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 .
This action is in response to the claims filed 10/17/2025.
Claims 1-20 are presented for examination.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 10/20/2025, 3/19/2026, and 9/16/2026 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as failing to set forth 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 limitation "the cover support" in the third to last line. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Claims 2-19 depend on claim 1.
Claim 20 recites the limitation "the cover support" in the third to last line. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
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.
(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.
Claim(s) 1-3, 5-7, and 9-19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Yang in CN112890706 (hereinafter “Yang”).
Regarding claim 1, Yang discloses (the references in parentheses applying to this document): A cleaning device (Fig. 4), comprising: a cleaning base (20), configured to be suitable for cleaning a surface; and a device body (16), operably connected to the cleaning base (20), comprising: a wastewater tank (100), detachably assembled to the device body (16), comprising: a wastewater tank body (1), having a first direction extending from an opening of the wastewater tank body (1) to a bottom surface of the wastewater tank body (1); and a cover bracket (2; Fig. 2) connected to the wastewater tank body (1) and extending in the first direction, comprising: a filter mesh pouch (10, 11), located at a first end of the cover bracket facing the bottom surface of the wastewater tank body, and substantially extending in the first direction when the wastewater tank (100) is in an assembly position (Fig. 1 and 2).
Regarding claim 2, Yang discloses the cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the cover support comprises: a first support frame, extending in the first direction; a second support frame, extending in a second direction; and a third support frame, extending symmetrically to the second support frame in the second direction (see Fig. 1; the walls of the box body 2 may be mapped to the claimed frames).
Regarding claim 3, Yang discloses the cleaning device according to claim 2, wherein the filter mesh pouch (10, 11) is connected to the first support frame (the filter sits in the frame; Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 5, Yang discloses the cleaning device according to claim 2, wherein the filter mesh pouch (10, 11) comprises a concave part comprising a plurality of through holes (see the top of element 11 in Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 6, Yang discloses the cleaning device according to claim 2, wherein the second support frame and the third support frame are connected to the filter mesh pouch in the first direction (filter components 10, 11 sit inside box body 2; Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 7, Yang discloses the cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the filter mesh pouch is formed of a hard material (whatever material the filter assembly is made it, it may be considered relatively hard as compared to a relatively softer material).
Regarding claim 9, Yang discloses the cleaning device according to claim 2, wherein the wastewater tank body comprises: a wastewater pipeline, extending from the bottom surface of the wastewater tank body toward an opening direction of the wastewater tank body (the flowpath or pipeline through bracket 4 in Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 10, Yang discloses the cleaning device according to claim 9, wherein the cover support further comprises: a filter assembly (9, 10, 11), disposed at a second end of the cover bracket adjacent to the opening of the wastewater tank body (Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 11, Yang discloses the cleaning device according to claim 10, wherein the cover support further comprises: a filter window, configured to filter a recovery air flow (air flow passes through filter assembly and thus it has a “filter window”).
Regarding claim 12, Yang discloses the cleaning device according to claim 11, wherein the filter window is of a single-piece structure (if the top of the filter core 11 is equated to the claimed window, it is “one piece” and anticipates this claim).
Regarding claim 13, Yang discloses the cleaning device according to claim 11, wherein the filter window is closer to the second end than the filter mesh pouch (the top of element 11 sits above the “filter mesh pouch” 10 inside bracket 2; Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 14, Yang discloses the cleaning device according to claim 13, wherein the filter assembly is closer to the second end than the filter window (the top of element 11 sits above the “filter mesh pouch” 10 inside bracket 2; Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 15, Yang discloses the cleaning device according to claim 11, wherein the recovery air flow sequentially flows through the wastewater pipeline, the filter window, and the filter assembly (see flow arrow 22 in Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 16, Yang discloses the cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the cover support further comprises: an assembly portion of the wastewater tank body, arranged at the second end of the cover bracket, extending along a circumference thereof, and configured to be clamped with the wastewater tank body (simply, cover bracket 2 has a rim that engages the tank 1).
Regarding claim 17, Yang discloses the cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the wastewater tank body further comprises a handle (left side of element 1 in Fig. 1 and 2).
Regarding claim 18, Yang discloses the cleaning device according to claim 2, wherein the second direction is substantially perpendicular to the first direction
Regarding claim 19, Yang discloses cleaning device according to claim 2, wherein the first support frame, the second support frame, and the third support frame substantially form a U-shaped structure (element 2 in Fig. 1 could be said to have a U-shaped structure).
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 4 and 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yang alone.
Regarding claim 4, Yang as applied above is silent to the cleaning device according to claim 3, wherein the filter mesh pouch is integrally formed with the first support frame. However, the Court has held "that the use of a one piece construction instead of the structure disclosed in [the prior art] would be merely a matter of obvious engineering choice."). See MPEP 2144.04. Here, it would have been an obvious engineering choice to make the equivalent filter mesh pouch of Yang integral with the frame in which it sits
Regarding claim 8, Yang does not explicitly disclose the cleaning device according to claim 7, wherein the material forming the filter mesh pouch is hard plastic. However, the examiner is giving official notice that the use of hard plastics in vacuum cleaners has been prevalent for decades. It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the vacuum cleaner of Yang by making components, including the equivalent filter mesh pouch, out of hard plastic because it is a durable and relatively cheap material and the result would have been predictable.
Claim(s) 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yang as applied above in view of Resch et al. in EP3785594 (hereinafter “Resch”).
Regarding claim 20, Yang as applied above in the rejection under 102 discloses all of the limitations of claim 16 EXCEPT a docking station. Resch teaches an analogous vacuum cleaner to that of Yang. Specifically, Resch teaches that it is desirable to provide vacuum cleaners with docking stations (see Fig. 19 and 20) because such docking stations facilitate simple, easy storage and charging and self-cleaning of vacuum cleaner components, improving functionality of the vacuum cleaner (paragraph [0115]-[0127]). It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Yang but utilizing a docking station like that taught by Resch because such a docking station enables simple, easy storage and charging and self-cleaning of vacuum cleaner components, improving functionality of the vacuum cleaner, and the result would have been predictable.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.Relevant Prior Art:
US2020/0060496 discloses a vacuum cleaner with a waster water tank a “filter mesh pouch” suspended in the wastewater tank.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ELDON T BROCKMAN whose telephone number is (571)270-3263. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 9am-5pm EST.
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/ELDON T BROCKMAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3799
