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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 10/07/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive for the following reasons:
With respect to Applicant’s arguments regarding the use of Ljungstroem to modify the system of Hobart so that Hobart utilizes oil as a coolant, the examiner disagrees. While the examiner does agree that Ljungstroem does not teach of heating the system, such a teaching is not necessary in order for the combination to be obvious. Hobart teaches of preheating the engine coolant so that the entire machine can be brought up to a warm starting temperature. Hobart does not specify what the coolant is made out of. Ljungstroem teaches of utilizing engine oil for coolant and the Examiner clearly indicated in the Non-Final rejection of 07/16/2025 that motivation recited in Ljungstroem as to why a person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to utilize oil as engine coolant in Hobart. Therefore, the combined teachings of Hobart in view of Ljungstroem would teach of heating the oil coolant to preheat the machine of Hobart.
With respect to Applicant’s arguments regarding the use of NPL2, the examiner disagrees. NPL2 teaches of utilizing an IGBT or a power MOSFET (gate drivers) for connecting a relatively low power control apparatus within a system to a high power device. Applicant within the claim simply states that the controller has electronics to control an igniter driver. The system of Hobart teaches of an igniter and a controller and is only missing the driver to bridge the connection between the two. Such an electrical component is known in the art and would almost certainly be within the system of Hobart and is just not mentioned, as a system without a driver would not be able to control an igniter through a controller. However, the Examiner provides NPL2 for clarity of the record and to teach that it is well known within the art to connect a controller to a high power device via a driver. The drivers taught in NPL2 would be able to control the igniter as it would allow for the relatively low power control to control the high power igniter and further are not an “apples to mushrooms” comparison to what is claimed as Applicant states in their remarks. Without more structure to the claim further differentiating what particular driver is used for the igniter, the claims as presented do not overcome the prior art presented in NPL2.
With respect to the Applicant’s arguments regarding claim 10, stating that the combined teachings fail to teach of the fluid jacket abutting the components of the equipment and that Boemer teaches of the jacket being a part of the engine which is not taught in the claims, the Examiner disagrees. Boemer clearly states that it pumps the lubricating oil, which it first warms much like the teachings of the Hobart in view of Ljungstroem, through the engine’s cooling jacket. The Examiner does not fully understand Applicant’s argument that Boemer teaches of the fluid jacket of the engine as being part of the engine as Boemer does not recite this and it is simply not how a fluid jacket works. A fluid jacket is an apparatus that surrounds a certain object to create a shell-like enclosure around the object so that a fluid can be filled between the jacket and the object to either heat or cool the object. In the case of Boemer, the engine would have a separate cooling jacket surrounding its components and would have to be abutting said components in order to be attached to them. Therefore, Boemer clearly teaches that the fluid jacket is a separate piece from the engine as it would need to be to function as a fluid jacket. Applicant continues the same argument for claim 13 and further states that Boemer does not depict the fluid jacket in its figures. The examiner reiterates the arguments presented above and further states that it is unnecessary for Boemer to visually depict the fluid jacket as such a system is extremely well known within the art and is adequately described within Boemer. The fluid jacket must be abutting at least some of the components within the system so it can connect to the system or it would be floating around the engine.
Based on the above rationale, the rejections of 07/16/2025 are maintained.
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) 1, 7 and 10-11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hobart (US 9464616 B2) in view of Ljungstroem (DE 648930 C), Boemer (WO 2014095035 A1), “What are the basics of an electrical relay?” hereinafter referred to as NPL1 (copy of NPL1 provided in file wrapper) and “Isolated Gate Drivers—What, Why, and How?” hereinafter referred to as NPL2 (copy of NPL2 provided in file wrapper).
Regarding claim 1, Hobart teaches of:
A system comprising:
a fluid circuit (Fig. 2), the fluid circuit adapted to heat equipment, the fluid circuit including:
a circulating pump (Fig. 2, 38),
a heat exchanger, the heat exchanger in fluid communication with the circulating pump (Fig. 2, 28 is in fluid communication with 38), and
a heater, the heater positioned to heat the fluid in the fluid circuit, wherein the heat exchanger is adapted to exchange heat between the heater and the fluid circuit (Fig. 2, 14 is a heater which heats the fluid pumped by 38 to 28);
an igniter, the igniter included in the heater (Col. 2, lines 66-67, An ignition module 50 can provide high voltage ignition for the fuel gas, according to microprocessor 40.; an ignition module configured to ignite fuel gas in a burner must be an igniter, as can be seen in Fig. 2, the ignition module 50 has a line leading out of it and into the heater 14 where the fuel within 14 is ignited via 50 and therefore an igniter is positioned within the heater), and
a controller, the controller positioned to control the operation of the fluid circuit and the heater and adapted to heat the equipment prior to startup of the equipment (Fig. 2, controller 40 operates all elements within the fluid circuit shown; Col. 2, lines 15-17, The system of the present invention preheats the engine coolant, bringing the entire machine up to a warm starting condition; the system of Hobart preheats the coolant to allow the equipment to reach a warm starting condition and therefore the controller operates the fluid circuit prior to the startup of the equipment).
