Offc Action Outgoing

United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)

Office Action (Official Letter) About Applicant’s Trademark Application

 

 

 

NONFINAL OFFICE ACTION

 

The USPTO must receive applicant’s response to this letter within six months of the issue date below or the application will be abandoned.  Respond using the Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS).  A link to the appropriate TEAS response form appears at the end of this Office action. 

 

 

Issue date:  September 17, 2019

 

The referenced application has been reviewed by the assigned trademark examining attorney.  Applicant must respond timely and completely to the issues below.  15 U.S.C. §1062(b); 37 C.F.R. §§2.62(a), 2.65(a); TMEP §§711, 718.03.

 

Search Results

 

The trademark examining attorney has searched the Office’s database of registered and pending marks and has found no conflicting marks that would bar registration under Trademark Act Section 2(d).  TMEP §704.02; see 15 U.S.C. §1052(d).

 

Description of the Mark/Color Claim

 

The drawing shows the applied-for mark in various colors, including white; however, the color claim and description of the mark does not reference the color white.  The color claim and description must be complete and reference all the colors in the mark.  See 37 C.F.R. §§2.37, 2.52(b)(1); TMEP §§807.07(a) et seq.  Therefore, applicant must clarify whether white is used as a color in the mark or to indicate background, outlining, shading, and/or transparent areas.  TMEP §807.07(d); see 37 C.F.R. §2.61(b).

 

To clarify how white is being used in the mark, applicant may satisfy one of the following:

 

(1)       If white is a feature of the mark, applicant must amend the color claim to include them and amend the description to identify where white appears in the literal and/or design elements of the mark.  The following color claim and description are suggested, if accurate:

 

Color claim:  “The colors red, blue, black and white are claimed as a feature of the mark.”

 

Description:  “The mark consists of a silhouette of the nose and front end of an aircraft in blue with the letters "JETD CK" in stylized black lettering and the letter "O" in stylized red lettering with the inside of the “O” in white, within the front end of the aircraft.

 

(2)       If white is not a feature of the mark, applicant must amend the description to state that black, white, and/or gray represent background, outlining, shading and/or transparent areas and are not part of the mark.  The following description is suggested, if accurate:

 

“The mark consists of a silhouette of the nose and front end of an aircraft in blue with the letters "JETD CK" in stylized black lettering and the letter "O" in stylized red lettering within the front end of the aircraft. The color white represents background and is not part of the mark.”

 

TMEP §807.07(d).

 

 

Identification of Goods

 

Applicant must clarify some of the wording in the identification of goods because it is indefinite and too broad.  See 37 C.F.R. §2.32(a)(6); TMEP §§1402.01, 1402.03.  Applicant must specify the nature or material composition of the good with more particularity.

 

Applicant may substitute the following wording, if accurate:

 

Class 006:   Enclosed portable ramps of metal for use in boarding aircraft; Pre-fabricated metal telescoping bridges for loading and unloading passengers between aircraft and terminal buildings

 

Class 007:  Motorized telescoping bridges for loading and unloading passengers between aircraft and terminal buildings

 

Class 009:  Automated systems, namely, downloadable computer operating software, computer hardware, electric sensors, and communications devices for controlling and monitoring power operated movable passenger bridges for connecting an aircraft to an airport terminal gate

 

Guidelines to Amending the Identification of Goods and/or Services

 

Applicant may amend the identification to clarify or limit the goods and/or services, but not to broaden or expand the goods and/or services beyond those in the original application or as acceptably amended.  See 37 C.F.R. §2.71(a); TMEP §1402.06.  Generally, any deleted goods and/or services may not later be reinserted.  See TMEP §1402.07(e).

 

For assistance with identifying and classifying goods and services in trademark applications, please see the USPTO’s online searchable U.S. Acceptable Identification of Goods and Services Manual.  See TMEP §1402.04.

