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 .
Priority
Applicant’s claim for the benefit of a prior-filed application U.S. Provisional App# 63168552 (filed 03/31/2021) and 63270385 (filed 10/21/2021) under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) is acknowledged.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 09/08/2022 are being considered by the examiner.
Election/Restrictions
Requirement for Restriction/Election issued on 08/22/2025 is hereby withdrawn in view of the amendments filed on 10/22/2025.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 11-12 and 17-18 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 11, claim recites,
The multi-stage thermal management system of claim 10, wherein the control system is configured to:
receive, from a first sensor, data indicative of the return temperature;
receive, from a second sensor, data indicative of a first temperature of the chilled heat transfer fluid discharged from the heat rejection component associated with the selected stage of the plurality of stages via a conduit; and
adjust the valve system to direct the portion of the return heat transfer fluid along the fluid loop and into the conduit in response to a determination that the return temperature is less than the first temperature.
A thorough search has been conducted for the subject matter with the most relevant prior art found to be discussed.
Song (US20200370794A1) in ¶0101 teaches inflow pipes 41 and 45 guiding water to flow into the heat exchangers 101 and 102 and outflow pipes 31 and 35 guiding water discharged from the heat exchangers 101 and 102. ¶0077 teaches, the heat exchangers 101 and 102 may be provided so that a refrigerant flow path and the water flow path exchange heat with each other. For example, the heat exchangers 101 and 102 may include a plate heat exchanger capable of exchanging heat between water and a refrigerant. ¶0245 teaches the water cooled while passing through the first heat exchanger 101 and the second heat exchanger 102 may circulate in the indoor units 51, 52, 53, and 54 operating in the cooling mode. However it doesn’t teach, receive, from a first sensor, data indicative of the return temperature; receive, from a second sensor, data indicative of a first temperature of the chilled heat transfer fluid discharged from the heat rejection component associated with the selected stage of the plurality of stages via a conduit; and adjust the valve system to direct the portion of the return heat transfer fluid along the fluid loop and into the conduit in response to a determination that the return temperature is less than the first temperature, in view of the limitations of claim 10.
Martin (US20090120117A1) in ¶0046 and Fig. 6 teaches, controlling valve 644 to provide un-chilled (return heat transfer fluid) liquid coolant through a return portion 640 of low temperature storage devices 650 to medium temperature storage devices 660. It also teaches the valve 644 is controlled to ensure the mixed liquid has temperature of 25° F. ¶0013 teaches set-temperature for medium temperature storage device is 25° F. However it doesn’t teach, receive, from a first sensor, data indicative of the return temperature; receive, from a second sensor, data indicative of a first temperature of the chilled heat transfer fluid discharged from the heat rejection component associated with the selected stage of the plurality of stages via a conduit; and adjust the valve system to direct the portion of the return heat transfer fluid along the fluid loop and into the conduit in response to a determination that the return temperature is less than the first temperature, in view of the limitations of claim 10.
Hamada (US20230065130A1) ¶0035 teaches The heat source unit controller 31 performs flow control of the three-way valve 22 based on temperature information obtained from the supply water temperature sensor 14, the return water temperature sensor 23. ¶0047-0048 and Fig. 8-9 teaches three-way valve 22 controls direction of the return fluid through heat exchanger 21). However it doesn’t teach, adjust the valve system to direct the portion of the return heat transfer fluid along the fluid loop and into the conduit in response to a determination that the return temperature is less than the first temperature, in view of the limitations of claim 10.