Hobart fails to explicitly teach:
a fluid jacket coupled to a piece of equipment and fluidly coupled to the heat exchanger and the circulating pump
by heating lubricating oil prior to equipment startup and includes electronics to control a pump relay and an igniter driver
Ljungstroem teaches of:
utilizing oil as coolant (Pg. 2, line 38, Fig. I shows an internal combustion engine with oil cooling)
The primary reference can be modified to meet this/these limitation(s) as follows:
utilize oil as the coolant within the system of Hobart so that they preheating fluid circuit shown in Fig. 2 of Hobart heats oil to preheat the engine 36
A person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to make the above modification(s) because:
utilizing cooling oil creates a flexible coolant that will not be adversely impacted by leakages of other engine fluids into the oil coolant or the oil coolant leaking into other areas of the engine (Ljungstroem, Pg. 4, lines 22-31, If a machine leaks into your cooling oil circuit, e.g. B. in the cylinder chuck 3q., This increases the work performance and safety the machine in no way questioned. In the 23 event of a leakage on the mentioned Place z. B. is only the leaking from the cooling oil circuit in the Run in the crankcase and unite with the lubricating oil supply located there, from where it is fed back into the cooling oil circuit by means of pump r9 and line 2o can be. This allows an unusual mobility in the structure and in assembling a machine according to the invention, and this is for example also attributed the use of a loosely fitted cylinder liner 34, the Among other things, it can be easily removed and also the Allows cooling channels of the liner. So all the disadvantages are avoided which have water-cooled engines in the wake and with low water leakage losses serious consequences can bring finite in the event that something escapes Leak water should come together with the lubricating oil.)
Boemer teaches of:
a fluid jacket coupled to a piece of equipment and fluidly coupled to the heat exchanger and the circulating pump (¶ [0022], This causes warming oil to flow through the engine's cooling jacket and supplies all lubrication points, including the turbocharger, with preheated lubricating oil; the system of Boemer preheats an engine fluid and pumps it through a cooling jacket of an engine)
The combined teachings can be modified to meet this/these limitation(s) as follows:
add a cooling jacket to the engine of Hobart that allows for the preheated coolant oil of the combined teachings to flow through it from the fluid circuit of Hobart
A person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to make the above modification(s) because:
it would allow for the preheated coolant of the combined teachings to permeate through all points within the engine, improving the preheating effect (Boemer, ¶ [0022], This causes warming oil to flow through the engine's cooling jacket and supplies all lubrication points, including the turbocharger, with preheated lubricating oil)
NPL1 teaches of:
utilizing a relay within a control circuit to activate equipment via a controller (Pg. 1, “Electrical Relay Definition” paragraph, Relays are electrically operated switches that open and close the circuits by receiving electrical signals from outside sources)
The combined teachings can be modified to meet this/these limitation(s) as follows:
add a relay electrically connecting the controller 40 of Hobart with pump 38
A person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to make the above modification(s) because:
utilizing a relay to activate the pump of Hobart via the controller of Hobart allow for the controller of Hobart to only have to use a small amount of electrical current activate the higher current pump (NPL1, Pg. 5, “2. The Three Actions of Electrical Relays”, The relay permits a small amount of electrical current to control high current load)
NPL2 teaches of:
utilizing an isolated gate driver within a circuit to activate equipment via a controller (Pg. 1, “Need for a Gate Driver”, an interface is needed between the logic/control circuitry and the high power device. This can be implemented by driving a logic level n-channel MOSFET, which, in turn, can drive a power MOSFET as seen in Figure 1a.)
