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 01/26/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that Andre does not disclose “an inner surface configured to guide air in the outer flow space to flow circumferentially and sequentially pass through the first filter and the suction motor” and “an outer surface… configured to guide air passed through the suction motor to flow circumferentially and pass through the second filter.” Applicant additionally argues that Andre does not disclose a second filter that extends circumferentially to surround the impeller and that is spaced apart from the impeller in a radial direction, Examiner respectfully disagrees, Firstly, the air guide as identified in Annotated Fig. 1 surrounds an outer flow space which surrounds a filter See Para [0037] “An annular gap can be provided between the filter foam cylinder 11 and the pipe 14 in order to allow the dirt-laden air to flow more evenly through the filter foam cylinder 11” and an outer surface configured to guide air passed through the suction motor to flow circumferentially and pass through the second filter as discussed in Para [0042], [0045], [0047] the exhaust and exhaust filter of Andre, specifically that the exhaust filter 48 is provided in the exhaust opening (at the end of Para [0047]), meaning that the outer surface is capable of guide air passed through the suction motor to flow circumferentially and pass through the second filter. Andre additionally does disclose a second filter (48, See Fig. 2) surrounding an impeller (21) spaced apart from the impeller in a radial direction of the axis (See Para [0047] discuss the Exhaust filter located at the exhaust exits). As such Examiner does not find these arguments persuasive.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claim 29 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Regarding Claim 29, the claim requires wherein a bottom portion of the discharge cover contacts an upper end of the first filter and is configured to press the first filter downward, thereby fixing the first filter within the cleaner in a state in which the discharge cover is coupled to the upper portion of the cleaner. It is unclear if the applicant had possession of this at the time of filing, as the first filter, based on the disclosure of claim 1, pre-motor filter (242 as identified in the specification of the instant application), as seen in Fig. 8, this filter does not seem to be in direct contact with the discharge cover, nor is there any direct support in the specification for this specific limitation. As such it is unclear if applicant had possession of this idea at the time of filing.
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.
Claim(s) 1, 3-5, 7-9, 11-15, 19, 22-24, 29-30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Conrad (US Patent Pub US 20100229324 A1) in view of Smith (US Patent Pub US 20130091660 A1), Andre (DE 102012211247 A1) and Liddell (US Patent Pub US 20100223751).
Regarding Claim 1, Conrad teaches: A cleaner comprising:
a suction unit (818) configured to guide air to the cleaner (800);
a suction motor (864) configured to generate a suction force for causing introduction of the air through the suction unit (see airflow path illustrated by arrows in figure 8),
a cyclone unit (814 and 851) configured to generate a cyclonic flow about an axis to thereby separate dust from the air introduced through the suction unit (see airflow path illustrated by arrows in figure 8), the axis extending in an up-down direction of the suction motor (See axis of 865), the cyclone unit comprising:
a first cyclone unit (814) configured to separate dust from the air introduced through the suction unit (See Para [0004]), and
a second cyclone unit (851) configured to separate dust from air discharged (See Para [0072] of Conrad) from the first cyclone unit (814), wherein an upper end of the second cyclone unit (851) having an outlet disposed below a bottom of the suction motor and is configured to discharge air upwardly (See figure 8 of Conrad, with the direction of the arrows exiting 851 being the upward direction, air exits 851 through the outlet below the suction motor in the upward direction); and
a first filter (862) that is disposed above the second cyclone unit (See figure 8, with the direction the arrows are pointing through the motor being an upward direction)
But Conrad does not explicitly teach the suction motor comprising: a shaft having a first end and a second end, the second end being disposed below the first end and positioned opposite to the first end, and an impeller coupled to the first end of the shaft and configured to be rotated by the shaft,
the first filter radially spaced apart from the axis, the filter extending to surround an outer circumference of the suction motor
wherein an outer flow space is defined to extend radially from an outer circumferential surface of the first filter such that the air discharged from the second cyclone unit flows into the outer flow space;
a discharge cover configured to accommodate a second filter that extends circumferentially to surround the impeller and that is spaced apart from the impeller in a radial direction of the axis, the discharge cover being detachably coupled to an upper portion of the cleaner;
an air guide having:
an inner surface extending circumferentially to surround the outer circumferential surface of the first filter and being spaced apart from the first filter in the radial direction of the axis to define the outer flow space, the inner surface being configured to guide air in the outer flow space to flow circumferentially and sequentially pass through the first filter and the suction motor, and
an outer surface defined radially opposite to the inner surface, the outer surface being configured to guide air passed through the suction motor to flow circumferentially and pass through the second filter.
However, Smith does teach a similar cleaner that does include a shaft (20) having a first end (see figure 2 end closer to 30) and a second end (end closer to motor 16), the second end being disposed below the first end and positioned opposite to the first end (see figure 2), and an impeller (18) coupled to the first end of the shaft and configured to be rotated by the shaft (impeller 18 is rotated by the motor via the shaft).
