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 Objections
Claim 21 is objected to under 37 CFR 1.75 as being a substantial duplicate of claim 16. When two claims in an application are duplicates or else are so close in content that they both cover the same thing, despite a slight difference in wording, it is proper after allowing one claim to object to the other as being a substantial duplicate of the allowed claim. See MPEP § 608.01(m).
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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 16-21 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Daoud (US 6,462,275).
Re claim 16, Daoud discloses an armor stop (10) for a cable gland, comprising:
an elongated hollow body (20) with a distal end, a proximal end (50), and at least one slot (12) extending from the proximal end at least partially along a sidewall of the body (Fig 1) and terminating before the distal end (Daoud recites “The compressible medium 18 is caused to completely surround the cable 100 and also to fill the slits 12, 112 to thus provide a complete seal of the cable channels 16, 116”, col. 5, lines 1-3) ;
wherein the proximal end of the armor stop is compressible, by means of the slot, in a lateral direction to insert and remove the armor stop from a lower opening of the cable gland (Fig 3).
Re claim 17, further comprising at least one rib (42) on an outer surface of the body capable of engaging within a corresponding annular groove within the cable gland which is not positively claimed (Fig 3).
Re claim 18, wherein the at least one rib includes a first rib (42) on a first side of the armor stop and a second rib (40) on a second side of the armor stop opposite the first side, each of the first rib and the second rib extending up to ninety degrees around a circumference of the outer surface of the armor stop (Fig 1).
Re claim 19, wherein the proximal end of the armor stop has an outer diameter (see ref # 50) greater than an outer diameter of a central portion of the body defining a step between the proximal end and the central portion of the body (Fig 3).
Re claim 20, wherein the distal end of the elongated hollow body has an uninterrupted circumference (Daoud recites “The compressible medium 18 is caused to completely surround the cable 100 and also to fill the slits 12, 112 to thus provide a complete seal of the cable channels 16, 116”, col. 5, lines 1-3).
Re claim 21, wherein the at least one slot extends from the proximal end at least partially along a sidewall of the body and terminates before the distal end (Daoud recites “The compressible medium 18 is caused to completely surround the cable 100 and also to fill the slits 12, 112 to thus provide a complete seal of the cable channels 16, 116”, col. 5, lines 1-3).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1, 4-15 are allowed.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 7/29/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Applicant argues (1) that Daoud's slit is a cable-entry feature opening the body along its entire length, not a proximal compression slot terminating before the distal end.
With respect to (1), it has been addressed in previous paragraphs.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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.
Communication
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HUNG V NGO whose telephone number is (571)272-1979. The examiner can normally be reached 9-5:30 M-F.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Imani Hayman can be reached at (571) 270-5528. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/HUNG V NGO/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2841
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