Office Action 3: Notice of Allowance (2025-02-20)

CLAIMS:
AMENDMENTS TO THE CLAIMS

This listing of claims will replace all prior versions, and listings, of claims in the application:

Listing of Claims:

1\. (Currently Amended) A protective aircraft cover having a surface and at least one edge portion, said cover comprising:a material having a thickness; and
programmable magnets joined to said material for adhering said protective aircraft cover to an aircraft, said programmable magnets each comprising a single metal piece comprising a plurality of magnets joined together side-by-side with some of said magnets oriented with their North-South poles in one direction interspersed with other magnets oriented with their South-North poles in the opposite direction, wherein the magnets that are oriented North-South have their North pole on a first surface of the programmable magnet and their South pole on an opposing second surface of the programmable magnet and the other magnets that are oriented South-North have their South pole on the first surface and their North pole on the opposing second surface encapsulated in said cover at said edge portion.
2\. (Previously Presented) The protective aircraft cover according to Claim 1 configured to cover one of an engine inlet, and engine exhaust, and a Pitot tube.
3\. (Currently Amended) The protective aircraft cover according to Claim 1 wherein said material comprises a fabric.
4\. (Previously Presented) The protective aircraft cover according to Claim 3 wherein said fabric is a fire resistant ballistic fabric including antistatic fibers.
5\. (Previously Presented) The protective aircraft cover according to Claim 4 wherein the programmable magnets are encapsulated by stitching the fabric around said programmable magnets.

6\. (Currently Amended) The protective aircraft cover according to Claim 5 wherein the \[\[collapsible\]\] material thickness is sufficient to prevent the magnetic field strength of the programmable magnets to cause adherence to one another.

7\. (Previously Presented) The protective aircraft cover according to Claim 1 wherein at least one of said programmable magnets is programmed to have a magnetic field strength in a portion different from the magnetic field strength in other portions.

8\. (Previously Presented) The protective aircraft cover according to Claim 1 wherein a combination of one or more material thickness and a magnetic field strength of said programmable magnets enables adherence to an aircraft surface subject to wind loads greater than 40 mph.

9\. (Previously Presented) The protective aircraft cover according to Claim 1 wherein the programmable magnets have a magnetic field strength sufficient to adhere the protective cover to an aircraft while not causing damage to surface coatings.

10\. (Previously Presented) The protective aircraft cover according to Claim 9 wherein the programmable magnets have a magnetic field that does not interfere with electronic signals when installed on an aircraft.

11\. (Previously Presented) The protective aircraft cover according to Claim 1 wherein some of the plurality of magnets comprising the single metal piece that comprises the programmable magnets have the same polarity and are joined directed to each other side- by-side.

12\. (New) The protective aircraft cover according to Claim 1 wherein said programmable magnets comprise programmable permanent magnets.

13\. (New) The protective aircraft cover according to Claim 12 wherein said programmable permanent magnets have a first surface and a second surface, wherein said programmable permanent magnets are joined to said cover so that either said first surface or said second surface of said programmable permanent magnets may be oriented to face the surface of an aircraft.

Amendment dated January 2, 2025 Final Office Action Mailed October 10, 2024 14. (New) The protective aircraft cover according to Claim 1 wherein said at least one edge portion of said cover comprises a plurality of edge portions that form a periphery of said cover which surrounds a central portion of said cover, and said programmable magnets are only disposed around said periphery of said cover, and said central portion of said cover is free of programmable magnets.

OFFICE ACTION:
DETAILED ACTION
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 .
Terminal Disclaimer
The terminal disclaimer filed on 2/02/2025 disclaiming the terminal portion of any patent granted on this application which would extend beyond the expiration date of U.S. Patent 11,772,812 has been has been accepted, reviewed and approved.  The Terminal Disclaimer has also been recorded.
REASONS FOR ALLOWANCE
Claims 1-14 are allowed.
The following is an Examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance:
The prior art of record taken alone or in combination, fail to disclose, suggest, or otherwise render obvious the features recited in independent claim.1. The related art of record fails to disclose, suggest or provide the motivation to teach a protective aircraft cover having a surface and at least one edge portion, said cover comprising: a material having a thickness; and programmable magnets joined to said material for adhering said protective aircraft cover to an aircraft, said programmable magnets each comprising a single metal piece comprising a plurality of magnets joined together side-by-side with some of said magnets oriented with their North-South poles in one direction interspersed with other magnets oriented with their South-North poles in the opposite direction, wherein the magnets that are oriented North-South have their North pole on a first surface of the programmable magnet and their South pole on an opposing second surface of the programmable magnet and the other magnets that are oriented South-North have their South pole on the first surface and their North pole on the opposing second surface encapsulated in said cover at said edge portion, the claimed subject matter, as a whole. Moreover, the related art indicates that this protective aircraft cover is novel and has not been published or patented by other entities. This along with the rest of the claimed limitations is not shown by the related art and these limitations, in specific combination as recited in the independent claim, define patentability of the claims over prior art of record.
Any comments considered necessary by Applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee.  Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
/MANCIL LITTLEJOHN JR/Examiner, Art Unit 2685
/QUAN ZHEN WANG/                                                                       Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2685

