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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 05/29/2025 and 11/11/2025 have been considered.
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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1, 2, 12, 13, 17 and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Hamasaki [CN 113917816 A].
Regarding claims 1 and 2, Hamasaki discloses an image forming apparatus [Fig. 1A] comprising a power supply unit [100] fixed to a casing [10], a power inlet [49] configured to supply, to the power supply unit, electric power supplied from an outside via a power cord [Para. 3 of page 5 of the translation], and an inlet support member [49a] to which the power inlet is fixed [Para. 3 and 4 of page 7 of the translation]; wherein the power supply unit including an electric board [101] configured to be supplied with the electric power from the power inlet, and a board support member [Para. 5 of page 5 of the translation] configured to support the electric board, and the power inlet is fixed to the board support member through intermediation of the inlet support member [Fig. 12B].
Regarding claims 12 and 13, Hamasaki discloses the power inlet is fixed by a plurality of screws [Para. 4 of page 7 of the translation].
Regarding claims 17 and 18, Hamasaki discloses the image forming apparatus comprising an electric component portion [103] provided in the casing.
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.
Claim(s) 16 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hamasaki in view of Noriyuki et al. [JP 2004082479 A]
Hasamaki, as discussed above, discloses the claimed invention except for the power cord is to be fixed to the inlet support member by screw.
Noriyuki et al. disclose an image forming apparatus comprising a power supply unit [600] including an inlet [604], into which a power cord is inserted, is fixed by crews [Para. 0002].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention was made to have the power supply unit disclosed by Hamasaki having an inlet, into which a power cord is inserted, is fixed by crews as taught by Noriyuki et al. for the purpose of securing the attachment of the power cord.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-11, 14 and 15 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.
Contact Information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the
examiner should be directed to HOAN H TRAN whose telephone number is (571)272-2141.
The examiner can normally be reached on M-F 9AM-5:30PM.
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, Walter Lindsay can be reached on 571-272-1674. The fax phone number for the
organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent
Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications
may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished
applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR
system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private
PAIRsystem, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you
would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the
automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/HOAN H TRAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2852 06/27/26
Prosecution Insights