DETAILED ACTION
This action is a first action on the merits. The preliminary amendment filed on February 3, 2025 has been entered. Claims 2, 4, 6-7, 10-11, 14-15, 17 and 28 are cancelled. Claims 1, 3, 5, 8-9, 12-13, 16, 18-27, and 29-32 are pending and addressed below.
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 .
Priority
Applicant’s claim for the benefit of a prior-filed application under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) or under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, 365(c), or 386(c) is acknowledged.
This application is a 371 National Stage entry of PCT No. AU2023/050748 filed on August 9, 2023 and claims benefit of Australian Patent No. AU2022902294 filed on August 12, 2022.
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement filed February 3, 2025 has been considered by the Examiner.
Specification
Applicant is reminded of the proper content of an abstract of the disclosure.
A patent abstract is a concise statement of the technical disclosure of the patent and should include that which is new in the art to which the invention pertains. The abstract should not refer to purported merits or speculative applications of the invention and should not compare the invention with the prior art.
If the patent is of a basic nature, the entire technical disclosure may be new in the art, and the abstract should be directed to the entire disclosure. If the patent is in the nature of an improvement in an old apparatus, process, product, or composition, the abstract should include the technical disclosure of the improvement. The abstract should also mention by way of example any preferred modifications or alternatives.
Where applicable, the abstract should include the following: (1) if a machine or apparatus, its organization and operation; (2) if an article, its method of making; (3) if a chemical compound, its identity and use; (4) if a mixture, its ingredients; (5) if a process, the steps.
Extensive mechanical and design details of an apparatus should not be included in the abstract. The abstract should be in narrative form and generally limited to a single paragraph within the range of 50 to 150 words in length.
See MPEP § 608.01(b) for guidelines for the preparation of patent abstracts.
The abstract of the disclosure is objected to because the recitation of “the rib stiffens the side wall to limit deformation thereof” in lines 5-6 is considered purported merits. A corrected abstract of the disclosure is required and must be presented on a separate sheet, apart from any other text. See MPEP § 608.01(b).
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, 3, 5, 8-9, 12-13, 16, 18, 25-27, and 31 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Hagenbuch, WO 2011/159286 (hereinafter Hagenbuch).
Claim 1: Hagenbuch discloses a dump truck body (see Fig 1-2) for a dump truck (see abstract), comprising:
a tray (body 13) comprising a floor (floor 31) and two side walls (sidewalls 33) extending up from the floor (31) (see Fig 1, 4, par [0031]-[0032]), each side wall (33) comprising a forward end (front end) (see Fig 4), and a rear end (at end 54 shown in Fig 4) , and a top end (at top rail 39) extending along a top of the side wall (33) from the forward to the rear ends (as seen in Fig 4, par [0031]-[0033]); and
a side strengthening arrangement on each side wall (inside bolster plates, 45, 57, 59 and outer bolster plates 63, 65, see Fig 5-8, par [0039]-[0040]),
wherein each side strengthening arrangement comprises a rib (bolster plates 57) mounted on the side wall (33) to stiffen the side wall at the forward end (front end) (as shown in Fig 8, 13, par [0039]-[0040]);
wherein the rib (bolster plates 57) comprises a first side joined to the side wall (33), and a second side that is joined to the side wall (33), and an intermediate section between said first and second sides of the rib that is outward of the side wall (the box shaped configuration of bolster plates 57 includes first and second sides joined to the side wall 33 and an intermediate section between the first and second sides and spaced away from the side wall 33 by the box shaped configuration, as shown in Fig 5-8) , and the first side of the rib (front side of bolster plates 57) extends along the forward end of the side wall (the first side of the bolster plates 57 extends at least partially along the forward end of the side wall, as seen in Fig 4, 5, 8), and the second side of the rib (top or upper side of bolster 57) extends along the top end (39) of the side wall (33) (the first side of the bolster plates 57, 63, 65, extends at least partially along the top end of the side wall 33 as shown in Figs 4, 5, 8).
Claim 3: Hagenbuch discloses wherein the intermediate section comprises a web or sheet of material that extends extending between the first and second sides (box shaped configuration of bolster plates 57 has a sheet of material extending between the front and rear sides as shown in Fig 5, 8); and
the first and second sides (front and rear sides of bolster plates 57) extend along opposed edges of the web or sheet of material (as shown in Fig 5, 8, par [0040]).
Claim 5: Hagenbuch discloses wherein the intermediate section, the first and the second sides and a part of the side wall between the first and second sides, together define an elongate space therebetween (to provide hollow beams contributing to the construction of the sidewall 33, as shown in Fig 5, 8, par [0039]-[0049]).
Claim 8: Hagenbuch discloses wherein the side strengthening arrangement further comprises an external rib reinforcer (bolster plate 65) mounted on and extending across an external surface of the rib (see Fig 12 bolster plate 65 uninstalled and see Fig 13 with external bolster plate 65 in position).
