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 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.
Claims 5, 14, 18 and 29 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.
Claim 5 states “a width of said contoured wall portion is greater than a width of any of each said bottom surface portion.” What does “any of each said bottom surface portion” mean? It could mean any one of said bottom surface portions. It could mean each bottom surface portion. The metes and bounds of claim 5 are not precise.
Claim 14 recites the limitation "said curved corner" in line 3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 18 recites the limitation "said curved point" in line 2. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 29 recites the limitation "said curved corner" in line 3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
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.
Claim(s) 1-4, 6-11, 13-22 and 24-30 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a) (1) as being anticipated by Melrose et al. (US 11731823) (Melrose).
Melrose discloses a plastic container as shown in Fig. 5 comprising: a container body comprising a bottom portion (lower portion 18), an upper portion 12, a sidewall portion 22 extending between said upper portion and said bottom portion, and a finish portion 14, said container body having a chamber defined therein, said finish portion extends from said upper portion and defines a mouth in fluid communication with said chamber; said bottom portion including a base portion comprising (i) a support surface (standing surface 21’), (ii) a plurality of ribs (standing surface 21’ protrudes downwardly from webs 246), (iii) a plurality of voids (webs 246), and (iv) an inner core (pressure panel 240 and all parts of the base surface extending inwardly from the pressure panel) aligned with a central axis (longitudinal, vertical central axis) of said container body, said inner core including a contoured wall portion (top or uppermost portion of push up 248), a first radiused wall portion (conical sidewall of push up 248) adjacent said contoured wall portion, and a second radiused wall portion (pressure panel 240) adjacent said first radiused wall portion, wherein said plurality of ribs and said plurality of voids are arranged radially (radially outwardly from) relative to said inner core, and wherein said bottom portion is configured to permit a region of said base portion to move in response to a pressure differential (entire inner core will move in response to pressure changes, see Fig. 27B -27E).
Note that the “configured to permit a region of said base portion to move in response to a pressure differential” is a process of use limitation within a product claim. Melrose has the capability of performing the intended use function.
Re claims 2 and 24, said pressure differential is a functional element in all of the claims. As pressure in the container changes as would occur in a sealed bottle after a hot filling procedure wherein vacuum pressures would occur after cooling, there can be many stages, prefilled container conditions a pressure, hot fill conditions and pressure, initial conditions and pressure upon sealing and final conditions and pressure with sealed container after cooling.
Re claim 2, the container is capable of being used in a process wherein said pressure differential comprises (i) a first pressure differential present during a first fluid processing stage of said container body, (ii) a second pressure differential present during a second fluid processing stage of said container body, said second pressure differential being different than said first pressure differential, and said second fluid processing stage being different than said first fluid processing stage, and (iii) a third pressure differential present during a third fluid processing stage of said container body, said third pressure differential being different than each of said first pressure differential and said second pressure differential, and said third fluid processing stage being different than each of said first fluid processing stage and said second fluid processing stage, and said contoured wall portion has a first height in response to said first pressure differential, a second height in response to said second pressure differential, said second height being less than said first height, and a third height in response to said third pressure differential, said third height being different than each of said first height and said second height. For example compare Fig. 27B and 27E, Fig. 27E discloses a higher height of the push up 248 and Fig. 27B discloses a lower height of the push up 248. The pressure panel 240 (second radiused wall portion) may invert (change from concave to convex or vice versa), this change may be sudden or gradual, in either a sudden change or a gradual change, there are heights achieved between the two shown heights in Fig. 27E and 27B. There are more than three heights. Said second height being less than said first height
Re claim 3, said third height is greater than each of said first height and said second height. The third height is larger than the first and second heights and the first height is larger than the second height. The container is capable of being used in a process wherein the third height is greater than each of said first height and said second height.
Re claim 4, each rib of said plurality of ribs includes a bottom surface portion having a surface area (surface area of each standing surface 21’ defined as “x”), said support surface comprises a surface area (4x) defined by a cumulative surface area of each said surface area of each said bottom surface portion.
Re claims 6 and 25, said support surface (second radiused wall portion 240) extends towards said upper portion as it extends away from said inner core (see Fig. 27B).
Re claim 7, a number of said plurality of ribs (4) is equal to a number of said plurality of voids (4) as shown in Fig. 5.
Re claim 8, each of said plurality of voids has a tapered configuration (tapered sidewalls) comprising an upper surface (horizonal) and a lower gap portion (gap extends beneath upper surface and tapered sidewalls), wherein a width of said lower gap portion is greater than a width of said upper surface.
Re claim 9, each of said plurality of voids has a same height relative to said support surface.
Re claim 10, said base portion further comprises a cylindrical base wall portion (outermost vertically extending sidewall of larger diameter than sidewall portion 22), said support surface (21’) is between said cylindrical base wall portion and said second radiused wall portion (240).
