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 .
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) 37-43 and 46-51 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by WO ‘527 (WO 2015/175527).
Claim 37 – WO ‘527 teaches a piezoelectrically operated dispenser (see in particular fig. 3A to 4B and 7, the dispenser 50 and par. [0003]) for dispensing liquid and/or volatile substances, comprising:
a housing (108) configured as a hollow body and having a cavity in its interior defining a housing interior,
a container (54) in which a substance to be dispensed and/or volatilized is received, the container having a neck (60) as an outlet opening designed in the manner of a pipe socket and/or in the manner of a bottle neck, by means of said neck said container is detachably connectable (par. [0034]) to the housing, said housing (108) and said container (54) being disposed above one another (fig. 3A) in an assembled state in such a way that the housing (108), viewed in vertical axis direction, is arranged above the container (54),
a piezoelectrically operated atomizer system (248), wherein by means of said piezoelectrically operated atomizer system the substance is taken from said container and is atomized, said piezoelectrically operated atomizer system having an electrically actuable piezo element (270) and a wick (64), by means of said wick the substance received in the container (54) is feedable to said electrically actuable piezo element, wherein, in the assembled state of said container (fig. 7), said wick (64) projects with a first section into the substance received in said container and projects with an opposite free wick end out of said neck (60) of said container,
said housing having a housing bottom wall (150, 220 and par. [0045]) on its underside in relation to the vertical axis direction, said housing bottom wall having a mounting dome (224 and 225 as explained in par. [0045]) extending upwards in the vertical axis direction and inwards into said housing interior and a mounting opening (225) formed therein on a bottom wall side which is accessible from a housing exterior, said mounting opening (225) in said housing interior merges into a wick opening at the end of said mounting dome, which is adjoined, with respect to the vertical axis direction, outwardly and/or upwardly, by said electrically actuable piezo element (270) and also by said housing outlet opening (132), via which the substance to be discharged escapes from said housing into an environment,
said mounting dome (224, 225) configured to receive said neck (60) of said container, said neck being introduced (fig. 38) into said mounting dome via said mounting opening (225), at least partially, and said mounting dome holding said neck releasably (par. [0045]) in said mounting dome (224, 225) by means of said holding device (226) such that said wick (64) extends with said free wick end in the assembled state of the container, into and/or through said wick opening and adjoins (fig. 38) said electrically actuable piezo element(270).
Claim 38 - WO ‘527 teaches the piezoelectrically operated dispenser according to claim 37, wherein said mounting dome has a mounting and receiving zone for said electrically actuable piezo element adjoining said wick opening, said mounting and receiving zone is configured to arrange and/or hold said electrically actuable piezo element in an area of said wick opening, so that said wick adjoins said electrically actuable piezo element with said free wick end (WO ‘527: providing a receiving chamber, see fig. 4B, the chamber 250; the wick contacting the piezo element on its front side, see fig. 3B)
Claim 39 - WO ‘527 teaches the piezoelectrically operated dispenser according to claim 38, wherein:
said mounting and receiving zone has a receiving chamber for said electrically actuable piezo element which, for the substance discharge, is formed with at least one receiving chamber outlet opening, and in said receiving chamber said electrically actuable piezo element is received such that it is displaceable into different positions; and
said mounting and receiving zone has a pretensioning device by means of which said electrically actuable piezo element is pretensionable for contact with the free wick end (WO ‘527: providing a pretensioning device for the piezo element, see fig. 4B, the pretensioning device 264 and the disc-like piezo 270).
Claim 40 - WO ‘527 teaches the piezoelectrically operated dispenser according to claim 39, wherein said receiving chamber is formed by at least one receiving chamber wall which extends away from said wick opening in the vertical axis direction and at least partially encloses said wick opening, as seen in a circumferential direction of said wick opening (WO ‘527: providing a pretensioning device for the piezo element, see fig. 4B, the pretensioning device 264 and the disc-like piezo 270).
Claim 41 - WO ‘527 teaches the piezoelectrically operated dispenser according to claim 39, wherein said pretensioning device is formed by an elastic spring element, which acts indirectly or directly on said electrically actuable piezo element and is supported on said mounting dome (WO ‘527: having a spring biasing the piezo element, see Fig. 3B, the spring 264 in the chamber 250.)
Claim 42 - WO ‘527 teaches the piezoelectrically operated dispenser according to claim 39, wherein:
said receiving chamber has a supporting device; and
said pretensioning device is disposed in said receiving chamber and/or said pretensioning device is supported in a region of said receiving chamber outlet opening by means of said supporting device (WO ‘527: having a spring biasing the piezo element, see Fig. 3B, the spring 264 in the chamber 250.)
