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 .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the “holding belt” recited in Claim 8 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
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.
Claim 8 is 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 applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 8 recites “the holding belt” which renders the claim indefinite. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. For the purposes of examination, the claim will be treated as reciting “the retaining belt.” Correction is required.
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 1-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Helms in US Publication 2007/0272484 in view of Mongan et al. in US Publication 2012/0132682.
Helms teaches a safety harness for protecting a user against falls, comprising: a hip strap (11); leg loops (15); shoulder straps (12/13); and a sternal fall arrest eyelet and/or dorsal fall arrest eyelet (33), wherein the safety harness has a guide (32) extending at least partially along the hip strap. Helms is silent on the details of the guide or the use of a retaining plate. Mongan teaches a hip strap (the “elastomeric belt” – Fig. 25) with a guide (the “rail)) extending at least partially along the hip strap, a retaining plate (elements 1-9, Fig. 25) being displaceably mounted on or in the guide via a bearing device (3/4), and wherein the retaining plate has a connection means (8) for releasably connecting a remote control, wherein the bearing device has at least one bearing point (at 4 and 3) between the retaining plate and the guide and the bearing point is designed as at least one plain bearing (4 and 3 bear on the rail) and/or as at least one rolling bearing, wherein the bearing device has a releasable locking device (8) for releasably locking at least one displacement position of the retaining plate relative to the guide, wherein the guide extends at least between a sternal position on the hip strap and a position remote from the sternal position (“the rail can be taken right to the end of the belt” “around the entire perimeter of the person” – see Paragraph 0091), wherein the retaining plate is displaceable at least between the sternal position on the hip strap and the position moved away from the sternal position (if the device can be positioned anywhere on the perimeter, it can be moved from the sternal position to another position), wherein the hip strap has a circumferential retaining belt (2005) which is at least partially covered or enclosed by a casing (2001), wherein the guide is formed at least in sections on or in the casing, wherein preferably the at least one bearing point is formed at least partially on or in the casing (at 2004), wherein the retaining plate is mounted displaceably along the casing, wherein the casing is at least partially connected to the holding belt, in particular sewn thereto by a seam (2017), wherein the retaining plate has fastening means (Element 4, fig. 24) which engage behind the guide at least in sections, wherein preferably the at least one bearing point is formed at least partially on the fastening means, wherein the retaining plate can be connected in a form-fitting manner to a remote control by means of the connection means (8, see Fig. 25). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device of Helms by adding a rail to the hip strap as taught by Mongan in order to allow the user to easily attach accessories to the harness.
Claims 11-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Helms, as modified, as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Danforth in US Patent 10165848. Helms, as modified, is silent on the use of a remote control.. Danforth teaches an arrangement including a safety harness (34) and a “remote control” (15) which can be arranged on the retaining plate (56) of the safety harness, the remote control has at least one opening (between 160 and 220) in a housing (150) and the connection means are designed in a hook shape (94) for engaging behind the at least one opening, wherein the arrangement for the remote control has an adapter plate (220) with openings (between 160 and 220) and the connection means are designed in a hook shape for engaging behind the openings of the adapter plate (see Fig. 8). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device of Helms, as modified, by adding a remote control as taught by Danforth in order to allow the user to securely and releasably attach the device to the harness.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Chevalier, Helms, Jain et al. and Kils et al. teach harnesses. Guibord, Murdoch et al., Rogers, Mongan et al., and Goryl teach strap attachment means.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NOAH C. HAWK whose telephone number is (571)272-1480. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9am to 5:30pm.
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, David Dunn can be reached at 5712726670. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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NOAH C. HAWK
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3636
/Noah C. Hawk/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3636
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