Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
1. 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.
2. Claims 1-3, 5-6, 9-10, 12, and 15-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Japanese Publication No. 2003-192161 (hereinafter “JP’161”).
Regarding claim 1, Figs. 1-2 show a medium conveyance device (Fig. 2) comprising:
a rotating body (1) configured to rotate in contact with a medium (S);
a conductive rotating shaft (1a) to which the rotating body (1) is attached, the conductive rotating shaft (1a) rotating the rotating body (1);
a bearing (opening in plate on right side in Fig. 2 for shaft 1a) configured to rotatably hold the rotating shaft (1a);
a conductive contact section (6) provided between the rotating body (1) and the bearing (opening in plate on right side in Fig. 2) in an axial direction of the rotating shaft (1a) and capable of coming into contact with the rotating shaft (1a); and
a grounding member (numbered paragraph [0005] of the machine translation) configured to ground the contact section (6).
Regarding claim 2, Fig. 2 shows that a hole having a diameter larger than a diameter of the rotating shaft (1a) is formed in the contact section (6).
Regarding claim 3, Fig. 2 shows a path forming section (3) configured to form a conveyance path on which the medium (S) is conveyed, wherein the path forming section (3) includes a path surface (upper surface of element 3) that forms the conveyance path, and
at least a portion of the contact section (6) is provided on a side opposite to the path surface (upper surface of element 3) with respect to the path forming section (3).
Regarding claim 5, Fig. 2 shows that the contact section (6) includes:
a ring section (upper rounded section) in which a hole (hole for shaft 1a) having a diameter larger than a diameter of the rotating shaft (1a) is formed; and
a flange section (straight lower section) protruding from the ring section (upper rounded section) in a radial direction of the hole (hole for shaft 1a), and
the path forming section (3) includes a holding section (3a) that holds the flange section (straight lower section).
Regarding claim 6, Fig. 2 shows that the holding section (3b) holds the contact section (6) to be incapable of rotating.
Regarding claim 9, Fig. 2 shows that the grounding member (e.g., plate on right side in Fig. 2 (see numbered paragraph [0005] of the machine translation)) inherently has elasticity and urges the contact section (6) via element 3a toward the rotating shaft (1a), the path forming section (3) includes a holding section (3a) that holds the contact section (6), and the holding section (3a) holds the contact section (6) to be displaceable in an urging direction (left or right) in which the grounding member (numbered paragraph [0005] of machine translation) urges the contact section (6).
Regarding claim 10, Fig. 2 show that the holding section (3a) extends further in a direction opposite (down) to the urging direction (up) than the grounding member (e.g., wall on right side in Fig. 2 (see numbered paragraph [0005] of the machine translation)).
Regarding claim 12, as best understood, Fig. 2 shows that the grounding member ((e.g., wall on right side in Fig. 2 (see numbered paragraph [0005] of the machine translation)) inherently has elasticity and urges the contact section (6) toward the rotating shaft (1a). As best understood, numbered paragraph [0005] teaches that contact section (6) is attached to grounding member and shaft (1a), such that grounding member urges contact member (6) to shaft (1a).
Regarding claim 15, Fig. 2 shows an image reading device (copying machine in numbered paragraph [0003]) comprising:
a medium conveyance device (Fig. 2) including:
a rotating body (1) configured to rotate in contact with a medium (S);
a conductive rotating shaft (1a) to which the rotating body (1) is attached, the conductive rotating shaft (1a) rotating the rotating body (1);
a bearing (opening in element 5 on right side for shaft 1a) configured to rotatably hold the rotating shaft (1a);
a conductive contact section (6) provided between the rotating body (1) and the bearing (opening in wall on right side for shaft 1a) in an axial direction of the rotating shaft (1a) and capable of coming into contact with the rotating shaft (1a); and
a grounding member (numbered paragraph [0005] of the machine translation) configured to ground the contact section (6); and
a reading unit (‘image reading section” in numbered paragraph [0003]) configured to read an image of the medium conveyed by the medium conveyance device (Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 16, Fig. 2 shows a printing apparatus (printer) comprising:
the image reading device according to claim 15; and
a printing unit (“image forming section” in numbered paragraph [0003]) configured to print the image read by the image reading device.
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 (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 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.
3. Claim 13 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over JP’161 as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of U.S. Patent No. 9,535,389 (Muramatsu et al.) (hereinafter “Muramatsu”). With regard to claim 13, JP’161 shows that the rotating body (1) is a separation roller that separates a stacked plurality of media, but JP’161 does not show that the rotating body is attachable and detachable, as claimed.
Muramatsu shows that it is well-known in the art to provide a medium conveying device (Fig. 1) with a separation roller (10A) that is attachable to and detachable from a rotating shaft (109), for the purpose of replacing the separation roller (10A) when it is worn out. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to provide the apparatus of JP’161 with a separation roller that is attachable to and detachable from the rotating shaft for the purpose of replacing the separation roller when it is worn out, as shown in Muramatsu. Providing the apparatus of JP’161 with an attachable and detachable separation roller, in a manner as taught by the separation roller location in Fig. 2 of JP’161, results in the separation roller being attachable to and detachable from the rotating shaft from a side opposite to the contact section, as claimed.
Allowable Subject Matter
4. Claims 4, 7-8, 11 and 14 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
5. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THOMAS A MORRISON whose telephone number is (571)272-7221. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9am - 5pm.
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/THOMAS A MORRISON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3653