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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements filed 9/29/22, 4/19/24, 8/15/24 have been considered by the examiner.
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.
Claims 1-3 and 6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Yamanishi et al. (US 2020/0091529).
Regarding claim 1, Yamanishi teaches a gas supply system, or fuel cell system, comprising:
a first tank (2a) and a second tank (2b) configured to store gas ([0045]);
a gas consumption device, or fuel cell stack (50), configured to consume gas;
a first valve (3a) and second valve (3b) configured to switch between supply and shutoff of the gas from the respective tanks ([0054]);
a storage device, or control device (1), that stores computer-executable instructions ([0048]);
one or more processors, or CPU (10), that executes the operation defined in the program ([0048]) to cause the gas supply system to perform opening/closing of the valves (3a, 3b) ([0054]-[0055]);
wherein
the storage device stores a first pressure threshold value, or standard value, for determining whether or not to supply the gas from the first tank to the gas consumption device, via opening or closing one or both of control valves (3a, 3b), when a decrease in pressure exceeds a standard value (Figures 5 and 10, [0014], [0132]-[0143]);
wherein the processors cause the gas supply system to:
open both valves (Figure 4);
acquire a gas pressure of the gas supplied to the gas consumption device via pressure sensor in tank ([0013]) and acquire the tank temperatures via temperature sensors (23a, 23b) (Figure 1);
and open and close valves based on measured and threshold values (Figures 5 and 10).
As for claim 2, the storage device and processor of Yamanishi meets the limitations for both the first and second tanks as discussed above.
Regarding claim 3, Yamanishi teaches an adjustment valve, or pressure reducing valve (57), configured to adjust an amount of gas supplied to the gas consumption device ([0056]). The examiner finds that the processor cases the gas supply system to control the adjustment valve under all operating conditions, including if the first valve is closed and the second valve is opened (see Figure 5).
As for claim 6, Yamanishi teaches the gas supply system of claim 1 including a heat exchanger (4) attached to the first tank via connecting passage (91), wherein the heat exchanger absorbs heat from a portion other than the first tank, or the cooling water passages from the fuel cell stack, and releases heat to the first tank (Figures 1 and 5, [0075]).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claims 4 and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yamanishi as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Fukatsu (US 2020/0014043).
The teachings of Yamanishi as discussed above are incorporated herein.
Yamanishi teaches the gas supply system of claim 1, but fails to teach warming an inside of a tank compartment as required by claims 4 and 5.
Fukatsu teaches a gas supply system, or fuel cell system, including first and second tanks, or storage containers (71), accommodated in tank compartments, or hydrogen storage units (70), which are caused by a processor, or control unit (11), to be warmed by a heat medium (6) that passes through a discharge port, which remains open allowing flow, via branch passage (Figure 1 , [0030]-[0031]). Fukastu further teaches that, when a new tank (70) is provided, the tank is heated to the predetermined temperature (Figures 2-5).
Fukatsu further teaches valves (73) associated with the tanks (71) and controlled by the control unit (11) (Figure 1, [0032]).
For instances when the pressure in the tank is below the predetermined temperature, the skilled artisan would be motivated to use the system of Fukatsu to close the valve (73) and heat the tank in order to ensure that the hydrogen provided to the fuel cell is in an adequate state.
Further, it would have been obvious to the skilled artisan at the time of the invention to substitute the tanks and heating system of Fukatsu in the system of Yamashita in order to provide more control of the heating of the tanks and allow for providing new tanks as needed. It has been held that substituting known parts of an invention involves only routine skill in the art. MPEP 2143 I B
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ALIX ECHELMEYER EGGERDING whose telephone number is (571)272-1101. The examiner can normally be reached 8:30am - 4:30pm.
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/ALIX E EGGERDING/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1729