DETAILED CORRESPONDENCE
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 .
Status of Claims
This is the first office action on the merits of Application No. 19/148,899 filed on 07/17/2025. Claims 12-22 are pending.
Priority
Application claims the benefit of DE10 2023 200 310.4 filed 01/17/2023. Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Examiner Note
Examiner would welcome an interview to clarify any of the various objections/rejections seen below in order to expediate prosecution of the instant application.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, a rotatable roller in claim 14 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
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 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 12-13, 15-16, 19 and 22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by ZIEMER et al.(DE 102019220044 A1).
Regarding claim 12, ZIEMER discloses a bottom bracket gearbox for a bicycle (1, figs. 1-9), the bottom bracket gearbox having a planetary gear set design (see abstract, and para 23), the bottom bracket gearbox comprising:
at least one brake shift element (B1, B2, B3, B4, fig. 1); at least one brake pawl (3, 4, 5, 6, fig. 1, para 25) actuatable for blocking and releasing an associated gearbox component for shifting a gear step (G1 to G16, fig. 1, para 30); and an arrangement (see para 23) for actuating the at least one brake pawl (3, 4, 5, 6, fig. 1), the arrangement comprising at least one cam element (1, fig. 2, para 27), each of the at least one cam element (1, fig. 2) being operatively connected to a respective one of the at least one brake pawl (3, 4, 5, 6, fig. 1) and being separately activatable.
Regarding claim 13, ZIEMER discloses the bottom bracket gearbox of claim 12, wherein one or more of the at least one brake pawl ( 4, fig. 2) is a spring-loaded rocker (e.g. 19,10, fig. 2), a first rocker arm (10, fig. 2) of the spring-loaded rocker being associated with a locking toothing (14) of the associated gearbox component, and a second rocker arm (12, fig. 2) of the spring-loaded rocker being associated with a curved path (11) provided on a periphery of the at least one cam element (1) for actuating the one or more of the at least one brake pawl (4).
Regarding claim 15, ZIEMER discloses the bottom bracket gearbox (fig. 2) of claim 12, wherein a swivel axis of each of the at least one brake pawl (e.g. 4, fig. 2) and an axis of rotation of each of the at least one cam element (1) is approximately axially parallel to a central axis of rotation of the bottom bracket gearbox.
Regarding claim 16, ZIEMER discloses the bottom bracket gearbox (fig. 2) of claim 12, further comprising at least one rotary drive (e.g. 25, fig. 5), each of the at least one rotary drive being associated with a corresponding one of the at least one cam element (1) for separate activation.
Regarding claim 19, ZIEMER discloses the bottom bracket gearbox (fig. 2) of claim 12, wherein a curved path (e.g. 11, fig. 2) provided along a periphery of each of the at least one cam element (e.g. 1) comprises a shorter ramp portion and a longer ramp portion, the shorter ramp portion having a greater slope than the longer ramp portion, the shorter ramp portion quickly engaging the respective one of the at least one brake pawl (4) with locking toothing of the associated gearbox component, the longer ramp portion disengaging the respective one of the at least one brake pawl (4) from the locking toothing of the associated gearbox component.
Regarding claim 22, ZIEMER discloses a bicycle, comprising the bottom bracket gearbox of claim 12. (see the rejection of claim 12)
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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 35 U.S.C. 103, which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 14, and 20-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over ZIEMER et al.(DE 102019220044 A1) in view of Li (CN 105134938 A)(hereinafter “Li”).
Regarding claim 14, ZIEMER discloses the bottom bracket gearbox (fig. 2) of claim 12, but fails to disclose further comprising a rotatable roller on the second rocker arm as a contact surface with the curved path (12, 13, 14, 15).
Li teaches a similar kind of bicycle (figs. 1-5) a rotatable roller (has not character numerical as shown in fig. 3) on the second rocker arm (51 or 55) as a contact surface with the curved path.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify ZIEMER to add a rotatable roller as taught by Li so that the cam can be rolled efficiently.
Regarding claim 20, ZIEMER discloses the bottom bracket gearbox (fig. 2) of claim 12, but fails to disclose a position detection sensor associated with the at least one cam element (2, 3, 4, 5).
Li teaches a similar kind of bicycle (figs. 1-5) wherein a position detection sensor (54, fig. 3) is associated with the at least one cam element (2, 3, 4, 5).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify ZIEMER to add a sensor as taught by Li so that the position of the cam can be monitored efficiently.
Regarding claim 21, ZIEMER discloses the bottom bracket gearbox (fig. 2) of claim 12, wherein the at least one brake shift element (B1, B2, B3, B4) comprises a first brake shift element (B1), a second brake shift element (B2), a third brake shift element (B3), and a fourth brake shift element (B4), wherein the at least one brake pawl (3,4,5, 6) comprises a first brake pawl (3) of the first brake shift element (B1), a second brake pawl (4) of the second brake shift element (B2), a third brake pawl (5) of the third brake shift element (B3), and a fourth brake pawl (6) of the fourth brake shift element (B4), but fails to disclose wherein the at least one cam element comprises a first cam element associated with the first brake pawl, a second cam element associated with the second brake pawl, a third cam element associated with the third brake pawl, and a fourth cam element associated with the fourth brake pawl.
Li teaches a similar kind of bicycle wherein the at least one cam element (e.g. 51, 55, fig. 3) comprises a first cam element (51, fig. 3), a second cam element (55, fig. 3).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify ZIEMER to substitute single cam with multiple cams as taught by Li as an obvious matter of duplication of parts. Mere duplication of parts has no patentable significance unless a new and unexpected result is produced. In re Harza, 124 USPQ 378, 380 (CCPA 1960). Further, it has been held that mere duplication of the essential working parts of a device involves only routine skill in the art. St. Regis Paper Co. v. Bemis Co., 193 USPQ 8. Finally, one of ordinary skill in the art would have a reasonable expectation of success by duplicating the single cam to multiple cams so that the cam can be controlled individually as the shifting mechanism would still adequately function as a brake, while having the added capability of additional support of flexibility of controlling the cam.
As modified, the bottom bracket gearbox would have wherein the at least one cam element comprises a first cam element associated with the first brake pawl, a second cam element associated with the second brake pawl, a third cam element associated with the third brake pawl, and a fourth cam element associated with the fourth brake pawl.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 17-18 are objected to as been dependent upon a rejected base claim 12, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Reasons for allowance, if applicable, will be the subject of a separate communication to the Applicant or patent owner, pursuant to 37 CFR § 1.104 and MPEP § 1302.14.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FARHANA PERVIN whose telephone number is (571)272-4644. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 7:30-5:00.
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/FARHANA PERVIN/Examiner, Art Unit 3655
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