Claim 43 - WO ‘527 teaches the piezoelectrically operated dispenser according to claim 42, wherein:
said supporting device is formed by a fixing sleeve, which is placed on said free end of said mounting dome, and which covers said receiving chamber outlet opening with a sleeve wall; and
said sleeve wall having a sleeve opening formed therein, via which the substance to be dispensed escapes from said receiving chamber, and an opening region of said sleeve wall projects into said receiving chamber outlet opening for supporting said pretensioning device (WO ‘527: having a fixing sleeve, see fig. 3B, the sleeve 244 with an opening).
Claim 46 - WO ‘527 teaches the piezoelectrically operated dispenser according to claim 37, wherein said free end of said mounting dome in said housing interior is directly adjacent to said housing outlet opening and/or in that said mounting dome, viewed in the vertical axis direction, extends from said housing bottom wall generally over an entire height of said housing interior to said housing outlet opening (WO ‘527: having the dome adjacent to the housing opening, see fig. 3B; see fig. 1).
Claim 47 - WO ‘527 teaches the piezoelectrically operated dispenser according to claim 37, wherein:
said mounting dome has, as seen in the vertical axis direction, an upper dome portion and, in relation thereto, a lower dome portion;
said lower dome portion has said mounting opening and said holding device for said neck of said container and/or extends approximately to a center of said housing interior, as viewed in the vertical axis direction; and
said upper dome portion has said mounting and receiving zone for said electrically actuable piezo element and said wick opening, said wick opening being in a form of a wick channel which has a lower opening area, relative to the vertical axis direction, via which said wick is insertable into said wick channel, and, in contrast thereto, an upper opening area (WO ‘527: the dome including the holding device and the wick channel, see fig. 3B, the lower part 226 and the upper part 246).
Claim 48 - WO ‘527 teaches the piezoelectrically operated dispenser according to claim 47, wherein said free wick end projects beyond said upper opening area in a mounted state and projects into said receiving chamber of said mounting and receiving zone (WO ‘527: the dome including the holding device and the wick channel, see fig. 3B, the lower part 226 and the upper part 246).
Claim 49 - WO ‘527 teaches the piezoelectrically operated dispenser according to claim 47, wherein said wick channel, viewed in the vertical axis direction, directly adjoins said mounting opening of said lower dome portion in an upward direction and/or in that an end face of said neck of said container in the assembled state abuts and/or is supported against a wall portion of said upper dome portion forming said lower opening area of said wick channel (WO ‘527: having a closed housing, see fig. 3B).
Claim 50 - WO ‘527 teaches the piezoelectrically operated dispenser according to claim 37, wherein said housing bottom wall forming an underside of said housing surrounds said mounting dome with a bottom wall edge region which is aligned generally horizontally with respect to the vertical axis direction and seen in a circumferential direction (WO ‘527: having a closed housing, see fig. 3B).
Claim 51 - WO ‘527 teaches the piezoelectrically operated dispenser according to claim 37, wherein:
said container has a cylindrical circumferential wall with a container bottom wall extending substantially horizontally with respect to the vertical axis direction and a container top wall extending substantially parallel thereto, said container top wall having said neck; and
said housing together with said container, in the assembled state, form a tower-like structure, said housing resting with said housing bottom wall on said container top wall (WO ‘527: the housing and the container having a similar geometry and forming a tower like structure, see fig. 3B, the lower housing 102 being removable to obtain the claimed assembly).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 44-45 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WO ‘527 in view of WO ‘433 (WO 2021/061433).
Claim 44 - WO ‘527 teaches the piezoelectrically operated dispenser according to claim 43, wherein:
said receiving chamber has a receiving chamber inner wall.
WO ‘527 does not fairly teach or suggest wherein said opening edge region of said sleeve wall projecting into said receiving chamber outlet opening, as seen in the circumferential direction, has at least in some regions a bend directed inwards into said receiving chamber in the direction of the vertical axis, so that between said bend and an associated wall region of said receiving chamber inner wall there is formed a supporting device which is U-shaped in cross section and in which said pretensioning device is received and supported. WO ‘433 is drawn to a comparable device and discloses said bend for retaining the spring, see fig. 20, the bend 164). Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made or filed to have modified the invention of WO ‘527 to use the spring retention feature of WO ‘433, as adaptation of one technique from one apparatus for a given purpose to a second apparatus for the same purpose is held to be prima facie obvious.
