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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I and claims 1 and 2 in the reply filed on 05/21/2026 is acknowledged. Claims 3-6 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Group, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 04/21/2023 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Drawings
The drawings received on 04/21/2023 are acceptable.
Double Patenting
A rejection based on double patenting of the “same invention” type finds its support in the language of 35 U.S.C. 101 which states that “whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process... may obtain a patent therefor...” (Emphasis added). Thus, the term “same invention,” in this context, means an invention drawn to identical subject matter. See Miller v. Eagle Mfg. Co., 151 U.S. 186 (1894); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Ockert, 245 F.2d 467, 114 USPQ 330 (CCPA 1957).
A statutory type (35 U.S.C. 101) double patenting rejection can be overcome by canceling or amending the claims that are directed to the same invention so they are no longer coextensive in scope. The filing of a terminal disclaimer cannot overcome a double patenting rejection based upon 35 U.S.C. 101.
Claim 1 and 2 are provisionally rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 as claiming the same invention as that of claims 1 and 2 of copending Application No. 18/032848 (reference application). This is a provisional statutory double patenting rejection since the claims directed to the same invention have not in fact been patented.
Regarding claim 1, claim 1 of copending Application No. 18/032848 teaches a wound core including a portion in which grain-oriented electrical steel sheets in which planar portions and bent portions are alternately continuous in a longitudinal direction are stacked in a sheet thickness direction and formed by stacking the grain- oriented electrical steel sheets that have been individually bent in layers and assembled into a wound shape,
wherein; when an average length (“height” in the copending application) of a roughness: curve element in a width direction intersecting the longitudinal direction forming a surface of the bent portion of the grain-oriented electrical steel sheet is RSm(b) (“Ra(b)” in the copending application), and an average length (“height” in the copending application) of the roughness curve element in the width direction forming a surface of the planar portion of the grain-oriented electrical steel sheet is RSm(s) (“Ra(s)” in the copending application), the relationship of 1.00<RSM(b)/RSm(s) ≤5.00 (“1.00<Ra(b)/Ra(s)≤5.00” in the copending application) is satisfied. The terms “length” in the instant application and the “height” in the copending application are arbitrary, and therefore, they can refer to the same element.
Regarding claim 2, claim 2 of copending Application No. 18/032848 teaches the wound core the wound core according to claim 1, wherein the bent portion has a radius of curvature of 1mm or more and 5 mm or less.
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.
Claim 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Shiota et l. (U.S. PG. Pub. No. 2016/0336100 A1, hereinafter “Shiota”).
Regarding claim 1, Shiota teaches a wound core 10 (FIGs. 1-4) including a portion in which grain-oriented electrical steel sheets (“silicon steel plate” para. [0027]) in which planar portions 13a and 13b and bent portions 12 are alternately continuous in a longitudinal direction are stacked in a sheet thickness direction and formed by stacking the grain- oriented electrical steel sheets that have been individually bent in layers and assembled into a wound shape,
wherein; when an average length of a roughness: curve element in a width direction intersecting the longitudinal direction forming a surface of the bent portion of the grain-oriented electrical steel sheet is RSm(b), and an average length of the roughness curve element in the width direction forming a surface of the planar portion of the grain-oriented electrical steel sheet is RSm(s), the relationship of 1.00<RSM(b)/RSm(s) ≤5.00 is satisfied (para. [0027]). Shiota would inherently have the claimed relationship.
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.
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 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shiota, as applied to claim 1 above, in view of Takahito et al. (JP 2018-148036 A, hereinafter “Takahito”).
Regarding claim 2, Shiota teaches the wound core according to claim 1. Shiota does not expressly teach the bent portion has a radius of curvature of 1mm or more and 5 mm or less.
Takahito teaches a wound core 10 (FIG. 1), wherein the bent portion has a radius of curvature of 1mm or more and 5 mm or less (SOLUTION)
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It would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to have the radius of curvature as taught by Takahito to the wound core of Shiota to provide the required stress at the corners to meet design requirements.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MANGTIN LIAN whose telephone number is (571)270-5729. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 0800-1700.
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/MANG TIN BIK LIAN/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2837
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