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.
Claim(s) 1 and 14-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US 8,695,933 to Gennaretti et al.
Regarding claim 1, Gennaretti ‘933 discloses a home appliance 2 comprising: a main body 4; and a height adjustment device 1 configured to adjust a height of the main body 4 from a ground, wherein the height adjustment device comprises: a housing 3 configured to be coupled to a lower portion of the main body 4; a leg 12 passing through the housing 3 and comprising a male thread portion 16 on an outer circumferential surface thereof; a worm wheel 19 inside the housing 3 and comprising a female thread portion 20 on an inner circumferential surface thereof, the female thread portion 20 corresponding to the male thread portion 16 of the leg 12 such that the worm wheel is screw-coupled to the leg 12 and is configured to ascend and descend; a worm 50 engaged with the worm wheel 19 and configured to rotate the worm wheel 19; and a worm shaft 52 coupleable to and detachable from the worm 50 and configured to rotate the worm 50 in a state in which the worm shaft 52 is coupled to the worm 50, and wherein the housing 3 comprises a locking portion (half shells 9/10 secured by screws 11) configured to prevent the worm shaft 52 coupled to the worm 50 from being separated from the housing (the worm shaft 52 projects from the body 3 while remaining retained within the assembled and screw half shells 9/1-; col.3, lines 12-16; col. 4, lines 29-36).
Regarding claim 14, Gennaretti ‘933 discloses, wherein the leg 12 further comprises a head portion 18 protruding from the male thread portion 16 toward the main body 4.
Regarding claim 15, Gennaretti ‘933 discloses, wherein the head portion 18 comprises an inclined surface extending upward toward the main body 4 and sloping to a center of the head portion (Figs. 2-4).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-13 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 a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: note the configuration of the holes relative to the housing and worm shaft.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure and will be used in subsequent office action rejections, as applicable.
The list of supports is as follows: US-7258313-B2 OR US-5967472-A OR US-11399629-B2 OR US-5732913-A OR US-3921958-A OR US-6279860-B1 OR US-20080168855-A1 OR US-20050247834-A1 OR US-1417639-A OR US-1632383-A OR US-2828578-A OR US-4991805-A.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MONICA E MILLNER whose telephone number is (571)270-7507. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8am-4:00pm.
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, Terrell McKinnon can be reached at 571-272-4797. 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.
/MONICA E MILLNER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3632
Prosecution Insights