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 with respect to claim(s) 7-9, 11 & 13 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument. Specifically, new reference Henke et al. (US 20120001505) will be used in combination with Henryet al. to teach the newly added limitation of “wherein the cooling body is integrally formed with the fan-side bearing arrangement, as a one-piece cast part”.
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.
Claim(s) 7-9 and 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Henry et al. (US 20090267432).
7. Henry et al. teach:
A centrifugal pump (fig 2), comprising:
a drive 10 having a rotor 25, a stator winding (inherent due to motor leads 160, fig 5, MPEP 2112), a cooling arrangement (fig 2) which includes a frequency inverter (the frequency inverter is included in the drive electronics 120, MPEP 2112 & fig 2) and a cooling body 85, a motor housing 45, a fan 70, a fan-side bearing arrangement (fig 1 below) configured to support a rotor shaft 30, and a pump-side bearing arrangement (fig 1 below), wherein the cooling body is integrally formed with the fan-side (via shroud 75, fig 2) and is configured as an electronics housing base 85 (figs 2-4), and the cooling body has surface-enlarging elements 110 in the form of cooling ribs, which are formed integrally with the cooling body (figs 2-4) and adapted to the shape of the motor housing (figs 2-4); but does not teach that the cooling body is integrally formed with the fan-side bearing arrangement, as a one-piece cast part.
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Henke et al. teach that the cooling body (generally located at the rim 19, Henke et al. fig 1) is integrally formed with the fan-side bearing arrangement 8, as a one-piece cast part (figs 1-3) to direct cooling air towards the electronics casing (abstract). Henke et al. does not specifically mention “one-piece cast part”. However, Henke et al. figs and/or specification do not indicate that the fan-side bearing arrangement and the cooling body are separate piece as can clearly be seen in Henry et al. drawings and specification. Since the examiner is to construe the figure in Henke et al. for what they reasonably convey (MPEP 2125).
As a result, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art prior to the invention of Henry et al. being effectively filed to modify it such that the cooling body is integrally formed with the fan-side bearing arrangement, as a one-piece cast part, as taught by Henke et al. so as to prolong the service life of the motor.
8. Henry et al. teach:
The centrifugal pump as claimed in claim 7, wherein the cooling body is connected directly to the one of the fan-side and pump-side bearing arrangements (via shroud 75, fig 2).
9. Henry et al. teach:
The centrifugal pump as claimed in claim 8, wherein the cooling body is integral with the one of the fan-side and pump-side bearing arrangements (via shroud 75, fig 2).
11. Henry et al. teach:
The centrifugal pump as claimed in claim 7, wherein the bearing arrangement has one or more guide channels (fig 5 below configured for passage of a connection 160 between the frequency inverter and the stator winding.
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Claim(s) 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Henry et al. in view of Henke et al. and in further view of Ramqvist (US 2494200).
13. Henry et al. has been discussed above, re claim 7; but does not explicitly teach that the fan is configured to generate: a central primary air stream, and a secondary air stream which passes into the cooling body from a region within fan cover over the fan.
Ramqvist teaches that the fan 1 is configured to generate: a central primary air stream (indicated by arrows 9, fig 1), and a secondary air stream (indicated by arrows a, fig 1) which passes into the cooling body (of Henry et al.) from a region within the fan cover 8 over the fan (fig 1) to cool the inverter (of Henry et al.) to cool both the drive and the inverter.
As a result, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the invention was effectively filed to modify the invention of Henry et al. so that the fan is configured to generate: a central primary air stream, and a secondary air stream which passes into the cooling body from a region within fan cover over the fan., as taught by Ramqvist so as to cool both the drive and the inverter.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TERRANCE L KENERLY whose telephone number is (571)270-7851. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9am-5pm.
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/TERRANCE L KENERLY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2834
