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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 07/21/2025 has been entered.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 1-4 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Airoldi (US 2018/0274522 A1).
RE claim 1, Airoldi teaches a generator 11 (Figs.1-3 and ¶ 29) comprising:
an air supply duct 110 and an exhaust air chamber 125 fluidically coupled to an upstream (--of the--) air supply duct 110;
a stator 20 having a stator active unit 20; and
a rotor 30 disposed so as to be rotatable relative to the stator 20 about a rotation axis and having a rotor active unit 30 (see Fig.1 and ¶ 30),
wherein the rotor active unit 30 and the stator active unit 20 is disposed so as to be mutually spaced apart by an air gap 31 (Fig.1 and ¶ 30), wherein the exhaust air chamber 125 is fluidically coupled to the upstream air supply duct 110 by the air gap 31,
wherein an air-conveying device (141, 140) is disposed downstream of the exhaust air chamber 125 and is configured for cooling the rotor active unit 30 and the stator active unit 20 by:
supplying cooling air to the air gap 31 by way of the air supply duct 110, and
discharging from the air gap 31 cooling air heated by the rotor active unit 30 and the stator active unit 20 by way of the exhaust air chamber 125, wherein the exhaust air chamber 125 is configured for discharging the heated cooling air substantially in a radial direction (F3, see Fig.1) with respect to the rotation axis (of shaft 6) (Fig.1).
the stator 20 and/or the rotor at least in portions forming the exhaust air chamber 125 (Fig.2), wherein the exhaust air chamber 125 is within the stator 20 (Fig.2).
RE claim 2/1, Airoldi teaches the air supply duct 110 is configured to supply the cooling air (F1) substantially in the radial direction (see Fig.1).
RE claim 3/1, Airoldi teaches the exhaust air chamber 125 is a plurality of exhaust air chambers 125 (Figs.1, 2).
RE claim 4/1, Airoldi teaches at least the stator 20 or the rotor 30 form at least portions 115 of the air supply duct 110 (Fig.2),
wherein the air supply duct 110 is between:
a stator support structure 26 of the stator and a rotor support structure 6 of the rotor 30 (see Fig.1), and/or
a stator cladding element of the stator and the stator support structure of the stator, and/or (this limitation is optional because of the recitation “and/or)
a rotor downwind cladding element of the rotor and the stator support structure of the stator.
RE claim 16/1, Airoldi teaches a wind power installation 1 (Fig.1) comprising the generator 11 as claimed in claim 1
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 5-8 and 10-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Airoldi in view of Airoldi et al. (US 2015/0372565 A1, hereinafter referred to as “Airoldi’565”).
RE claim 5/1, Airoldi has been discussed above. Airoldi further teaches the generator 11 comprising:
an internal side (inside of generator 11), and
an external side (ambient air surrounding the nacelle, see ¶ 31) opposite the internal side and facing an environment of the generator, and
at least one air outlet duct 131 extending between the internal side and the external side (Fig.1), the at least one air outlet duct 131 fluidically connecting the exhaust air chamber 125 to the environment (Fig.1 and ¶ 38),
and/or at least one air inlet duct 130 extending between the internal side and the external side (Fig.1), the at least one air inlet duct 130 fluidically connecting the generator interior space to the environment (Fig.1).
Airoldi does not teach the generator has housing an internal side face a generator interior space of the generator.
Airoldi’565 teaches the generator has housing 40 an internal side face a generator interior space (40F, 40R) of the generator 4 (Fig.3). The housing would provided protection for internal component of the generator from external environment.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Airoldi by having the generator has housing an internal side face a generator interior space of the generator, as taught by Airoldi’565, for the same reasons as discussed above.
RE claim 6/5, Airoldi in view of Airoldi’565 has been discussed above. Airoldi further teaches opposing first and second sides (fFig.1), the generator interior space of the generator 11 extending between the first and second sides in an axial direction (of shaft 6), wherein the at least one air outlet duct 131 is disposed on an end side of the generator (on end side of body 8), and/or wherein the at least one air inlet duct 130 is disposed on one of the first and second end sides of the generator 11 (see Fig.1 for air inlet duct 130 is disposed on end side of body 8).
RE claim 7/5, Airoldi in view of Airoldi’565 has been discussed above. Airoldi further teaches the at least one air outlet duct 131 is disposed on that end side (of body 8) of the generator 11 that in an operating state of the generator is the end side that faces away from the wind, and/or the at least one air inlet duct 130 is disposed on that end side of the generator that in an operating state of the generator 11 is the end side (of body 8) that faces away from the wind (see Fig.1 and ¶ 28 for blades of wind turbine disposed on the hub 9 and during operation, the blade would face the wind and inlet/outlet duct 130, 131 are disposed on the side that away from the wind or hub 9).
RE claim 8/5, Airoldi in view of Airoldi’565 has been discussed above. Airoldi further teaches the stator 20 has a pressurized chamber 120 (it is noted that the chamber 120 is pressurized because of outlet fan 141), and the pressurized chamber 120 is disposed between the at least one air outlet duct 131 and the exhaust air chamber 125, and fluidically connects the at least one air outlet duct 131 to the exhaust air chamber 125.
RE claim 10/5, Airoldi in view of Airoldi’565 has been discussed above. Airoldi further teaches the air supply duct 110 is fluidically connected to the at least one air inlet duct 130 (Fig.1).