Claim 45 - WO ‘527 / WO ‘433 renders obvious the piezoelectrically operated dispenser according to claim 44, wherein said housing outlet opening, viewed in the vertical axis direction, is disposed above and/or in alignment with said free wick end and in alignment with said wick opening and said receiving chamber outlet opening and said sleeve opening (WO ‘527: having a fixing sleeve, see fig. 3B, the sleeve 244 with an opening).
Claim(s) 52-56 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US ‘025 (US PGPub 2013/0099025) in view of WO ‘527.
Claim 52 – US ‘025 teaches a method for operating a piezoelectrically operated dispenser (fig. 1, ref. 10), which comprises the steps of:
providing the piezoelectrically operated dispenser according to claim 37, the piezoelectrically operated dispenser further having an activation and deactivation device (40) for activating and deactivating the piezoelectrically operated dispenser and simultaneously also forms a setting device for setting a dispensing rate;
actuating the piezoelectrically operated atomizer system (55) such that:
starting from a switched-off state of the piezoelectrically operated dispenser, a first actuation of the activation and deactivation device for a defined minimum switch-on actuation period switches the piezoelectrically operated dispenser on and sets it to a first operating mode with which a first dispensing rate is set (par. [0033]);
subsequently, for each further actuation of the activation and deactivation device which is shorter than a defined minimum switch-off actuation period, setting at least one further operating mode with a higher dispensing rate than a respective previous dispensing rate, and that the activation and deactivation device is switched off in an event of an actuation which exceeds a defined switch-off actuation period (par. [0033]);
or subsequently, for each further actuation of the activation and deactivation device, a defined number of further operating modes, with a higher dispensing rate than the respective previous dispensing rate is set, and that after the actuation of a last operating mode a further actuation of the activation and deactivation device switches off the activation and deactivation device (par. [0033]).
WO ‘527 (fig. 3A) discloses a unique switch 172 to alter a function of the dispenser, including emission rate as described in par. [0042], but remains silent concerning the implementation of the operating function. The problem to be solved by the present invention can therefore be considered as how to modify the device disclosed in WO ‘527 to switch between multiple dispensing rate modes by means of a unique switch. The device of US ‘025 discloses a method for operating a ultrasonic atomizer with a singular button (fig. 1, the button 40 and par. [0033]) similar to D1. Considering the teachings of D4, the person skilled in the art would find in US ‘025 an incentive to implement the features of claim 29 in the device of WO ‘527 for achieving the same advantages, namely providing multiple dispensing rates using only one activation device.
Claim 53 – US ‘025 / WO ‘527 renders obvious the method according to claim 52, wherein:
that, in the first operating mode, the spraying time of the dispenser is in each case 1 to 10 seconds, and an interval between individual spraying times is 5 to 30 minutes; and
that in the at least one further operating mode, the spraying time of the dispenser is increased compared to the spraying time of the first operating mode and/or the interval between the individual spraying times is shortened compared to the interval of the first operating mode (US ‘025: getting back to the first dispensing rate in the cycle, having three modes, see par. [0033]).
Claim 54 – US ‘025 / WO ‘527 renders obvious the method according to claim 53, wherein:
the piezoelectric atomizer system, after its activation, is operated in an activation mode for a defined activation time, before it automatically switches to a sleeping mode for a remaining time, based on a period greater than the activation time; and
the piezoelectric atomizer system automatically switches back to the activation mode after a time for the sleeping mode has elapsed (US ‘025: getting back to the first dispensing rate in the cycle, having three modes, see par. [0033]).
Claim 55 – US ‘025 / WO ‘527 renders obvious the method for operating a dispenser according to claim 52, wherein:
the defined minimum switch-on actuation period lasts from about 0.1 to 3 seconds; and
the defined number of further operating modes is two further operating modes (US ‘025: getting back to the first dispensing rate in the cycle, having three modes, see par. [0033]).
Claim 56 – US ‘025 / WO ‘527 renders obvious the method according to claim 53, wherein:
the spraying time of the dispenser is in each case about 3 to 4 seconds; and
the interval between the individual spraying times being 15 to 17 minutes (selection of specific spraying times or intervals between them is held as prima facie obvious to obtain a desired process flow).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MICHAEL G MILLER whose telephone number is (571)270-1861. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00-5:30 EST.
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/MICHAEL G MILLER/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1712
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