DETAILED ACTION
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.
Claims 1 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Morgan et al. (US 2013/0069498 – hereinafter Morgan) in view of Liff et al. (US 2003/0189058 – hereinafter Liff).
Re Claim 1:Morgan discloses a cabinet (100); a chassis (at 110) positioned on an interior of said cabinet (100) having walls (110) defining an open cavity on an interior of said chassis (at 110) (see Fig. 1 and see paragraph [0086] – describes the walls (side and back plates) that make up the cabinet 100); a shelf (700) affixed to said walls (110) of said chassis (at 110) within said open cavity (see Figs. 1, 15 , and 16); and a plurality of product dispensing cartridges (200, 300) removably positioned on said shelf (700), each said product dispensing cartridge (200, 300) further comprising a vertical housing (see Fig. 2) holding a plurality of product units and a dispensing drawer (259) configured for horizontal movement out of said housing (see Figs. 1-18]), wherein each said product dispensing cartridge (200, 300) is configured to sequentially dispense a single one of said product units upon each horizontal extension of said dispensing drawer (259) from a fully closed position to a fully open position (see Figs. 1-19 and paragraphs [0131-0133]), but fails to teach a refrigerator cabinet.
Liff teaches a refrigerator cabinet (see paragraph [0100]). Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to have been motivated to combine the teachings of Morgan with that of Liff, to provide heating and/or cooling for selected products that would require temperature regulation for storage as suggested by Liff.
Conclusion
3. The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
4. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KELVIN L RANDALL, JR. whose telephone number is (571)270-5373. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 9:00 am-5 pm est.
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/K.L.R/Examiner, Art Unit 3651
/GENE O CRAWFORD/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3651
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