The combined teachings can be modified to meet this/these limitation(s) as follows:
connect the controller of Hobart with the ignition module of Hobart via a gate driver
A person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to make the above modification(s) because:
the gate driver would allow for the controller of Hobart to modulate the ignition module with a relatively low voltage compared to the higher voltage requirements of the ignition module (NPL2, Pg. 1, “Need for a Gate Driver”, an interface is needed between the logic/control circuitry and the high power device. This can be implemented by driving a logic level n-channel MOSFET, which, in turn, can drive a power MOSFET as seen in Figure 1a.)
Regarding claim 7, the combined teachings teach of the system of claim 1, and the combined teachings further teach:
wherein the system further includes a temperature sensor,
the temperature sensor positioned to measure the temperature of the fluid within the fluid circuit (Hobart, Fig. 2, T1).
Regarding claim 10, the combined teachings teach of the system of claim 1, and the combined teachings further teach:
wherein the piece of equipment includes components and wherein the fluid circuit has one or more fluid jackets abutting the components of the equipment (Hobart, Fig. 2, 36 has multiple components within it and Boemer teaches of the fluid jacket being attached to the engine so that the heated oil can come in contact with the plurality of components within the engine, see rejection of claim 1 above).
Regarding claim 11, the combined teachings teach of the system of claim 1, and the combined teachings further teach:
wherein the controller is operatively coupled to and adaptively coupled to selectively power or control the circulating pump (Hobart, Col. 1, lines 41-49, In another aspect of the present invention, a method for maintaining or preheating engine coolant comprises flowing coolant from the engine through a horizontal heat exchanger; receiving hot gas into the heat exchanger from a propane fuel burner, the hot gas transferring heat to the coolant in the heat exchanger; returning heated coolant to the engine; and controlling the total process through a microprocessor, the microprocessor adapted to receive data from several sensors; Fig. 2, pump 38, ignition module 50 and valve 24 are all connected to and controlled by 40).
Claim(s) 2-5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hobart (US 9464616 B2) in view of Ljungstroem (DE 648930 C), Boemer (WO 2014095035 A1), “What are the basics of an electrical relay?” hereinafter referred to as NPL1 (copy of NPL1 provided in file wrapper) and “Isolated Gate Drivers—What, Why, and How?” hereinafter referred to as NPL2 (copy of NPL2 provided in file wrapper) as presented in claim 1, and in further view of Weiss (US 3747586 A).
Regarding claim 2, the combined teachings teach of the system of claim 1, however, the combined teachings fail to explicitly teach:
Wherein the heater is a natural gas-fired heater
Weiss teaches of:
Wherein the heater is a natural gas-fired heater (Col. 2, lines 19-28, The burner is equipped with a simple dual orifice head change over valve arrangement in its fuel supply conduit between the burner manifold main control valve and the manifold tube for ready switching between natural gas and propane, and the air port between the burner blower and the burner plenum is controlled by a composite shutter arrangement providing for close adjustment control of air feed to the burner)
The combined teachings can be modified to meet this/these limitation(s) as follows:
Replace the burner of Hobart with the burner of Weiss so that the burner can be supplied with either propane or natural gas
A person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to make the above modification(s) because:
Having a single burner that can burn either natural gas or propane increases the accessibility the burner of Hobart since multiple gas sources can be used while still allowing for the system of Hobart to be portable
Regarding claim 3, the combined teachings teach of the system of claim 2, and the combined teachings further teach:
wherein the natural gas-fired heater is powered by a gas inlet (see combination made in the rejection of claim 2 above, Hobart, Fig. 1, 16 leads to the gas inlet of the burner and acts as the natural gas inlet when combined with Weiss)
Regarding claim 4, the combined teachings teach of the system of claim 3, and the combined teachings further teach:
wherein the natural gas-fired heater includes an electrically-controlled gas valve (Hobart, Fig. 2, see valves 24 and 26 connected to microprocessor denoted by solid lines, the valves must be electrically controlled in order for the microprocessor to control them, no matter what form of valve it is, i.e. a pneumatic valve would require an electric control signal from the microprocessor to control it; Col. 2, lines 39-41, software in microprocessor memory, output functions controlling valves, pumps, blowers and the like).
Regarding claim 5, the combined teachings teach of the system of claim 2, and the combined teachings further teach:
wherein the natural gas-fired heater includes an igniter (Hobart, Col. 2, lines 66-67 and Col. 3, line 1, An ignition module 50 can provide high voltage ignition for the fuel gas, according to microprocessor 40).
