DETAILED ACTION
General Information
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
The amendment of 08/31/2026 is acknowledged.
Following the amendment of 08/31/2026, the objection to the specification has been overcome, and the rejection under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) and (b) has been partially addressed. However, the applicant’s amendment has not fully addressed the rejection under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) and (b). Therefore, the claim stands rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) and (b), and the rejection is MADE FINAL in the following office action.
Claim Rejection - 35 USC 112(a) & (b)
The claim is FINALLY rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) and (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 applicant regards as the invention.
The claim is indefinite and nonenabling because the design appears inconsistently throughout the reproductions provided in the specification.
REPS. 1.6 and 1.7 create inconsistencies in the appearance of the claimed design. These representations show a small square feature with solid lines, and a vertical, solid line behind the square feature. Conversely, REP. 1.3 shows these features with broken lines. Therefore, the design is shown inconsistent in the reproductions. See annotated reproductions:
PNG
media_image1.png
932
1630
media_image1.png
Greyscale
The applicant’s amendment has been fully considered but does not address all issues raised in the rejection under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) and (b). The exact appearance of the claimed design cannot be understood because it is not consistently/accurately shown. In order to overcome this rejection, the examiner recommends amending representations 1.6 and 1.7 to show the small square feature, and vertical solid line behind the square feature, with broken lines, in order to make these representations consistent with the design shown in REPS. 1.1-1.5. See annotated drawing:
PNG
media_image2.png
342
652
media_image2.png
Greyscale
Conclusion
The rejection under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) and (b) is MADE FINAL.
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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PAUL BOHANNON whose telephone number is (408)918-7663. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday, 6:00 AM - 2:00 PM CT. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, the 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, Jennifer Rempfer, can be reached at (571) 270-0248 or jennifer.rempfer@USPTO.GOV. 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.
/PAUL D BOHANNON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2932
Prosecution Insights