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
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.
Claim(s) 1-3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Berg (US 8,152,404) in view of Kairy (US 11,746,949).
Regarding claim 1, Berg (hereafter “D1”) discloses a post attachment assembly (clamping element 1), comprising: a first combination element (ring half 3a), having a first head protruding portion (4a) and a first tail connecting portion (at 5a), wherein the first head protruding portion has a first front half engaging slot (10a), and the first tail connecting portion has a first rear half engaging slot (11a); a second combination element (ring half 3b), having a second head protruding portion (4b) and a second tail connecting portion (5b), wherein the second head protruding portion has a second front half engaging slot (10b), and the second tail connecting portion has a second rear half engaging slot (11b); a first object hanging element (locking bar 8), having a first coupling portion (not indexed – inner bulbous portions), wherein the first coupling portion is detachably connected at the first front half engaging slot of the first combination element and the second rear half engaging slot of the second combination element (figure 1); and a second object hanging element (other of 8), having a second coupling portion (not indexed – inner bulbous portions), wherein the second coupling portion is detachably connected at the second front half engaging slot of the second combination element and the first rear half engaging slot of the first combination element (figure 1). D1 does not disclose inclusion of a hook member.
Kairy teaches a pole clamp (200) comprising a joint/hinge (at adapter connector portion 214) including a hook member (202) extending therefrom for supporting items.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date to incorporate hook members integrally extending from the object hanging elements of D1 for the added utility of supporting a larger variety of items.
Regarding claim 2, D1 as modified discloses wherein a cross section of the first coupling portion (8) is H-shaped, and a cross section of the second coupling portion is H-shaped (figure 2).
Regarding claim 3, D1 as modified discloses wherein at least one of the first combination element (3a) and the second combination element (3b) further has: at least one additional hook channel (as modified channels at slots 6 are all capable of receiving hook members) operable for an additional object hanging element to be detachably connected at the at least one additional hook channel (figure 2 – D1).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-16 are 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 an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance: The prior art of record does not disclose or suggest any combination meeting the limitations of the independent claim(s). Specifically, D1 in view of D2 does not teach at least the claimed body element having a groove portion to which the hook assembly is connected and the prior art documents of record do not suggest a modification to meet these limitations.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See notice of references cited form PTO-892. References not applied but cited are relevant as disclosing or suggesting at least one feature in the claims or disclosure of the present application.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PATRICK D HAWN whose telephone number is (571)270-5320. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 9-6.
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, Jonathan Liu can be reached at 5712728227. 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.
/PATRICK D HAWN/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3631
Prosecution Insights