Claim(s) 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hobart (US 9464616 B2) in view of Ljungstroem (DE 648930 C), Boemer (WO 2014095035 A1), “What are the basics of an electrical relay?” hereinafter referred to as NPL1 (copy of NPL1 provided in file wrapper), “Isolated Gate Drivers—What, Why, and How?” hereinafter referred to as NPL2 (copy of NPL2 provided in file wrapper) and Weiss (US 3747586 A) as presented in claim 5, and in further view of Kohl (DE 3129268 C2).
Regarding claim 6, the combined teachings teach of the system of claim 5, however, the combined teachings fail to explicitly teach:
wherein the igniter is a glow plug.
Kohl teaches of:
wherein the igniter is a glow plug (¶ [0034], ¶ [0003], the ignition element is a glow plug (22))
The combined teachings can be modified to meet this/these limitation(s) as follows:
make the igniter of Hobart a glow plug
A person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to make the above modification(s) because:
Glow plugs offer reliability and a reduction of energy and are capable of igniting natural gas and propane (Kohl, ¶ [0034], The use of a glow plug suitable for diesel engines has the advantage of a comparatively breakproof, stable and extremely reliable ignition element. The operational reliability of the ignition element also contributes to ensuring the desired reduction in energy consumption.; ¶ [0042], Furthermore, tests carried out by the applicant have shown that the claimed ignition arrangement is particularly suitable for igniting natural gas or liquefied petroleum gas, preferably butane or propane.)
Claim(s) 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hobart (US 9464616 B2) in view of Ljungstroem (DE 648930 C), Boemer (WO 2014095035 A1), “What are the basics of an electrical relay?” hereinafter referred to as NPL1 (copy of NPL1 provided in file wrapper) and “Isolated Gate Drivers—What, Why, and How?” hereinafter referred to as NPL2 (copy of NPL2 provided in file wrapper) as presented in claim 1, and in further view of KR 20140001158 U hereinafter referred to as Ref. 1.
Regarding claim 9, the combined teachings teach of the system of claim 1, however, the combined teachings fail to explicitly teach:
wherein the piece of equipment is a generator that includes an engine.
Ref. 1 teaches of:
wherein the piece of equipment is a generator that includes an engine (description, A specific configuration and operation of the diesel and gas phase coolant pre-heating the engine generator unit).
The combined teachings can be modified to meet this/these limitation(s) as follows:
make the engine of Hobart a diesel engine generator
A person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to make the above modification(s) because:
the engine would be capable of producing electricity year round (Ref. 1, abstract, This is designed for the convenience of the operator to easily start up of the engine and the engine in winter)
Claim(s) 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hobart (US 9464616 B2) in view of Ljungstroem (DE 648930 C), Boemer (WO 2014095035 A1), “What are the basics of an electrical relay?” hereinafter referred to as NPL1 (copy of NPL1 provided in file wrapper) and “Isolated Gate Drivers—What, Why, and How?” hereinafter referred to as NPL2 (copy of NPL2 provided in file wrapper) as presented in claim 7, and in further view of Kellie (US 5048753 A).
Regarding claim 8, the combined teachings teach of the system of claim 7, however, the combined teachings fail to explicitly teach:
wherein the temperature sensor is a temperature switch positioned to measure the temperature of the fluid at the exit of the equipment.
Kellie teaches of:
wherein the temperature sensor is a temperature switch positioned to measure the temperature of the fluid at the exit of the equipment (Col. 4, lines 31-42, Switch 32 is threaded into port 29 located on exchanger shell 46. Port 29 is in communication with the upper portion of fluid heating chamber 47. Switch 32 is a temperature actuated switch, with normally closed contacts. Terminals T9 and T10 are connected to the contacts on switch 32. The temperature sensing element of switch 32 extends through port 29 into chamber 47. If the temperature of the temperature sensing element exceeds the set point temperature of switch 32, the switch contacts will open. The switch contacts will again close when the sensing element is below the set point temperature.)
