DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on 07/14/2025, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
The following is a Non-Final Office Action on the merits in response to applicant’s filing from 07/14/2025.
Claims 11-20 are pending and have been considered below.
Priority
The application claims foreign priority to DE 102024/120037, filed on 07/15/2024. The priority is acknowledged.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 07/14/2025 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement has been considered by the examiner.
Claim Objections
Claim 11, lines 9-10 is objected to because of the following informalities: “connected to at least one seam connection region” should read, “connected to the at least one seam connection region”. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim 13, lines 2-3 is objected to because of the following informalities: “and/or the at least one frame connection region” should read, “and/or at least one frame connection region”. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim 17, lines 2-3 is objected to because of the following informalities: “toward the at least one frame connection region” should read, “toward at least one frame connection region”. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim 18, lines 2-3 is objected to because of the following informalities: “the force concentrator has frame connection region connected to the seat frame independently of each other” should read, “the force concentrator has a frame connection region independently connected to a seat frame”. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim 18, line 5 is objected to because of the following informalities: “the frame connection regions .” should read, “the frame connection region.”. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim 19, line 2 is objected to because of the following informalities: “two of the strands” should read, “two strands of the strands”. Appropriate correction is required.
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.
(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.
Claims 11-18 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Tracht (US 2008/0224454).
Regarding claim 11, Tracht discloses a vehicle seat member {10} comprising: an airbag module {20} having an airbag {airbag: “the air bag assembly 20 includes an air bag” [0019]}; a cover {18} having a tear seam {28: “An edge of the trim cover 18 forms part of an air bag release seam 28 (FIGS. 2-7) which in at least one embodiment is proximate to a side 33 of the seat pad 16” [0020]}, the tear seam {28} having an outer side facing away from the airbag {airbag of 20 (Figs. 2-3)}; the airbag module {20} including a force concentrator {56 (49+52+62)} arranged at least partially inside the cover {18: “nose portion 49 is secured on an inside of the knuckle portion of the side trim cover 18. A label member 62 is also secured between the knuckle portion of the front and side trim covers. In that embodiment, the label member 52 protrudes outside the trim covers and release seam 28. Optionally (FIG. 7), the leading nose portion 49 of the reinforcement panel 56 itself serves as a label member 62” [0031]} and being configured to direct an expansion force of the airbag {“airbag” [0019]} onto the tear seam {28: “The spinnaker-shaped reinforcement panel 56 is movable in response to inflation of the air bag with sufficient force to puncture the release seam 28, thereby allowing the tear seam 28 to open and allowing the air bag to pass therethrough” (Abstract)}; the force concentrator {56 (49+52+62)} having at least one seam connection region {region comprising the “one or more threads of stitching”: “If the seam 28 is formed from continuous stitching that extends along its length, the nose 49 of the spinnaker-shaped reinforcement panel 56 may only be connected to one or more threads of the stitching, since breaking one thread in a continuous stitching will allow the stitching to unravel, thereby allowing seam 28 to open” [0029]} connected to the cover {18} at one side {left side (Figs. 4-7)} of the tear seam {28}; the force concentrator {56 (49+52+62)} having an identification label {62} connected to at least one seam connection region {region comprising the “one or more threads of stitching” [0029]}, the identification label {62} protruding at the outer side of the tear seam {28} beyond the cover {18 (Figs. 5, 7)}.
Regarding claim 12, Tracht discloses a seat frame {26}, the airbag module {20} being mounted to the seat frame {26 (Figs. 2-3): “the air bag assembly 20 also includes a housing 40 which at least partially surrounds the air bag and the inflator. In most embodiments, the housing 40 includes a container 46 secured to the seat frame 26” [0019]}, the force concentrator {56 (49+52+62)} having at least one frame connection region {52} connected to the seat frame {26: “The vehicle seat assembly has an a spinnaker-shaped reinforcement panel 56 with a leading nose 49 secured to the release seam 28 and an anchored end edge 52 that is secured to the frame 26 or to a trim cover 52” (Abstract)}.
Regarding claim 13, Tracht discloses the force concentrator {56 (49+52+62)} is flexible relative to the at least one seam connection region {region comprising the “one or more threads of stitching” connected to cover 18 at one side of the tear seam 28 [0029]}.
Regarding claim 14, Tracht discloses the at least one seam connection region {region comprising the “one or more threads of stitching” connected to cover 18 at one side of the tear seam 28 [0029]} extends along less than 10% of a length of the tear seam {28 (since the connection region is “one or more threads of stitching”, and one thread of stitching is clearly less than 10% of the stitching of tear seam 28)}.
Regarding claim 15, Tracht discloses the at least one seam connection region {region comprising the “one or more threads of stitching” connected to cover 18 at one side of the tear seam 28 [0029]} is connected to the identification label {62} independently of the tear seam {28: “In FIG. 5, the nose portion 49 is secured on an inside of the knuckle portion of the side trim cover 18. A label member 62 is also secured between the knuckle portion of the front and side trim covers. In that embodiment, the label member 52 protrudes outside the trim covers and release seam 28. Optionally (FIG. 7), the leading nose portion 49 of the reinforcement panel 56 itself serves as a label member 62” [0031]}.
Regarding claim 16, Tracht discloses the at least one seam connection region {region comprising the “one or more threads of stitching” connected to cover 18 at one side of the tear seam 28 [0029]} is integral with the identification label {62: “A label member 62 is also secured between the knuckle portion of the front and side trim covers. In that embodiment, the label member 52 protrudes outside the trim covers and release seam 28. Optionally (FIG. 7), the leading nose portion 49 of the reinforcement panel 56 itself serves as a label member 62” [0031]}.
Regarding claim 17, Tracht discloses the force concentrator {56 (49+52+62)} expands in the direction away from the identification label {62} toward the at least one frame connection region {52 (Figs. 2-3)}.
Regarding claim 18, Tracht discloses the force concentrator {56 (49+52+62)} has frame connection region {52} connected to the seat frame {26} independently of each other {Fig. 3}; and the force concentrator {56 (49+52+62)} has strands {56 (Fig. 1)} that extend from the at least one seam connection region {region comprising the “one or more threads of stitching” connected to cover 18 at one side of the tear seam 28 [0029]} to the frame connection regions {52 (Figs. 2-3)}.
Regarding claim 20, Tracht discloses at least one seam connection region {region comprising the “one or more threads of stitching” connected to cover 18 at one side of the tear seam 28 [0029]} is sewn to the cover {18 (Figs. 1-7)}.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 19 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 19, none of the prior art of record, either alone or in obvious combination discloses the vehicle seat member according to claim 18, wherein at least one spacing between two of the strands decreases in the direction toward the at least one seam connection region.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Daniel M Keck whose telephone number is (571)272-5947. The examiner can normally be reached Mon - Fri 8:00-4:00.
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/Daniel M. Keck/Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3614