Kopko (US20100242532A1) in ¶0038 teaches, Control circuitry 72 may be configured to switch chiller 12 between the first, second, and third modes of operation based on input received from temperature sensors 74 and 76. Temperature sensor 74 may sense the temperature of the ambient outside air and temperature sensor 76 may sense the temperature of the cooling fluid returning from the cooling load. In certain embodiments, when the ambient air temperature sensed by sensor 74 is below the cooling fluid temperature sensed by temperature sensor 76, control circuitry 72 may set chiller 12 to operate in a first mode of operation that employs free cooling by circulating the cooling fluid through the first circuit 30 of free cooling system 28. However it doesn’t teach, receive, from a second sensor, data indicative of a first temperature of the chilled heat transfer fluid discharged from the heat rejection component associated with the selected stage of the plurality of stages via a conduit; and adjust the valve system to direct the portion of the return heat transfer fluid along the fluid loop and into the conduit in response to a determination that the return temperature is less than the first temperature, in view of the limitations of claim 10.
No other art could be found which alone or in combination teaches the limitations of claim 11 in view of the limitations of claim 10. Claim 11 is therefore objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claim 12 depends on claim 11 and is also therefore objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims, based on its dependency.
Regarding claim 17, claim recites,
The multi-stage thermal management system of claim 16, wherein the plurality of stages of heat rejection components comprises:
a base stage configured to receive a first flow of the return heat transfer fluid from the plurality of heat exchangers and to discharge a second flow of the chilled heat transfer fluid; and
a first stage configured to receive the second flow of the chilled heat transfer fluid,
wherein the control system is configured to adjust the valve system to mix the portion of the return heat transfer fluid with the first flow of the return heat transfer fluid in response to a determination that the return temperature exceeds a corresponding temperature of the second flow of chilled heat transfer fluid.
Prior art cited above fails to teach the limitations of claim 17 in view of the limitations of claim 16. Claim 17 is therefore objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claim 18 depends on claim 17 and is also therefore objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims, based on its dependency.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1 and 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Song (US20200370794A1)
Regarding claim 1,
Song teaches, A multi-stage thermal management system, comprising:
a fluid loop configured to supply a chilled heat transfer fluid to a plurality of thermal loads having different cooling demands; (Fig. 2 and ¶0076-¶0084 teaches a fluid loop to circulate heat transfer fluid to a plurality of indoor units. ¶0291 teaches indoor units 50 may have different capacities)
a plurality of heat rejection components arranged in a plurality of stages, wherein the plurality of heat rejection components is fluidly coupled to the fluid loop, wherein the plurality of heat rejection components is configured to receive a return heat transfer fluid from the plurality of thermal loads and extract heat from the return heat transfer fluid to generate the chilled heat transfer fluid; and (¶0101 teaches inflow pipes 41 and 45 guiding water to flow into the heat exchangers 101 and 102 and outflow pipes 31 and 35 guiding water discharged from the heat exchangers 101 and 102. ¶0077 teaches, the heat exchangers 101 and 102 may be provided so that a refrigerant flow path and the water flow path exchange heat with each other. For example, the heat exchangers 101 and 102 may include a plate heat exchanger capable of exchanging heat between water and a refrigerant. ¶0245 teaches the water cooled while passing through the first heat exchanger 101 and the second heat exchanger 102 may circulate in the indoor units 51, 52, 53, and 54 operating in the cooling mode)