The combined teachings can be modified to meet this/these limitation(s) as follows:
make T1, which is positioned at the exit of the equipment 36 of Hobart, a temperature switch so that when T1 of detects the temperature of the coolant is above a threshold temperature, T1 commands the switch contact to open, closing the valve supplying fuel to the burner, and when the temperature of the coolant is below a threshold temperature, T1 commands the switch contact to close, opening the valve supplying fuel to the burner
A person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to make the above modification(s) because:
It would allow for the temperature of the coolant to be regulated and to not exceed a predetermined threshold temperature that may damage the system (Kellie, Col. 7, lines 9-14, If the coolant temperature in chamber 47 exceeds the setpoint of switch 32, gas flow will be cutoff to nozzle 104. Pilot light 96 will remain in operation. When the coolant temperature falls below the setpoint of switch 32 gas will again flow to nozzle 104, and be ignited by pilot light 96)
Claim(s) 13-16 and 19-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hobart (US 9464616 B2) in view of Ljungstroem (DE 648930 C), Boemer (WO 2014095035 A1) and Murray (US 20030183184 A1)
Regarding claim 13, Hobart teaches of:
A method of preheating a piece of equipment comprising (abstract):
Supplying a heater, the heating including an igniter (Col. 2, lines 66-67, An ignition module 50 can provide high voltage ignition for the fuel gas, according to microprocessor 40.; an ignition module configured to ignite fuel gas in a burner must be an igniter, as can be seen in Fig. 2, the ignition module 50 has a line leading out of it and into the heater 14 where the fuel within 14 is ignited via 50 and therefore an igniter is positioned within the heater);
engaging the heater prior to startup of the piece of equipment (Col. 2, lines 15-17, The system of the present invention preheats the engine coolant, bringing the entire machine up to a warm starting condition; the system of Hobart preheats the coolant to allow the equipment to reach a warm starting condition and therefore the controller operates the fluid circuit prior to the startup of the equipment; Col. 2, lines 66-67 and Col. 1, line 1, An ignition module 50 can provide high voltage ignition for the fuel gas, according to microprocessor 40);
heating a fluid in a fluid circuit with the heater to form a heated fluid (Fig. 2, fluid 32 flows through heat exchanger to be heated);
pumping the heated fluid through the fluid circuit using a circulating pump (Col. 2, lines 53-55, The coolant circulation pump 38 may be a high efficiency circulator for moving engine coolant through the heat exchanger 28 and back to the engine 36),
Hobart fails to explicitly teach:
wherein the fluid is lubricating oil
into a fluid jacket associated with the piece of equipment; and
operating the heater and pump until the fluid temperature reaches a predetermined temperature
operating the piece of equipment after the fluid temperature reaches the predetermined temperature
Ljungstroem teaches of:
utilizing oil as coolant (Pg. 2, line 38, Fig. I shows an internal combustion engine with oil cooling)
The primary reference can be modified to meet this/these limitation(s) as follows:
utilize oil as the coolant within the system of Hobart so that they preheating fluid circuit shown in Fig. 2 of Hobart heats oil to preheat the engine 36
A person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to make the above modification(s) because:
utilizing cooling oil creates a flexible coolant that will not be adversely impacted by leakages of other engine fluids into the oil coolant or the oil coolant leaking into other areas of the engine (Ljungstroem, Pg. 4, lines 22-31, If a machine leaks into your cooling oil circuit, e.g. B. in the cylinder chuck 3q., This increases the work performance and safety the machine in no way questioned. In the 23 event of a leakage on the mentioned Place z. B. is only the leaking from the cooling oil circuit in the Run in the crankcase and unite with the lubricating oil supply located there, from where it is fed back into the cooling oil circuit by means of pump r9 and line 2o can be. This allows an unusual mobility in the structure and in assembling a machine according to the invention, and this is for example also attributed the use of a loosely fitted cylinder liner 34, the Among other things, it can be easily removed and also the Allows cooling channels of the liner. So all the disadvantages are avoided which have water-cooled engines in the wake and with low water leakage losses serious consequences can bring finite in the event that something escapes Leak water should come together with the lubricating oil.)
Boemer teaches of:
a fluid jacket associated with and abutting the piece of equipment (¶ [0022], This causes warming oil to flow through the engine's cooling jacket and supplies all lubrication points, including the turbocharger, with preheated lubricating oil; the system of Boemer preheats an engine fluid and pumps it through a cooling jacket of an engine)
The combined teachings can be modified to meet this/these limitation(s) as follows:
add a cooling jacket to the engine of Hobart that allows for the preheated coolant oil of the combined teachings to flow through it from the fluid circuit of Hobart
A person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to make the above modification(s) because:
it would allow for the preheated coolant of the combined teachings to permeate through all points within the engine, improving the preheating effect (Boemer, ¶ [0022], This causes warming oil to flow through the engine's cooling jacket and supplies all lubrication points, including the turbocharger, with preheated lubricating oil)
Murray teaches of:
operating the heater and pump until the fluid temperature reaches a predetermined temperature (¶ [0030]-[0031], the system measures if the coolant is at a minimum threshold or and operates the heating system until the coolant reaches a maximum temperature)
operating the piece of equipment after the fluid temperature reaches the predetermined temperature (¶ [0032], In use, the vehicle heating system allows a vehicle engine and compartment to remain within a selected temperature range as desired. A driver of a vehicle may start the vehicle and comfortably operate the vehicle, immediately after start-up, without cold engine wear or start-up concerns; the engine is kept within a predetermined temperature range prior to startup and then a user operates the engine (piece of equipment) after the engine is heated to the predetermined temperature range).