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Conrad in view of Smith to include the rotary shaft attached to the motor as is it is suggested by Conrad in Para [0064] that the suction motor could be any type of motor “[0064] Suction motor 164 is provided in the airflow path preferably adjacent and downstream of the pre-motor filter 162. The suction motor 164 may be any type of suction motor.” as such it would be a matter of obvious substitution to include a suction motor that has a rotary shaft and impeller to allow the motor to provide a suction force.
Smith further teaches a filter (40) that faces the suction motor (16) in a radial direction of the axis (21) to thereby surround an outer circumference of the suction motor (See figure 2).
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to further modify Conrad in view of Smith to alter the filter to be an annular filter that surrounds the motor in order to present a more compact construction of the cleaner, by having the filter take up less space and have the space occupied by the motor instead, resulting in a smaller footprint.
Examiner notes that Conrad in view of Smith discloses a discharge cover (820 of Conrad) coupled to an upper portion of the housing (see Figure 8 of Conrad, 120 122, are connected to the upper portion of the housing), wherein the discharge cover (120 of Conrad) comprises a second filter (866 of Conrad) that is disposed above the impeller and surrounds the axis (this is true of Conrad as modified by Smith as Conrad as modifying Conrad to include the impeller would result in the filter being placed above the impeller and surrounding the axis), the second filter being configured to filter air discharged from the discharge cover to the outside of the cleaner (see airflow arrows in Figure 8 of Conrad).
And Andre discloses a similar cleaner wherein a first filter radially spaced apart from the axis, the filter extending to surround an outer circumference of the suction motor (See Figure 1 showing filter 11 surrounding an outer circumference of the motor 25).
wherein an outer flow space is defined to extend radially from an outer circumferential surface of the first filter (See Para [0037] “An annular gap can be provided between the filter foam cylinder 11 and the pipe 14 in order to allow the dirt-laden air to flow more evenly through the filter foam cylinder 11”) such that the air discharged from the second cyclone unit flows into the outer flow space (See Para [0047] describing air flowing through the cyclone before passing through the filter “From the inner wall of the pipe 54, the separated particles pass by the separating rib 57 into the dust collection chamber 56 by gravity (see Fig. 1); the vortex tube separator is thus designed as a sinking separator. A particularly high suction power is made possible by the multiple air ducts 44, which can have a relatively large cross-section, for example about 1800 mm<sup>2</sup>. Lint is retained by the lint filter which covers the windows of the sleeve 18 and through which the air flows before reaching the filter foam cylinder 11, which retains further coarse and medium-fine dust. In particular for filtering fine dust, an exhaust filter is provided in the exhaust openings 48.”) and
an air guide (Annotated Figure A) having:
an inner surface (interior surface of the air guide) extending circumferentially to surround the outer circumferential surface of the first filter (11) and being spaced apart from the first filter (See Annotated Fig. A and Fig. 1 of Andre showing space between air guide and filter 11) in the radial direction of the axis to define the outer flow space (Space between 11 and air guide), the inner surface being configured to guide air in the outer flow space to flow circumferentially and sequentially pass through the first filter and the suction motor (See Para [0037] of Andre, discussing air drawn through filter 11 towards the blower, and discussing an annular gap between filter 11 and the air guide (14-16) allowing airflow along the outer wall of the filter 11), and
an outer surface (exterior surface of the air guide) defined radially opposite to the inner surface (opposite surface of the air guide), the outer surface being configured to guide air passed through the suction motor to flow circumferentially and pass through the second filter (Para [0042], [0045], [0047] in part discusses the exhaust and exhaust filter of Andre, specifically that the exhaust filter 48 is provided in the exhaust opening (at the end of Para [0047]), meaning that the outer surface is capable of guide air passed through the suction motor to flow circumferentially and pass through the second filter).
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention to modify the filter of Conrad as modified to have an inner surface extending circumferentially to surround the outer circumferential surface of the first filter and being spaced apart from the first filter in the radial direction of the axis to define the outer flow space, the inner surface being configured to guide air in the outer flow space to flow circumferentially and sequentially pass through the first filter and the suction motor, and
an outer surface defined radially opposite to the inner surface, the outer surface being configured to guide air passed through the suction motor to flow circumferentially and pass through the second filter as advantageously described in Para [0037] of Andre (“An annular gap can be provided between the filter foam cylinder 11 and the pipe 14 in order to allow the dirt-laden air to flow more evenly through the filter foam cylinder 11; this is also contributed to by the inlet windows 15, which are closed by the closure sleeve 16 when the small vacuum cleaner 1 is operated separately, but still allow an axial air flow along the outer wall of the filter foam cylinder 11 to a certain extent.”) increasing the efficiency of the cleaner.
Finally, Liddell does teach a similar clean that does teach a discharge cover detachably coupled to an upper portion of the housing (See Para [0044] “The vacuum cleaner 1 further includes a motor housing 12 and a removable casing 14 having a plurality of exhaust vents 16 formed therein.”)
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the discharge cover of Conrad as modified to be explicitly detachable as taught by Liddell as doing so would allow one to have easy access to the secondary filter for cleaning and replacement, extending the life of the vacuum cleaner.
