DETAILED ACTION
Final Rejection
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 .
Response to Amendment
The amendment filed 30 June 2026 has been entered. Claims 1-15 are pending in the application.
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant's claim for foreign priority based on an application filed in India on 26 February 2024. A certified copy of the 202441013782 application has been provided as required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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 1-4 and 6-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Hargraves (U.S. Patent 4,137,942).
Regarding claim 1, Hargraves discloses a valve status indication device 180 for a valve 12, the valve being configured with a spool 182 having a pin 196 fitted thereon and further configured to trigger movement of the pin corresponding to an energized state or de-energized state of the valve, said device configured to be mounted (via 188) on an operative front end of the valve in fluid communication to the pin (see FIG. 9), and the device further configured to provide a visual indication (via 200 and 210) corresponding to the energized or de-energized state of the valve, said device comprising:
a housing 186 configured to be detachably mounted (see threads in FIG. 9) on the operative front end of the valve so as to retrofit to an existing valve body 54b without modification of the valve body;
a piston 190 configured to be sealed within said housing, the arm further configured to be in communication with the pin (via 194), said piston configured to be displaced corresponding to the movement of the pin;
an arm 204 configured to be mounted on said piston, and further configured to extend longitudinally within said housing, said arm configured to be operatively displaced with the displacement of said piston;
a first dial (half of 200) provided in said housing, the first dial configured to indicate the de-energized state of the valve; and
a second dial (other half of 200) provided in said housing, the second dial configured to indicate the energized state of the valve, and
wherein said first dial and said second dial are configured to be angularly displaced within said housing corresponding to the displacement of said piston to provide a real-time visual indication of the energized state or de-energized state of the valve in an operative configuration of said device (FIG. 9; Col. 8 ln 47-Col. 9 ln 68).
Regarding claim 2, Hargraves discloses an operative end of said arm is configured to be coaxially mounted on an operative portion of said first dial and said second dial (FIG. 9).
Regarding claim 3, Hargraves discloses said first dial and said second dial are configured to be coaxially mounted within said housing (FIG. 9).
Regarding claim 4, Hargraves discloses a spring 194 is connected between the piston and the housing to selectively bias the arm toward a position corresponding to the de-energized state of the valve such that, in the absence of actuation force from the pin, the first dial is displayed (FIG. 9).
Regarding claim 6, Hargraves discloses said pin is detachably attached to the spool (FIG. 9).
Regarding claim 7, Hargraves discloses said housing is configured with a transparent visor 210, and wherein said first dial or said second dial is configured to be selectively positioned within a space of said visor to facilitate a clear visual indication of the energized or de-energized state of the valve (FIG. 9; Col. 9 ln 11-17.
Regarding claim 8, Hargraves discloses said piston is configured to be displaced from a mean position to an extreme position in response to the pin's movement (FIG. 9; Col. 9 ln 18-37).
Regarding claim 9, Hargraves discloses said mean position of said piston defines the de-energized state of the valve and said extreme position of said piston defines the energized state of the valve (FIG. 9; Col. 9 ln 18-37).
Regarding claim 10, Hargraves discloses displacement of said piston from said mean position to said extreme position is configured to push said first dial out of said space of the visor while simultaneously moving said second dial within said space of the visor to provide the visual indication of the valve's status (FIG. 9; Col. 9 ln 18-37).
Regarding claim 11, Hargraves discloses said piston is configured to be hermetically sealed (via 192 and threads at 188) within said housing (FIG. 9).
Regarding claim 12, Hargraves discloses said arm is configured to be mounted on an operative front portion of said piston (FIG. 9).
Regarding claim 13, Hargraves discloses said first dial is configured to be pivotally fitted (via 202) within said housing (FIG. 9).
Regarding claim 14, Hargraves discloses said second dial is configured to be pivotally fitted (via 202) within said housing (FIG. 9).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 15 is 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: the closest prior art fails to anticipate or make obvious a plurality of balls are interposed between said pin and said piston and configured to transfer movement of said spool and said pin to said piston, along with the remaining limitations of the claims.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 30 June 2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues Hargraves does not disclose a housing configured to be detachably mounted on the operative front end of the valve so as to retrofit to an existing valve body without modification of the valve body. The threaded connection between the hollow housing 186 and the slide valve member 182 was chosen for all of the connection’s properties. The non-permanence of the connection was made intentionally. One of ordinary skill in the art would understand that such a connection is utilized because of its robust connection, as well as the ability to remove the components for any desired reason, not limited to replacement or retrofitting. Such a detachment can be made with no modification to the valve body. Accordingly, the limitation is met. Applicant’s argument is not persuasive.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 CHRISTOPHER D BALLMAN whose telephone number is (571)272-9984. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 6:00-3:00.
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, Craig M Schneider can be reached at 571-272-3607. 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.
/CHRISTOPHER D BALLMAN/Examiner, Art Unit 3753
/MICHAEL R REID/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3753
Prosecution Insights