a control system configured to selectively draw the chilled heat transfer fluid from each heat rejection component of the plurality of heat rejection components individually and to direct the chilled heat transfer fluid to the plurality of thermal loads via the fluid loop based on the different cooling demands of the plurality of thermal loads to meet each of the different cooling demands via supply of the chilled heat transfer fluid. (¶0301 teaches, the controller may match the operated indoor units and the heat exchangers 101 and 102 according to the initial connection setting. ¶0298 teaches, “For example, referring to FIG. 4, according to the initial connection setting, the first indoor unit 51 having the lowest capacity among the aligned indoor units 50 may be matched to the first heat exchanger 101, the second indoor unit 52 having a second lowest capacity may be matched to the second heat exchanger 102, the third indoor unit 53 having a third low capacity may be matched to the first heat exchanger 101, and the fourth indoor unit 53 having a fourth low capacity may be matched to the second heat exchanger 102, the fifth indoor unit 54 having a fifth low capacity may be matched to the first heat exchanger 101, and the sixth indoor unit 56 having a sixth low capacity may be matched to the second heat exchanger 102.” Therefore it teaches, matching indoor units and outdoor units according the order of capacities of the indoor unit. ¶0305 teaches, the air conditioning apparatus 1 may perform valve control so that the refrigerant and water may circulate according to the result of matching the heat exchangers 101 and 102 and the operated indoor units (S50))
Regarding claim 8,
Song teaches, The multi-stage thermal management system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of stages comprises:
a base stage comprising a first heat rejection component of the plurality of heat rejection components; and (¶0063 teaches heat exchanger 102)
a first stage comprising a second heat rejection component of the plurality of heat rejection components, and (¶0063 teaches heat exchanger 103)
wherein the control system is configured to:
operate the base stage without operating the first stage to supply the chilled heat transfer fluid to the plurality of thermal loads; and (Fig. 10B and ¶0381 and ¶0387 teaches exclusive operation when only when only the second heat exchanger 102, among the first heat exchanger 101 and the second heat exchanger 102, is operated)
operate the base stage and the first stage based on a determination that the chilled heat transfer fluid discharged by the first heat rejection component does not satisfy the different cooling demands of the plurality of thermal loads. (¶0388-¶0393 teaches operating both first heat exchanger 101 and second heat exchanger 102 when the number of the operated indoor units matched to the second heat exchanger 102 operating as evaporators exceeds the predetermined maximum value)
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.
Claim(s) 2-4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Song (US20200370794A1) in view of Zhuo (US20200256573A1)
Regarding claim 2,
Song doesn’t teach, The multi-stage thermal management system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of thermal loads comprises one or more low temperature thermal loads having a first target temperature set-point and one or more high temperature thermal loads having a second target temperature set-point different than the first target temperature set-point. (Song in ¶0078 teaches a plurality of indoor units. However it teach the indoor units having different set-points. Zhuo in ¶0138 and table I teaches a plurality of indoor units with different target temperature.)
Zhuo is an art in the area of interest as it teaches, multi-split air conditioner (see Abstract). A combination of Zhuo with Song would teach the indoor units having different set point temperatures. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Zhuo with Song. Different indoor units having different target temperature is known in the art as evident by Zhuo in ¶0004 (“the target temperatures of different rooms may vary”). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary still in the art to include in the indoor units of Song the ability to have different set-point temperature as taught by Zhuo since the claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
Regarding claim 3,
Song and Zhuo teaches, The multi-stage thermal management system of claim 2, comprising a plurality of valves fluidly coupled to the plurality of heat rejection components, the one or more low temperature thermal loads, and the one or more high temperature thermal loads, wherein the control system is configured to control the plurality of valves to selectively direct chilled heat transfer fluid discharged from a first heat rejection component of the plurality of heat rejection components associated with a first selected stage of the plurality of stages to a first heat exchanger of the one or more low temperature thermal loads based on the first target temperature set-point. (Song in Fig. 2 and ¶0138, ¶0063, ¶0131 teaches a plurality of valves fluidly coupled to plurality of heat exchangers and plurality of indoor units. ¶0305 teaches, the air conditioning apparatus 1 may perform valve control so that the refrigerant and water may circulate according to the result of matching the heat exchangers 101 and 102 and the operated indoor units (S50). Zhuo in ¶0138 and table I teaches a plurality of indoor units with different target temperatures including a low temperature and high temperature)