 

Significance of Wording

 

To permit proper examination of the application, applicant must explain whether the wording in the mark “dock” has any significance in the airplane bridge industry or as applied to applicant’s goods, or if such wording is a “term of art” within applicant’s industry.  See 37 C.F.R. §2.61(b); TMEP §814.  Failure to comply with a request for information is grounds for refusing registration.  In re Harley, 119 USPQ2d 1755, 1757-58 (TTAB 2016); TMEP §814.

 

 

TEAS PLUS OR TEAS REDUCED FEE (TEAS RF) APPLICANTS – TO MAINTAIN LOWER FEE, ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS MUST BE MET, INCLUDING SUBMITTING DOCUMENTS ONLINE:  Applicants who filed their application online using the lower-fee TEAS Plus or TEAS RF application form must (1) file certain documents online using TEAS, including responses to Office actions (see TMEP §§819.02(b), 820.02(b) for a complete list of these documents); (2) maintain a valid e-mail correspondence address; and (3) agree to receive correspondence from the USPTO by e-mail throughout the prosecution of the application.  See 37 C.F.R. §§2.22(b), 2.23(b); TMEP §§819, 820.  TEAS Plus or TEAS RF applicants who do not meet these requirements must submit an additional processing fee of $125 per class of goods and/or services.  37 C.F.R. §§2.6(a)(1)(v), 2.22(c), 2.23(c); TMEP §§819.04, 820.04.  However, in certain situations, TEAS Plus or TEAS RF applicants may respond to an Office action by authorizing an examiner’s amendment by telephone or e-mail without incurring this additional fee.  

 

 

How to respond.  Click to file a response to this nonfinal Office action  

 

If applicant has questions about its application or needs assistance in responding to this Office action, please telephone the assigned trademark examining attorney.

 

 

 

/Kathleen Lorenzo/

Kathleen Lorenzo

Trademark Examining Attorney

Law Office 109

Kathleen.Lorenzo@uspto.gov

571-272-5883

 

 

RESPONSE GUIDANCE

• Missing the response deadline to this letter will cause the application to abandon.  A response or notice of appeal must be received by the USPTO before midnight Eastern Time of the last day of the response period.  TEAS and ESTTA maintenance or unforeseen circumstances could affect an applicant’s ability to timely respond.  

 

• Responses signed by an unauthorized party are not accepted and can cause the application to abandon.  If applicant does not have an attorney, the response must be signed by the individual applicant, all joint applicants, or someone with legal authority to bind a juristic applicant.  If applicant has an attorney, the response must be signed by the attorney.

 

• If needed, find contact information for the supervisor of the office or unit listed in the signature block.

 

United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)

 

USPTO OFFICIAL NOTICE

 

Office Action (Official Letter) has issued

on September 17, 2019 for

U.S. Trademark Application Serial No. 88483613

 

Your trademark application has been reviewed by a trademark examining attorney.  As part of that review, the assigned attorney has issued an official letter that you must respond to by the specified deadline or your application will be abandoned.  Please follow the steps below.

 

(1)  Read the official letter.

 

(2)  Direct questions about the contents of the Office action to the assigned attorney below. 

 

 

/Kathleen Lorenzo/

Kathleen Lorenzo

Trademark Examining Attorney

Law Office 109

Kathleen.Lorenzo@uspto.gov

571-272-5883

 

Direct questions about navigating USPTO electronic forms, the USPTO website, the application process, the status of your application, and/or whether there are outstanding deadlines or documents related to your file to the Trademark Assistance Center (TAC).

 

(3)  Respond within 6 months (or earlier, if required in the Office action) from September 17, 2019, using the Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS).  The response must be received by the USPTO before midnight Eastern Time of the last day of the response period.  See the Office action for more information about how to respond.

 

 

 

GENERAL GUIDANCE

·       Check the status of your application periodically in the Trademark Status & Document Retrieval (TSDR) database to avoid missing critical deadlines.

 

·       Update your correspondence email address, if needed, to ensure you receive important USPTO notices about your application.

 

·       Beware of misleading notices sent by private companies about your application.  Private companies not associated with the USPTO use public information available in trademark registrations to mail and email trademark-related offers and notices – most of which require fees.  All official USPTO correspondence will only be emailed from the domain “@uspto.gov.”