FINAL REFUSAL
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 .
Amendment Acknowledgement
The applicant’s amendments to the specification and drawings filed on 01/21/2026 are acknowledged and have been entered. The amendments have overcome the specification objections and portion of the rejection under 35 U.S.C. § 112. However, new objectionable issues were added and inconsistent and indefinite areas remain in the drawing disclosure. The following rejection was necessitated by the amendments and is made FINAL.
Drawing Objections
The drawing disclosure is objected to because the figures should be presented in consecutive order beginning with all figures of the first embodiment (1.1 - 1.6) and followed by all figures of the second embodiment (2.1 - 2.6). Currently, the figures and embodiments are presented out of order, which makes it difficult to understand which figures correspond to which embodiment.
When preparing new or replacement drawings, be careful to avoid introducing new matter. New matter is prohibited by 35 U.S.C. §132 and CFR 1.121(f).
Claim Rejections - 35 U.S.C. § 112(a) and (b)
The claim is finally rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) and (b) because 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 applicant regards as the invention. The claim is indefinite and nonenabled because of the following:
The shape of the belt loops remains inconsistent between the views. For example, in figure 1.1, the front left belt loop appears to have curved sides and a larger bottom than top. However, this belt loop appears to have straight sides and uniform thickness in figures 1.4 and 1.6:
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The waistband of the trousers remains inconsistently shown between the views. For example, the waistband appears to be of uniform width in figure 1.6, however it appears to be curved and of inconsistent width in figure 1.1. The portion just under the fly button is larger in figure 1.1, the right side of the waistband shows a steep upward curve that isn’t present in 1.6, and the left side shows a downward curve that isn’t present in 1.6:
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Consistency must prevail throughout the application. Appropriate correction is required.
Conclusion
The claimed design stands rejected under 35 U.S.C § 112 (a) and (b).
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 extension fee 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.
Contact Information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Darcy Fabre whose telephone number is 703-756-1394. The examiner can normally be reached Monday through Thursday, 8:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. ET.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Messina Smith can be reached at 571-272-3137. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/DF/Examiner, Art Unit 2936
/KEVIN K RUDZINSKI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2911
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