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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant's election with traverse of Species VII in the remarks filed 6/17/2026 is acknowledged. The traversal is based on the grounds that the embodiments are directed to a unitary concept and based on various policy arguments. These arguments are unpersuasive. However, the examiner is requiring the applicant to elect between several disclosed species. A proper traversal of an election of species includes arguments that the species are not patentable over one another. Since the applicant has not submitted persuasive arguments that the embodiments are not distinct from one another, the requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
Claims 9-11 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected Species I-VI and VII-XI, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 6/17/2026.
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 1-3, 5-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kulyk US 5244173 (hereinafter Kulyk).
Re. Cl. 1, Kuylk discloses: A standing remote sleeve (10, Fig. 1), comprising: a body (body formed by 10 Fig. 2-3); a first compartment (see Fig. 2, 60) disposed within the body and configured to accept a remote (see Fig. 2, remote 12 and 14); and a base (42, Fig. 3) coupled to the body (see Fig. 2-3, as being part of body 10) such that the remote is positioned at a predetermined angle with respect to a flat surface when the base is in stationary contact with the surface (see Fig. 1 and 3).
Re. Cl. 2, Kuylk discloses: the body comprises a front surface (54, Fig. 3); and the predetermined angle is measured between the front surface and the flat surface (see Fig. 3).
Re. Cl. 3, Kuylk discloses: the front surface of the body is generally parallel to a portion of a front surface of a remote that has been accepted into the first compartment (see Fig. 3, the front surface 54 and the top surface of remote 12 are “generally” parallel; the Examiner notes that the term “generally” is a term of degree which broadly encompasses the difference in being parallel created by 56, 58 for instance).
Re. Cl. 5, Kuylk discloses: a cavity (see Fig. 3, between 40 and 34) disposed within the body and configured to accept at least one tracking device (see Fig. 3, as being an open interior space as shown, the cavity between40 and 34 is configured to receive a tracking device in the same manner as it receives channel listings in Col. 2, Lines 30-35).
Re. Cl. 6, Kuylk discloses: the cavity is configured to orient an accepted tracking device such that a sound emitted by the tracking device is generally directed towards a back of the body thereby increasing a volume of the emitted sound in a vicinity of the standing remote sleeve (see Fig. 3, due to the shape and openings 31, reflected sound would be emitted out of 31 which is towards the back of the body as shown).
Re. Cl. 7, Kuylk discloses: the standing remote sleeve further comprises at least one of a bottom cut-out speaker channel and a side cut-out speaker channel (see 31, Fig. 2-3) thereby increasing a volume of the emitted sound in a vicinity of the standing remote sleeve (see Fig. 2-3, by enabling sound to be emitted through 31s).
Re. Cl. 8, Kuylk discloses: the cavity is configured to accept a first tracking device and a second tracking device that is different from the first tracking device (see Fig. 3, the cavity between 34 and 40 is configured to accept different tracking devices such that they are dimensioned to fit therein).
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kulyk in view of Jackson US 2006/0201895 (hereinafter Jackson).
Re. Cl. 4, Kulyk does not disclose that the predetermined angle is within a range selected from the group containing 0-80 degrees, 0-20 degrees, 20-60 degrees and 40-50 degrees. Jackson discloses a remote control stand (Fig. 1) which includes a first compartment (see Fig. 1, where 2 is) that is supported by a base at a predetermined angle when the base is supported on a flat surface (see Fig. 1 and 4). Re. Cl. 4, Jackson discloses that the predetermined angle is in the range of 0-80 degrees and 20-60 degrees (by being 30 degrees as discussed in Paragraph 0015).
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 Kulyk device to have its predetermined angle be within the claimed ranges as disclosed by Jackson with reasonable expectation of success since it has been held obvious to discover the optimum or workable ranges. In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233. Please note that in the instant application, Applicant has not disclosed any criticality for the claimed limitations.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Butler US 4824059, Clark US 2008/0121541, Hodges US 2005/0098456, and Le Blanc US 5305980 disclose other known remote sleeves presented to the Applicant for their consideration.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHRISTOPHER E GARFT whose telephone number is (571)270-1171. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m..
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, Terrell McKinnon can be reached at (571)272-4797. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CHRISTOPHER GARFT/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3632
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