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 7 shown in FIGS 5A-5C and 9 and corresponding to claims 1-4 and 6 in the reply filed on 04 November 2025 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that the restriction requirement does not make any analysis of the claims nor prior art. This is not found persuasive because the requirement is not required to analyze the claims nor art. The Examiner has found that the application is drawn to a number of distinct embodiments. The requirement sets forth these embodiments and their distinct structures. See page 2-3 of the 9/5/2025 Requirement which lists each embodiment and its structure which differs from that of any other embodiment.
Applicant argues claim 1 is generic to all eight species. This is not persuasive. Claim 1 requires a first and second support element, but this is not a feature of Species 3, 4, 6, or 8. Applicant asserts 207, 307, and 510 are support elements. However, para. 0053 discloses 207 is “straps” and gives no indication that straps 207 are support elements. It is not clear what 307 is, as the disclosure calls 307 “support elements,” “strap sections,” “upper and lower straps,” and “straps.” The disclosure calls 510 “fingers,” “tensioning straps,” and “adjustable straps,” but not support elements. Therefore, claim 1 may be generic to some species, but Examiner is not persuaded claim 1 is generic to all eight species. However, even if claim 1 were generic to some or all species, an election of species would still be required from the eight disclosed species.
Applicant argues that because some of the embodiments have overlapping structures, they should be examined together. This is not persuasive, as even though there are some common features, other features and combinations of features are distinct and would require a burdensome search and/ or examination.
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
Claims 5 and 7 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 04 November 2025.
Applicant is reminded that upon the cancelation of claims to a non-elected invention, the inventorship must be corrected in compliance with 37 CFR 1.48(a) if one or more of the currently named inventors is no longer an inventor of at least one claim remaining in the application. A request to correct inventorship under 37 CFR 1.48(a) must be accompanied by an application data sheet in accordance with 37 CFR 1.76 that identifies each inventor by his or her legal name and by the processing fee required under 37 CFR 1.17(i).
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement filed 28 May 2025 fails to comply with 37 CFR 1.98(a)(2), which requires a legible copy of each cited foreign patent document; each non-patent literature publication or that portion which caused it to be listed; and all other information or that portion which caused it to be listed. It has been placed in the application file, but the information referred to therein has not been considered.
There is no copy of NPL 1, so NPL 1 has not been considered.
In the IDS of 02 June 2025, US Patents 1-6 are not relevant to the present invention. Please correct the patent numbers or provide an explanation of their relevance to the present invention.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(4) because reference character “102” has been used to designate both waist and waistband portion. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
For the purpose of examination, Examiner understands “waist” in claim 1 to correspond to reference number 102 and the “waist” is feature of the garment and not a wearer of the garment.
Claim Objections
Claim 1 is objected to because of the following informalities: line 12, amend “a left thigh portion” to –the left thigh portion--. Line 16-17, amend “a right thigh portion” to –the right thigh portion--. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-4 and 6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 1 is rendered indefinite by the recitation of both “a waist” and “a waistband portion,” because these are the same feature 102 according to the disclosure, yet separately recited as if they are two different features, rendering it unclear if these are the same or different features.
Claim 2 is rendered indefinite by the recitation “section” because it is not clear to what this is referring.
Claims 2, 3, and 4 are rendered indefinite by the recitation “the reinforced portions” because it is not clear to which or all of the reinforced portions of claim 1 this is referring.
Claims that depend from a rejected claim are also rejected.
All of the claims are examined as best understood.
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) 1-4 and 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Fujii (US 7229390 B2).
As to claim 1, Fujii discloses a garment (“Tights-type leg support garment,” title, and particularly the embodiment shown in FIGS 49-52) comprising:
a base layer extending down from a waist past a knee portion (the base layer is the unshaded portions of the garment shown in FIGS 49-52, where the upper portion of the garment is the waist of the base layer and the portion of the garment at and around 1 is the knee portion of the base layer), the base layer having a waistband portion (as best understood, the upper portion of the base layer shown in FIGS 49-52), left and right hip portions (see annotated portions of FIGS 49-50 below), and left and right leg portions that include left and right thigh portions (the leg portions are the pant legs, see annotated portions of FIGS 49-50 below),
wherein:
the left and right thigh portion are each reinforced in a selected pattern to provide reinforced portions configured to increase resistance to stretching (124’ in FIG 49; 121, 122, 6, 9, 14, and 124’ in FIG 50; 121, 2, 3, and 5 in FIG 51; and 121, 122, 9, 7, 8, 124’ 14, and 15 in FIG 52, which are configured to increase resistance to stretching and intended to increase resistance to stretching, due to having a “relatively great straining force”);
a first pair of sagitally mirrored anchor points, positioned on the left and right hip portions (indicated by stars in the portions of annotated FIG 49 below; Examiner notes that the term "point" is very broad and merely means "a location, spot, or position" (Defn. No. 2 of "Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014" entry via TheFreeDictionary.com));
a second pair of sagitally mirrored anchor points, positioned on the left and right thigh portions (indicated by stars in the portions of annotated FIG 49 below; Examiner notes that the term "point" is very broad and merely means "a location, spot, or position" (Defn. No. 2 of "Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014" entry via TheFreeDictionary.com));
a first support element (145 and 146 in FIG 49; 147 and 148 in FIG 50; 145, 146, and 148 in FIG 52), where a first end of the first support element is attached to the left hip portion and a second end extends to a left thigh portion, such that a path of the first support element extends from the left hip portion, around a back portion of the left leg to the left thigh portion (FIG 52, the first end is at/ around 148 and the second end is at/ around 145, and the path extends from hip portion around back to thigh); and
a second support element (145 and 146 in FIG 49; 147 and 148 in FIG 50; 145, 146, and 148 in FIG 52), where a first end of the second support element is attached to the right hip portion and a second end extends to a right thigh portion, such that a path of the second support element extends from the right hip portion, around a back of the right leg, to the right thigh portion (FIG 52, the first end is at/ around 148 and the second end is at/ around 145, and the path extends from hip portion around back to thigh).
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721
461
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As to claim 2, Fujii discloses the garment of claim 1 wherein section of the reinforced portions surrounds the knee portion (at least partially surrounds as shown in FIG 50).
As to claim 3, Fujii discloses the garment of claim 2 wherein the reinforced portions include fingers of reinforced material extend inward towards the knee portion of the base layer (see annotated FIG 50 above).
As to claim 4, Fujii discloses the garment of claim 2 wherein the reinforced portions are patterned such that fingers of reinforced material extend outward from the knee portion (see annotated portions of FIGS 51-52 below, where the broken line arrow shows the direction of the fingers extending outwardly away from the knee portion).
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640
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657
324
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As to claim 6, Fujii discloses the garment of claim 1 wherein first and second support elements extend from respective locations adjacent an inner thigh portion (see portion of annotated FIG 49 above, all of the components of the garment are “adjacent” one another, either directly or indirectly, and at least portions of the support elements are “adjacent” the inner thigh portion).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SALLY HADEN whose telephone number is (571)272-6731. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9-5.
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, Clinton Ostrup can be reached at 571-272-5559. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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SALLY HADEN
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3732
/SALLY HADEN/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3732