APPLICANT REBUTTAL: REMARKS
Claims 1-11 are pending and stand rejected. Claim 1 has been amended. Claims 12-14 have been added.
The specification (paragraph [0005]) has been further amended to include additional subject matter from US Patent 10,173,292, the disclosure of which is incorporated into the specification by reference. No new matter is believed to be added.
Applicant's attorney wishes to thank the Examiner for his time during their telephone discussion on December 17, 2024.
Summary of the Interview
Applicant's attorney agrees with the Examiner's Interview Summary. Applicant is providing the following summary of the interview under MPEP 713.04:
(A) Brief description of exhibit shown or demonstration conducted: None
(B) Identification of the claims discussed: Claims 1 and 11.
(C) Identification of the specific prior art discussed: U.S. Patent Application Pub Nos.
2020/0039662 Al, Descheemaeker and 2017/0251313 Al, Gustafsson.
(D) Identification of the principal proposed amendments of a substantive nature discussed:
Applicant's attorney and Examiner discussed that Applicant's attorney would consider making amendments to the claims to add the "wherein clause" language from Claim 1
of U.S. Patent 11,772,812 B1 into Claim 1 of the present application.
(E) General thrust of the principal arguments of applicant: Applicant did not present
arguments.
(F) General indication of other pertinent matters discussed: None
(G) General results or outcome of the interview: Applicant's attorney indicated that he
would likely be filing an RCE to make this amendment. It was agreed that the proposed
amendment would overcome the current rejections.
(H) Interview via electronic mail: N/A.
Double Patenting
Claims 1-10 stand rejected on the grounds of nonstatutory obviousness-type double patenting as being unpatentable over Claims 1-10 of U.S. Patent 11,772,812.
Without admitting that the double patenting rejection is properly imposed, Applicant is submitting a terminal disclaimer herewith to obviate the double patenting rejection.
In view of the foregoing, Applicant respectfully requests that the double patent rejection be withdrawn.
Rej
ections Under 35 U.S.C.
Claims 1 and 11
Claims 1 and 11 stand rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over
Descheemaeker (U.S. Patent Application 2020/0039662) in view of Gustafsson (U.S. Patent Application 2017/0251313).
Applicant respectfully requests that this rejection be reconsidered and withdrawn.
Although Applicant continues to believe that Claims 1 and 11 as filed are patentable, Applicant has amended Claim 1 to add the "wherein clause" language as discussed during the interview. As indicated in the Examiner's interview summary, it was agreed that the latter aspect of the proposed amendment would overcome the current rejections.
In view of the agreement that this amendment would overcome the current rejections, Applicant will not repeat Applicant's previous arguments in full regarding patentability of the claims over the combination of references, but will incorporate its prior arguments by reference herein and only make brief references thereto, and provide some supplementary information.
The magnets described in Descheemaeker are electromagnets which are a type of magnet in which the magnetic field is produced by an electric current. Electromagnets usually consist of a wire wound into a coil. An electromagnet requires a continuous supply of current to maintain the magnetic field. See article on electromagnets transmitted herewith. Applicant believes that the combination of references does not render the subject matter of Claim 1 obvious according to the guidance set out in MPEP 2143.01V and VI.
In view of the foregoing, it is respectfully requested that this rejection be reconsidered and withdrawn.
Claims 2-3
Claims 2-3 stand rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over
Descheemaeker (U.S. Patent Application 2020/0039662) in view of Gustafsson (U.S. Patent Application 2017/0251313) further in view of Hausmann (U.S. Patent Application 2019/0300199).
Applicant respectfully requests that this rejection be reconsidered and withdrawn in view of the agreement that the amendment to Claim 1 would overcome the current rejections. In view of the agreement that this amendment would overcome the current rejections, Applicant will not repeat Applicant's previous arguments in full regarding patentability of the claims over the combination of references, but will incorporate its prior arguments by reference herein.
Claims 4-5
Claims 4-5 stand rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over
Descheemaeker (U.S. Patent Application 2020/0039662) in view of Gustafsson (U.S. Patent Application 2017/0251313) further in view of Hausmann (U.S. Patent Application 2019/0300199) and still further in view of Silver (U.S. Patent Application 2007/0094763).
Applicant respectfully requests that this rejection be reconsidered and withdrawn in view of the agreement that the amendment to Claim 1 would overcome the current rejections. In view of the agreement that this amendment would overcome the current rejections, Applicant will not repeat Applicant's previous arguments in full regarding patentability of the claims over the combination of references, but will incorporate its prior arguments by reference herein.
Claim 6
Claim 6 stands rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Descheemaeker (U.S. Patent Application 2020/0039662) in view of Gustafsson (U.S. Patent Application 2017/0251313) further in view of Hausmann (U.S. Patent Application 2019/0300199) and still further in view of Silver (U.S. Patent Application 2007/0094763) and still even further in view of Shinotsuka (U.S. Patent Application 2015/0071483).
Applicant respectfully requests that this rejection be reconsidered and withdrawn in view of the agreement that the amendment to Claim 1 would overcome the current rejections. In view of the agreement that this amendment would overcome the current rejections, Applicant will not repeat Applicant's previous arguments in full regarding patentability of the claims over the combination of references, but will incorporate its prior arguments by reference herein.
Claim 7
Claim 7 stands rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Descheemaeker (U.S. Patent Application 2020/0039662) in view of Gustafsson (U.S. Patent Application 2017/0251313) further in view of Foo (U.S. Patent Application 2013/0146453).
Applicant respectfully requests that this rejection be reconsidered and withdrawn in view of the agreement that the amendment to Claim 1 would overcome the current rejections. In view of the agreement that this amendment would overcome the current rejections, Applicant will not repeat Applicant's previous arguments in full regarding patentability of the claims over the combination of references, but will incorporate its prior arguments by reference herein.
Claim 8
Claim 8 stands rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Descheemaeker (U.S. Patent Application 2020/0039662) in view of Gustafsson (U.S. Patent Application 2017/0251313) further in view of Emory (U.S. Patent 5,919,541).
Applicant respectfully requests that this rejection be reconsidered and withdrawn in view of the agreement that the amendment to Claim 1 would overcome the current rejections. In view of the agreement that this amendment would overcome the current rejections, Applicant will not repeat Applicant's previous arguments in full regarding patentability of the claims over the combination of references, but will incorporate its prior arguments by reference herein.
Claims 9-10
Claims 9-10 stand rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over
Descheemaeker (U.S. Patent Application 2020/0039662) in view of Gustafsson (U.S. Patent Application 2017/0251313) further in view of Klein (U.S. Patent 5,267,763).
Applicant respectfully requests that this rejection be reconsidered and withdrawn in view of the agreement that the amendment to Claim 1 would overcome the current rejections. In view of the agreement that this amendment would overcome the current rejections, Applicant will not repeat Applicant's previous arguments in full regarding patentability of the claims over the combination of references, but will incorporate its prior arguments by reference herein.
New Claims
New Claims 12-14 are dependent from Claim 1 and, therefore, should also be patentable over the combination of references in the final Office Action. In addition, Claims 12 and 13 are further distinguishable from the electromagnets described in the Descheemaeker reference. Permanent magnets differ from electromagnets in that permanent magnets maintain their magnetic properties in the absence of an inducing field or current. Permanent magnets have to be removed by a force greater than the magnetic force holding the magnets in place.
Conclusion


