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
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) 1-3 and 11-13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1 ) as being anticipated by Austermeier et al (CN 110418740).
Austermeier et al disclose a pedal simulator, comprising: a piston (28) connected to a pedal of a vehicle, and configured to be movable in response to movement of the pedal (see Fig 2); a reaction force member (44) having compressible material configured to be compressible by movement of the piston (28) in a first direction to provide a reaction force against the movement of the piston (28) in a second direction opposite to the first direction (see Fig 2); and a friction member (30) movably disposed in a housing (22) to be movable in the first and second directions and having elastic material configured to be deformable such that the friction member (30) is compressed when being moved in the second direction and the friction member (30) is expanded when being moved in the first direction, wherein the friction member (30) is in contact with the piston (28) to apply friction to the movement of the piston (28) and move in a same direction as the movement of the piston (28).
Re claim 2, the friction member (30) has a ring shape surrounding an outer surface of the piston (28).
Re claim 3, the friction member (30) comprises a portion having a radial thickness that increases in the first direction (see Fig 2).
Re claim 11, Austermeier et al disclose a pedal simulator comprising: a piston (28) connected to a pedal of a vehicle, and configured to be movable in response to movement of the pedal; and a friction member (30) movably disposed in a housing (22) to be movable in first and second directions and having elastic material configured to be deformable such that the friction member (30) is compressed when being moved in the second direction and the friction member (30) is expanded when being moved in the first direction opposite to the second direction (see Fig 2), wherein the friction member (30) is in contact with the piston (28) to apply friction to the movement of the piston (28) and move in a same direction as the movement of the piston (28).
Re claim 12, the friction member (28) has a ring shape surrounding an outer surface of the piston (28).
Re claim 13, the friction member (30) comprises a portion having a radial thickness that increases in the first direction (see Fig 2).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-10 and 14-20 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
US 10948941 pedal
US 20020117893 simulator
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/VICKY A JOHNSON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3617