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 .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the conical clutch that is operable to slip when torque is applied, disconnect the motor from a power supply, and stop rotation of the paddle shaft of claims 1, 8, and 15 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
The clutch 308 as shown is not conical, it is shown as a rod in figures 3 and 4A. Although member 308 includes a reference numeral in figure 4B, the reference line for clutch 308 appears to point to paddle shaft 106.
It is unclear how the rod as shown can disconnect the motor from the power supply as the rod is on the paddle shaft and the motor gear 112 is radially separated from the shaft 106 by shaft gear 110.
Also, no motor or power supply are shown at all.
Further, even if the rod 308 did slip in the direction of the arrows in figure 4B, it is unclear how such slippage would stop rotation of the paddle shaft. At best it appears the rod slipping could disconnect paddle shaft from gear 110/gear sleeve 302, however, that would allow the paddle shaft to freely rotate under torque, not lock the shaft in place.
The drawings are objected to because:
Reference numerals should indicate structures forming the invention or steps in the method. Reference numerals should not be used to refer to the figure, e.g.400-1 in figure 4A for planar view.
The fare gate as a whole is not shown in figure 1B, however, the reference numeral 102 is used to indicate the figure. As it is clear from figure 1A that the paddle shaft 106 and protection device 108 are part of the gate and both shaft and device are shown in figure 1B the reference numeral 102 and reference arrow should be removed.
Figure 2 shows the paddle shaft extending in the incorrect direction. It is clear from figure 1B the shaft extends axially from gear 110, however, in figure 2 the shaft is shown extending radially. The shaft may either be shown as the hidden line circle in the center of gear 110 or not at all in figure 2 but should not be shown as is extending radially. If the structure indicated as the shaft is in fact paddle 104, then the reference numeral may be changed to indicate this.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
The description of the conical clutch 308 is not consistent with what is shown (see above drawing objections). Also the description of the conical clutch in paragraphs [0025]-[0029] is generally confusing and the clutch as shown does not appear to function as described. Paragraph [0025] describes the shaft gear 110 as connected to the motor output drive (MOD), however, no MOD is shown, only the motor gear 112. As such it would appear the MOD is connected to motor gear 112 in some manner, which is in turn connected to shaft gear 110 as shown. Given this it is unclear how slipping of the clutch could affect connection of motor to power supply as the clutch is on the shaft 106. This description could simply be a typographical error, e.g. the clutch disconnects the paddle shaft from the gear, however, that would be a fairly substantial typographical error and is repeated throughout the disclosure including the claims.
Also as noted with the drawing objections, it is unclear how slipping of the clutch would lock the paddle shaft.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Objections
Applicant is advised that should claims 1-6 be found allowable, claims 15-20 will be objected to under 37 CFR 1.75 as being a substantial duplicate thereof. When two claims in an application are duplicates or else are so close in content that they both cover the same thing, despite a slight difference in wording, it is proper after allowing one claim to object to the other as being a substantial duplicate of the allowed claim. See MPEP § 608.01(m).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Independent claims 1, 8, and 15 all recite “a conical clutch to limit torque transmission at the fare gate, wherein the conical clutch is operable to: slip when torque applied to the paddle shaft reaches a preset threshold; disconnect the motor from a power supply; and stop rotation of the paddle shaft.” As detailed in the above claim and specification objections, it is unclear how applicant’s clutch as shown and described could disconnect motor and power supply or lock the paddle shaft. As noted with the above objections there are ways the clutch may be able to disconnect something so at present the claims are not considered to raise to an enablement rejection, however, it is unclear from the disclosure what applicant was in possession of at the time the application was filed given the contradictions between what is shown (a rod extending through the gear sleeve, presumably through the paddle shaft as well) and what is disclosed/claimed (a conical clutch that disconnects the motor from a power supply and stops rotation of the paddle shaft).
The dependent claims do not resolve this issue and as such are rejected as depending from a rejected claim.
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 1-20 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 1, 8, and 15 all recite “a conical clutch to limit torque transmission at the fare gate, wherein the conical clutch is operable to: slip when torque applied to the paddle shaft reaches a preset threshold; disconnect the motor from a power supply; and stop rotation of the paddle shaft.” As detailed in the above objections and 112(a) rejections it is unclear how the clutch (shown as a rod, not a conical member) can disconnect the motor from the power supply or stop rotation of the paddle shaft. Given this it is not possible to determine the metes and bounds of the claims and as such they are indefinite.
The dependent claims are rejected as depending from a rejected claim.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CATHERINE A KELLY whose telephone number is (571)270-3660. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9:30am-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, Anita Coupe can be reached at 571-270-3614. 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.
/CATHERINE A KELLY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3619
Prosecution Insights