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 § 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.
A broad range or limitation together with a narrow range or limitation that falls within the broad range or limitation (in the same claim) may be considered indefinite if the resulting claim does not clearly set forth the metes and bounds of the patent protection desired. See MPEP § 2173.05(c). In the present instance, claim 9 recites the broad recitation a connection device, and the claim also recites in particular coupled to the free end area in fluid tight manner in particular an end nozzle formed for outputting the fluid into the environment is arranged which is the narrower statement of the range/limitation. The claim(s) are considered indefinite because there is a question or doubt as to whether the feature introduced by such narrower language is (a) merely exemplary of the remainder of the claim, and therefore not required, or (b) a required feature of the claims.
Claim 9 is not considered over the prior art because of 35 U.S.C. 112 problems.
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, 4, 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Etscheid (EP 3092433).
Re claim 1, Etsheid discloses a hose for heating a fluid (3) comprising:
a cavity (100) through which the fluid is conveyable; and
a heating device (2), which includes at least two electrodes (25, 26) configured to input electrical energy into an electrically conductive plastic material (27) of the heating device in a heating operation of the heating device, and
wherein the heating device at least partially surrounds the cavity in a circumferential direction (Fig 2), and
wherein at least the heating device has a contour in cross-section that is different from a rotationally symmetrical contour (Fig 9).
Re claim 3, wherein the electrodes are arranged symmetrically in the plastic material with respect to at least one plane of symmetry, which includes a central axis (vertical axis) of the hose (Fig 9).
Re claim 4, wherein the hose comprises at least one passage opening via which the fluid is conveyable out of the cavity into an environment of the house in operation of the hose (Fig 12),
Re claim 15, wherein the at least one passage opening has a round cross section in lateral direction (Fig 12).
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, 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(s) 2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Etscheid (EP 3092433) in view of Damberg (DE 20 2015 105640).
The teaching as discussed above does not disclose the heating device has a contour rectangular cross-section and wherein a respective electrode arranged in four corner areas of the heating device
Damberg teaches a heating device (abstract) has a contour rectangular cross-section and wherein a respective electrode (8, 9) arranged in four corner areas of the heating device (Figs 1-3). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide additional electrode with the heating device of Etscheid for providing even heating.
Claim(s) 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Etscheid (EP 3092433).
The teaching as discussed above does not disclose wherein the electrodes are ribbon shaped.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to modify the electrodes of Etscheid by employing a ribbon shape for intended use, since more than a mere change of form is necessary for patentability. In re Span-Deck Inc. v. Fab-Con, Inc. (CA 8, 1982) 215 USPQ 835.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5-8, 10-11, 16-20 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.
Claims 12-13 are allowed.
Communication
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HUNG V NGO whose telephone number is (571)272-1979. The examiner can normally be reached 9-5:30 M-F.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Imani Hayman can be reached at (571) 270-5528. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/HUNG V NGO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2841
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