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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Claim Objections
Claim 1 is objected to because of the following informalities: The limitation reading “an ejector plate assembled in the punch holder configured to move, relative to the punch holder,” should read: “an ejector plate assembled in the punch holder the ejector plate configured to move, relative to the punch holder,”.
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 1-8 are 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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
The limitation of Claim 1 reading: “an ejector plate assembled in the punch holder configured to move, …to perform a nominal stroke of a predetermined length between an extended position and retracted position reached by the ejector plate when there is a given thickness of residual cutting material accumulated in a cutting area” is indefinite (emphasis added). The claim appears to require that the ejector plate only perform a nominal stroke when there is a thickness of residual cutting material accumulated in a cutting area. However, the machine as disclosed appears to allow for such a stroke when no material is present in the cutting area (par.0040). For purposes of advancing prosecution, this limitation will be interpreted, as allowing for such a stroke either when material is present or when no material is present, as best understood in light of the specification
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 of this title, 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.
Claim 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over USPGPUB 20130319194, Reiter in view of USPN 3678725 Langewis.
Regarding Claim 1, Reiter discloses:
A device for cutting plastic containers (here, the Reiter device cuts plate-like workpieces, and is thus capable of performing the intended use of cutting plastic containers that are plate like, see MPEP 2111.02.II, where it is noted that “To satisfy an intended use limitation which is limiting, a prior art structure which is capable of performing the intended use as recited in the preamble meets the claim. See, e.g., In re Schreiber, 128 F.3d 1473, 1477, 44 USPQ2d 1429, 1431 (Fed. Cir. 1997) [anticipation rejection affirmed based on Board’s factual finding that the reference dispenser [a spout disclosed as useful for purposes such as dispensing oil from an oil can] would be capable of dispensing popcorn in the manner set forth in appellant’s claim 1 [a dispensing top for dispensing popcorn in a specified manner]] and cases cited therein”);
comprising: a die (11) and a punch holder (26) movable in an axial direction between an operative cutting position (fig 2b) and an inoperative position (fig 2a);
cutting blades (9a) arranged in the punch holder (fig 1); and
an ejector plate (3) assembled in the punch holder (26) configured to move, relative to the punch holder (par. 0034), in the axial direction and to perform a nominal stroke of a predetermined length between an extended position (fig 2a) and retracted position (fig 2b) reached by the ejector plate (fig 2b) when there is a given thickness of residual cutting material accumulated in a cutting area (since this operation can be performed whether these is material present or not, [see 35 USC 112(b) interpretation above]), said ejector plate being associated to at least one spring (32) configured to be compressed in the axial direction when the ejector plate moves from the extended position (see par 0044) to the retracted position (par. 0044);
wherein the ejector plate includes a protruding indicator 28 attached to the ejector plate (fig 2c, and par 0037), extending away from the ejector plate (fig. 2c, par 0037) in the axial direction towards a rear of the punch holder (fig 2c); and wherein the device further comprises at least one position sensor (27) arranged to detect when the protruding indicator reaches a raised position (par 0037), indicative of the ejector plate reaching the retracted position (fig 2c, and par 0037).
Reiter lacks the assembly comprising multiple ejector plates (only one ejector plate is present in Reiter).
Langewis discloses a punch and container making assembly in the same field of endeavor as the punch and container making assembly tool of the present invention and discloses that such a system includes multiple punches and ejector part 159 assemblies which simultaneously cut into a material to form a container in order to allow the system to be used to form either a single or multiple containers/finished workpieces in a single operation (col. 1, 30-40, and col 1, 60-70).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Reiter by including multiple punch/deflector assemblies in the device thereof to perform punching simultaneously in order to allow the system to be used to form either a single or multiple containers/finished workpieces in a single operation, as taught in Langewis.
Regarding Claim 5, in Reiter said protruding indicator 28 comprises a rod 28 perpendicular to the plate (fig 2a).
Regarding Claim 6, in Reiter the at least one position sensor is connected to a control unit (par. 0038) and is configured to emit a signal to the control unit when said raised position is detected (see par 0038).
Regarding claim 4, in Reiter, wherein the at least one position sensor comprises a contact sensor or a magnetic sensor (in certain embodiments, that as not shown, see par 011).
Claims 2-3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Reiter as applied to Claim 1 above and in view of USPN 5154404, Lee.
Regarding Claims 2-3, Reiter lacks wherein multiple protruding indicators are simultaneously monitored by a single position sensor (Claim 2), and
wherein said at least one position sensor comprises an optical emitter and an optical receiver for a light beam (Claim 3).
Lee discloses a detecting device, which is involved with the same technical problem of detecting a change in position of a finger/protruding part via an optical sensor and discloses that in the proposed solution to the problem it is known to include wherein multiple protruding indicators (fig. 3B,125B) are simultaneously monitored by a single position sensor (128/129) (Claim 2), and wherein said at least one position sensor comprises an optical emitter (128) and an optical receiver (128A) for a light beam (129) (Claim 3), in order to detect malfunctions in the system which are indicated by a change in position of the fingers.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Reiter by including wherein multiple protruding indicators are simultaneously monitored by a single position sensor (Claim 2), and wherein said at least one position sensor comprises an optical emitter and an optical receiver for a light beam (Claim 3) in order to detect malfunctions in the system which are indicated by a change in position of the fingers as taught by Lee.
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Reiter as applied to Claim 1 above and in view of USPN 4372183 , Lehtinen.
Reiter lacks the apparatus having the control unit comprising a processor and memory for recording the signal emitted by the at least one position sensor.
Lehtinen discloses a program controlled punching machine with a sensor in the same field of endeavor as the controlled punching machine with a sensor of Reiter and of the present invention and discloses that such a system includes a control unit comprising a processor and memory for recording the signal emitted by the at least one position sensor (col. 4, 40-60) in order to have the control unit not only sense changes sensed by the sensors but also control the device based on the sensed readings (col. 4, 40-60).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Reiter by including the control unit comprising a processor and memory for recording the signal emitted by the at least one position sensor in order to have the control unit not only sense changes sensed by the sensors but also control the device based on the sensed readings as taught by Lehtinen.
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Reiter as applied to Claim 1 above and in view of USPGPUB 20040149115, Ide.
Reiter lacks wherein the control unit is connected to an audible alarm and is configured to activate the audible alarm in response to the signal received from the at least one position sensor.
Ide discloses a sensor controlled punch in the same field of endeavor as the sensor controlled punch of Reiter and of the present invention and discloses that such a system includes a the control unit (control section 10, par. 0079) is connected to an audible alarm (par 0079) and is configured to activate the audible alarm (par. 0059) in response to a signal received from at least one position sensor (detection location sensing device, par. 0059) in order to allow an operator to recognize the detected state of the machine.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Reiter by including wherein the control unit is connected to an audible alarm and is configured to activate the audible alarm in response to the signal received from the at least one position sensor, in order to allow an operator to recognize the detected state of the machine, as taught by Ide.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. USPNs/USPGPUBs 20130319194 RE35027E 6892616 4107541 20110107886 20060151590 5154404 20060151590 20130319194 RE35027 20090007437 4785550 20090007437 disclose state of the art punching and detecting devices. Thus, each of these references disclose elements relevant to the present invention/application.
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/FERNANDO A AYALA/Examiner, Art Unit 3724
/BOYER D ASHLEY/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3724
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