Re claims 11 and 22, said first radiused wall portion (conical sidewall of push up 248) has an angled configuration (angle of conical sidewall of push up 248 to either the vertical, longitudinal central axis or to a horizontal plane) and said second radiused wall portion has an angled configuration (angle of pressure plane 240 to either the vertical, longitudinal central axis or to a horizontal plane), and wherein an angle of said first radiused wall portion angled configuration is greater than an angle of said second radiused wall portion angled configuration (as shown in Fig. 27B -27E, the angle of the first radiused wall portion with respect to a horizontal plane is from 45 – 60 degrees and steeper than the angle of the second radiused wall portion with respect to a horizontal plane is from 0-15 degrees and shallower).
Re claims 13 and 26, said region of said base portion comprises an active region (active interpreted as movable rather than stationary, with flexing and height changes) defined by a relationship between said contoured wall portion, said first radiused wall portion, and said second radiused wall portion.
Re claims 14 and 29, said region of said base portion comprises an active region (active interpreted as movable rather than stationary, with flexing and height changes) defined by a relationship between said contoured wall portion, said first radiused wall portion, said second radiused wall portion, said surface area and said curved corner.
Re claims 15 and 27, said base portion further comprises a curved corner and a curve point, said curve point adjacent said curved corner, wherein said curved corner is configured to move relative to said curve point as said plastic container transitions from said first fluid processing stage to said third fluid processing stage. Re claims 16 and 28, curve point is configured to remain radially stationary as said plastic container transitions from said first fluid processing stage to said third fluid processing stage. Claims 15-16 and 27-28 are best explained by referencing annotated Fig. 27C and 27D:
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The curved corner is all surfaces of the curve (note curved in cross section and curved in circumferential or annular direction) and the curved point (point which doesn’t move radially) is the one point on the outermost portion of the curved corner and adjacent to the vertical extending inner annular wall portion.
Re claim 17, said base portion further comprises a hinge point (annular hinge 250, see Fig. 6), and said second radiused wall portion (240) having an angled configuration (see explanation for claim 11) adjacent said hinge point (250).
Re claim 18, said support surface (21’) is between said hinge point (250) and said curve point (curve point associated with curve of outer wall 30’, see Fig. 27A-27E).
Re claim 19, Melrose discloses a plastic container comprising: a container body comprising a bottom portion, an upper portion, a sidewall portion extending between said upper portion and said bottom portion, and a finish portion, said container body having a chamber defined therein, said finish portion extending from said upper portion and defining a mouth in fluid communication with said chamber; said bottom portion including a base portion comprising (i) a support surface, (ii) a plurality of ribs, (iii) a plurality of voids, and (iv) an inner core aligned with a central axis of said container body, said inner core including a contoured wall portion, a first radiused wall portion, and a second radiused wall portion adjacent said first radiused wall portion, said base portion further comprising a hinge point, and said second radiused wall portion having an angled configuration adjacent said hinge point, wherein said plurality of ribs and said plurality of voids are arranged radially relative to said inner core, and wherein said bottom portion is configured to permit a region of said base portion to move in response to a pressure differential. All of these limitations have been addressed in previous claims.
Re claim 20, a height of said contoured wall portion (the contoured wall portion includes the push up 2480 is greater than a height of any void of said plurality of voids (shown in Fig. 27B and 27E).
Re claim 21, said second radiused wall portion 240 is closer to said support surface 21’ than said first radiused wall portion (conical sidewall of push up 248) along a lateral (radial) direction of said container body.
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) 5, 12 and 23 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Melrose.
Re claim 5, the width of the bottom surface portion is not critical. Official notice is taken that a very slim width of a bottom surface portion would be enough to provide sufficient width when multiplied by length to provide a sufficient surface area for container stability and stable stacking and for withstanding stacking forces. Additionally, the surface area of one rib is multiplied by the number of ribs. Additionally, there is no indication that the bottom surface portion is the entire contacting portion of the rib. It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present invention to reduce the bottom surface portion width to less than the contoured wall portion width to reduce the portion making surface contact to limit the surface area of contact to leave a smaller sized impression.
Re claims 12 and 23, the angle of the second radiused wall portion is not critical. As stated before, the angle shown by Melrose with respect to the horizontal plane is shallow and 1 – 25 degrees corresponds to a shallow angle. It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the present invention to provide a second radiused wall portion angle in the range of 1 degree to 25 degree as an expected range of shallow angles that are acceptable for the container’s pressure accommodating performance. Additionally, the reference plane could be a plane oriented at an angle to the horizontal and a plane angled 1 – 25 degrees from a plane parallel with the second radiused wall portion.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 30 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to STEPHEN J CASTELLANO whose telephone number is (571)272-4535. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday.
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sjc/STEPHEN J CASTELLANO/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3733
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