DETAILED ACTION
This non-final Office action is in response to Applicant’s patent application filed on 11/20/2025. An action on the merits follows.
Claims 1-16 are pending in the application.
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
Acknowledgment is made of applicant's claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d). The certified copy has been filed.
Election/Restriction
Applicant's election with traverse of Invention Group I (claims 1-9) in the reply filed on 7/22/2026 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that both groups are sufficiently related and there is no undue examination or search burden.
This is not found persuasive because although the inventions are related as apparatus and method of use of the apparatus, the method can be performed by hand (manually) without using the apparatus. Additionally, there is at least a search burden since the different invention groups require different search strings which yield significantly different number and type of results. For example: searching "(packaging packing) with label$4" yields 151 results as compared to "method with label$4" which yields 223 results in the relevant search databases.
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL. Claims 10-16 are withdrawn from further consideration.
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.
Claims 1, 2 and 6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over EP# 3,642,117 of Dony (henceforth Dony) in view of USPGP# 20130340946 of Frank et al. (henceforth Frank).
Regarding claim 1, Dony teaches
A method for producing a package (¶0025 “closed plastic shell”) in a direction of production (direction of movement of labels), comprising:
providing a label roll (5, fig. 1) comprising prefabricated labels (¶0025) and a carrier layer (6) onto which the labels are adhesively attached (¶0025);
providing packaging bases (“shells”) loaded with a product (¶0001, “fruits or vegetables”);
separating the labels from the carrier layer at a dispensing edge (10), wherein the labels form lid members for the packaging bases (¶0014); and
closing the packaging bases in a closing process (¶0014) to form closed packages in which the lid members formed from the labels are each adhesively attached along a respective tray edge (¶0014 “encircling edge of the shell”) formed on a respective packing base (“shell”) of the packaging bases.
Dony does not explicitly disclose how the label/lid combination are attached to the shell and therefore is silent on
wherein the label/lid members are received at the dispensing edge by a belt device that is associated with the dispensing edge and that merges the label/lid members with the respective tray edges of the packaging bases for the closing process and that presses the labels forming the lid members on along the tray edges at least in sections.
Frank teaches
A method for producing a package (labeled containers 10) in a direction of production (see movement arrow V4 in fig. 2), comprising:
providing a label roll (5, fig. 1) comprising prefabricated labels (7) and a carrier layer (6) onto which the labels are adhesively attached (¶0033);
providing packaging bases (“10”);
separating the labels from the carrier layer at a dispensing edge (8); and
wherein the labels are received at the dispensing edge by a belt device (9) that is associated with the dispensing edge and that merges the labels with the respective tray edges of the packaging bases that presses the labels on along the tray edges at least in sections (¶0034).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the method of Dony such that the label/lid combination is applied using a belt device as shown above and as taught by Frank in order to provide the predictable result of accurately and reliably applying the label/lid combination to the packages (Frank: ¶ 0018, 0005). Additionally, a skilled artisan would have recognized that the modification of Dony with the teachings of Frank involves no more than the predictable use of prior art elements according to their established functions. The combination of familiar elements according to known methods is likely to be obvious when it does no more than yield predictable results. KSR, 550 U.S. at 416
Regarding claim 2, as shown in claim 1, the combination of Dony and Frank teaches
wherein an advance speed of the lid members over the dispensing edge and a belt speed of the belt device are synchronized (Frank: ¶0036).
Regarding claim 6, as shown in claim 1, the combination of Dony and Frank teaches
wherein the belt device is operated at an incline so that it guides the lid members in the direction of production while the lid members increasingly approach the packaging bases (Frank: fig. 2, ¶0036).
Claims 3-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over the combination of Dony and Frank in view of USP# 20190367261 of Bayer (henceforth Bayer).
Regarding claim 3, as shown in claim 1, the combination of Dony and Frank does not explicitly teach
wherein tray edges of the packaging bases are supported from below at least in sections during the closing process.
Bayer teaches
A method for producing a package (300) in a direction of production (144, Fig. 1H), comprising:
providing packaging bases (125) loaded with a product (175);
closing the packaging bases in a closing process (station C, ¶0057) to form closed packages in which lid members (180) are each adhesively attached along a respective tray edge (rim, ¶0059) formed on a respective packing base (125, base of cup) of the packaging bases; and pressing the lid members on along the tray edges at least in sections (¶0057)
wherein tray edges of the packaging bases are supported from below at least in sections during the closing process (¶0059).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the method of the combination of Dony and Frank such that the tray edges of the packaging bases are supported from below at least in sections during the closing process, as taught by Bayer, in order to provide the predictable result of ensuring the tray edge does not bend/deform during the closing process. Additionally, a skilled artisan would have recognized that the modification of the method of the combination of Dony and Frank with the teachings of Bayer involves no more than the predictable use of prior art elements according to their established functions. The combination of familiar elements according to known methods is likely to be obvious when it does no more than yield predictable results. KSR, 550 U.S. at 416
Regarding claim 4, as shown in claim 3, the combination of Dony, Frank and Bayer teaches
wherein the tray edges of the packaging bases rest on conveyor belts (Bayer: 135, 1H).
