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 § 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.
Claim(s) 1 and 3-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Senn U.S. Patent No. 9,233,800.
Claim 1, Senn teaches a linear motor conveyance system 1 Fig. 6 comprising: at least one carrier 30 that supports an object 2 used for container processing 10,20; and a linear motor unit that transports the at least one carrier 30 along a transport track 31, wherein the transport track 31 includes only a curved track or curved tracks throughout C5 L30-40 Fig. 2.
Claim 3, Senn teaches the transport track 31 includes both positive curvature and negative curvature Fig. 2.
Claim 4, Senn teaches the transport track 31 is an endless track Fig. 6.
Claim 5, Senn teaches the transport track 31 has one or more ends Fig. 6.
Claim 6, Senn teaches the transport track 31 includes a plurality of endless track sections Fig. 5, each of the plurality of endless track sections Fig. 2 being configured as an endless track of 31, and wherein the linear motor unit transports the at least one carrier 30 in such a manner that the at least one carrier 30 moves from one endless track section to another endless track section while the at least one carrier 30 moves along a curved track C8 L25-45.
Claim 7, Senn teaches a plurality of processing devices 10,20 that perform the container processing and include a first processing device 10 and a second processing device 20 C8 L40-65, wherein the transport track 31 includes: a first curved track section having one of positive curvature and negative curvature Fig. 2; and a second curved track section having the other of positive curvature and negative curvature Fig. 5, wherein the first processing device 10 is positioned, along the first curved track section, inside the transport track and performs the container processing via 10,20 on the object 2 supported by a carrier 30 being transported in the first curved track section of 31 Fig. 2, and wherein the second processing device 20 is positioned, along the second curved track section of 31 Fig. 2, outside of the transport track 31 and performs the container processing via 10,20 on the object 2 supported by a carrier 30 being transported in the second curved track section of 31 Fig. 2.
Claim 8, Senn teaches a linear motor conveyance 1 method comprising the step of transporting at least one carrier 30 supporting an object 2 used for container processing via 10,20, along a transport track 31 by a linear motor unit, wherein the transport track 31 includes only a curved track or curved tracks throughout Fig. 2 C5 L30-40.
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) 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Senn U.S. Patent No. 9,233,800 in view of Mueller U.S. Patent No. 6,209,710.
Claim 2, Senn teaches the transport track 31, but does not teach as Mueller teaches includes only one of positive curvature and negative curvature Fig. 1. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art to combine the transport disclosed in Senn with the curvature configuration taught in Mueller with a reasonable expectation of success because
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KAVEL SINGH whose telephone number is (571)272-2362. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Thursday 8am-6pm.
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, Gene Crawford can be reached at (571) 272-6911. 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.
/KAVEL SINGH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3651
KS
Prosecution Insights