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 Objections
Claims 1 and 4-6 objected to because of the following informalities:
Regarding claim 1, the phrase “being structured to sealingly engage an open first end of a can body” should be changed to “being structured to sealingly engage an open first end of the can body”.
Regarding claim 1, the phrase “into an interior volume of a can body” should be changed to being structured to “into an interior volume of the can body”.
Regarding claims 4-6, the phrase “a can body” should be changed to “the can body”.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 13-20 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 13 recites the limitation "the air pressure" in line 4. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claims 14-17 are rejected because they depend from claim 13.
Claim 18 recites the limitation "the air pressure" in line 4. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claims 19-20 are rejected because they depend from claim 18.
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.
Claims 1-2, 12-16 and 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Caleffi (US5775161A).
Regarding claim 1, Caleffi discloses an arrangement for necking a can body (figs.2 and 10: (16)) (abstract and col.3-col.6), the arrangement comprising:
a necking die (fig.2: (130)) having a cylindrical inner surface and an inwardly tapered surface positioned about a longitudinal axis, the cylindrical inner surface extending from an outer opening of the die to the inwardly tapered surface, and the inwardly tapered surface extending from the cylindrical inner surface to an inner central opening, one or both of the cylindrical inner surface and/or the inwardly tapered surface being structured to sealingly engage an open first end of a can body (figs.3-6); and
a projecting member (fig.2: (140)) sealingly engaged with the necking die and extending from the inner central opening outward from the outer opening along the longitudinal axis of the necking die, the projecting member being sized and configured to extend a predetermined distance into an interior volume of a can body sealingly engaged with the one or both of the cylindrical inner surface and/or the inwardly tapered surface of the necking die (figs.3-5).
Regarding claim 2, Caleffi discloses wherein the projecting member comprises a cylindrical body (fig.2).
Regarding claim 12, Caleffi discloses wherein the projecting member comprises an air passage (fig.2: (141)) defined therethrough, the air passage being structured to convey a supply of pressurized gas into a can body sealingly engaged with the one or both of the cylindrical inner surface and/or the inwardly tapered surface being of an open first end of the can body.
Regarding claim 13, Caleffi discloses a method of necking a can body (figs.2 and 10: (16)) (abstract and col.3-col.6), the method comprising:
moving a first end of the can body toward, and into engagement with, a necking die (fig.2: (130)) to seal an internal volume of the can body with the necking die (figs.3-4);
increasing the air pressure in the internal volume by moving a projecting member into the internal volume (fig.3: the movement of the die (140) into the can (16) resulted to increase the air pressure in the can (16)); and
necking the can body by moving the can body further toward and into the necking die (figs.3-5).
Regarding claim 14, Caleffi discloses increasing the air pressure in the internal volume by providing a flow of pressurized gas (fig.2: (141)) to the internal volume prior to necking the can body.
Regarding claim 15, Caleffi discloses wherein providing the flow of pressurized gas to the internal volume prior to necking the can body comprises providing the flow of pressurized gas via an air passage (fig.2: (141)) defined in the projecting member positioned in the internal volume.
Regarding claim 16, Caleffi discloses withdrawing the projecting member from the internal volume after necking the can body; and moving the can body away from the necking die (col.4 lines 27-32).
Regarding claim 18, Caleffi discloses a method of necking a can body (figs.2 and 10: (16)) (abstract and col.3-col.6), the method comprising:
moving a first end of the can body toward, and into engagement with, a necking die (fig.2: (130)) to seal an internal volume of the can body with the necking die (figs.2-3);
increasing the air pressure in the internal volume by providing a flow of pressurized gas (fig.2: (141)) to the internal volume via an air passage defined in a projecting member positioned in the internal volume; and
necking the can body by moving the can body further toward and into the necking die (figs.3-5).
Regarding claim 19, Caleffi discloses wherein moving the first end of the can body toward, and into engagement with, the necking die further comprises moving the can body about the projecting member such that the projecting member extends into the internal volume of the can member (figs.3-4).
