DETAILED ACTION
Claims 1-13 are active.
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 .
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.
Priority
Applicant’s claim for the benefit of a prior-filed application under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) or under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, 365(c), or 386(c) is acknowledged.
Drawings
The drawings were received on 5/6/2025. These drawings are acceptable.
Specification
The specification has not been checked to the extent necessary to determine the presence of all possible minor errors. Applicant’s cooperation is requested in correcting any errors of which applicant may become aware in the specification.
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.
Claim(s) 4-6 and 9-12 is/are 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.
Claims 4 and 9 recite the limitation “the firearm” in line 5. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claims, since a firearm was not previously claimed.
Claims 5 and 10 recite the limitation “the rear face” in line 4. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claims, since a rear face of the rim of the cartridge casing was not previously claimed.
Claims 6 and 11-12 are rejected for depending from an indefinite claim.
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.
Claim(s) 1-13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ader et al. (US 2025/0237451), herein ‘Ader’, and further in view of Tritsch (US 11300374), herein ‘Tritsch’.
Regarding claims 1 and 13, Ader discloses a bolt assembly (300; Fig. 6) comprising:
a bolt body (320);
a bolt face (310) positioned at an end of the bolt body (Fig. 6) and configured to engage a cartridge casing (Fig. 5; par. 51) for chambering;
an extractor (330) movably coupled to the bolt body (Fig. 6; via pivot 515) and configured to engage and retain a rim of the cartridge casing (Fig. 5; par. 52);
a case guide (340) movably coupled to the bolt body opposite the extractor (Fig. 6; via pivot 615) and configured to engage the cartridge casing together with the extractor (Fig. 5; par. 52); and
a resilient element (510, 610) coupled to the extractor and the case guide (Fig. 6), the resilient element being configured to exert a force to move the extractor and the case guide together to engage and hold the cartridge casing against the bolt face when the extractor and the case guide are moved apart against the force by insertion of the cartridge casing between the extractor and the case guide (Fig. 6; par. 52).
Ader does not expressly teach wherein the bolt assembly is a multi-caliber bolt assembly arranged such that the extractor and the case guide are moved apart against the force of the resilient element by insertion of the cartridge casing between the extractor and the case guide regardless of the size of the cartridge casing.
Tritsch teaches a bolt assembly (19) for a firearm (11), the bolt assembly comprising a bolt body (41), a bolt face (49), an extractor (53), a case guide (67) positioned opposite the extractor, and a resilient member (77) biasing the case guide radially inward toward a rim (37) of a cartridge case (33), wherein the bolt head can be configured to allow slight movement of the extractor, which may accommodate varying rim diameters (col. 3 lines 45-47).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention for the extractor and the case guide of Ader to be moved apart against the force of the resilient element by insertion of the cartridge casing between the extractor and the case guide regardless of the size of the cartridge casing as taught by Tritsch with a reasonable expectation of success in order to enable the bolt assembly to accommodate cartridge cases of varying rim diameters (Tritsch; col. 3 lines 45-47).
Regarding claim 2, the modified Ader discloses wherein the extractor includes a first extractor end (Fig. 6; distal end of extractor 330), a second extractor end (Fig. 6; proximal end of extractor 330), and a pivot pin (515) positioned between the first extractor end and the second extractor end to pivotably mount the extractor on the bolt body (Fig. 6);
wherein the case guide includes a first case guide end (Fig. 6; distal end of case guide 340), a second case guide end (Fig. 6; proximal end of case guide 340), and a pivot pin (615) positioned between the first case guide end and the second case guide end to pivotably mount the case guide on the bolt body (Fig. 6);
wherein the resilient element is coupled to and between the second extractor end and the second case guide end (Fig. 6);
wherein the resilient element is configured to compress when the first extractor end and the first case guide are moved apart by the cartridge casing and the second extractor end and the second case guide end are thereby moved toward one another (Figs. 5-6; par. 41 and 51-52); and
wherein the resilient element is configured to resiliently expand to exert the force to move the second extractor end and the second case guide end apart to thereby move the first extractor end and the first case guide end toward one another to engage and hold the cartridge casing (Figs. 5-6; par. 41 and 51-52).
Regarding claims 3 and 8, the modified Ader discloses wherein the resilient element is a spring (510 and 610; Fig. 6; par. 52).
Regarding claims 4 and 9, the modified Ader discloses wherein the first extractor end includes a hook (Fig. 6) configured to be inserted into a case rim groove in the cartridge casing behind the rim of the cartridge casing to engage a front rim face of the rim to pull the cartridge casing out of a chamber (108) of a firearm (100) after firing (Fig. 5; par. 52); and
wherein the first case guide end includes an outward protrusion (Fig. 6) configured to engage an outer rim edge of the rim of the cartridge casing to press the cartridge casing against the first extractor end (par. 52).
Regarding claims 5 and 10, the modified Ader discloses wherein the hook and the outward protrusion are configured such that, during ejection of the cartridge casing from the firearm, the outer rim edge is pushed out of engagement with the outward protrusion and the cartridge casing is pivoted around the hook in engagement with a rear face of the rim and out of the firearm (Figs. 5-6; par. 52).
Regarding claims 6 and 11, the modified Ader does not expressly teach wherein each of the hook and the outward protrusion includes curved or beveled side surfaces for insertion of the cartridge casing in an upward direction perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the cartridge casing.
Tritsch further teaches wherein each of the hook (57) of the extractor (53) and the outward protrusion (Fig. 11) of the case guide (67) include curved surfaces (59, 79; col. 3 lines 21-23) for insertion of the cartridge casing in an upward direction perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the cartridge casing (Figs. 4-5).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention for the hook and the outward protrusion of Ader to include curved or beveled side surfaces as taught by Tritsch with a reasonable expectation of success in order to receive the rounded circumferential surface of the rim of the cartridge casing and to engage the rounded circumferential surface of the rim of the cartridge casing without contacting the forward surface of the rim of the cartridge casing, thereby applying a force on the rim of the cartridge casing for causing the rim to remain engaged with the extractor (Tritsch; col. 3 lines 16-24).
Regarding claims 7 and 12, the modified Ader discloses wherein the bolt body includes a pair of recessed slots opening in the bolt face (Figs. 5-6);
wherein each of the case guide and the extractor are positioned in a respective one of the recessed slots (Figs. 5-6); and
wherein each of the case guide and the extractor are configured to engage and be stopped by a slot surface of a respective one of the recessed slots when pivoted maximally toward one another (Fig. 6).
Conclusion
Claims 1-13 are rejected.
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Rousseau et al. (US 8069600) discloses a multi-caliber bolt (120) for a firearm (100) including at least an extractor (122) biased radially inward by a biasing member (132) such that the extractor is configured to move outward to accommodate cartridge cases having different outside diameters (col. 4 lines 16-18).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BENJAMIN S GOMBERG whose telephone number is (571)272-4802. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM EST.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Troy Chambers can be reached at (571)272-6874. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/Troy Chambers/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3641
/BENJAMIN S. GOMBERG/
Examiner
Art Unit 3641