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 .
This is the first office action for application number 19/185,523, ATTACHMENT SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR AQUATIC BASKETS, filed on April 22, 2025.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Specification
Applicant is reminded of the proper language and format for an abstract of the disclosure.
The abstract should be in narrative form and generally limited to a single paragraph on a separate sheet within the range of 50 to 150 words in length. The abstract should describe the disclosure sufficiently to assist readers in deciding whether there is a need for consulting the full patent text for details.
The language should be clear and concise and should not repeat information given in the title. It should avoid using phrases which can be implied, such as, “The disclosure concerns,” “The disclosure defined by this invention,” “The disclosure describes,” etc. In addition, the form and legal phraseology often used in patent claims, such as “means” and “said,” should be avoided.
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities: on page 1, in the title, “Improved” should be deleted; in paragraph [0034], line 1 and throughout the specification “centre” should be changed to –center--; and in paragraph [0055], line 9, “BY” should be changed to –By--.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 4 recites the limitation "the enclosure" in line 4. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
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 and 3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by U.S. Patent No. 4,793,284 to Davis. Davis discloses an elongate member (14) for attachment to and along the axis of an aquaculture basket (12) to provide rigidity and support to the basket, wherein the basket is configured to hold aquatic life (13) therein, the basket having a first end, a second end opposite the first end, an upper surface (formed by elements 22 & 23), a lower surface (19), and a length from the first end to the second end; and comprising a locking bar (top, horizontal portion of element 14, see Fig. 1.
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.
Claim(s) 2, 7, and 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Davis. Davis further discloses a location (15) for attachment of a component (16, 17, & 18) and configured to engage with a lock to secure the enclosure to a lock. Davis discloses the claimed invention except for the limitations of a plurality of locations for attachment of other components; wherein the locking bar comprises a plurality of attachment points configured to engage with a clip lock to secure the enclosure to the clip lock; and wherein the other components comprise one or more of: a second basket, a longline engagement means, a quick release, a clip lock, a float.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the elongate member in Davis to have included a plurality of locations for attachment, since such a modification would have merely involved a duplication of parts in effort to increase the number and variety of items that can be attached to the elongate member during usage and would not have yielded any unpredictable results. St. Regis Pater Co. v. Bemis. Inc., 193 USPQ 8, 11, (7th Cir. 1977).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-6 and 9 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: the limitations of the locking bar having a latch including two tabs that are configured to engage the locking bar in place; the locking bar having an end stop to limit the insertion depth of the locking bar; or the locking bar configured for slidable engagement with at least one aperture of the basket, cited respectively in the dependent claims and in combination with the other elements recited in each respective claim, the base claim and any intervening claims, which is not found in the prior art.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. WIPO application No. WO2018027283 to Thompson is directed to a flotation device for an oyster basket. U.S. Patent No. 9,801,359 to Thompson is directed to an aquaculture basket clip and line protector used to suspend the basket. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0215390 to Jack et al. is directed to catamaran-shaped floatation device wherein an oyster basket can be attached. U.S. Patent No. 8,020,516 to Labra is directed to a device and method for the sea-based culture of sea urchins and abalones having two parallel lateral elements. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2011/0220032 to Pendergrast et al. is directed to an aquaculture basket including a top basket part, a bottom basket part, and at least one door.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ANITA M KING whose telephone number is (571)272-6817. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7:30am-4:00pm.
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/ANITA M KING/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3632 September 2, 2026
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