Regarding claim 4,
Song and Zhuo teaches, The multi-stage thermal management system of claim 3, wherein the control system is configured to control the plurality of valves to selectively direct the chilled heat transfer fluid discharged from a second heat rejection component of the plurality of heat rejection components associated with a second selected stage of the plurality of stages to a second heat exchanger of the one or more high temperature thermal loads based on the second target temperature set-point. (Song in Fig. 2 and ¶0138, ¶0063, ¶0131 teaches a plurality of valves fluidly coupled to plurality of heat exchangers and plurality of indoor units. ¶0305 teaches, the air conditioning apparatus 1 may perform valve control so that the refrigerant and water may circulate according to the result of matching the heat exchangers 101 and 102 and the operated indoor units (S50). Zhuo in ¶0138 and table I teaches a plurality of indoor units with different target temperatures including a low temperature and high temperature)
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Song (US20200370794A1) in view of Zhuo (US20200256573A1) and further in view of Martin (US20090120117A1)
Regarding claim 5,
Song and Zhuo doesn’t teach, The multi-stage thermal management system of claim 4, wherein the first heat exchanger of the one or more low temperature thermal loads is configured to reject heat to the chilled heat transfer fluid to generate the return heat transfer fluid, wherein the control system is configured to control the plurality of valves based on the second target temperature set-point of the one or more high temperature thermal loads to direct a portion of the return heat transfer fluid discharged from the first heat exchanger of the one or more low temperature thermal loads to the second heat exchanger of the one or more high temperature thermal loads. (Martin in ¶0046 and Fig. 6 teaches, controlling valve 644 to provide un-chilled (return heat transfer fluid) liquid coolant through a return portion 640 of low temperature storage devices 650 to medium temperature storage devices 660. It also teaches the valve 644 is controlled to ensure the mixed liquid has temperature of 25° F. ¶0013 teaches set-temperature for medium temperature storage device is 25° F.)
Martin is an art in the area of interest as it teaches, a refrigeration system (Abstract). A combination of Martin with Song and Zhuo would allow controlling the plurality of valves based on the second target temperature set-point of the one or more high temperature thermal loads to direct a portion of the return heat transfer fluid discharged from the first heat exchanger of the one or more low temperature thermal loads to the second heat exchanger of the one or more high temperature thermal loads. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Martin with Song and Zhuo. One would have been motivated to do so because doing so would allow using a single primary loop to provide cooling to loads having both low and medium temperature requirements, as taught by Martin in ¶0047.
Claim(s) 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Song (US20200370794A1) in view of Zhuo (US20200256573A1) and further in view of Spethmann (US4463574A)
Regarding claim 6,
Song and Zhuo doesn’t teach, The multi-stage thermal management system of claim 1, wherein the control system is configured to selectively activate one or more heat rejection components of the plurality of heat rejection components based on one or more efficiency parameters, wherein the one or more efficiency parameters comprise a cost of electrical energy, a cost of water, a temperature of ambient air surrounding the multi-stage thermal management system, a humidity level of the ambient air, or a combination thereof. (Spethmann in Fig. 6 and Column 6 Line 56 – Column 7 Line 42 teaches selectively activating chillers based on cost)
Spethmann is an art in the area of interest as it teaches, selecting a combination of chillers (Abstract). A combination of Spethmann with Song and Zhuo would allow the system to selectively activating chillers based on cost. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Spethmann with Song and Zhuo. One would have been motivated to do so because doing so would allow the system to select a combination of the chillers which will require a minimum energy input to meet building load conditions, as taught by Spethmann in Column 2 Line 44-55.
