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 .
Intended Use
Regarding the claim language referring to the dispensing apparatus that is intended to be used “for dispensing a beverage component”, while features of an apparatus may be recited either structurally or functionally, claims directed to an apparatus must be distinguished from the prior art in terms of structure rather than function. A claim containing a "recitation with respect to the manner in which a claimed apparatus is intended to be employed does not differentiate the claimed apparatus from a prior art apparatus" if the prior art apparatus teaches all the structural limitations of the claim. Ex parte Masham, 2 USPQ2d 1647 (1987).
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) 8-14, 16-21 and 23-26 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Watanabe, et al. (“Watanabe”) (JP 2004-099061A).
Regarding claim 1, Watanabe discloses a dispensing system (A) for dispensing a liquid, the dispensing system comprising:
a container (A0) configured to hold a liquid;
a pump (described as “a pump-type liquid container”) coupled to the container, the pump comprising a tube (A2) and a pump head (A3);
a dosing collar (¶ [0053], Fig. 23: laminated body members 101, 102 ,10N) configured to restrict flow of the beverage component through the tube, wherein the dosing collar is adjustable to modify a volume of the beverage component dispensed from the pump head when the pump head is actuated. (¶ [0009, 0053])
Regarding claim 9, Watanabe discloses an actuation system (P + 10d) configured to adjust the dosing collar.
Regarding claim 10, Watanabe discloses the tube (A2) is bisected into a first portion (within A1) and a second portion (within A3), and wherein the dosing collar is positioned between the first portion and the second portion.
Regarding claim 11, Watanabe discloses the dosing collar comprises a plurality of openings (10b) extending through the dosing collar. (multiple collars laminated and integral seen in Fig. 23 provide multiple openings)
Regarding claim 12, Watanabe discloses each opening of the plurality of openings comprises a different cross-sectional area. (Fig. 23: ta vs tb vs tN)
Regarding claim 13, Watanabe discloses the dosing collar is positioned between the first portion and the second portion so an opening of the plurality of openings is aligned with the first portion and the second portion. (seen in Fig. 23)
Regarding claim 14, Watanabe discloses a locking mechanism (10c) configured to prevent or inhibit movement of the dosing collar relative to the tube when an opening of the plurality of openings is aligned with the first portion and the second portion. (¶ [0018]: “Furthermore, once mounted, the main body member 10 is elastically restored and the cut portion 10c returns to the closed state, so that the suction pipe A2 does not easily come off from the mounting hole 10b, and the suction pipe A2 is inadvertently removed from the suction pipe A2.”)
Regarding claim 16, Watanabe discloses the dosing collar is configured to translate (¶ [0053]: “rotate”) to change which opening of the plurality of openings is aligned with the first portion and the second portion.
Regarding claim 17, Watanabe discloses the dosing collar is configured to rotate (¶ [0053]: “rotate”) to change which opening of the plurality of openings is aligned with the first portion and the second portion.
Regarding claim 18, Watanabe discloses dispensing system (A) for dispensing a liquid, the dispensing system comprising:
a container (A0) configured to hold the liquid;
a pump (described as “a pump-type liquid container”) coupled to the container, the pump comprising a tube (A2) and a pump head (A3);
a dosing collar (¶ [0053], Fig. 23: laminated body members 101, 102 ,10N) comprising restrictors (Fig. 23: 101, 102 ,10N) configured to move between a first position (Fig. 23: position of 101) and a second position (Fig. 23: position of 102), wherein the restrictors do not contact the tube when the restrictors are in the first position, and wherein the restrictors are configured to restrict flow the beverage component through the tube when at least one of the restrictors are in the second position in order to modify a volume of the beverage component dispensed from the pump head when the pump head is actuated. (¶ [0053])
Regarding claim 19, Watanabe discloses the restrictors each comprise a body and a recess (10b) extending into the body.
Regarding claim 20, Watanabe discloses that the recess of each restrictor is a different size. (Fig. 23, the thickness (ta, tb, tN)) of each recess (10b) of each restrictor (Fig. 23: 101, 102 ,10N) is different)
Regarding claim 23, Watanabe discloses dosing collar (¶ [0053], Fig. 23: laminated body members 101, 102 ,10N) for a beverage component dispensing system (A), the dosing collar comprising:
a body (laminated body of the plurality of body members); and
a plurality of openings (10b) extending through the body, wherein the dosing collar is configured to restrict flow of a beverage component through a tube of the dispensing system (¶ [0053]),wherein each opening of the plurality of openings is a different size, so each opening restricts flow of the beverage component through the tube of the dispensing system a different amount. (Fig. 23, the thickness (ta, tb, tN)) of each recess (10b) of each restrictor (Fig. 23: 101, 102 ,10N) is different)
Regarding claim 24, Watanabe discloses the dosing collar is configured to be positioned between a first portion of the tube and a second portion of the tube so a first opening of the plurality of openings is aligned with the first portion and the second portion. (seen in Fig. 23)
Regarding claim 25, Watanabe discloses the dosing collar is configured to translate (¶ [0053]: “rotate”) relative to the tube so a second opening of the plurality of openings is aligned with the first portion and the second portion.
Regarding claim 26, Watanabe discloses the dosing collar is configured to rotate (¶ [0053]: “rotate”) relative to the tube so a second opening of the plurality of openings is aligned with the first portion and the second portion.
Claim(s) 21 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as anticipated by or, in the alternative, under 35 U.S.C. 103 as obvious over Watanabe.
Regarding claim 21, Watanabe discloses a dosing collar (¶ [0053], Fig. 23: laminated body members 101, 102 ,10N) comprising restrictors (Fig. 23: 101, 102 ,10N). Watanabe also discloses (Fig. 13) that multiple restrictors (10), each with a recess (10b) of the same size (thickness), may be used to create a collar body (Fig. 13a: 100).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art, prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to substitute the restrictors of Fig. 23 with the restrictors of Fig. 13, which all have the same size, since doing so would be a mere substitution of one known restrictor configuration for another known restrictor configuration with the expected results that the substituted restrictor would control flow of the pump head(see MPEP 2143 I B).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 15, 22 and 27 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.
Claim 15 requires each opening of the plurality of openings is configured to form a seal with the first portion and the second portion, wherein the seal prevents or inhibits the beverage component from leaking out between the dosing collar and the first and second portions. The closest prior art is considered to be Watanabe. Watanabe discloses a collar, with a plurality of openings, positioned between a first and second portion, but does not mention a seal which prevents or inhibits the beverage component from leaking out between the dosing collar and the first and second portions. It would not have been obvious to modify Watanabe, as required, barring improper hindsight analysis.
Claim 22 requires that the recess is smaller than the tube so the body necks down a portion of the tube when each restrictor is in the second position. Watanabe discloses recesses but does not teach that the recess is smaller than the tube so the body necks down a portion of the tube when each restrictor is in the second position and it would not have been obvious to modify Watanabe as required barring improper hindsight analysis.
Claim 27 requires that the dosing collar forms a watertight seal with the tube. Watanabe is silent in that the dosing collar forms a watertight seal with the tube and it would not have been obvious to modify Watanabe, as required by the claim, barring improper hindsight analysis.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See form PTO-892, attached.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MICHAEL J MELARAGNO whose telephone number is (571)270-7735. The examiner can normally be reached Mon - Fri: 8 am - 5 pm +/- flex.
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, Paul Durand can be reached at (571) 272-4459. 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.
/MICHAEL J. MELARAGNO/ Examiner, Art Unit 3754
Prosecution Insights