DETAILED ACTION
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) because they fail to show the claimed flexible member as described in the specification. Any structural detail that is essential for a proper understanding of the disclosed invention should be shown in the drawing. MPEP § 608.02(d). 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.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 1, 8, and 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Kraczek (PG-pub by 2007/0228739) in view of Speer (US 5,368,442).
Regarding claim 1, Kraczek teaches the apparatus comprising: a conduit (ocean and hydrogen quick disconnect lines to ship; fig. 5), wherein the conduit is configured to be mechanically coupled to the first free- floating body (first free floating body is seen as the ship which is connected via quick disconnect to the wave energy device in figure 1); and a conduit assembly (wave energy device is being seen as a conduit assembly), wherein the conduit assembly is positioned at a distal end of the conduit opposite from an end of the conduit that is mechanically coupled to the first free- floating body, but fails to teach the conduit assembly comprises: a propulsor configured to expel one or more fluid streams which are timed and angled so as to guide the conduit assembly to a receiving port of the second free-floating body to mechanically couple the conduit assembly to the receiving port.
Speer teaches a propulsor 1 (figs. 8 and 9) configured to expel one or more fluid streams which are timed and angled (high or low pitch; col. 10, lines 6-23) so as to guide the conduit assembly (second floating body wave energy device) to a receiving port of the second free-floating body (ship) to mechanically couple the conduit assembly to the receiving port to provide dependable, self-actuating pitch -changing means that will change in response to achieving a predetermined boat speed, which varies based upon the rate of acceleration (col. 1, lines 15-30).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, at the time of filing, to employ in Kraczek, a propulsor configured to expel one or more fluid streams (e.g. ocean water) which are timed and angled, as taught by Speer, for the purpose of providing dependable, self-actuating pitch -changing means that will change in response to achieving a predetermined boat speed, which varies based upon the rate of acceleration.
Regarding claims 8 and 9, Kraczek modified by Speer teaches wherein an angle of the one or more fluid streams is adjustable by the propulsor (Speer: col. 16, lines 34-45); wherein the second free-floating body is a wave energy converter that is configured to convert wave energy into electricity to drive a computing system (Kraczek: Abstract).
Alternatively, Claim(s) 1, 8, and 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Kraczek (PG-pub by 2007/0228739) in view of Speer (US 5,368,442) a evidenced by Pierce 20130104793
Kraczek discloses An apparatus configured to mechanically couple a first free-floating body (tanker) to a second free- floating body (oecs device), the apparatus comprising:a conduit (hydrogen conduit) , wherein the conduit is configured to be mechanically coupled to the first free- floating body (fig. 5) ; and a conduit assembly (other end of conduit and motorized tender) , wherein the conduit assembly is positioned at a distal end of the conduit (hydrogen quick disconnect fig. 5) opposite from an end of the conduit that is mechanically coupled to the first free- floating body, and wherein the conduit assembly comprises:a propulsor configured to expel one or more fluid streams which are timed and angled (motor of tender is inherently connected to some means of propulsion such as a propeller or impeller pump jet as evidenced by Pierce 20130104793- paragraph 47) so as to guide the conduit assembly to a receiving port of the second free-floating body (oecs) to mechanically couple the conduit assembly to the receiving port.
Kraczek does not explicitly disclose a propulsor configured to expel one or more fluid streams which are timed and angled. Speer teaches a propulsor 1 (figs. 8 and 9) configured to expel one or more fluid streams which are timed and angled (high or low pitch; col. 10, lines 6-23) so as to guide the conduit assembly (end of conduit and motorized tender ) to a receiving port of the second free-floating body (tanker) to mechanically couple the conduit assembly to the receiving port to provide dependable, self-actuating pitch -changing means that will change in response to achieving a predetermined boat speed, which varies based upon the rate of acceleration (col. 1, lines 15-30).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing of the invention to modify Kraczek with the propulsor of Speer to provide a means for propelling the tender from one location to the next in order to connect the hose and transfer hydrogen thus ensuring efficient and timely completion of the coupling and loading operation.
Regarding claims 8 and 9, Kraczek modified by Speer teaches wherein an angle of the one or more fluid streams is adjustable by the propulsor (Speer: col. 16, lines 34-45); wherein the second free-floating body is a wave energy converter that is configured to convert wave energy into electricity to drive a computing system (Kraczek: Abstract).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 11-29 are allowed.
Claims 2-7 and 10 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.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance: Kraczek fails to disclose (claim 11) a mechanical latching element coupled to a distal end of the flexible member; (claim 21) a flexible member having a first end and a second end opposite from the first end, wherein the second end is configured to mechanically couple with a floating ship; semi-autonomous or autonomous connection; a conductive line.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to P. MACADE NICHOLS whose telephone number is (571)270-5428. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 9:00-5:00 P.M..
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/P. MACADE NICHOLS/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3753