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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed August 18, 2025 have been fully considered. Based on the amendments, the previous 35 U.S.C 103 rejections are withdrawn. Claim 13 and its dependent claims are rejected under a new grounds of rejection. Claims 1 and 18 (as well as their dependent claims) have new grounds of rejection under 35 U.S.C 112(a) and 35 U.S.C 112(b). The applicant’s arguments are therefore moot. The new grounds of rejection are necessitated by amendment.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 1-6, 8-9, 11-12, 18, and 20-23 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Claim 1 recites, “a second housing component configured to support the second stage portion”. The applicant cites Figure 5 and paragraph [0029] as providing support. There is nowhere in the specification that describes the first and second housing component as supporting any other components. It appears the applicant is therefore relying on the drawings. The claimed second stage portion includes the second impeller assembly and the second diffuser assembly. In the instant application these are (510) and (630) respectively and are shown in Figure 6A (shown also in Figure 5 but unlabeled). Figure 5 shows the first housing component (310) and second housing component (315) which define the circumferential insertion slot (530). The second housing component (315) appears to have no contact or connection with the second diffuser assembly (630) that is present but is unlabeled in Figure 5. As shown in Figures 5 and 6A, the second diffuser assembly (630) appears to be in connection with (320) instead. The examiner finds that the second impeller assembly (510) is also not supported by (315). The impeller assembly appears to be supported by unlabeled bearings in Figure 5 which appear to be connected to housing portion (320). It is noted that the impeller rotates at high speeds and can only logically be supported by a bearing configuration without substantial issues of efficiency / wear. The examiner finds that based on the above the second housing component cannot be found to support the second stage portion under any definitions. Please see the 35 U.S.C 112(b) rejections below as there is indefiniteness as to what this limitation and the similar limitation regarding the first housing component mean.
Claim 18 has similar limitations to claim 1, but now explicitly requires “a first housing component configured to support the first impeller assembly and the first diffuser assembly” and “a second housing component configured to support the second impeller assembly and the second diffuser assembly”.
The examiner finds that the first housing component and second housing component do not support the first impeller and second impeller assemblies respectively. This is for the same reasons as discussed with regard to claim 1 which are repeated for clarity. The impeller assemblies appear to be connected together via an unlabeled shaft extending all the way from (525) and appear to be supported by unlabeled bearings in Figure 5 which appear to be connected to housing portion (320). It is noted that the impeller rotates at high speeds and can only logically be supported by a bearing configuration without substantial issues of efficiency / wear. The examiner finds that based on the above the first and second housing components cannot be found to support the first or second impeller assemblies.
The same logic presented with regard to claim 1, also applies to the claimed concept of the second housing component supporting the second diffuser assembly which is repeated for clarity. The second housing component (315) appears to have no contact or connection with the second diffuser assembly (630) that is present but is unlabeled in Figure 5. As shown in Figures 5 and 6A, the second diffuser assembly (630) appears to be in connection with (320) instead.
Claims dependent from either claim 1 or claim 18 are also rejected.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-6, 8-9, 11-12, 18, and 20-23 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 1 recites, “first housing component configured to support the first stage portion” and “a second housing component configured to support the second stage portion”. These limitations are not described in the specification. The examiner finds that the second limitation does not have comply with the written description requirement as discussed above. Therefore, for these reasons and additional reasons discussed directly below, the limitations have several possible meanings and no description to potentially clarify.
First, it is unclear if the supporting of the first stage portion require that the housing support all of the elements of the first stage portion or only some. Note that the first stage portion is claimed as having a first impeller assembly and a first diffuser assembly. The first impeller assembly is rotating at high speed while the first diffuser assembly is substantially static except for potential small adjusts provided by 340. These components have very different loads and paths for how these loads are reacted through the compressor.
It is unclear if supporting requires direct transfer of loads or if the support can be indirect via many other components interacting. It is unclear if feet / bottom supports (unlabeled) shown in Figure 3 are considered as part of any of the housings and if these play a part in the concept of support as this may be a load path depending on how the compressor is connected to the ground. It is noted that these feet do not appear present in Figure 1.
The above applies to the second housing component supporting the second stage portion as well. The examiner reiterates that these concepts of indefiniteness are related to the 35 U.S.C 112(a) rejections above as well.
Claim 18 recites, “a first housing component configured to support the first impeller assembly and the first diffuser assembly” and “a second housing component configured to support the second impeller assembly and the second diffuser assembly”. Similar concepts of indefiniteness discussed with regard to claim 1 also apply. It is noted that is explicitly claimed that the housing components support both the impeller and diffuser assemblies and therefore this ambiguity is removed with comparison to claim 1. The examiner reiterates that the concepts of indefiniteness are related to the 35 U.S.C 112(a) rejections of claim 18 above as well.
The first impeller assembly is rotating at high speed while the first diffuser assembly is substantially static except for potential small adjusts provided by 340. These components have very different loads and paths for how these loads are reacted through the compressor. It is unclear how the first impeller assembly could be considered supported by the first housing component.
It is unclear if supporting requires direct transfer of loads or if the support can be indirect via many other components interacting. It is unclear if feet / bottom supports (unlabeled) shown in Figure 3 are considered as part of any of the housings and if these play a part in the concept of support as this may be a load path depending on how the compressor is connected to the ground. It is noted that these feet do not appear present in Figure 1.
The above applies to the second housing component supporting the second stage portion as well.
Claims dependent from either claim 1 or claim 18 are also rejected.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 13-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Mariotti (U.S Pre-Grant Publication 20110280710) hereinafter Mariotti in view of Chen et al. (CN103016409) hereinafter Chen and Nishida (JP2016056741) hereinafter Nishida.