Claim(s) 7 and 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Song (US20200370794A1) in view of Zhuo (US20200256573A1) and further in view of Hamada (US20230065130A1)
Regarding claim 7,
Song and Zhuo doesn’t teach, The multi-stage thermal management system of claim l, wherein the control system is configured to adjust a valve system of the fluid loop to selectively direct a portion of the return heat transfer fluid to a selected stage of the plurality of stages of heat rejection components based on a return temperature of the portion of the return heat transfer fluid and respective temperatures of the chilled heat transfer fluid discharged from the plurality of stages of heat rejection components. (Hamada in ¶0035 teaches The heat source unit controller 31 performs flow control of the three-way valve 22 based on temperature information obtained from the supply water temperature sensor 14, the return water temperature sensor 23. ¶0047-0048 and Fig. 8-9 teaches three-way valve 22 controls direction of the return fluid through heat exchanger 21)
Hamada is an art in the area of interest as it teaches, an air conditioning system (Abstract). A combination of Hamada with Song and Zhuo would allow controlling a valve system of the fluid loop to selectively direct a portion of the return heat transfer fluid to a heat rejection component of the plurality of heat rejection components associated with a selected stage of the plurality of stages based on a return temperature of the portion of the return heat transfer fluid. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Hamada with Song because doing so would allow the system to use free-cooling and minimize total power consumed by a heat source unit and a pump and suppress increase in cost of the system, as taught by Hamada in ¶0007.
Regarding claim 9,
Song and Zhuo doesn’t teach, The multi-stage thermal management system of claim 1, wherein the control system is configured to adjust a valve system of the fluid loop to selectively direct a portion of the return heat transfer fluid to a heat rejection component of the plurality of heat rejection components associated with a selected stage of the plurality of stages based on a return temperature of the portion of the return heat transfer fluid. (Hamada in ¶0035 teaches The heat source unit controller 31 performs flow control of the three-way valve 22 based on temperature information obtained from the supply water temperature sensor 14, the return water temperature sensor 23. ¶0047-0048 and Fig. 8-9 teaches three-way valve 22 controls direction of the return fluid through heat exchanger 21)
Hamada is an art in the area of interest as it teaches, an air conditioning system (Abstract). A combination of Hamada with Song and Zhuo would allow controlling a valve system of the fluid loop to selectively direct a portion of the return heat transfer fluid to a heat rejection component of the plurality of heat rejection components associated with a selected stage of the plurality of stages based on a return temperature of the portion of the return heat transfer fluid. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Hamada with Song because doing so would allow the system to use free-cooling and minimize total power consumed by a heat source unit and a pump and suppress increase in cost of the system, as taught by Hamada in ¶0007.
Claim(s) 10, 14-16 and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Song (US20200370794A1) in view of Hamada (US20230065130A1)
Regarding claim 10,
Song teaches, A multi-stage thermal management system, comprising:
a fluid loop configured to supply a chilled heat transfer fluid to a plurality of thermal loads having different cooling demands, wherein each thermal load of the plurality of thermal loads comprises a respective heat exchanger configured to reject heat to the chilled heat transfer fluid to produce return heat transfer fluid; (Fig. 2 and ¶0076-¶0084 teaches a fluid loop to circulate heat transfer fluid to a plurality of indoor units. ¶0291 teaches indoor units 50 may have different capacities. ¶0086 teaches indoor unit includes indoor heat exchanger. Fig. 2 and ¶0146 teaches indoor outflow pipe 51 b coupled to an outlet of the indoor units 51, 52, 53, and 54. ¶0157 teaches water passing through the indoor units 51, 52, 53, and 54 may flow to the first heat exchanger 101 or the second heat exchanger 102)
a plurality of heat rejection components arranged in a plurality of stages, wherein the plurality of heat rejection components is fluidly coupled to the fluid loop, wherein the plurality of heat rejection components is configured to extract thermal energy from the return heat transfer fluid to produce the chilled heat transfer fluid; and (¶0101 teaches inflow pipes 41 and 45 guiding water to flow into the heat exchangers 101 and 102 and outflow pipes 31 and 35 guiding water discharged from the heat exchangers 101 and 102. ¶0077 teaches, the heat exchangers 101 and 102 may be provided so that a refrigerant flow path and the water flow path exchange heat with each other. For example, the heat exchangers 101 and 102 may include a plate heat exchanger capable of exchanging heat between water and a refrigerant. ¶0245 teaches the water cooled while passing through the first heat exchanger 101 and the second heat exchanger 102 may circulate in the indoor units 51, 52, 53, and 54 operating in the cooling mode)
Song doesn’t teach, a control system configured to adjust a valve system of the fluid loop to selectively direct a portion of the return heat transfer fluid to a heat rejection component of the plurality of heat rejection components associated with a selected stage of the plurality of stages based on a return temperature of the portion of the return heat transfer fluid. (Hamada in ¶0035 teaches The heat source unit controller 31 performs flow control of the three-way valve 22 based on temperature information obtained from the supply water temperature sensor 14, the return water temperature sensor 23. ¶0047-0048 and Fig. 8-9 teaches three-way valve 22 controls direction of the return fluid through heat exchanger 21)
Hamada is an art in the area of interest as it teaches, an air conditioning system (Abstract). A combination of Hamada with Song would allow controlling a valve system of the fluid loop to selectively direct a portion of the return heat transfer fluid to a heat rejection component of the plurality of heat rejection components associated with a selected stage of the plurality of stages based on a return temperature of the portion of the return heat transfer fluid. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Hamada with Song because doing so would allow the system to use free-cooling and minimize total power consumed by a heat source unit and a pump and suppress increase in cost of the system, as taught by Hamada in ¶0007.