RE claim 11/5, Airoldi in view of Airoldi’565 has been discussed above. Airoldi further teaches at least one silencer 146, 147 on the generator 11, and the at least one silencer 146, 147 being releasably (the silencer is a structure arranged on the generator, it is capable to be released or detached from the generator) disposed on the generator 11.
RE claim 12/11, Airoldi in view of Airoldi’565 has been discussed above. Airoldi further teaches the at least one silencer 147 is located at the at least one air outlet duct 131, and the at least one silencer 147 having at least one of a duct silencer 147 (silencer 147 is a duct silencer because silencer 147 positioned on duct 160, see Figs.1, 4), a splitter silencer, or sound- absorbing elements.
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Airoldi in view of Airoldi’565 as applied to claim 8 above, and further in view of Airoldi et al. (US 2016/0233742 A1, hereinafter referred to as “Airoldi’742”).
RE claim 9/8, Airoldi in view of Airoldi’565 has been discussed above. Airoldi further teaches the air-conveying device 141 is between the exhaust air chamber 125 and the pressurized chamber 120, the exhaust air chamber 125 by way of the air-conveying device 141 is fluidically coupled to the pressurized chamber 120, and the air-conveying device 141 comprises a ventilator 141.
Airoldi does not teach the air-conveying device is within the stator.
Airoldi’742 teaches the air-conveying device 14 is within the stator 3 (Figs.1, 2 and ¶ 21). This can significantly improve the effectiveness of the bypass opening/manifold arrangement. Regardless of the way in which this pressure differential is obtained, the passage of air though the winding overhang and into the bypass openings will be facilitated as long as the pressure in the cavity is higher than the pressure in the stator interior.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Airoldi in view of Airoldi’565 by having the air-conveying device 141 is within the stator, as taught by Airoldi’742, for the same reasons as discussed above.
Claim 13 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Airoldi in view of Airoldi’565 as applied to claim 12 above, and further in view of Sugawara et al. (US 2022/0010813 A1).
RE claim 13/12, Airoldi in view of Airoldi’565 has been discussed above. Airoldi does not teach the at least one silencer extends beyond the external side of the generator housing.
Sugawara teaches one silencer 28 extends beyond the external side of the generator housing 16 (Figs.3, 4), doing so allow an inhibition of a flow of the air flow (wind) generated by the axial fan can be suppressed and the air volume can be ensured, and since the silencer is installed in a flow passage of wind generated by the axial fan, an increase in the size of the entire device in which the fan and the silencer are installed can be suppressed (¶ 122).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Airoldi in view of Airoldi’565 by having the at least one silencer extends beyond the external side of the generator housing, as taught by Sugawara, for the same reasons as discussed above.
Claim 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Airoldi in view of Koeger et al. (US 2020/0368664 A1).
RE claim 14/1, Airoldi teaches a shut-off unit, wherein the shut-off unit (181, 182, 183) is variable between an open position and a blocking position different from the open position (¶ 42), Airoldi does not teach the shut-off unit is a louver blade or a duct flap.
It is noted that Airoldi teaches the shut-off units 181-183 are valve (¶ 41-44)
Koeger suggests that valve can be implement using swivel louver blades (¶ 25) or any other suitable ways (¶ 25). The type of valve can be chosen base on cost and availability.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Airoldi by choosing any suitable valve type such as swivel louver blades, as evidenced by Koeger, to optimize cost and efficiency of flow control.
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Airoldi in view of Airoldi et al. (US 2014/0346781 A1, hereinafter referred to as “Airoldi’781”).
RE claim 15/1, Airoldi has been discussed above. Airoldi does not teach at least one air outlet duct is configured so as to be cylindrical shaped or polygonal shaped.
Airoldi’742 shows that cylindrical shaped outlet duct is well-known in the art (see Fig.4) to fit the outflow fan so that outflow fan can efficiently draw air into the exit duct (¶ 26).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Airoldi by having least one air outlet duct is configured so as to be cylindrical shaped or polygonal shaped, as taught by Airoldi’781, for the same reasons as discussed above.
Furthermore, since such a modification would have involved a mere change in the size or shape of a component. A change in size or shape is generally recognized as being within the level of ordinary skill in the art. In re Rose, 105 E 3SPQ 237 (CCPA 1955).
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 07/21/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
On pages 7 and 8 of the Remark, Applicant argued that the claim required the exhaust air chamber being configured for discharging the heated cooling air substantially in a radial direction with respect to the rotation axis. Applicant argued that Airoldi does not teach said limitation because Figure 4 shows heated fluid medium flow in an axial direction along the outlet portion 120.
[AltContent: textbox (Air exhaust in radial direction)][AltContent: arrow]
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In response:
Applicant’s argument was not found persuasive because the radial opening 125 together with the space formed by structure 22 formed an exhaust chamber (see Fig.2). Such exhaust air chamber clearly shows that air flow (F3) entering in radial direction as shown by arrow F3 as well as exiting the opening 125 in radial direction (see annotated Fig.1 above. The claim does not exclude the air from also travelling in the axial direction after exiting the opening 125 in radial direction.
Furthermore, the claim recited: “configured for discharging the heated cooling air substantially in a radial direction with respect to the rotation axis”. It is noted that the claim does not specifically require the exhaust air to be only travelling in the radial direction. Rather, the exhaust air chamber only needs to be configured such that the air can be travel in a “substantially in a radial direction”.
[AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (Exhaust Air Chamber)]
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Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THOMAS TRUONG whose telephone number is (571)270-5532. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9AM-6PM EST.
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/THOMAS TRUONG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2834