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 Objections
Claims 6 and 20 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 6, line 3, “a sway bar” should read - - the sway bar - -.
Claim 20, line 2, “completed sway bar bushing” should read - - the sway bar bushing - -.
Appropriate correction is required.
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, 2, 5 – 9, 11 – 14, 16, 18 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 as being anticipated by Urban et al. 4916749.
Claims 1, 7, 11 and 12, Urban discloses sway bar bushing (elastomeric bushing 10)(Fig. 1 – 3)(col. 2, ll. 64 – 65) comprising: an outer body (body 12)(col. 2, l. 66) having an outer wall surface and an inner wall surface, the outer wall surface being adapted to interface with a sway-bar mounting bracket (col. 3, ll. 10 – 12: “[a] mounting bracket (not shown) engages bracket surface 24 disposed between flanges 26 and is secured to the motor vehicle”); and an inner liner (fabric liner 40)(col. 4, l. 4) comprising: an inner surface disposable in contact with an outer surface (of bar shaped suspension link 20)(col. 3, ll. 3 – 5) of a sway bar (col. 3, ll. 7 – 8: “stabilizer bar”); an outer surface; and a helical rib protruding radially outwardly from the outer surface of the inner liner and into the outer body from the inner surface thereof (col. 3, ll. 36 – 40: “[f]or example, the circumferential surface of axial bore 14 can be provided with intersecting ridges that form diamond, chevron, or radial spline patterns. In addition, a pattern combining axial first ridges and helical second ridges can be employed” and col. 4, ll. 3 – 6: “axial bore 14 preferably is covered with a fabric liner 40 (knit/woven) conforming to the contour of the projected and recessed surface portions of bore 14”), the interface between the helical rib and the outer body strengthening engagement between the outer body and the inner liner (the engagement between the “waffle” contour of the fabric liner and the recesses and ridges of outer body creates a retention feature that prevents relative movement between the liner and the outer body).
Claim 2, Urban discloses the helical rib of the inner liner completing at least one complete circumnavigation of the outer surface along the length of the inner liner (see Fig. 2, col. 3, ll. 36 – 40 and col. 4, ll. 3 – 6).
Claim 5, Urban discloses the sway bar bushing comprising a generally cylindrical shape.
Claim 6, Urban discloses the outer wall 28 of the outer body has an elevated midsection (circumferential rib 28) protruding outwardly from the surface of the outer wall, the elevated midsection being adapted to interface with a sway bar mounting bracket (col. 3, ll. 12 – 16: “[b]racket surface 24 preferably includes circumferential rib 28 to assist in providing uniform compression of the elastomeric material between the mounting bracket and the stabilizer bar”).
Claim 8, Urban discloses the inner liner being formed of polytetrafluoroethylene (col. 4, ll. 8 – 11: “[f]abric liner 40 preferably is a double knit fabric that is woven from fibers of polyester and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE)”).
Claim 9, Urban discloses the inner liner being formed around a core pin (col. 4, ll. 31 – 35: “[i]n accordance with the method of this invention, the circumferential surface of the mandrel is covered with fabric liner 40, preferably a double-knit polyester-PTFE fabric having its mandrel-contacting surface comprised largely of PTFE fibers”).
Claim 13, Urban discloses a method of forming a sway bar bushing 10, the method comprising the steps of: forming an inner liner 40 of polytetrafluoroethylene (col. 4, ll. 8 – 11), the inner liner comprising: an inner surface 14 disposable in contact with an outer surface of a sway bar (col. 3, ll. 7 – 8); an outer surface; and a helical rib protruding radially outwardly from the outer surface of the inner liner forming an outer body 12 around the inner liner (col. 3, ll. 36 – 40 and col. 4, ll. 3 – 6), the outer body having an outer surface 24 and an inner surface 14, the outer surface being adapted to interface with a sway-bar mounting bracket (col. 3, ll. 10 – 12), the outer body being formed on the inner liner such that the helical rib extends into the inner surface of the outer body, the interface between the helical rib and the outer body strengthening engagement between the outer body and the inner liner (the engagement between the “waffle” contour of the fabric liner and the recesses and ridges of outer body creates a retention feature that prevents relative movement between the liner and the outer body).
Claim 14, Urban discloses the step of forming the outer body including molding the outer body to the inner liner (col. 4, ll. 37 – 39: “[a]fter the mandrel is covered with the fabric liner, the elastomeric body is cast around the mandrel”).
Claim 16, Urban discloses the step of allowing the formed outer body to cure to the inner liner (inherent, if not obvious, since the outer body would require drying prior to removal from a mold).
