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 .
Acknowledgement of Restriction Election
Acknowledgement is here made of applicant’s election of Group I, Embodiment 1 (Reproductions 1.1-1.7) in response to the requirement for restriction of September 4, 2025. Group II, Embodiment 2 (Reproductions 2.1-2.7) has been withdrawn from consideration by the examiner (37 CFR 1.142(b)), as being for a nonelected design. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on December 4, 2025.
Claim Rejection - 35 USC § 112(a)&(b)
The claim is rejected under 35 USC 112(a)&(b), as the claimed invention is not described in such full, clear, concise and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to make and use
the same and fails to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The claim is indefinite and non-enabling due to the following unclear parts which prevent a clear understanding of the design which applicant seeks protection for:
The photographic renderings are not sufficient quality, where all details can be reproducible in a patent. Specifically, there is an overall low resolution, wherein the edges of the design appear jagged and blurry. Additionally, there is an issue with the range of tone. Specifically in Reproductions 1.4 and 1.5, there is an overall washed-out tone that makes it hard to see the details of the claimed design.
Reproductions shall be of a quality permitting all the details of the industrial design to be clearly distinguished and permitting publication. See 37 CFR 1.1026 and MPEP 2902.02, Hague Rule 9. The necessity for good drawings in a design patent application cannot be overemphasized" As the drawing constitutes the whole disclosure of the design, it is of utmost importance that it be so well executed both as to clarity of showing and completeness, that nothing regarding the design sought to be patented is left to conjecture. An insufficient drawing may be fatal to validity (35 U.S.C 112(a} or pre-AJA 35 U.S.C 112, first paragraph). Moreover, an insufficient drawing may have a negative effect with respect to the effective filing date of a continuing application.
Corrected reproductions of a higher resolution line quality are required in response to the office action. See arrows in annotated reproductions below for examples of parts in question.
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Because of the insufficient information in the reproductions provided, the claimed design is in fact subject to multiple interpretations, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be able to reproduce the design without the use of conjecture. This renders the claim non-enabled. In order to overcome this rejection, it is suggested that the design be shown clearly and consistently among the views. Inconsistency that cannot be either corrected or satisfactorily explained should be amended to form no part of the claim with lightweight broken lines. However, care must be taken to not introduce new matter.
If applicant chooses to exclude portions of the design from the claim by converting those portions of the article to broken lines, the amendment must meet the written description requirement of 35 USC 112(a). It must be apparent that applicant was in possession of the amended design at the time of original filing. When preparing new or replacement reproductions, be careful to avoid introducing new matter. New matter is prohibited by 35
U.S.C. 132 and 37 CFR 1.121(f).
Replacement Reproductions
Any amended replacement reproduction 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 reproduction should not be labeled as "amended."
If a 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 reproductions for consistency.
Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. If all the figures on a reproduction sheet are canceled, a replacement sheet is not required. A marked-up copy of the drawing sheet (labeled as "Annotated Sheet") including an annotation showing that all the figures on that reproduction sheet have been canceled must be presented in the amendment or the remarks section that explains the change to the reproductions. Each reproduction 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.
When preparing new or replacement reproductions, be careful to avoid introducing new
matter, 35 U.S.C. 132 and 37 CFR 1.121(f). This pertains to either: the addition to, or the
removal of, any elements shown in the originally disclosed design.
Conclusion
The claim stands rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112 (a) and (b).
The references cited but not applied are considered the most pertinent art related to the claimed design. Applicant may view and obtain copies of the cited references by visiting http://w\vw.uspto.gov/patft/index.html and pressing the "Patent Number Search" button.
Reply Guidelines
Signature required
Applicant is reminded that any reply to this action must be signed either by a patent
practitioner (i.e., a patent attorney or agent registered to practice before the United States
Patent and Trademark Office) or by the applicant. If the applicant is a juristic entity, the reply
must be signed by a patent practitioner. See 37 CFR 1.33(b).
Responding to official USPTO Correspondence
The USPTO transacts business in writing. Applicants may submit replies to Office actions only
by:
Online via the USPTO Electronic Filing System-Web (EFS-Web) (Registered eFilers only).
See https://www.uspto.gov/patents-application-process/applying-online/efs-web-
guidance-and-resources
By mail: Commissioner for Patents, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA, 22313-1450;
By facsimile via the USPTO official fax number (571-273-8300); or
By hand-carry to the USPTO Alexandria, Virginia, Customer Service Window.
For more information, see https://www.uspto.gov/patents/maintain/responding-office-
actions.
Email communications
Replies to Office actions may not be submitted via email. The merits of the application will not
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internet communication is filed in the application. Form PTO/SB/439 “Authorization for Internet
Communications in a Patent Application or Request to Withdraw Authorization for Internet
Communications” may be used to provide such authorization and is available at the USPTO web
page indicated above. The authorization may not be sent by email to the USPTO. See MPEP
502.03.II for further information.
Discussions regarding the merits of an application
All discussions between the applicant and the examiner regarding the merits of a pending
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who is the inventor and who is not represented by a registered practitioner).
The registered practitioner may either be of record or not of record. To become “of record”, a
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PTO/AIA /80 “Power of Attorney to Prosecute Applications Before the USPTO”, available
at https://www.uspto.gov/patent/forms/forms-patent-applications-filed-or-after-september-
16-2012, may be used for this purpose. See MPEP 402.02(a) for further information. A
registered practitioner "not of record" must show authorization to conduct an interview by
completing, signing and filing an “Applicant Initiated Interview Request Form” (PTOL-413A)
(available at the USPTO web page indicated above). See MPEP 405 for further information.
If a pro se applicant or registered practitioner located outside of the United States wishes to
communicate by telephone, the examiner may be contacted directly via email to arrange a time
and date for the telephone interview. When proposing an interview appointment, include
proposed days and times for the proposed call, and confirm who will initiate the call. For the
examiner’s work schedule, see Examiner Contact Information.
Contact
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHRISTINE M ACHEN ZIMMERMAN whose telephone number is (703)756-1995. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9 TO 5.
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, George Ulsh can be reached at 571-270-1433. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/C.M.Z./Examiner, Art Unit 2922
/CATHERINE S POSTHAUER/Primary Examiner of Art Unit 2922