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 .
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(s) 1-5, 7-12, 14-16, 18-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being unpatentable over Martigli (US Pub. 9,366,027 B2)
Regarding claim 1, Martigli discloses a bracket comprising:
a base plate including first apertures (Fig. 2, multiple joint 13 comprises a plurality of apertures);
a shelf coupled to and extending from the base plate, the shelf including second apertures (Fig. 2, a portion extends from multiple joint 13, proximate to purlin 6, and comprises a plurality of apertures. The apertures of the shelf and base line up for fastening);
a first arm rotatably attached to the shelf via a first fastener, the first arm including a third aperture that is concentric with a first of the second apertures, the first fastener being disposed through the third aperture and the first of the second apertures (Fig. 2, knee rafter 4);
a second arm rotatably attached to the shelf via a second fastener, the second arm including a fourth aperture that is concentric with a second of the second apertures, the second fastener being disposed through the fourth aperture and the second of the second apertures (Fig. 2, knee rafter 4);
and a third arm rotatably attached to the shelf via a third fastener, the third arm including a fifth aperture that is concentric with a third of the second apertures, the third fastener being disposed through the fifth aperture and the third of the second apertures (Fig. 5, a third and fourth hole is available for attaching an additional knee rafter 4 to if required).
Regarding claim 2, Martigli discloses wherein the second apertures are spaced apart from an edge of the base plate by a distance (See Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 3, Martigli discloses wherein: the base plate includes one or more first holes (Fig. 2, multiple joint 13 comprises a plurality of apertures);
the first arm includes one or more second holes; the second arm includes one or more third holes; and the third arm includes one or more fourth holes (Fig. 2, each knee rafter comprises at least one aperture).
Regarding claim 4, Martigli discloses wherein at least one of: the first arm includes a sixth aperture; the second arm includes a seventh aperture; or the first arm includes an eighth aperture (Fig. 5, knee rafter 4 comprises additional openings).
Regarding claim 5, Martigli discloses wherein:
the base plate includes: a first side, and a second side opposite the first side (Fig. 2, multiple joint 13 comprises two sides);
the shelf includes: a third side disposed adjacent to the second side of the base plate, and a fourth side opposite the third side (Fig. 2, shelf comprises two sides);
and the first arm, the second arm, and the third arm are disposed adjacent to the third side of the shelf (Fig. 2, knee rafters 4 are located on a side of the shelf).
Regarding claim 7, Martigli discloses wherein: the bracket is configured to attach to a truss having a first member, a second member, a third member, and a fourth member; the base plate is configured to attach to the first member (Fig. 2, strut 1);
the first arm is configured to attach to the second member; the second arm is configured to attach to the third member; and the third arm is configured to attach to the fourth member (Fig. 6, individual arms each connect to a different component in the truss structure).
Regarding claim 8, Martigli discloses a bracket comprising:
a base plate including: a first side, and a second side opposite the first side of the base plate (Fig. 2, multiple joint 13 comprises two opposing sides);
a shelf including: a first side extending from the first side of the base plate, and a second side opposite the first side of the shelf (Fig. 2, a portion extends from multiple joint 13, proximate to purlin 6, and comprises two opposing sides);
and one or more arms disposed adjacent to the first side of the shelf, the one or more arms being rotatably mounted to the shelf (Fig. 2, knee rafter 4 are rotatably mounted).
Regarding claim 9, Martigli discloses wherein: the bracket is configured to mount to one or more members of a truss (Fig. 2, strut 1);
and the one or more arms are rotatably mounted to the shelf via one or more fasteners disposed into the one or more members of the truss (Fig. 7, locking means 61).
Regarding claim 10, Martigli discloses wherein: the shelf includes one or more first apertures (See Fig. 2);
the one or more arms include a second aperture that aligns with an aperture of the one or more first apertures (Fig. 2, apertures of knee rafter 4 and multiple joint 13 align);
and a fastener is disposed through the second aperture and the aperture of the one or more first apertures to rotatably mount the one or more arms to the shelf (Fig. 7, locking means 61).
Regarding claim 11, Martigli discloses wherein: the one or more arms include:
a first end rotatably mounted to the shelf, and a second end opposite the first end (Fig. 2, knee rafters 4 comprise two ends, one of which is rotatably mounted);
the first end is disposed adjacent to the shelf; and the second end is disposed external from the shelf (See Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 12, Martigli discloses wherein the one or more arms include at least a first arm and a second arm (See Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 14, Martigli discloses wherein: the one or more arms include: a first side, and a second side opposite the first side of the one or more arms; the first side of the base plate and the first side of the one or more arms are planar with one another; and the second side of the base plate, the first side of the shelf, and the second side of the one or more arms are planar with one another (Fig. 7, all components are substantially coplanar).