Claim 18, Urban discloses the step of forming the outer body including allowing the material that forms the outer body to become at least partially incorporated into the outer surface of the inner liner (col. 4, ll. 39 – 43: “[t]he elastomeric material, preferably natural rubber or butyl rubber, forces the fabric liner to assume the contour of the mandrel to achieve the desired contouring of the projected and recessed surface portions of the bushing”).
Claim 19, Urban discloses the step of forming a generally cylindrical sway bar bushing, wherein the generally cylindrical sway bar bushing comprises a first end opening and a second end opening.
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) 3, 10 and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Urban et al. 4916749.
Urban discloses all of the limitations of the invention of claims 3 and 17, except for the outer body being fabricated from or formed of polyurethane.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide an outer body fabricated from polyurethane, since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select a known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice. In re Leshin, 125 USPQ 416. For example, one of ordinary skill may use polyurethane for its particular resiliency characteristics, since Urban discloses that elastomeric materials other than natural rubber or butyl rubber can be used (col. 4, ll. 59 – 62: “elastomeric materials other than natural rubber or butyl rubber can be used to provide a bushing with the particular resiliency characteristics of such alternative materials”).
Urban discloses all of the limitations of the invention of claim 10, including the outer body being formed by casting an elastomeric material (col. 2, ll. 66 – 67) into a mold (not shown, but inherent if not obvious, to casting in order to form the shape of the bushing) around the inner liner disposed upon the core pin.
Urban does not expressly disclose polyurethane.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use polyurethane, since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select a known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice. In re Leshin, 125 USPQ 416. For example, one of ordinary skill may use polyurethane for its particular resiliency characteristics, since Urban discloses that elastomeric materials other than natural rubber or butyl rubber can be used (col. 4, ll. 59 – 62: “elastomeric materials other than natural rubber or butyl rubber can be used to provide a bushing with the particular resiliency characteristics of such alternative materials”).
Claim(s) 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Urban et al. 4916749 as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Monroe USP 11787257.
Urban discloses all of the limitation of the invention of claim 4, except for an axial slit being formed along the length of the sway bar bushing.
Monroe teaches that it was known to form at axil slit 324 (Fig 3A) along the length of a sway bar busing (torsion bushing 200), in order to enable expansion of the bushing during assembly onto the sway bar (col. 14, ll. 19 – 20: “[t]he slit 324 may allow the torsion bushing 200 to be expanded to receive the torsion rod 106 into the bore 204”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the bushing device of Urban, such that an axial slit is formed along the length of the sway bar bushing, as taught by Monroe, for the purpose of enabling expansion of the bushing during assembly onto the sway bar.
Claim(s) 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Urban et al. 4916749 as applied to claim 13 above, and further in view of Teno et al. USP 4756269.
Urban discloses all of the limitations of the invention claim 15, except for the step of forming the outer body including atmospheric casting of the outer body to the inner body.
Teno teaches that it was known to use atmospheric casting for shaping elastomeric components (col. 2, ll. 30 – 33: “[t]he stacking ring 10 of this invention is basically a molded, synthetic elastomeric cylinder (e.g. urethane, silicone) which is formulated to cure at room temperature in a simple cavity mold at atmospheric pressure”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the step of forming the outer body of Urban with atmospheric casting, since such a modification would have been suitable for forming elastomeric bushings, as taught and suggested by Teno.
Claim(s) 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Urban et al. 4916749 as applied to claim 19 above, and further in view of Monroe USP 11787257.
Urban discloses all of the limitation of the invention of claim 4, except for the step of cutting a slice through the sway bar bushing, wherein the slice is cut from the first end opening to the second end opening.
Monroe teaches that it was known to cut a slice 324 (Fig. 3A) through a sway bar bushing 200, wherein the slice is cut from the first end opening to the second end opening, in order to enable expansion of the bushing during assembly onto the sway bar (col. 14, ll. 19 – 20: “[t]he slit 324 may allow the torsion bushing 200 to be expanded to receive the torsion rod 106 into the bore 204”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the bushing device of Urban to include the step of cutting a slice through the sway bar bushing, wherein the slice is cut from the first end opening to the second end opening, as taught by Monroe, for the purpose of enabling expansion of the bushing during assembly onto the sway bar.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 21 is 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.
As allowable subject matter has been indicated, applicant's reply must either comply with all formal requirements or specifically traverse each requirement not complied with. See 37 CFR 1.111(b) and MPEP § 707.07(a).
Conclusion
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/PHILLIP A JOHNSON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3617
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