DETAILED ACTION
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) 1-6 and 8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Naoki et al (JP H0554671).
Claim 1, Naoki discloses a valve (32) installed in a flow path of pure water to a discharge unit that discharges pure water;
a foot controller (28) that is operated by a foot of a user to generate a signal indicating an operation amount; and
a control unit (38) that receives the signal from the foot controller and controls the valve to have an opening degree corresponding to the operation amount ([0010] to [0027]).
Claim 2, Naoki discloses wherein the control unit (38) performs control to maintain the opening degree of the valve (32) based on a predetermined sequence in operation by the user on the foot controller (FIG 3).
Claim 3, Naoki discloses wherein the control unit (38) controls the opening degree of the valve (32) to a maximum opening degree when the operation amount becomes equal to or greater than an operation judgment threshold within a predetermined operation judgment time from start of the operation on the foot controller, and then performs control of maintaining the opening degree of the valve to the maximum opening degree even if the operation on the foot controller is released ([0010] to [0027]).
Claim 4, Naoki discloses wherein the foot controller (28) is equipped with a switch (28) that detects that the operation amount is equal to or greater than the operation judgment threshold, and wherein the control unit (38) performs the control of maintaining the opening degree of the valve (32) to the maximum opening degree when the control unit receives from the switch a signal indicating that the operation amount has become equal to or greater than the operation judgement threshold within the operation judgement time from the start of the operation on the foot controller ([0010] to [0027]).
Claim 5, Naoki discloses wherein the control unit (38) performs control of closing of the valve (32) when the foot controller (28) is operated again after the operation on the foot controller is released.
Claim 6, Naoki discloses wherein, when an amount of variation in the operation amount is within a predetermined variation judgment threshold over a predetermined variation judgment time, the control unit performs control of setting the opening degree of the valve to an opening degree corresponding to the operation amount during the variation judgment time, and then maintaining the opening degree of the valve at the set opening degree even if the operation on the foot controller is released ([0010] to [0027]).
Claim 8, Naoki discloses wherein the control unit (38) performs control of closing the valve when the foot controller is stepped on again after the operation on the foot controller (28) is released.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 7, 9-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Naoki as applied to claim 6 above, and further in view of Hoshino et al (JP 2020081943 wherein US 2022/0017352 is used as a translation).
Claim 7, Naoki substantially discloses the apparatus as claimed above but is silent on a notification unit that informs the user with sound or light, wherein the control unit informs the user via the notification unit when the valve is set to the opening degree corresponding to the operation amount in the variation judgement time.
Hoshino teaches a notification unit that informs the user with sound or light (25, 40, 43; [0003], [0023]; touch panel provides light in the form of a readable display).
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 device of Naoki with notification unit as taught by Hoshino in order to provide information to the user and receive input from the user.
Claim 9, the modified apparatus of Naoki teaches an operation panel (Hoshino: 43), wherein settings of the variation judgment time and the variation judgment threshold can be changed via the operation panel (Hoshino: [0051] – [0054]).
Claim 10, Naoki discloses wherein the control unit (38) performs control of closing of the valve (32) when the foot controller is operated again after the operation on the foot controller is released.
Claim 11, Naoki discloses wherein the control unit (38) performs control of closing the valve when the foot controller (28) is stepped on again after the operation on the foot controller is released.
Claim 12, the modified apparatus of Naoki teaches an operation panel (43), wherein settings of the variation judgment time and the variation judgment threshold can be changed via the operation panel ([0051] – [0054]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JEREMY W CARROLL whose telephone number is (571)272-4988. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8 AM - 5 PM.
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JEREMY W. CARROLL
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3754
/Jeremy Carroll/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3754
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