Regarding claim 5, as shown in claim 4, the combination of Dony, Frank and Bayer teaches
wherein the packaging bases are transported affixed between the conveyor belts in a predetermined orientation for the closing process (¶0059, fig. 1H).
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over the combination of Dony and Frank in view of USPGP# 20140262001 Harte et al. (henceforth Harte).
Regarding claim 7, as shown in claim 1, the combination of Dony and Frank teaches
wherein the lid members adhesively attached to the tray edges are pressed on again along the respective tray edges by a driven roller mounted in the direction of production downstream of the belt device.
Harte teaches
A method for producing a package (26), comprising:
providing a label roll (64) comprising prefabricated labels (66) and a carrier layer (68) onto which the labels are attached (¶0030);
providing packaging bases (24);
separating the labels from the carrier layer at a dispensing edge (76);
wherein the labels are received at the dispensing edge by a belt device (106) that is associated with the dispensing edge and that merges the label with the respective packaging at least in sections (section at which label 66 is attached); and
wherein the labels adhesively attached to the packages are pressed on again by a driven roller (120) mounted in the direction of production downstream of the belt device (see figs. 3 and 8).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the method of the combination of Dony and Frank such that the lid members adhesively attached to the tray edges are pressed on again along the respective tray edges by a driven roller mounted in the direction of production downstream of the belt device, as taught by Harte, in order to provide the predictable result of ensuring the labels are firmly attached to the packaging (Harte: ¶0033). Additionally, a skilled artisan would have recognized that the modification of the method of the combination of Dony and Frank with the teachings of Harte involves no more than the predictable use of prior art elements according to their established functions. The combination of familiar elements according to known methods is likely to be obvious when it does no more than yield predictable results. KSR, 550 U.S. at 416
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over the combination of Dony and Frank in view of USP# 20190118988 of Thuring et al. (henceforth Thuring).
Regarding claim 8, as shown in claim 1, the combination of Dony and Frank does not teach
wherein the belt device is heated.
Thuring teaches
a label transfer belt device (21) wherein the belt device is heated (17, ¶0091).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the method of the combination of Dony and Frank such that the label transfer belt is heated, as taught by Thuring, in order to provide the predictable result of allowing different types of labels to be used, i.e. heat sealable labels or labels with radio frequence identification (RFOID) chips (Thuring: ¶0018-0019). Additionally, a skilled artisan would have recognized that the modification of the method of the combination of Dony and Frank with the teachings of Thuring involves no more than the predictable use of prior art elements according to their established functions. The combination of familiar elements according to known methods is likely to be obvious when it does no more than yield predictable results. KSR, 550 U.S. at 416
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over the combination of Dony and Frank in view of USPGP# 20120216956 of Korthauer (henceforth Korthauer).
Regarding claim 9, as shown in claim 1, the combination of Dony and Frank does not teach
wherein a press-on force that can be generated upon the lid members by way of the belt device is dynamically controlled.
Korthauer teaches
A method for producing a package (labeled packaging 2), comprising:
providing a label roll (3, fig. 1) comprising prefabricated labels (1) and a carrier layer (4) onto which the labels are adhesively attached (¶0038);
providing packaging bases (2.1) loaded with a product (¶0037);
separating the labels from the carrier layer at a dispensing edge (5);
wherein the labels are received at the dispensing edge by a label applying device (14) that is associated with the dispensing edge and that merges the label with respective tray edges (2.2) of the packaging bases (2.1) for the closing process and that presses the labels forming the lid members on along the tray edges at least in sections (see figs. 4, 6 and 8, the section that is engaged by 14.1); and
wherein a press-on force that can be generated upon the label by way of label applying device is dynamically controlled (¶0025, 0052-0053)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the method of the combination of Dony and Frank such that a press-on force that can be generated upon the label/lid member by way of the belt/label applying device is dynamically controlled, as taught by Korthauer, in order to provide the predictable result of reliably attach labels to different sized packages especially soft or sensitive packages (Korthauer: ¶0053). Additionally, a skilled artisan would have recognized that the modification of the method of the combination of Dony and Frank with the teachings of Korthauer involves no more than the predictable use of prior art elements according to their established functions. The combination of familiar elements according to known methods is likely to be obvious when it does no more than yield predictable results. KSR, 550 U.S. at 416
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See attached PTO-892.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MOBEEN AHMED whose telephone number is (571) 272-0356. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F (8:30 am to 5 pm).
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Anna Kinsaul can be reached on 571-270-1926. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/M. A./
Examiner, Art Unit 3731
/VERONICA MARTIN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3731
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