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 § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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) 108-111 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by U.S. Patent Number 10,415,269 to Holmes et al.
Holmes et al. disclose a method comprising: disposing locking elements (160) by applying an intended key element (90) to a lock (100), and then moving said locking elements away from exterior surfaces of a locking mechanism such that no mechanical tension remains between the locking elements and the intended key or between the locking elements and the exterior surfaces of the locking mechanism which served to dispose the locking elements when acted upon by the intended key (intended key places the locking elements in a position that allows the locking elements to split the shear line and allow for proper effectuation; figure 4); and comparing disposition of the locking elements against reference components (133, 173) to determine if the locking elements disposed as by the intended key element, wherein the locking mechanism opens if the locking elements disposed as by the intended key, and wherein the locking mechanism remains closed and ready to accept the intended key if the locking elements are otherwise disposed than as by the intended key, and wherein the reference components or the locking elements or both correspond in configuration to the intended key element (column 2, line 60-column 3, line 5), as in claim 108.
Holmes et al. also disclose an affordance of the reference components to signal that an attempt was made to open the lock while the locking elements were otherwise disposed than as by the intended key (column 9, lines 47-63), as in claim 109.
Holmes et al. further disclose an apparatus comprising: an intended key element (90); and a lock (100) including: locking elements (160) configured to be disposed by the intended key element and then moved away from exterior surfaces of a locking mechanism to block access to the locking elements from an exterior of the locking mechanism or from the intended key element (intended key places the locking elements in a position that allows the locking elements to split the shear line and allow for proper effectuation; figure 4); and reference components (133, 173) configured to be compared against the locking elements to determine if the locking elements are disposed as by the intended key element, wherein the locking mechanism opens if the locking elements are so disposed, else the locking mechanism remains locked and ready to accept the intended key, and wherein the reference components or the locking elements or both correspond in configuration to the intended key element (column 2, line 60-column 3, line 5), as in claim 110.
Holmes et al. additionally disclose an affordance of the reference components to signal that an attempt was made to open the lock while the locking elements were otherwise disposed than as by the intended key (column 9, lines 47-63), as in claim 111.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The following patents are cited to further show the state of the art with respect to lock cylinders with auxiliary detection means:
U.S. Patent Number 12,037,811 to Magill; U.S. Patent Number 10,988,958 to Newman; U.S. Patent Number 9,416,561 to Field et al.; U.S. Patent Number 9,394,723 to Roth et al.; U.S. Patent Number 8,720,241 to Widen; U.S. Patent Number 7,797,973 to Field et al.; U.S. Patent Number 7,775,074 to Tobias et al.; U.S. Patent Number 6,477,875 to Field et al.; U.S. Patent Number 4,732,022 to Oliver; U.S. Patent Number 4,723,427 to Oliver; U.S. Patent Number 3,987,654 to Iaccino et al.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHRISTOPHER J BOSWELL whose telephone number is (571)272-7054. The examiner can normally be reached M-R: 9-4; F 9-12.
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/CHRISTOPHER J BOSWELL/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3675
CJB /cb/
February 4, 2026