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 .
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.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 09/25/2025 has been considered by the examiner.
Specification
The specification is objected to as failing to provide proper antecedent basis for the claimed subject matter. See 37 CFR 1.75(d)(1) and MPEP § 608.01(o). Correction of the following is required:
Claim 1 recites "freely fitted". Applicant's disclosure does not appear to use this term. As best understood, this corresponds to the term "loosely fitted" used in paragraph [0035] of the specification which states:
As shown in FIG. 11, the third gear 120 and the screw shaft 122 are loosely fitted to each other in a state in which a gap is provided between the insertion shaft 140 and the insertion hole 144 and between the projection 142 and the engaging groove 145 in the radial direction R.
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 1 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 1 recites "the rotation of the rotation input component is transmitted to the rotation portion by interlocking a first protruding portion or a first recessed portion provided on the rotation input component with a second recessed portion or a second protruding portion provided on the rotation portion, and"
The way the language is worded, the claims recites a possible combination of limitations that includes:
a first protruding portion interlocked with a second recessed portion,
a first protruding portion interlocked with a second protruding portion,
a first recessed portion interlocked with a second recessed portion,
a first recessed portion interlocked with a second protruding portion,
The bolded combinations 2 and 3 do not appear to be supported in applicant's specification and drawings. Applicant’s disclosure only discusses a protruding portion engaged with a recessed portion, and does not provide support for two protruding portions engaged or two recessed portions engaged.
Claim 1 recites “a linear motion portion that acts on linear motion of the piston by linearly moving according to the rotation of the rotation portion;”. It is unclear what “acts on linear motion” means. As best understood, this could mean that the linear motion portion causes the piston to move by linearly moving according to the rotation of the rotation portion? There appears to be some grammar/language issue.
Claim 1 recites "freely fitted". Applicant's disclosure does not appear to use this term. It is unclear what would or would not meet the term "freely fitted" in claim 1. For examination purposes, this term will be interpreted to correspond to the term "loosely fitted" used in paragraph [0035] of the specification which states:
As shown in FIG. 11, the third gear 120 and the screw shaft 122 are loosely fitted to each other in a state in which a gap is provided between the insertion shaft 140 and the insertion hole 144 and between the projection 142 and the engaging groove 145 in the radial direction R.
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 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by
Micke (US 2020/0062231), discloses:
An electric cylinder device comprising:
a piston (11) disposed inside a cylinder (6);
a rotation input component (26) that rotates by receiving rotation of an electric motor (2);
a linear motion conversion mechanism that includes a rotation portion (20, 19, 12) that is rotated due to transmission of the rotation of the rotation input component and a linear motion portion (13) that acts on linear motion of the piston by linearly moving according to the rotation of the rotation portion; and
a housing (29, outer housing envelops interior structures, see Fig. 1) in which the cylinder is provided and in which the piston, the rotation input component, and the linear motion conversion mechanism are accommodated, wherein
a first component (20) and a second component (26), which are two components among components of the electric cylinder device, are allowed to undergo relative displacement in a radial direction that is a direction orthogonal to an axial direction of the piston (paragraph [0015], paragraph [0005] slot coupling 25 compensates for radial offset between motor shaft 26 and the drive shaft 20; there is radial movement allowed relative to the two structures to allow for the compensation of the radial offset of the two structures), and
the first component is a component that relatively displaces the piston with respect to the cylinder in the radial direction according to relative displacement with respect to the second component in the radial direction (a radial force on the first component 20 would impart the radial force onto the piston 11 and both structures would move radially relative to the second component 26 because of the radial play permitted via the slot connection 25 between the first and second components), wherein
the first component is the rotation portion (20),
the second component is the rotation input component (26),
the rotation of the rotation input component is transmitted to the rotation portion by interlocking a first protruding portion or a first recessed portion provided on the rotation input component with a second recessed portion or a second protruding portion provided on the rotation portion, and the first protruding portion and the second recessed portion, or the first recessed portion and the second protruding portion are freely fitted (see Figure, slot coupling 25 has a protruding portion of the rotation input component 26 that is received in a recessed portion of the rotation portion 20;
paragraph [0015], paragraph [0005]; slot coupling 25 that compensates for radial offset between the motor shaft 26 and the drive shaft 20, which meets the limitation of being freely fitted as there is radial movement allowed relative to the two structures to allow for the compensation of the radial offset of the two structures;).
Conclusion
The art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Hagspiel et al. (US 2024/0409078) discloses a pertinent hydraulic device and discusses: ”The additional annular projection forms a section in the recess that serves to form the interference fit, so that an axially separate section of the recess, in particular the axially adjacent section of the recess, ensures play during assembly, in particular radial play, in relation to the collar at all times.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Dustin T Nguyen whose telephone number is (571)270-0163. The examiner can normally be reached M - F: 8:00am - 4:30pm.
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/DUSTIN T NGUYEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3745 November 5, 2025