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 .
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.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Invention I, claims 1-5, in the reply filed on 14 May 2025 is acknowledged.
Claims 6-8 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 14 May 2025.
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 1-4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Laughlin et al. (US 2019/0393688 A1).
Claim 1:
Laughlin discloses an arrangement for mounting an electrical box (abstract), comprising:
a unitary mounting bracket (20) (figs. 1-4, [0057]) having an initial planar configuration, comprising a single metallic component (figs. 1-4, [0058]);
said mounting bracket (20) comprising a box section (22) formed from four parallel, box elements (24, 26, 28 and element that supports tab 44) initially arranged in co-planar relationship with each other (figs. 1-4, [0058] and [0059]);
said mounting bracket (20) further comprising a pair of stud sections (50, 190) respectively extending from a pair of said box elements (24, 26, 28 and element that supports tab 44), spaced from each other by an intermediate one of said box elements (24, 26, 28 and element that supports tab 44) (figs. 1-4, [0062] and [0089]); and
said mounting bracket (20) being deformable from said initial planar configuration (sheet metal) to configure said box elements (24, 26, 28 and element that supports tab 44) in a rectangular configuration (fig. 10, [0017]) to form a said box section (22) in a tubular configuration, said pair of stud sections (50, 190) extending from said box section (22) in spaced apart, parallel relationship to facilitate attachment of said stud sections (50, 190) to an associated stud or other building component (184), to thereby mount said mounting bracket (20) for subsequent attachment of and electrical box thereto (figs. 14-15, [0086] and [0089]).
Claim 2:
Laughlin discloses an arrangement for mounting an electrical box in accordance with claim 1, wherein said box section (22) of said mounting bracket (20) includes at least one tab member (44) positioned along one edge of said box section (22) in the initial planar configuration of said mounting bracket (20), and at least one tab slot (40) defined by another edge of said box section (22), opposite said one edge; each said tab member (44) being positionable in a respective one of said tab slot (40) when said mounting bracket (20) is deformed to configure said box elements (24, 26, 28 and element that supports tab 44) in said rectangular configuration (figs. 4 and 9, [0084]).
Claim 3:
Laughlin discloses an arrangement for mounting an electrical box in accordance with claim 1, wherein said box section (22) of said mounting bracket (20) defines fold lines between adjacent ones of said box elements (24, 26, 28 and element that supports tab 44); each said fold line being defined by a plurality of spaced apart openings (70, 72 to facilitate bending of said box section (22) from said initial planar configuration to said tubular configuration (figs. 1-4; see also annotated reproduction of fig. 10, below).
PNG
media_image1.png
650
910
media_image1.png
Greyscale
Claim 4:
Laughlin discloses an arrangement for mounting an electrical box in accordance with claim 1, wherein each of said stud sections (50, 190) defines at least one fold line (58) extending transversely thereof to facilitate bending of said stud sections (50, 190) at one or more locations (figs. 1-4, [0062] - see also annotated reproduction of fig. 1, below).
PNG
media_image2.png
704
960
media_image2.png
Greyscale
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 5 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter.
Claim 5:
The prior art of record fails to disclose or fairly suggest an arrangement for mounting an electrical box in accordance with claim 1, wherein each of box elements and said stud sections defines a plurality of openings for receiving mechanical fasteners therethrough.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Jorgensen et al. (US 5,408,045) discloses a mounting bracket for an electrical box assembly.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Lee Holly whose telephone number is (571)270-7097. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:00 to 5:00 EST.
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, Sunil Singh can be reached at (571) 272-3460. 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.
/Lee A Holly/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3726
Prosecution Insights