Regarding claim 14,
Song and Hamada teaches, The multi-stage thermal management system of claim 10,
wherein the control system is configured to adjust the valve system of the fluid loop to selectively direct the portion of the return heat transfer fluid to the heat rejection component of the plurality of heat rejection components associated with the selected stage of the plurality of stages of heat rejection components based on the return temperature of the portion of the return heat transfer fluid and based on respective temperatures of the chilled heat transfer fluid discharged from the plurality of stage of heat rejection components. (Hamada in ¶0035 teaches The heat source unit controller 31 performs flow control of the three-way valve 22 based on temperature information obtained from the supply water temperature sensor 14, the return water temperature sensor 23. ¶0047-0048 and Fig. 8-9 teaches three-way valve 22 controls direction of the return fluid through heat exchanger 21)
Regarding claim 15,
Song and Hamada teaches, The multi-stage thermal management system of claim 10, wherein the control system is configured to selectively draw the chilled heat transfer fluid from each heat rejection component of the plurality of heat rejection components individually and to direct the chilled heat transfer fluid to the plurality of thermal loads via the fluid loop based on the different cooling demands of the plurality of thermal loads to meet each of the different cooling demands via supply of the chilled heat transfer fluid. (Song in ¶0301 teaches, the controller may match the operated indoor units and the heat exchangers 101 and 102 according to the initial connection setting. ¶0298 teaches, “For example, referring to FIG. 4, according to the initial connection setting, the first indoor unit 51 having the lowest capacity among the aligned indoor units 50 may be matched to the first heat exchanger 101, the second indoor unit 52 having a second lowest capacity may be matched to the second heat exchanger 102, the third indoor unit 53 having a third low capacity may be matched to the first heat exchanger 101, and the fourth indoor unit 53 having a fourth low capacity may be matched to the second heat exchanger 102, the fifth indoor unit 54 having a fifth low capacity may be matched to the first heat exchanger 101, and the sixth indoor unit 56 having a sixth low capacity may be matched to the second heat exchanger 102.” Therefore it teaches, matching indoor units and outdoor units according the order of capacities of the indoor unit. ¶0305 teaches, the air conditioning apparatus 1 may perform valve control so that the refrigerant and water may circulate according to the result of matching the heat exchangers 101 and 102 and the operated indoor units (S50))
Regarding claim 16,
Song teaches, A multi-stage thermal management system, comprising:
a fluid loop configured to supply chilled heat transfer fluid to a plurality of heat exchangers, wherein the plurality of heat exchangers is configured to reject heat to the chilled heat transfer fluid to produce and discharge a return heat transfer fluid; (Fig. 2 and ¶0076-¶0084 teaches a fluid loop to circulate heat transfer fluid to a plurality of indoor units. ¶0291 teaches indoor units 50 may have different capacities. ¶0086 teaches indoor unit includes indoor heat exchanger. Fig. 2 and ¶0146 teaches indoor outflow pipe 51 b coupled to an outlet of the indoor units 51, 52, 53, and 54. ¶0157 teaches water passing through the indoor units 51, 52, 53, and 54 may flow to the first heat exchanger 101 or the second heat exchanger 102)
a plurality of stages of heat rejection components fluidly coupled to the fluid loop, wherein the plurality of stages of heat rejection components is configured to extract thermal energy from the return heat transfer fluid to generate the chilled heat transfer fluid; and (¶0101 teaches inflow pipes 41 and 45 guiding water to flow into the heat exchangers 101 and 102 and outflow pipes 31 and 35 guiding water discharged from the heat exchangers 101 and 102. ¶0077 teaches, the heat exchangers 101 and 102 may be provided so that a refrigerant flow path and the water flow path exchange heat with each other. For example, the heat exchangers 101 and 102 may include a plate heat exchanger capable of exchanging heat between water and a refrigerant. ¶0245 teaches the water cooled while passing through the first heat exchanger 101 and the second heat exchanger 102 may circulate in the indoor units 51, 52, 53, and 54 operating in the cooling mode)
