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 .
Response to Amendments
Applicant’s amendments to the drawings and specification filed September 15, 2025 are acknowledged. The amendments to the drawings are sufficient in overcoming the rejection of record under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) and (b). Due to the cancellation of Reproductions 1.7 and 1.8, the specification statement directed towards color drawings is no longer required; accordingly, an objection is outlined below suggesting removal of this statement. Further, due to the amended scope of the claimed design, a rejection under 35 U.S.C. 103 follows.
For the reasons listed above, the claim stands FINALLY REJECTED under 35 U.S.C. 103.
Specification Objection
The specification is objected to for the inclusion of extraneous information (MPEP § 1503.01, subsection II). In view of the cancellation of Reproductions 1.7 and 1.8, the color drawing statement preceding the figure descriptions is no longer required. It is recommended that applicant amend the specification as follows:
[[ The file of this patent contains at least one drawing/photograph executed in color. Copies of this patent with color drawing(s)/photograph(s) will be provided by the Office upon request and payment of the necessary fee. ]]
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The claim is FINALLY REJECTED under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over NPL reference CASALIVING (hereinafter "CASALIVING") in view of US D987166 to Naoto Fukasawa (hereinafter "Fukasawa").
Although the invention is not identically disclosed or described as set forth in 35 U.S.C. 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 designer having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains, the invention is not patentable.
CASALIVING has an overall appearance with design characteristics that are visually similar to those of the claimed design, in that it shows a lamp having an unornamented, domed shade with substantially flat top and vertical sides and a thinner, cylindrical lamp base with short recessed ledge on the bottom surface.
PNG
media_image1.png
593
852
media_image1.png
Greyscale
Claimed design
CASALIVING
The claimed design differs from CASALIVING in that it shows a shorter, unornamented base.
Fukasawa shows a lamp with shorter, unornamented base.
PNG
media_image2.png
472
1141
media_image2.png
Greyscale
Claimed design
Fukasawa
It would have been obvious to a designer of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed design to modify CASALIVING with Fukasawa by substituting the base having a taller height and button of CASALIVING with the shorter, unornamented base of Fukasawa because such modification is no more than a simple substitution of one known design element for another. Moreover, such substitution of one known design element for another known design element in the same field would have been within the skill of an ordinarily skilled designer.
Any remaining differences between applicant's claimed design and the prior art designs, such as exact dimensions or angles and the thin, partially-hidden recessed ring along the circumference of the lamp base, are de minimis in that the net effect of such differences, if any, does not affect the appearance of the claimed design as a whole and the impression that the design would make to the eye of a designer of ordinary skill. See In re Carter 213 USPQ 625.
Conclusion
The claim is FINALLY REJECTED under 35 U.S.C. 103. The references cited but not applied are considered cumulative art related to the claimed design.
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Communication
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHRISTINA M. DODSON whose telephone number is (571) 272-9673. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 6:00 AM-2:00 PM EST.
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, Susan Krakower can be reached at (571) 272-4496. 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.
/C.M.D./Examiner, Art Unit 2917
/SUSAN E KRAKOWER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2917
Prosecution Insights