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Regarding Claim 13, Mariotti discloses:
A compressor {Figure 3 (10); [0036]}, comprising:
a first stage portion comprising a first impeller assembly and a first diffuser assembly {Figure 4 first stage (32A) comprises first impeller (18A) and first diffuser (15); the instance of (15) that is just radially outward of (18A), [0033]},
a second stage portion comprising a second impeller assembly and a second diffuser assembly {Figure 4 second stage (32B) comprises second impeller (18B) and second diffuser (15); the instance of (15) that is just radially outward of (18B), [0033]};
an interstage portion situated between the first stage portion and the second stage portion {Figure 4 (41A) and (22B)} and comprising:
a directing vane assembly {Figure 4 instance of (15) in (19C)};
a collector passage circumferentially surrounding the directing vane assembly {Figure 4 (36A) surrounds (15); there is at least partial overlap in the axial direction},
a circumferential insertion slot fluidly coupling the collecting passage with the directing vane assembly {Figure 4 (C2) couples the collecting passage with the directing vane assembly}
wherein the circumferential insertion slot is a single passage extending around a full circumference of the compressor {Figure 4 (36A) is described as a “worm screw” which is a spiral shape that extends circumferentially around the axis; [0008]}
wherein a first housing component of the compressor and a second housing component of the compressor cooperatively define the circumferential insertion slot extending therebetween {Figure 4 (13E) is a first housing component of the compressor and (13B) is a second housing component; these two components cooperatively define the circumferential insertion slot (C2); [0054]};
a main inlet configured to deliver the main flow of fluid to the first impeller assembly along a main flow path extending from the first stage portion and through the second stage portion {Figure 4 (22A) is a main inlet that delivers fluid flow along the main flow path through both the first and second stage}
wherein the collector passage is radially aligned with the main flow path upstream of the directing vane assembly {Figure 4 (36A) is radially aligned with the main path in (19B) as there is axially overlap with the main flow path upstream of the directing vane assembly};
wherein the collector passage is radially aligned with a second portion of the main flow path extending through the directing vane assembly {Figure 4 (C2) is radially aligned with the main flow path portion that extends through the directing vane assembly (15)}
wherein the circumferential insertion slot is configured to discharge a secondary flow of fluid in a radial direction and into a radial flow of the main flow of fluid upstream of the directing vane assembly to mix with the main flow of fluid and form a combined flow of fluid {Figure 4 (C2) discharges the secondary flow of fluid radially inwardly in the main flow in (19C); [0045]/[0050]}, and
wherein the directing vane assembly is configured to receive the combined flow of fluid {Figure 4 the instance of (15) in (19C) receives the combined flow from (19B) and (C2)}.
Mariotti does not teach:
wherein the collector passage is radially aligned with a first portion of the main flow path extending through the first impeller assembly
Mariotti does not disclose precise dimensions and axial locations of the collector passage and first impeller assembly. Since applicant has not disclosed that having the collector passage being radially aligned with a first portion of the main flow path extending through the first impeller assembly solves any stated problem or is for any particular purpose and it appears that collector passage of Mariotti would perform equally well with a configuration in which the collector passage is radially aligned with the first portion of the main flow path as claimed by applicant, it would have been an obvious matter of design choice to modify collector passage of Mariotti by utilizing the spatial relation between the collector passage and first impeller assembly as claimed for the basic purpose of a achieving a compact design. Further evidence that the above modification is obvious is provided by the teachings of Chen where the collector passage (20) in Figure 1 almost is radially aligned with the first impeller assembly (5). This demonstrates that collector passages which extend in the axial direction toward the first impeller assembly are known and would perform substantially identically to the configuration of Mariotti.
Mariotti does not teach:
wherein a first housing component of the compressor and a second housing component of the compressor are directly coupled to one another and in abutment with one another
Marrioti does disclose that the first housing component and second housing component are connected via another component {Figure 4 (13E) is a first housing component of the compressor and (13B) is a second housing component which are coupled together as they are both fixed to (12)}
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the first housing component of the compressor and a second housing component of the compressor of the combination of Marrioti and Chen directly coupled to one another and in abutment with one another. One of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to do so as making part of (12) integral with first housing component (13E) and the adjoining part of (12) integral with the second housing component (13B) is an obvious engineering choice, see MPEP 2144.04 V B, “making integral”. The examiner finds that the fact pattern is highly applicable as the housing components of Marrioti “comprise several parts rigidly secured together as a single unit”. Additional evidence of this being an “obvious engineering choice” as discussed in MPEP 2144.04 V B is that Nishida uses a housing (8) in Figure 1 that appears to be a unitary structure for a substantially identical configuration of compressor.
Regarding claim 14, Mariotti further discloses:
wherein the interstage portion further comprises a secondary inlet configured to deliver the secondary flow of fluid to the collector passage {Annotated Figure 1, (36A) has an inlet (II) at the radially outer portion that delivers the fluid to it}.
Regarding claim 15, Mariotti further discloses:
wherein the main inlet and the secondary inlet are perpendicularly oriented relative to each other {Annotated Figure 1, the main inlet defined by (22A) shown by (I) is perpendicular relative to (II) which is the secondary inlet}.
Regarding claim 16, Mariotti further discloses:
wherein the circumferential insertion slot and the secondary inlet are parallel relative to each other {Figure 4, the opening of (C2) is parallel to the secondary inlet (II)}.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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 nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) 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 MICHAEL K. REITZ whose telephone number is (571)272-1387. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7:30 a.m. -5:30 p.m.
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, Courtney Heinle can be reached at 5712703508. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MICHAEL K. REITZ/Examiner, Art Unit 3745