The combined teachings can be modified to meet this/these limitation(s) as follows:
add steps to the microprocessor of Hobart to measure the temperature of the coolant at the engine outlet and to only operate the system until a maximum coolant temperature is reached and allow for a user to operate the equipment after the equipment is heated to the predetermined temperature range
A person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to make the above modification(s) because:
it would allow for the engine of the system to be operated safely in low temperature conditioned (Murray, ¶ [0032], In use, the vehicle heating system allows a vehicle engine and compartment to remain within a selected temperature range as desired. A driver of a vehicle may start the vehicle and comfortably operate the vehicle, immediately after start-up, without cold engine wear or start-up concerns.)
Regarding claim 15, the combined teachings teach of the method of claim 14, and the combined teachings further teach:
further comprising measuring the fluid temperature of the oil using a temperature sensor positioned within the fluid in the fluid circuit at an exit of the piece of equipment (Hobart, Fig. 2, T1 is positioned at the exit of 36).
Regarding claim 16, the combined teachings teach of the method of claim 13, and the combined teachings further teach:
wherein the fluid is heated before the piece of equipment is operated (Col. 2, lines 15-17, The system of the present invention preheats the engine coolant, bringing the entire machine up to a warm starting condition; the system of Hobart preheats the coolant to allow the equipment to reach a warm starting condition and therefore the controller operates the fluid circuit prior to the startup of the equipment).
Regarding claim 19, the combined teachings teach of the method of claim 13, and the combined teachings further teach:
further comprising operating the heater and the circulating pump a by a controller (Hobart, Col. 1, lines 41-49, In another aspect of the present invention, a method for maintaining or preheating engine coolant comprises flowing coolant from the engine through a horizontal heat exchanger; receiving hot gas into the heat exchanger from a propane fuel burner, the hot gas transferring heat to the coolant in the heat exchanger; returning heated coolant to the engine; and controlling the total process through a microprocessor, the microprocessor adapted to receive data from several sensors; Fig. 2, pump 38, ignition module 50 are all connected to and controlled by 40)
Regarding claim 20, the combined teachings teach of the method of claim 13, and the combined teachings further teach:
further comprising igniting the heater using an igniter (Hobart, Col. 2, lines 66-67 and Col. 3, line 1, An ignition module 50 can provide high voltage ignition for the fuel gas, according to microprocessor 40).
Claim(s) 17-18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hobart (US 9464616 B2), Ljungstroem (DE 648930 C), Boemer (WO 2014095035 A1) and Murray (US 20030183184 A1) as presented in claim 13, and in further view of Morris (US 6600136 B1).
Regarding claim 17, the combined teachings teach of the method of claim 13, however, the combined teachings fail to explicitly teach:
wherein the heater and circulating pump are powered by a battery.
Morris teaches of:
powering a portable device with a battery (Fig. 1, 26)
The combined teachings can be modified to meet this/these limitation(s) as follows:
powering the system of Hobart via the universal battery pack of Morris
A person of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to make the above modification(s) because:
Morris teaches of utilizing a universal battery pack which allows for a variety of different batteries to be used making the system more flexible and portable (Morris, Col. 5, lines 22-24, Advantageously, the present invention can be used with a plurality of different battery packs of varying voltages.)
Regarding claim 18, the combined teachings teach of the method of claim 17, and the combined teachings further teach:
wherein no external power is used to operate the heater and circulating pump (Morris, Fig. 1, 26 is the only source of power).
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MICHAEL J GIORDANO whose telephone number is (571)272-8940. The examiner can normally be reached M-Fr 8 AM - 5 PM EST.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Edelmira Bosques can be reached at (571) 270-5614. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/M.J.G./Examiner, Art Unit 3762
/STEVEN B MCALLISTER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3762