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 claims 1-8 in the reply filed on 3/4/2026 is acknowledged. Claims 9-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 3/4/2026.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1 and 3-7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kanai (US20010021468A1).
Regarding Claim 1, Kanai discloses a humidification system [pars. 0189-193; Fig. 21] {Note: The anticipating embodiment is that of Fig. 21 which shares most components of embodiment from Fig. 1. Thus, citation of the Kanai relating to embodiment 1 is relied on for description of components not reiterated in reference to embodiment of Fig. 21} comprising:
a heat exchanger (hollow fiber membrane water collecting apparatus 2a,2 which is known in the art to act as a heat exchanger and would necessarily cool the received exhaust air) fluidically coupled to a cathode outlet of a fuel cell stack 1 (via exhaust pipe 12) to receive exhaust air stream (exhaust gas from fuel cell connected to air electrode) therefrom and to cool the received exhaust air stream [pars. 0058-59; Figs. 21,1];
a water trapping device (water separator 3a,3) fluidically coupled to the heat exchanger and configured to trap water droplets (i.e., collected water fed to water storage tank 4a,4) extracted from the exhaust air stream by the heat exchanger to generate a dry exhaust air stream (i.e., the resulting air in exhaust pipe 12 from water separator is necessarily dried) [pars. 0059,0069; Figs. 21,1]; and
an injector 17a,17 fluidically coupled to the water trapping device and configured to receive at least a portion of the water droplets trapped by the water trapping device (i.e., via auxiliary humidification pipe 13), the injector fluidically coupled upstream from a cathode inlet of the fuel cell stack (i.e., at intake pipe 11) and configured to humidify a stream of air using the received portion of the water droplets prior to the stream of air entering the cathode inlet [pars. 0058-60,; Figs. 21,1].
Regarding Claim 3, Kanai discloses the system further comprising a fluid reservoir (water storage tank 4a,4) fluidically coupled between the water trapping device and the injector, wherein the fluid reservoir is configured to receive and store the water droplets from the water trapping device, and wherein the fluid reservoir is configured to selectively provide at least the portion of the water droplets to the injector (i.e., via auxiliary humidification pipe 13 and three way valve 21a,21) [pars. 0074-75; Figs. 21,1].
Regarding Claim 4, Kanai discloses the system further comprising a pump (water supply pump 7) fluidically coupled between an outlet port of the fluid reservoir and a return port of the fluid reservoir, wherein the pump is configured to recirculate the water droplets output at the outlet port of the fluid reservoir toward the return port of the fluid reservoir [pars. 0070-74; Figs. 3,21,1].
Regarding Claim 5, Kanai discloses the system further comprising a valve (auxiliary valve 20a,20 and/or three way valve 21a,21) coupled between an outlet of the pump and the return port of the fluid reservoir, wherein the valve is configured to operate in a first position to permit flow of water output by the pump toward the return port and in a second position to prevent the flow of water toward the return port [pars. 0060-61,0074,0087,0142].
Regarding Claims 6-7, Kanai discloses the system further comprising an injection branch (i.e., portion of auxiliary humidification pipe 13 supplying water towards injector 17) fluidically coupled between the outlet of the pump and the valve, wherein the injector is coupled to the injection branch to receive at least the portion of the water droplets via the injection branch, wherein the injector is configured to receive at least the portion of the water droplets by the injection branch in response to the valve being in the second position [par. 0060; Figs. 21,1].
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.
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.
Claim(s) 2 and 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kanai, as applied to claims 1 and 3, respectively, and further in view of Hausmann (US20240014418A1 – foreign priority day 12/18/2020).
Regarding Claim 2, Kanai fails to disclose the system further comprising a turbine fluidically coupled to receive the dry exhaust air stream output by the water trapping device. However, Hausman, form the same field of endeavor, discloses a humidification system comprising a water trapping device (cathode-side water separator 9) configured to trap water droplets extracted from the exhaust air to generate a dry exhaust air stream [Hausmann – pars. 0026; Fig. 1], a fluid reservoir (tank 20) coupled between the water trapping device and an injector 11, wherein the fluid reservoir is configured to receive and store the water droplets from the water trapping device, and a turbine 13 fluidly coupled to receive the dry exhaust air stream output by the water trapping device, wherein the turbine may be driven by the exhaust air stream in order to recover energy in the form of electrical energy to drive a generator or for storage [Hausmann – pars. 0017,0025-26; Fig. 1]. Since Kanai uses the fuel cel to drive a motor M [par. 0007; Fig. 28], before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for an ordinary skilled artisan to have employed the teachings of Hausmann to have modified the system of Kanai to have further comprised a turbine fluidically coupled to receive the dry exhaust air stream output by the water trapping device in order to recover energy in the form of electrical energy to drive a generator or for storage.
Regarding Claim 8, Kanai fails to disclose the system further comprising a filter fluidically coupled between the water trapping device and the fluid reservoir, wherein the filter is configured to filter the water droplets output by the water trapping device. However, Hausman, form the same field of endeavor, discloses a humidification system comprising a water trapping device (cathode-side water separator 9) configured to trap water droplets extracted from the exhaust air to generate a dry exhaust air stream [Hausmann – pars. 0026; Fig. 1], and a fluid reservoir (tank 20) coupled between the water trapping device and an injector 11, wherein the fluid reservoir is configured to receive and store the water droplets from the water trapping device [Hausmann – pars. 0026; Fig. 1]. Hausmann further teaches that a water filter can be arranged between water separator and a collecting container to mechanically hold back impurities and to remove ions which have collected in the water [Hausmann – par. 0014]. Therefore, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious for an ordinary skilled artisan to have employed the teachings of Hausmann to have modified the system of Kanai to have further comprised a filter fluidically coupled between the water trapping device and the fluid reservoir, wherein the filter is configured to filter the water droplets output by the water trapping device to hold back impurities and to remove ions which have collected in the water.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HAROON S SHEIKH whose telephone number is (571)270-0302. The examiner can normally be reached 9-6.
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HAROON S. SHEIKH
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1751
/Haroon S. Sheikh/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1751