Claim 9: Hagenbuch discloses wherein the external rib reinforcer (65) extends across the first or second side of the rib (front and rear sides 57) and a part of the intermediate section (material between front and rear sides of 57thereof (see Fig 12-13), and the external rib reinforcer (65) is welded around its peripheral edge to the first or second side of the rib and to the side wall (par [0040], [0045]).
Claim 12: Hagenbuch discloses wherein the second side of the rib (57) has a length that is greater than that of the intermediate section of the rib, and the greater length of the second side of the rib increases the length of attachment of the rib to the side wall (as shown in Fig 13, the length of the second side of bolster plate 57 is greater than the length of the intermediated section of the bolster plate closest to the rear side as shown in Fig 8, 11-13).
Claim 13: Hagenbuch discloses wherein the rib (57) is formed from a rib body comprising the first side of the rib (front side of bolster plate 57) and the intermediate section (material between front and rear sides of bolster plate 57), and a rib second side member comprising the second side of the rib (rear side of bolster plate 57), and the rib body joins the rib second side member on an edge of an web of material running along the second side of the rib (the box shaped configuration of bolster plates 57 includes first and second sides joined to the side wall 33 and an intermediate section between the first and second sides and spaced away from the side wall 33 by the box shaped configuration, as shown in Fig 5-8).
Claim 16: Hagenbuch discloses wherein the side strengthening arrangement further comprises a rail (top rail 39) extending along a top end of the side wall (33) for strengthening the top end of the side wall (33) (see Fig 4-7, par [0037]-[0038]), and the second side of the rib (57) is mounted on the rail (39) (rib is mounted on the rail via outer bolster plate 45, as shown in Fig 4, 6, 11-12).
Claim 18: Hagenbuch discloses wherein the side strengthening arrangement further comprises one side strengthening member (outer bolster 59) on the side wall (33) spaced rearward of the first forward end of the side wall (as shown in Fig 5, 11-13), and each of the first and second sides of the rib (outer bolster plate 57) are spaced away said one side strengthening member (59) (57 is spaced away from 59 as shown in Fig 4, 11-13).
Claim 25: Hagenbuch discloses wherein the dump truck body (13) further comprises a protective canopy (canopy 37) extending away from a front wall for covering a cabin (cab 15) of a dump truck in use (as shown in Fig 1, par [0024], [0040]).
Claim 26: Hagenbuch discloses wherein the protective canopy (canopy 37) extends forward from a top end of the front wall and is rigidly joined to the front wall, and the protective canopy (37) extends away from the top end of each side wall (33) and is rigidly joined to each side wall (33) (see Fig 1, 4-5, par [0024], [0040]).
Claim 27: Hagenbuch discloses a dump truck (Fig 1) comprising: the dump truck body of claim 1, a truck chassis having ground engaging formations for travelling across the ground (front and back axles 17, 19 and front and back tires 21, 23), and the dump truck body (13) is pivotably mounted (via hinge assembly 27) on the truck chassis (17, 19, 21, 23);
wherein, when the dump truck body (13) is pivoted up, material is discharged from the truck body (Fig 1, par [0026]).
Claim 31: Hagenbuch discloses wherein the rib (57) has opposed ends that extend between the first and second sides (upper and lower ends as seen in Fig 4), and the rib (57) comprises a single continuous piece of material in a direction of length from one end to the opposed end (the box shaped configuration of bolster plates 57 includes an upper and lower end with a piece of material extending from the upper to lower end, as seen in Fig 5-8).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 19-24, 29, 30 and 32 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The prior art contains the limitations of the claims as discussed above.
Claim 19: Hagenbuch discloses wherein the side strengthening arrangement (63, 57, 59) further comprises a further side strengthening member (bolster plate 63) on the side wall (33) spaced forward of the rib (57) and the one side strengthening member (59) (as shown in Fig 4-5, 8, 11-13).
Hagenbuch fails to disclose the further side strengthening member on the side wall spaced rearward of the one side strengthening member in a direction towards the rear end of the tray.
Claim 29: Hagenbuch discloses the first and second sides of the rib (57) are parallel (as shown in Fig 4-5, 8, 11-13).
Hagenbuch fails to disclose wherein the second side of the rib (57) extends from the forward end of the side wall partially along the top end of the side wall.
Claim 30: Hagenbuch discloses wherein the first side of the rib is linear, and the second side of the rib is also linear (first and second sides of rib 57 are linear as shown in Fig 4-5, 8, 11-13).
Hagenbuch fails to disclose the first and second sides of the rib converge along their lengths in a forward direction.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The disclosure of Kitaguchi et al., WO 2013/046271 drawn to a body structure for a dump truck and the disclosure of D’Amico et al., WO 2008/112359 drawn to a tube-style truck body are relevant to the claims but were not relied upon in the current rejection.
Claims 1, 3, 5, 8-9, 12-13, 16, 18, 25-27, and 31 are rejected. Claims 19-24, 29, 30 and 32 are objected to. No claims are allowed.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CAROLINE N BUTCHER whose telephone number is (571)272-1623. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 10-6 pm EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Tara E Schimpf can be reached at (571) 270-7741. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CAROLINE N BUTCHER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3676
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