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
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 15-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Mariol (US PN 4,449,474).
Regarding claims 1-3 and 15-17, Mariol discloses an obscuration cloud generation device (item 11, figure 1) comprising:
a container (item 15, figure 3) holding an obscuration cloud generating canister (item 47, figure 3) and having at least one first member (protrusion 27 and spring lock 29, figure 3);
a housing (item 13, figure 3) shaped and sized to accommodate the container therein, the housing having at least one second member (recesses 25 and 26, figure 3); and
wherein the at least one second member and the at least one first member can selectively be brought into engagement or disengagement with each other to respectively secure the container in the housing or enable withdrawal of the container from the housing (figures 1-3, the housing 13 comprises a recesses 25 and 26 which interacts with protrusion 27 of the spring lock 29 of container 15 to hold the canister and container assembly in an open position, in a use position, and in a closed position, column 3, lines 44-68).
Regarding claims 4 and 18, Mariol discloses that the at least one second member and the at least one first member can selectively be brought into engagement or disengagement with each other by human hands without applying a tool to the container or housing (column 5, lines 3-35).
Regarding claim 5, Mariol discloses that the canister is cylindrical (figure 1, canister 47 is cylindrical).
Regarding claim 6, Mariol discloses that the at least one first member is located at an emission end of the container (protrusion 27 is located closed to an emitting nozzle 51, figure 1).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 7-14 and 19-20 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to VISHAL J PANCHOLI whose telephone number is (571)272-9324. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Thursday (9 am - 7 pm).
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/Vishal Pancholi/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3754
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