CITED REFERENCE SUMMARIES: Ref US11772812: Claims:
1. A protective aircraft cover having a surface and at least one edge portion, said cover comprising:
a collapsible material having a thickness; and
programmable magnets joined to said collapsible material for adhering said protective aircraft cover to an aircraft, said programmable magnets each comprising a single metal piece comprising a plurality of magnets joined directly to each other side-by-side with some of said magnets oriented with their North-South poles in one direction interspersed with other magnets oriented with their South-North poles in the opposite direction, wherein the magnets that are oriented North-South have their North pole on a first surface of the programmable magnet and their South pole on an opposing second surface of the programmable magnet and the other magnets that are oriented South-North have their South pole on the first surface and their North pole on the opposing second surface encapsulated in said cover at said edge portion.
2. The protective aircraft cover according to claim 1 configured to be removably attached to an aircraft engine having an inlet and to cover an aircraft engine inlet.
3. The protective aircraft cover according to claim 1 wherein some of the plurality of magnets comprising the single metal piece that comprises the programmable magnets have the same polarity orientation and are joined directly to each other side-by-side.
4. The protective aircraft cover according to claim 1 wherein said collapsible material is a fire resistant ballistic fabric including antistatic fibers.
5. The protective aircraft cover according to claim 1 wherein said collapsible material is a fabric and the programmable magnets are encapsulated by stitching the fabric around said programmable magnets.
6. The protective aircraft cover according to claim 5 wherein the collapsible material thickness is sufficient to prevent the magnetic field strength of the programmable magnets to cause adherence to one another when the collapsible material is collapsed upon itself, which would make it difficult to separate the magnets from each other for protective aircraft cover installation.
7. The protective aircraft cover according to claim 1 wherein at least one of said programmable magnets is programmed to have a magnetic field strength in a portion of said cover that is different from the magnetic field strength in other portions of said cover so that adherence is increased in portions subject to higher loads and less in other areas.
8. The protective aircraft cover according to claim 1 wherein a combination of one or more collapsible material thickness and a magnetic field strength of said programmable magnets enables adherence to an aircraft surface subject to wind loads greater than 40 mph.
9. The protective aircraft cover according to claim 1 wherein the programmable magnets have a magnetic field strength sufficient to adhere the protective cover to an aircraft while not causing damage to surface coatings.
10. The protective aircraft cover according to claim 1 wherein the programmable magnets have a magnetic field that does not interfere with electronic signals when installed on an aircraft.
11. The protective aircraft cover according to claim 2 which is in the form of a six-sided polygon having six edge portions, wherein four of said edge portions are in the configuration of a parallelogram with two opposing corners replaced with two shorter length edge portions, and said programmable magnets are encapsulated along said six edge portions.
12. The protective aircraft cover according to claim 1 configured to be removably attached to an aircraft engine having an exhaust and to cover the aircraft engine exhaust.
13. The protective aircraft cover according to claim 12 which is in the form of a rectangle having a central portion and four edge portions, wherein said programmable magnets are encapsulated along said four edge portions and said central portion is free of programmable weights.
14. The protective aircraft cover according to claim 1 configured to be removably attached to an aircraft having a Pitot tube thereon and to cover the aircraft Pitot tube.
15. A method of removably attaching a protective aircraft cover to a component of an aircraft, which aircraft has an engine having an inlet and an exhaust, said method comprising:
a. providing a protective aircraft cover having a surface and at least one edge portion, said cover comprising:
a collapsible material having a thickness; and
programmable magnets joined to said collapsible material for adhering said protective aircraft cover to an aircraft, said programmable magnets each comprising a single metal piece comprising a plurality of magnets joined directly to each other side-by-side with some of said magnets oriented with their North-South poles in one direction interspersed with other magnets oriented with their South-North poles in the opposite direction, wherein the magnets that are oriented North-South have their North pole on a first surface of the programmable magnet and their South pole on an opposing second surface of the programmable magnet and the other magnets that are oriented South-North have their South pole on the first surface and their North pole on the opposing second surface, wherein said programmable magnets are encapsulated in said cover at said edge portion;