Song doesn’t teach, a control system configured to adjust a valve system of the fluid loop to selectively direct a portion of the return heat transfer fluid to a selected stage of the plurality of stages of heat rejection components based on a return temperature of the portion of the return heat transfer fluid and respective temperatures of chilled heat transfer fluid discharged from the plurality of stages of heat rejection components. (Hamada in ¶0035 teaches The heat source unit controller 31 performs flow control of the three-way valve 22 based on temperature information obtained from the supply water temperature sensor 14, the return water temperature sensor 23. ¶0047-0048 and Fig. 8-9 teaches three-way valve 22 controls direction of the return fluid through heat exchanger 21)
Hamada is an art in the area of interest as it teaches, an air conditioning system (Abstract). A combination of Hamada with Song would allow controlling a valve system of the fluid loop to selectively direct a portion of the return heat transfer fluid to a heat rejection component of the plurality of heat rejection components associated with a selected stage of the plurality of stages based on a return temperature of the portion of the return heat transfer fluid. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Hamada with Song because doing so would allow the system to use free-cooling and minimize total power consumed by a heat source unit and a pump and suppress increase in cost of the system, as taught by Hamada in ¶0007.
Regarding claim 20,
Song and Hamada teaches, The multi-stage thermal management system of claim 16,
wherein the control system is configured to selectively draw the chilled heat transfer fluid from each heat rejection component of the plurality of heat rejection components individually and to direct the chilled heat transfer fluid to a plurality of thermal loads via the fluid loop based on different cooling demands of the plurality of thermal loads to meet each of the different cooling demands via supply of the chilled heat transfer fluid. (Song in ¶0301 teaches, the controller may match the operated indoor units and the heat exchangers 101 and 102 according to the initial connection setting. ¶0298 teaches, “For example, referring to FIG. 4, according to the initial connection setting, the first indoor unit 51 having the lowest capacity among the aligned indoor units 50 may be matched to the first heat exchanger 101, the second indoor unit 52 having a second lowest capacity may be matched to the second heat exchanger 102, the third indoor unit 53 having a third low capacity may be matched to the first heat exchanger 101, and the fourth indoor unit 53 having a fourth low capacity may be matched to the second heat exchanger 102, the fifth indoor unit 54 having a fifth low capacity may be matched to the first heat exchanger 101, and the sixth indoor unit 56 having a sixth low capacity may be matched to the second heat exchanger 102.” Therefore it teaches, matching indoor units and outdoor units according the order of capacities of the indoor unit. ¶0305 teaches, the air conditioning apparatus 1 may perform valve control so that the refrigerant and water may circulate according to the result of matching the heat exchangers 101 and 102 and the operated indoor units (S50))
Claim(s) 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Song (US20200370794A1) in view of Hamada (US20230065130A1) and further in view of Martin (US20090120117A1)
Regarding claim 13,
Song and Hamada doesn’t teach, The multi-stage thermal management system of claim 10, wherein the plurality of thermal loads comprises:
a low temperature thermal load having one or more first heat exchangers; and (Martin in ¶0046 teaches a low temperature storage device 650 with heat exchanger within)
