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 communication filed on 07/09/2026.
Claims 1-10, 13,21 and 27-95 remain pending in the application with claims 4-10, 15-21 and 27-91 are withdrawn from consideration.
Claims 1-3, 13-24 and 92-94 are allowed.
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 mount (figs. 1-17, 60+140), 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) configured to engage 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 different portion 222 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 positioned ono the frame base 222, or the claimed a different portion of the solar panel, 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) facilitates 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 for reasons stated in previous Office Actions.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 07/09/2026 regarding the 35 USC 102 rejection of claims 95-96 as being anticipated by Reynolds have been fully considered but they are not persuasive for the following reasons:
The Applicants argued that Reynolds does not disclose the claimed edge lead-in latch assembly and facial lead-in latch assembly because the tabs 160 and 162, as the structural equivalence to the claimed edge lead-in latch assembly and facial lead-in latch assembly respectively, are positioned along the same axis and extend in the same direction to capture the same part of the frame of a solar panel; whereas, the claimed “edge lead-in latch assembly that engages a side surface (i.e. an edge) of a solar panel, while at the same time one or more others could be considered to be able to engage a different surface (i.e. face) of the solar panel”. The argument is not persuasive because the claim does not require the edge lead-in assembly engages a side surface of a solar panel while the face lead-in assembly engages a different surface, i.e. face, of the solar panel. The claim specifically recites “an edge lead-in latch assembly and a facial lead-in latch assembly configured for engaging one side of the solar panel” (emphasis added), which is met by the disclosure of Reynolds because the edge lead-in latch assembly 160 and facial lead-in latch assembly 162 of Reynolds are configured for engaging one side 222 of the solar panel.
The Applicants further argued that “there is nothing in the grounding lock 140 of Reynolds that discloses both a edge lead-in latch assembly and a facial lead-in latch assembly that are part of the same retaining feature, as recited in claim 95”, the argument is not persuasive because grounding lock 140 is the structural equivalence to the claimed second retaining feature, as discussed above, and the edge lead-in latch assembly 160 and the facial lead-in latch assembly 162 are parts of the grounding lock 140.
For the reasons above, Examiner maintains the position that claims 95-96 are anticipated by Reynolds.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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 07/27/2026
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