b. attaching said protective aircraft cover to the aircraft engine in order to cover one of the aircraft's engine inlet or the engine exhaust.
16. The method of claim 15 wherein at least one of said programmable magnets is programmed to have a magnetic field strength in a portion of said cover that is different from the magnetic field strength in other portions of said cover so that adherence can be increased in portions subject to higher loads and less in other areas.
17. The method of claim 15 wherein a combination of one or more collapsible material thickness and a magnetic field strength of said programmable magnets enables adherence to an aircraft surface subject to wind loads greater than 40 mph.
18. The method of claim 15 wherein said protective aircraft cover provided in step a) is in a collapsed condition, wherein the collapsible material is a fabric that has sufficient thickness to prevent the magnetic field strength of the programmable magnets to cause adherence to one another when the collapsible material is collapsed, wherein said method further comprises opening the protective aircraft cover from its collapsed condition prior to step b).
19. The method of claim 15 wherein said protective aircraft cover covers the engine exhaust and said collapsible material is a fire resistant ballistic fabric including antistatic fibers, and said fabric permits heat transfer away from the aircraft engine.
20. The method of claim 15 wherein some of the plurality of magnets comprising the single metal piece comprising the programmable magnets have the same polarity orientation and are joined directly to each other side-by-side.
21. A protective aircraft cover having a surface and at least one edge portion, said cover comprising:
a collapsible material having a thickness; and
programmable magnets joined to said collapsible material for adhering said protective aircraft cover to an aircraft, said programmable magnets each comprising a single metal piece comprising a plurality of magnets joined together side-by-side with some of said magnets oriented with their North-South poles in one direction interspersed with other magnets oriented with their South-North poles in the opposite direction.