (See Fig. 1) having plurality of cells (See Fig. 4) wherein the plurality of cells in the central section have a first dimension and the plurality of cells in the side sections have a second dimension, and wherein the first dimension is greater than the second dimension (See Fig. 4).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have manufactured Pratt device with the plurality of cells in the central section have a first dimension and the plurality of cells in the side sections have a second dimension, and wherein the first dimension is greater than the second dimension as taught by Iglesias in order to enhance fit and provide more support for areas that require more support.
Regarding claim 20, Pratt as modified by Iglesias discloses a knee pad wherein the padding layer is formed from a thermoplastic elastomer (See Abstract of Iglesias).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered (See PTO-892) pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
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/KHALED ANNIS/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3732