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 .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because quality of the drawings are poor. The numbering, details, and features are not clear. 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. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. 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.
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.
Claims 1, 19, and 34 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Zhang et al. (CN 111503981 A), hereinafter referred to as Zhang (translation relied upon is attached).
Regarding claim 1, Zhang discloses a door opening and closing device, comprising:
a driving mechanism (31);
a linkage gear (34) rotatably disposed on a base (3);
a clutch (arrangement with gears 342) disposed between the driving mechanism (31) and the linkage gear (34), and configured to selectively make the driving mechanism (31) and the linkage gear (34) in transmission connection;
a door rotation mechanism (36, 39) an end of which is connected to the linkage gear and another end of which is connected to the door body; and
a door ejection mechanism (35, 37) connected to the linkage gear (34) and configured to push and eject the door body;
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wherein, in a condition that the clutch makes the driving mechanism (31) and the linkage gear (34) transmission connection and the driving mechanism (31) drives the linkage gear (34) to rotate, the linkage gear (34) drives the door ejection mechanism (35, 37) to push the door body to eject the door body open, and then drives the door rotation mechanism (36, 39) to continue to open the door body.
Excerpts from Zhang:
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Regarding claim 19, Zhang discloses a door ejection portion disposed on a peripheral surface of the linkage gear (34) wherein the door ejection mechanism comprises a door ejection member (37) that is movably disposed on the base, wherein in a condition that the driving mechanism drives the linkage gear to rotate, the door ejection portion (35) is able to rotate with the linkage gear (34) to push the door ejection member to move relative to the base, to make the door ejection member to eject the door body open (Fig 4).
Regarding claim 34, Zhang discloses a box body (Fig 1) and the door opening and closing device according to claim 1,wherein in a condition that the clutch establishes a transmission connection state between the linkage gear (34) and the driving mechanism (31), the driving mechanism is able to drive the linkage gear (34) to rotate, to drive the door ejection mechanism (35, 37) to eject the door body open, and then the door body is rotated by the door rotation mechanism.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-3, 8-14, 20, 22-29, 31 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 following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 2, although Zhang teaches a clutch, Zhang fails to teach wherein the clutch comprises a first transmission assembly connected to the driving mechanism; a second transmission assembly connected to the linkage gear; a transmission connection assembly connected to the second transmission assembly, and separably connected to the first transmission assembly; and a clutch-ejection-push assembly comprising an ejection-push sleeve connected on the transmission connection assembly and a push rod for pushing the ejection-push sleeve, wherein the ejection-push sleeve is pushed by the push rod, to push the transmission connection assembly to be separated from or connected to the first transmission assembly. Modification to provide the recited elements in the assembly of Zhang, specifically providing an ejection-push sleeve and push rod in the arrangement recited, would not have been obvious and without altering the structure of Zhang.
Regarding claim 20, although Zhang discloses the door opening and closing device according to claim 19, wherein the door ejection portion (35) has an door ejection surface (teeth of 35) wherein in a condition that the door ejection portion (35) rotates with the linkage gear (34) and the door ejection surface abuts against and holds the door ejection member (37) to be able to push the door ejection member (37) to move relative to the base, to make the door ejection member (37 pushes 21) eject the door body open, Zhang fails to teach wherein the door ejection surface is gradually extended in a direction away from a rotation center of the linkage gear. Modification to rearrange the elements in Zhang such that the door ejection surface is extended in the claimed manner would not have been obvious to one of ordinary skill absent hindsight and the Applicant’s teachings.
Regarding claim 26, Zhang fails to teach a suspension mechanism. Although Yasaka et al. (US 2017/0284144), teaches a suspension mechanism (400), the suspension mechanism being movably disposed on the base, Yasaka fails to disclose a limit groove being formed on the linkage gear, wherein in a condition that the linkage gear rotates to a state in which the limit groove is opposite to the suspension mechanism, the suspension mechanism moves, and ejects and abuts into the limit groove to brake the linkage gear.
Regarding claim 31, although Zhang discloses wherein the door rotation mechanism comprises a front connecting rod (36) and a rear connecting rod (36) which are in a hinged connection at ends, another end of the front connecting rod (39) being connected to the door (Fig 3), Zhang fails to teach another end of the rear connecting rod being deflectably disposed in an installation groove which is formed on the linkage gear, and wherein the linkage gear is driven to rotate by the driving mechanism to drive the rear connecting rod to push or pull the front connecting rod to push or pull the door body, wherein the front connecting rod is located below a bottom surface of the linkage gear, the rear connecting rod being located in the installation groove that is located on a top surface of the linkage gear, or wherein the installation groove is located on the bottom surface of the linkage gear, the front connecting rod and the rear connecting rod being both located below the bottom surface of the linkage gear, wherein the door body and a box body are rotatably connected at a first connection point, and wherein the front connecting rod and the door body are connected at a second connection point, and wherein the rear connecting rod and the front connecting rod are rotatably connected at a third connection point, the linkage gear having a rotation center, the second connection point and the third connection point being respectively located on two sides of a line connecting the first connection point and the rotation center.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Johnnie A. Shablack whose telephone number is (571)270-5344. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Thu 6am-3pm EST, alternate Friday.
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/Johnnie A. Shablack/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3634
