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 § 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.
Claim(s) 1-3 and 7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Huang 2023/0413461 in view of Lu 8,837,169.
Regarding claim 1, Huang discloses a module mounting structure (100, Fig 2) for achieving mounting of a first module (110, Fig 3) and a second module (120, Fig 3) to each other (Figs 2, 3), wherein the module mounting structure comprises a first mounting structure (upper short side portion of 110 where 120 mounts, Fig 3) disposed on a side surface of the first module (top side surface of 110, Fig 3) and a second mounting structure (short side of 120 that connects 110, Figs 2, 3) disposed on a side surface of the second module (bottom side of 120, Fig 3); the first mounting structure comprises at least one slide rail (at 110a, Fig 3) comprising a connection portion (130, Fig 3) and an extension portion (140, Fig 3), the extension portion being connected to the first module via the connection portion (see Figs 3, 4), a sliding groove (S2, Fig 5) being formed between the extension portion and the first module (Fig 5); an insertion notch (S1, Fig 5) is provided on the extension portion (Figs 4, 5); the second mounting structure comprises at least one hook (122, Fig 4) at a position corresponding to the slide rail (Fig 4); the hook is connected to the second module (Fig 4); at least a portion of the hook may extend through the insertion notch into the sliding groove (see Figs 4, 6E); when the hook and the insertion notch are staggered in position (Figs 6E, 6F).
Huang discloses the claimed invention except for expressly teaching the hook located in the sliding groove hooks onto the extension portion so as to achieve the mounting and fixing of the first module and the second module to each other.
Lu however teaches a similar hook structure (4, Figs 2, 7) located in a sliding groove (11, Fig 7) that hooks onto an extension portion (12 or 13, Fig 7) so as to achieve mounting and fixing of a first module (1, Fig 2) and a second module (2, Fig 1) to each other (Figs 2, 7).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the hook structure of Huang to achieve mounting and fixing onto the extension portion as claimed, and, as taught by Lu, in order to provide a more efficient way of connecting the extension portion of the different modules, so that when it is required to remove the different portions for repair, the components does not need a tool, thereby reducing tediousness of the task and resulting in better efficiency in removal/separation of the modules.
Regarding claim 2, Huang in view of Lu disclose the module mounting structure according to claim 1, Huang teaches wherein the second module comprises a metal shell; the hook is formed by stamping of part of the metal shell (SGCC type of stamping method, par 0034); the hook comprises a body portion (slim section of 122, Fig 4) and a hook body portion (head portion of 122, Fig 4), the body portion is fixedly connected with the second module at both ends of the slide rail in the extension direction (Fig 4); the hook body portion is connected to the body portion in a direction perpendicular to the extension direction of the slide rail (Fig 4); in the extension direction of the slide rail (Fig 4), a size of the hook body portion is smaller than that of the insertion notch (Fig 4).
Regarding claim 3, Huang in view of Lu disclose the module mounting structure according to claim 1, Huang teaches wherein the slide rail comprises a plurality of slide rails (one on each side, Fig 3), and a number of the insertion notches disposed on the extension portion of each of the slide rails is one or more (on each side, Fig 4); a number of hooks included by the second mounting structure is smaller than or equal to that of the insertion notches (one on each side, Figs 3, 4); upon mounting, positions of the hooks correspond to those of the insertion notches (Figs 3-4).
Regarding claim 7, Huang in view of Lu disclose a miner (see Figs 1-5), Huang teaches wherein the miner comprises the module mounting structure and the first module and the second module according to claim 1; the first module and the second module are fixedly connected by the module mounting structure (Figs 1-10).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-6 and 8-11 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The dependent claims listed below, in combination with the remaining elements of the independent claim(s) from which they directly/indirectly depend, are not taught, or adequately suggested in the prior art of record.
Claim 4. The module mounting structure according to claim 3, wherein the slide rails comprise a first slide rail and a second slide rail arranged spaced apart, and the insertion notches of the first slide rail and the insertion notches of the second slide rail open towards each other; the hook comprises a body portion and a hook body portion connected to each other, and the hook body portion is connected to the second module via the body portion; the hook body portions of the hooks corresponding to the first slide rail and the second slide rail face towards each other.
Claim 5. The module mounting structure according to claim 1, wherein one of the first mounting structure and the second mounting structure further comprises a mounting strip, the other of the first mounting structure and the second mounting structure further comprises a lug, a mounting hole is provided at an end of the mounting strip, and a fixing structure is fixed in the mounting hole through the lug; or the mounting hole mating with the lug is provided at an end of the slide rail.
Claim 6. The module mounting structure according to claim 1, wherein the slide rails comprise a first slide rail, a second slide rail and a third slide rail which are disposed at intervals and extend in a horizontal direction, the third slide rail being located between the first slide rail and the second slide rail; the first slide rail and the second slide rail are disposed at a top and a bottom of the side surface of the first module, respectively; the first mounting structure is integrally formed on the first module; the second mounting module is integrally formed on the second module.
Claim 8. The miner according to claim 7, wherein the miner further comprises a third module fixed on the first module and/or the second module; the first module and/or the second module and/or the third module comprises a box body and a lid body having a rectangular parallelepiped shape, the lid body being used for closing an opening of the box body; the box body comprises a first end panel, a first side panel and a second side panel, the first side panel and the second side panel are connected to opposed ends of the first end panel, and a distance between the two side panels is smaller than a size of the first end plate so that an end of the lid body may abut against the end panel; the side panel comprise a side panel body and a guide structure, the guide structure being fixed at an end of the side panel body adjacent to the first end panel; a distance between the guide structure and a bottom of the box body gradually reduces in a direction away from the first end panel towards the first end panel; the lid body comprises a top plate, a first side plate and a second side plate, the first side plate and the second side plate being connected to opposed ends of the top plate; a fastening strip is disposed at a bottom of an inner wall of each of the first side plate and the second side plate, and a distance between the two fastening strips is equal to that between outer walls of the two side plate bodies; a distance between inner walls of the first side plate and the second side plate is greater than or equal to that between outer walls of the guide structures on the first side panel and the second side panel; a height of the fastening strips is smaller than or equal to a minimum distance between the guide structure and the bottom of the box body. Claims 9-11 depend either indirectly or directly from claim 8 and are therefore allowable for at least the same reason.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure: Schlemmer - US 5450285 A, Figs 3-4.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to RASHEN E MORRISON whose telephone number is (571)272-8852. The examiner can normally be reached 9-5.
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/RASHEN E MORRISON/Examiner, Art Unit 2841 /IMANI N HAYMAN/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2841
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