a high temperature thermal load having one or more second heat exchangers, (Martin in ¶0046 teaches a medium temperature storage devices 660. ¶0017 teaches heat exchanger within one or more medium temperature storage devices)
wherein the control system is configured to adjust the valve system to:
direct a first amount of return heat transfer fluid discharged from the one or more first heat exchangers along the fluid loop to the selected stage as the portion of the return heat transfer fluid; and (Martin in ¶0046 teaches, A first portion of the chilled liquid coolant supply is directed into a supply portion 638 of the first flow path 634 to provide cooling to a heat exchanger within low temperature storage devices 650, and then as un-chilled liquid coolant through a return portion 640 back to chiller 620.)
direct a second amount of the return heat transfer fluid discharged from the one or more first heat exchangers along the fluid loop to the one or more second heat exchangers. (Martin in ¶0046 teaches, A portion of the (un-chilled) liquid coolant returned from the low temperature storage devices 650 is also directed into (i.e. mixed with) a second portion of the chilled liquid coolant supply in the second flow path 636 via branch line 642 to deliver a supply of coolant to medium temperature storage devices 660.)
Martin is an art in the area of interest as it teaches, a refrigeration system (Abstract). A combination of Martin with Song and Hamada would allow controlling the plurality of valves based on the second target temperature set-point of the one or more high temperature thermal loads to direct a portion of the return heat transfer fluid discharged from the first heat exchanger of the one or more low temperature thermal loads to the second heat exchanger of the one or more high temperature thermal loads. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Martin with Song and Hamada. One would have been motivated to do so because doing so would allow using a single primary loop to provide cooling to loads having both low and medium temperature requirements, as taught by Martin in ¶0047.
Claim(s) 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Song (US20200370794A1) in view of Hamada (US20230065130A1) and further in view of Ridder (US20180209675A1)
Regarding claim 19,
Song and Hamada teaches, The multi-stage thermal management system of claim 16, wherein plurality of stages of heat rejection components comprises….., a dry economizer, …..and a chiller system. (Hamada in ¶¶0033-¶0034 and Fig. 1 teaches, water-air heat exchanger 21 (a dry economizer) and a refrigeration cycle, in which a compressor 4, a condenser 5, an expansion valve 8, and a refrigerant side of a refrigerant-water heat exchanger 7 are connected (a chiller system))
Song and Hamada doesn’t teach, a heat recovery heat exchanger, a wet economizer, (Ridder in ¶0058 teaches, a central plant having a plurality of subplants 202-212. Subplants 202-212 are shown to include a heat recovery chiller subplant 204 (a heat recovery heat exchanger), a cooling tower subplant 208 (a wet economizer). ¶0167 teaches, heat recovery heat exchangers 226, cooling towers 238)
Ridder is an art in the area of interest as it teaches an HVAC system. A combination of Ridder with Song and Hamada would allow the combined system to include a heat recovery heat exchanger, a wet economizer. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to combine the teaching of Ridder with Song and Hamada. Using a heat recovery heat exchanger, a wet economizer in HVAC system is known in the art as evident by Ridder in ¶0058 and ¶0167. The claimed invention is merely a combination of old elements, and in the combination each element merely would have performed the same function as it did separately, and one of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the results of the combination were predictable.
Conclusion
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/ISTIAQUE AHMED/ Examiner, Art Unit 2116 /KENNETH M LO/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2116