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 § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claim 1 and 13 (and therefore claims 2-20) are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 1, the claim states that “the housing 55 is positioned in the bushing 54”, however figure 8 shows that the housing 55 surrounds the bushing 54, which is different to what the claim is stating, therefore the claim is indefinite.
Regarding claim 13, the claim states “the housing 55 being positioned in the bore of the bushing 54” however figure 8 shows that the housing 55 surrounds the bushing 54, which is different to what the claim is stating, therefore the claim is indefinite.
Claims 2-12 and 14-20 are also rejected in view of the indefinite rejection of claims 1 and 13.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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.
Claim(s) 1,13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Burmesch (US 8302435) in view of Spooner (US 2019/0255897).
Regarding claim 1, Burmesch discloses a hitch pin assembly attached to a receiver tube (see Col. 1 line 19), the receiver would have an interior cavity (to place a shank into) and a first and second apertures for a hitch pin to be placed into, the hitch pin assembly comprising:
a bushing (38), the bushing being cylindrical and having a center axis (see figure 3), the bushing is secured to the receiver tube with a proximal portion of the bushing positioned in the first aperture and not extending into the interior cavity of the receiver tube (as the bushing is part of the lock and the elongated member 20 is what goes into the cavity of the receiver), and with a distal portion of the bushing extending from the receiver tube to an exterior of the receiver tube (as the bushing seat outside of the cavity of the receiver as it is part of the lock);
a housing (38), the housing being positioned on the bushing (see figures 1-4), the housing having a cylindrical configuration with a center axis that is coaxial with the center axis of the bushing (see figures 3 and 4), the housing being rotatable on the bushing and on the receiver tube (as it is a plastic housing that is just a cover for the lock); and
a plunger (36, Col. 4, lines 5 and 6) in the housing, the plunger being movable axially in the housing and in the bushing.
Burmesch does not specifically mention that the receiver tube having an interior cavity and a receiver tube opening to the interior cavity of the receiver tube, the interior cavity being sized and shaped to telescopically receive a shank of an accessory device, the receiver tube having a first aperture and the shank having a second aperture, the first and second apertures being configured to align when the receiver tube telescopically receives the shank. However one of ordinary skill in the art would have the knowledge that the Burmesch’s invention would work with a receiver and shank as specified in the claim. However, Spooner discloses a hitch assembly with a receiver (20) and a shank (41), wherein the receiver has a cavity (23) and first and second apertures (25). It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art that the invention of Burmesch would utilize a receiver and shank such as the one disclosed by Spooner, since the hitch pin of Burmesch is designed to go in a receiver and shank such as the once disclosed by Spooner. Wherein it would have been obvious to combine Burmesch and Spooner to have a fully functional receiver, shank and pin to be able to tow a trailer when needed.
Regarding claim 13, Burmesch discloses a hitch pin assembly attached to a receiver tube (Col 1, line 19), the hitch assembly comprising;
a bushing (38) directly attached to the receiver tube ( when installed onto the receiver tube), the bushing having a cylindrical configuration with a bore inside the bushing that has a cylindrical interior surface and a center axis (see figure 3), the bushing extends from the receiver tube to an exterior of the receiver tube;
a housing (38), the housing having a cylindrical configuration with a center axis that is coaxial with the center axis of the bushing and the bore of the bushing (see figure 3), the housing being positioned on the bore of the bushing and removably attached to the bushing securing the housing to the receiver tube for rotation of the housing on the receiver tube (see figure 3); and
a plunger (36) in the housing, the plunger being movable axially in the housing and in the bushing.
Burmesch does not specifically mention that the receiver tube having an interior cavity and a receiver tube opening to the interior cavity, the interior cavity being sized and shaped to receive a shank of an accessory device, the receiver tube having a first aperture and the shank having a second aperture, the first and second apertures being positionable in an aligned configuration when the receiver tube receives the shank. However one of ordinary skill in the art would have the knowledge that the Burmesch’s invention would work with a receiver and shank as specified in the claim. However, Spooner discloses a hitch assembly with a receiver (20) and a shank (41), wherein the receiver has a cavity (23) and first and second apertures (25). It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art that the invention of Burmesch would utilize a receiver and shank such as the one disclosed by Spooner, since the hitch pin of Burmesch is designed to go in a receiver and shank such as the once disclosed by Spooner. Wherein it would have been obvious to combine Burmesch and Spooner to have a fully functional receiver, shank and pin to be able to tow a trailer when needed.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-12 and 14-20 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Regarding claim 2 and 14, the art of record did not include “a groove on an exterior surface of the housing and a projection on the bushing, the projection extending radially from the bushing into the groove on the exterior surface of the housing and forming a rotatable connection”.
Regarding claims 4-6 and 16, the art of record does not include “a permanent attachment of the bushing to the receiver”.
Regarding claims 7 and 17, the art of record does not include “the plunger having a tip positioned in the interior cavity of the receiver tube, the plunger being movable in reciprocating, axial movements in the housing and in the bushing”.
Regarding claim 18, the art of record does not include “the plunger having a tip with a chamfered surface on the tip, the chamfered surface being positioned in the interior cavity of the receiver tube, the plunger being rotatable with the housing on the receiver tube to selectively position the chamfer surface at a first position and a second position”.
Regarding claim 20, the art of record does not include “the post is positioned on the plunger to engage against the distal portion of the bushing outside the notch when the tip of the plunger is moved out of the interior cavity of the receiver tube, and the post is positioned on the plunger to engage in the notch when the tip of the plunger is moved into the interior cavity of the receiver tube”.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Marlon A Arce whose telephone number is (571)272-1341. The examiner can normally be reached 8AM - 4:30PM.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Valentin Neacsu can be reached at 571-272-6265. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/MARLON A ARCE/Examiner, Art Unit 3611 /VALENTIN NEACSU, Ph.D./Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3611
