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 .
Summary
This is the response to the RCE filed on 02/23/2026.
Claims 1-10, 13-21 and 27-95 remain pending in the application with claims 4-10, 15-21 and 27-91 are withdrawn from consideration.
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 02/23/2026 has been entered.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 95-96 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)/(a)(2) as being anticipated by Reynolds et al. (US 2022/0271707).
Addressing claim 95, Reynolds discloses a solar panel mounting system (figs. 1-17), comprising:
a panel mount (60+142) comprising:
a panel mount support 60 attachable to a first torque tube clamp 100, the panel mount support comprising a first retaining feature in the form of a retaining channel (slit 78 or channel 76, fig. 4) that engages at least a portion of a solar panel (engages with the frame capture 230, particularly the drop 232 engages in the slit 78 and the catch 236 engages with the flange 74 that is part of the channel 76 as shown in fig. 8); and
a second retaining feature 140 supported on and operable with the panel mount support 60 (fig. 8) to receive and retain a portion of the solar panel (fig. 8), the second retaining feature comprising a lead-in latch assembly 142+158 (according to the specification, the structure lead-in latch assembly is defined as a latch that includes a portion that interacts by pivoting or being deformed to receive a solar panel due to mechanical interaction with an edge or face of a solar panel frame or an edge or face of a solar panel rail as described in page 22 lines 9-12 of the specification; in instant situation, Reynolds discloses that when the frame 210 of the solar panel is slid along the mounting rail 60, the lead edge of the frame sidewall 224 of the module frame interacts with the tapered profile of the outer tabs 160 of the locking flange 158 that causes the locking spring arm 142 to flex or bend or pivot until the holes 226 of the module frame align with the tab holes 84 of the mounting rails 60; at which time the locking spring arm 142 flexes back and bias the locking flanges back to their original position such that the outer tabs 160 and the inner tab 162 of the locking flanges 158 protrude through both the tab holes 84 of the mounting rails 60 and the tab holes 226 of the frame base 222 of the module frame; in other words, the mechanical interaction between the module frame and the locking flange 158 causes the locking arm 142 along with the locking flange 158 to pivot or deform to receive the solar panel, which qualifies the combination of the locking flange 158 and lock spring arm 142 as the structural equivalence to the claimed lead-in latch assembly) comprising an edge lead-in latch assembly 160 and a facial lead-in latch assembly 162 configured for engaging one side of the solar cell (engaging frame base 222 of the solar cell as shown in fig. 9),
wherein the panel mount (60+140) is configured for lateral insertion of the solar panel (fig. 11 shows the direction along which the solar panel 210 is inserted as the claimed lateral insertion) while the torque tube clamps are installed on the torque tube (fig. 11).
Addressing claim 96, figs. 8 and 11 show a second facial lead-in latch 140 assembly for engaging a second solar panel.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-3, 13-14 and 92-94 are allowed.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance:
Addressing claim 1, the prior art does not disclose or make obvious the limitation requiring the pin and the pin lever mechanism are both present on a common rotatable levered pin in context of the remaining limitation of claim 1.
Addressing claim 92, the prior art does not disclose or make obvious the limitation requiring “wherein at least one of the second retaining feature of the first panel mount or the second retaining feature of the second panel mount comprise a spring-loaded pin coupled with a pin lever mechanism” in context of the remaining limitation of claim 92.
Addressing claim 93, the prior art does not disclose or make obvious the limitation requiring “wherein the lead-in latch assembly includes both an edge lead-in latch assembly and a facial lead-in latch assembly configured for engaging one side of the support frame or the support rail of the solar panel” in context of the remaining limitation of claim 93.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BACH T DINH whose telephone number is (571)270-5118. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Friday 8:00 - 4:30 EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jeffrey Barton can be reached at (571)-272-1307. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BACH T DINH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1726 03/05/2026