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
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.
Claims 1, 6 and 7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kaizuka (US 20140332023).
Regarding claim 1, Kaizuka discloses a hair iron (Refer to Figures 1-5), comprising: a first arm (1); a second arm (2) that is rotatably connected to the first arm and can be placed in a closed position where a tip-side portion thereof is close to or in contact with the first arm (Refer to Figures 1 and 2) and an open position where the tip-side portion is separated from the first arm (Refer to Figures 3 and 4); a first holding member (10) that is supported by the first arm and is located in a region of the first arm that faces the second arm in the closed position; a second holding member (20) that is supported by the second arm and is located in a region of the second arm that faces the first holding member on the first arm in the closed position; a plurality of protrusions (3) being poor thermal conductors (Refer to paragraph 0026 where the materials disclosed are poor thermal conductors), which are supported by the first arm and protrude outward in a region of the first arm that does not face the second arm in the closed position; and a surface member (11) located between the protrusions on the first arm, wherein the surface member and at least one of the first holding member and the second holding member are good thermal conductors and are capable of generating heat based on heat from a heat source (Refer to paragraphs 0023-0024).
Regarding claim 6, Kaizuka discloses the surface member has a convex portion that protrudes to one side in a predetermined direction and is capable of generating heat (Refer to Figures 1-4 and paragraphs 0029 and 0032).
Regarding claim 7, Kaizuka discloses the protrusions include a large protrusion (protrusions 3 are large) whose tip is on the one side from that of the convex portion in the predetermined direction (Refer to Figures 2 and 4).
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 2-3 and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kaizuka and Courtney et al. (US 20210219688).
Regarding claim 2, Kaizuka discloses the hair iron further comprises a heater (51,60) that generates heat when supplied with power (Refer to paragraph 0032), wherein at least one of the first holding member (10) and the second holding member (20) is thermally connected to the heater to be capable of generating heat (first holding member is connected to heater 51 and second holding member is connected to heater 60, Refer to Figures 2 and 4); however, Kaizuka is silent regarding the heater being a film heater. It is well-known and conventional in the art for such hair styling devices to use film heaters as the type of heater as demonstrated by Courtney et al. (Refer to paragraphs 0021 and 0065). The hair iron of Courtney et al. provides first and second arms (12,14) with respective first and second holding members (24), where the holding members are heated via a film heater (54) provided in each of the arms (Refer to paragraph 0021 and 0065). 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 hair iron of Kaizuka such that the heater be a film heater as Courtney et al, demonstrate it is well-known and conventional to use film heaters in such applications/devices.
Regarding claim 3, the combination of Kaizuka and Courtney et al. disclose the hair iron of claim 2 above, wherein the first holding member is a good thermal conductor (Refer to paragraph 0023 of Kaizuka), the film heater (51, as modified to be a film heater per claim 2 above) is incorporated in the first arm (1), and the first holding member and the surface member are both thermally connected to the same film heater to be capable of generating heat (Refer to paragraph 0032 of Kaizuka).
Regarding claim 5, Kaizuka discloses the hair iron of claim 1 above, wherein the first holding member and the second holding member are made of metal or ceramic material suitable for heating and styling hair (Refer to paragraph 0023 which lists aluminum, steel and ceramic as exemplary materials); however, Kaizuka does not specifically list a copper alloy as one of the materials. Courtney et al. disclose a hair iron having first and second arms (12,14) with respective first and second holding members (24), where the holding members are made of “any suitable material which can transfer heat” where “examples of suitable materials are metals and alloys of metals such as aluminum, copper, steel, titanium, brass and beryllium copper” (Refer to paragraph 0041). 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 hair iron of Kaizuka such that the first and second holding members be made of a copper alloy as Courtney et al. demonstrates it is well-known and conventional to construct such members of copper alloys and it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select a known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice.
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over the combination of Kaizuka and Courtney et al. as applied to claim 2 above, and further in view of Joo et al. (US 20130319452).
Regarding claim 4, the combination of Kaizuka and Courtney et al. disclose the hair iron of claim 2 above; however the combination does not disclose a biasing member that is located between the first holding member and the surface member in the first arm and is capable of biasing the first holding member, wherein the first holding member is supported by the first arm so as to be slidable along a direction opposite to the second holding member in the closed position, and slides toward inside of the first arm against a biasing force of the biasing member when subjected to a load from a second holding member side. Joo et al. disclose a similar hair iron having first and second arms (1,3) with respective first and second holding members (5,7) which contact the user’s hair during use of the device (Refer to Figures 1-9). Joo et al. explain that the first holding member is supported by a biasing member (300,310) located between the first holding member and the surface member (100) such that when force is exerted from the side of the second holding member in the closed position, the first holding member slides in a direction opposite/away from the second holding member and into the first arm. This configuration prevents excessive pressure from being applied to the hair and ensures uniform pressure is applied to the plurality of hair being styled (Refer to paragraph 0025 and 0027). 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 hair iron of the combination of Kaizuka and Courtney et al. such that a biasing member be located between the first holding member and the surface member in the first arm so as to bias the first holding member and allow the first holding member to slide away from the second holding member and toward an inside of the first arm when subjected to a load from a second holding member side as taught by Joo et al. in order to ensure uniform pressure is applied to the section of hair being styled while preventing excessive pressure/stress on the hair.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TATIANA L NOBREGA whose telephone number is (571)270-7228. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8am-4pm.
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/TATIANA L NOBREGA/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3799