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.
Claims 4-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Caleffi (US5775161A).
Regarding claims 4-6, Caleffi does not discloses the limitations of claims 4-6;
However, optimizing size and shape would have resulted from routine engineering practices and it therefore not patentable and would be obvious because there is no unexpected result;
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to have the limitations of claims 4-6 in order to have a can with neck with specific size of neck as desired.
Regarding claim 7, Caleffi discloses wherein the necking die (fig.2: (130)) comprises a passage extending from the inner central opening away from the outer opening (fig.2),
wherein projecting member (fig.2: (140)) is at least partially disposed within the passage (fig.2), and wherein the projecting member is movable (figs.3-5) among: an extended positioning wherein the projecting member extends from the outer opening (fig.2); and
Caleffi does not discloses a retracted positioning wherein the projecting member is retracted into the passage so as to not extend beyond the inner central opening of the necking die.
However, optimizing the movement would have resulted from routine engineering practices and it therefore not patentable and would be obvious because there is no unexpected result;
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to have a retracted positioning wherein the projecting member is retracted into the passage so as to not extend beyond the inner central opening of the necking die in order to have a can with specific neck as desired.
Regarding claim 9, Caleffi discloses an actuating arrangement operatively coupled to the projecting member, the actuating arrangement being structured to move the projecting member among the extended positioning and the retracted positioning (col.4 lines 1-3).
Regarding claim 10, Caleffi discloses wherein the projecting member comprises a cylindrical body (fig.2: (140)).
Claim 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Caleffi (US5775161A) in view of Tung (US5755130A).
Regarding claim 11, Caleffi does not discloses a seal element positioned between the projecting member and the passage, wherein the seal element is sealingly engaged with both of the projecting member and the passage.
Tung teaches an arrangement for necking a can body (abstract) comprising a seal element for sealing members of the arrangement (col.9 lines 62-65).
Both of the prior arts of Caleffi and Tung are related to an arrangement for necking a can body,
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the apparatus of Caleffi by the configuration of a seal element as taught by Tung, since it has been held that combining prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results requires only routine skill in the art. [KSR Int’l Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 127 S.Ct. 1727, 1742, 82 USPQ2d 1385, 1396 (2007)]. Thereby having a seal element positioned between the projecting member and the passage, wherein the seal element is sealingly engaged with both of the projecting member and the passage.
Claims 17 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Caleffi (US5775161A) in view of Lee (US5249449A).
Regarding claims 17 and 20, Caleffi does not discloses securing a base of the can body opposite to the first end to a push pad (fig.2: (120)) of a pusher arrangement (fig.2: (112)); and using the pusher arrangement to carry out the moving of the first end of the can body toward, and into engagement with, the necking die (col.3 liens 34-38).
Caleffi does not discloses using a vacuum force;
Lee teaches an arrangement for necking a can body (abstract) comprising
securing a base of a can body to a push pad using a vacuum force (col.10 lines 12-25)
Both of the prior arts of Caleffi and Lee are related to an arrangement for necking a can body,
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the apparatus of Caleffi by the configuration of using a vacuum force as taught by Lee, since it has been held that combining prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results requires only routine skill in the art. [KSR Int’l Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 127 S.Ct. 1727, 1742, 82 USPQ2d 1385, 1396 (2007)].
Allowable Subject Matter
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claims 3 and 10, the closet prior arts is Caleffi (US5775161A), however in the opinion of the Examiner that the arts of record neither anticipates nor render obvious the limitation of “wherein the projecting member comprises a distal end having a dished portion defined therein” in combination with the other limitations of the claim.
Claims 3 and 10 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MOHAMMED S ALAWADI whose telephone number is (571)272-2224. The examiner can normally be reached 08:00 am- 05:00 pm.
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/MOHAMMED S. ALAWADI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3725
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