CTNF 19/130,119 CTNF 75767 DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA. Priority 02-26 AIA Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55. Information Disclosure Statement The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 5/15/2025 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 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. 07-07-aia AIA 07-07 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 – 07-08-aia AIA (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. 07-15 AIA Claim s 1-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102( a)(1 ) as being anticipated by Ban et al. (US 2002/0127032) . Regarding claim 1, Ban discloses a toner container (301, 1, fig. 24) for use with a mount (50, 60) of a body of an image forming apparatus horizontally in an attachment direction and detachable from the mount horizontally in a detachment direction (par. 0061, fig. 3), the toner container comprising: a bottom portion 301k; and a projection 301c protruding downward to a lowest position in the bottorn portion of the toner container in a posture when the toner container is attached to and detached from the mount (fig. 25), the projection to slide on a surface of the mount when the toner container is attached to and detached from the mount (par. 0178), wherein a length from a downstream end of the bottom portion in the attachment direction to the projection is within a range of 37.5 to 80 mm (see 60 mm – 80 mm, par. 0182). Regarding claim 2, Ban discloses a substantially cylindrical container body 1A (fig. 25) including an opening portion 301g, the substantially cylindrical container body to rotate with the attachment direction as a rotation axis direction of the container body; and convey toner stored in the container body toward the opening portion of the container body; and a cap into which a head portion of the container body, the cap including a toner ejection port through which the toner ejected from the opening portion is ejected outside the toner container (par. 0178) Regarding claim 3, Ban discloses wherein the toner container is to be attached to the mount with the cap placed as a leading position of the container body in the attachment direction, and the bottom portion is on the cap (par. 0178). Regarding claim 4, Ban discloses wherein in a case where the toner container is in the posture when the toner container is attached to and detached from the mount, a lower end of the projection at the bottom is positioned lower than the container body (see 301c, fig. 25). Regarding claim 5, Ban discloses wherein the bottom portion 301k includes an incompatible-shape portion 301m (par. 0185, fig. 21) having a different shape according to at least one of a color of toner stored in the toner container and a model of the body of the image forming apparatus. Regarding claim 6, Ban discloses wherein the toner container 1 is detachably attached to the mount 50 of the body of the image forming apparatus (par. 0061, fig. 3). Regarding claim 7, Ban discloses an opening-and-closing door 15 to open and close when the toner container is attached to and detached from the mount, wherein when the opening-and-closing door is open, a step difference that causes the opening-and-closing door to be positioned lower than the mount is generated between the opening-and-closing door and the mount exposed to an inside of the body of the image forming apparatus (mount 50 is located inside and above the cover 15, par. 0061, fig. 3). Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Hoang Ngo whose telephone number is (571)272-2138. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7:30 am - 4:00 pm. 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, Stephanie Bloss can be reached at 571-272-3555. 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. /HOANG X NGO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2852 Application/Control Number: 19/130,119 Page 2 Art Unit: 2852
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