Regarding claim 15, Martigli discloses a bracket comprising:
a base plate configured to secure to a first member of a truss (Fig. 2, multiple joint 13);
a first arm rotatably attached to the base plate, the first arm configured to secure to a second member of the truss (Fig. 2, knee rafter 4);
and a second arm rotatably attached to the base plate, the second arm configured to secure to a third member of the truss (Fig. 2, knee rafter 4).
Regarding claim 16, Martigli discloses a third arm rotatably attached to the base plate, the third arm configured to secure to a fourth member of the truss (See Fig. 5).
Regarding claim 18, Martigli discloses wherein:
the first arm includes a first end disposed between the first side of the shelf and the second member; and the second arm includes a second end disposed between the first side of the shelf and the third member (Fig. 6, individual arms each connect to a different component in the truss structure).
Regarding claim 19, Martigli discloses wherein:
the first arm rotatably attaches to the base plate via a first fastener disposed through the first arm, the base plate, and at least one of the first member or the second member; and the second arm rotatably attaches to the base plate via a second fastener disposed through the second arm, the base plate, and at least one of the first member or the third member (Fig. 7, locking means 61).
Regarding claim 20, Martigli discloses wherein:
the base plate includes one or more first apertures for securing the base plate to the first member (Fig. 2, apertures are located on the multiple joint 13 where the member overlaps strut 1);
the first arm includes one or more second apertures for securing the base plate to the second member (Fig. 2, multiple joint 13 comprises a plurality of apertures for securing to knee rafters 4);
and the second arm includes one or more third apertures for securing the base plate to the third member (See id).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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) 6, 13, 17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Martigli (US Pub. 9,366,027 B2).
Regarding claim 6, Martigli discloses the claimed invention in addition to wherein: the base plate includes a first thickness that extends between the first side and the second side (Fig. 7, multiple joint 13 comprises a thickness).
However, Martigli fails to disclose a first arm, the second arm, and the third arm include a second thickness that is a same as the first thickness. It would have been an obvious matter of design choice to construct a base plate having the same thickness as the arms for improved structural integrity, since such a modification would have involved a mere change in the size of a component. A change in size is generally recognized as being within the level of ordinary skill in the art. In re Rose, 105 USPQ 237 (CCPA 1955).
Regarding claim 13, Martigli discloses the claimed invention in addition to wherein: the base plate includes a first thickness extending between the first side of the base plate and the second side of the base plate (Fig. 7, multiple joint 13 comprises a thickness);
the one or more arms include: a first side, a second side opposite the first side of the one or more arms, and a second thickness extending between the first side of the one or more arms and the second side of the one or more arms (Fig. 7, each knee rafter 4 comprises a thickness).
However, Martigli fails to disclose the first thickness and the second thickness are a same. It would have been an obvious matter of design choice to construct a base plate having the same thickness as the arms for improved structural integrity, since such a modification would have involved a mere change in the size of a component. A change in size is generally recognized as being within the level of ordinary skill in the art. In re Rose, 105 USPQ 237 (CCPA 1955).
Regarding claim 17, Martigli discloses a shelf coupled to the base plate (Fig. 2, a portion extends from multiple joint 13), wherein:
the base plate includes a first side and a second side (Fig. 2, multiple joint 13 comprises two opposing sides);
the shelf includes a first side and a second side, the first side of the shelf being coupled to the second side of the base plate (Fig. 2, a portion extends from multiple joint 13, proximate to purlin 6, and comprises two opposing sides).
However, Martigli fails to disclose a distance disposed between the first side of the base plate and the second side of the base plate corresponds to a thickness of the first arm and the second arm. It would have been an obvious matter of design choice to construct a base plate having the same thickness as the arms for a more compact profile, since such a modification would have involved a mere change in the size of a component. A change in size is generally recognized as being within the level of ordinary skill in the art. In re Rose, 105 USPQ 237 (CCPA 1955).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HENRY HOOPER MUDD whose telephone number is (571)272-5941. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8am-5pm.
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/HENRY HOOPER MUDD/Examiner, Art Unit 3642 /JOSHUA J MICHENER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3642
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