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 .
DETAILED ACTION
This is the first action on the merits for application 19/102035. Claims 1-8 are currently pending in this application.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of papers submitted under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d), which papers have been placed of record in the file.
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)(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, 6, 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 as being anticipated by WINKLER (EP 3462055).
Regarding Claim 1, WINKLER teaches A drive belt comprising: a first conducting element (2), which is embedded in a polymer material, for transmitting electrical energy, wherein the first conducting element (2) is formed by at least one tensile member (2) that extends in a longitudinal direction of the drive belt, a plurality of tensile members (Fig. 3) extend in the longitudinal direction of the drive belt and are arranged parallel to one another, and wherein the drive belt has at least one contacting element, to which the first conducting element (2) is electrically connected at the end.
Regarding Claim 6, WINKLER teaches wherein the drive belt is a linear drive [0015].
Regarding Claim 7, WINKLER teaches wherein the drive belt is a linear drive and part of a storage and retrieval unit [0015].
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 8 is allowed.
The prior art does not teach or suggest A drive belt, comprising: a first conducting element, is embedded in a polymer material , for transmitting electrical energy; the first conducting element is formed by a plurality of tensile members that extend in the longitudinal direction of the drive belt and are arranged parallel to one another; the drive belt has at least one contacting element, to which the first conducting element is electrically connected at the end; the contacting element has at least one pair of forked prongs extending in a vertical direction (Z) for receiving at least one tensile member that extends in the longitudinal direction of the drive belt; the contacting element is inserted into the polymer material in the vertical direction; the contacting element has at least one cylindrical sleeve for receiving a tensile member; the cylindrical sleeve is inserted into the polymer material in the longitudinal direction and encloses the tensile member over a partial length in the longitudinal direction; and the cylindrical sleeve is pressed onto the tensile member; and the contacting element has at least one mandrel, which is inserted into the tensile member in the longitudinal direction in Claim 8.
Claims 2-5 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 does not teach or suggest wherein the contacting element has at least one pair of forked prongs extending in a vertical direction for receiving at least one tensile member that extends in the longitudinal direction of the drive belt, wherein the contacting element is inserted into the polymer material in the vertical direction with the other elements in Claim 2.
The prior art does not teach or suggest wherein the contacting element has at least one cylindrical sleeve for receiving a tensile member, wherein the cylindrical sleeve is inserted into the polymer material in the longitudinal direction and encloses the tensile member over a partial length in the longitudinal direction, and wherein the cylindrical sleeve is pressed onto the tensile member with the other elements in Claim 3.
The prior art does not teach or suggest wherein the contacting element has at least one mandrel, which is inserted into the tensile member in the longitudinal direction with the other elements in Claim 4.
The prior art does not teach or suggest wherein the contacting element has at least one clip, which in particular has a U-shaped design and is inserted into the polymer material in the vertical direction, and surrounds the tensile member while contacting it with the other elements in Claim 5.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HENRY Y LIU whose telephone number is (571)270-7018. The examiner can normally be reached 9-5:30 ET.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, ROBERT W HODGE can be reached at 5712722097. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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HENRY Y. LIU
Examiner
Art Unit 3654
/HENRY Y LIU/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3654