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Annotated Figure A (Fig. 4 of Andre)
Regarding Claim 3, Conrad as modified teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and in addition teaches wherein a distance between the second end of the shaft (end attached to motor of Smith) and the second cyclone (80 of Smith) unit is less than a distance between the first end of the shaft (top of shaft 20 of Smith) and the second cyclone unit (80 of Smith), and wherein the impeller, the suction motor, and the second cyclone unit are arranged along the up-down direction (See figure 2 of Smith, second cyclone is located below the shaft).
Regarding Claim 4, Conrad as modified teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and in
addition teaches further comprising a housing (860 of Conrad) that accommodates the suction motor (864 of Conrad) and the first filter (862 of Conrad), wherein the first filter is disposed between the suction motor and the housing (See Figure 8 of Conrad, showing filter 40 between suction motor 16 and top of housing 30).
Regarding Claim 5, Conrad as modified teaches all the limitations of claim 4 and in addition teaches wherein the outer flow space is defined between the inner surface of the air guide and the first filter (See Andre figure 1 showing the space surround 11 being between the filter 11 and the housing of the cleaner), and
wherein the housing is configured to guide, with the outer surface of the air guide, the air discharged from the suction toward the second filter (Conrad as modified by Andre would discharge air from the second cyclone to the outer flow space, see Andre figure 1 and Para [0047] where air is discharged from a cyclone into the outer flow space then into the secondary filter).
Regarding Claim 7, Conrad as modified teaches all the limitations of claim 4, and in addition teaches wherein the second filter…. (866), and
wherein the second filter is configured to, based on the discharge cover being coupled to the housing, be disposed above the impeller and support the first filter disposed in the housing (post motor filter 866 of Conrad as modified by Smith is disposed above the impeller and can support the first filter).
But Conrad as modified does not explicitly teach the second filter has a cylindrical ring shape.
However, Smith does teach a similar cleaner with a cylindrical ring-shaped filter (40).
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the exhaust filter of Conrad in view of the ring-shaped filter of Smith as doing so would allow space for the drive shaft and impeller of Conrad as modified in claim 1.
Regarding Claim 8, Conrad as modified teaches all the limitation of claim 1, but does not explicitly teach outer diameter of the second filter is larger than an outer diameter of the first filter, and wherein the second filter is disposed farther from the axis in the radial direction than the first filter.
However, it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to further modify the second filter to be larger than an outer diameter of the first filter and wherein the second filter is disposed farther from the axis in the radial direction than the first filter. As doing so would be a result of incorporating the impeller and drive shaft-based motor of Smith, allowing for additional room for a fan or impeller to rotate to provide suction force.
Regarding Claim 9, Conrad as modified teaches all the limitations of claim 4, and in addition teaches wherein the discharge cover is configured to, based on being coupled to the housing, face the impeller and be spaced apart from an upper surface of the impeller (Conrad as modified by Smith to include an impeller, would include the discharge cover (820) face the impeller (one of the faces of the discharge cover would face internal to the cleaner where the impeller is located, and would be spaced apart from an upper surface, (discharge cover 820 is the top portion of the cleaner).
Regarding Claim 11, Conrad as modified teaches all the limitations of claim 1, and in addition teaches wherein the first filter (862) extends from a position below the second filter (866) toward the second cyclone unit (851) (see figure 8 of Conrad).
Regarding Claim 12, Conrad as modified teaches all the limitations of claim 4, but does not explicitly teach wherein the first filter is configured to be separated from the housing based on the discharge cover being separated from the housing in a state in which the suction motor remains in the housing.
However, Smith does teach a cleaner with detachable parts, (See Para [0098] of Smith “Between the annular roof wall 121 and the bowl door 130, the various components of the cyclonic separation apparatus 8 (i.e. pre-fan filter 40, vortex finder assembly 50, inner wall 60, cyclone seal 70, cyclone assembly 80, intermediate wall 90, bulkhead 100, tapered funnel 110) are arranged upon each other by detachable connection, typically a snap-fit, bayonet fit, interlocking detents, or interference fit” as such the filter can be configured to be separated from the housing if the discharge cover is separated from the housing, without necessarily removing the motor).
As such it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the parts of Conrad to be detachable in such a way that the first filter could be accessible through the discharge cover, as doing so would increase the lifespan of the cleaner, by allowing for parts to easily be replaced due to the detachable nature.
Regarding Claim 13, Conrad as modified discloses all the limitations of claim 1 and in addition discloses:
A housing (806 of Conrad as modified is a motor housing portion) that accommodates the suction motor and the air guide (806 of Conrad as modified),
Wherein the second filter (866) is configured to be disposed at an upper side of the first filter (Upward being the direction of the air flow arrows seen in figure 8) and configured to filter air that has passed through the suction motor (See Para [0065] “Post motor filter 166 serves to remove remaining particulate matter from air exiting the cleaner 100.”); and
Wherein the discharge cover (120) has air exits that are disposed above the impeller and in fluid communication with the second filter (See airflow arrows in Fig. 8).
But does not explicitly disclose the discharge cover is detachably coupled to an upper portion of the housing.
However, Smith does teach a cleaner with detachable parts, (See Para [0098] of Smith “Between the annular roof wall 121 and the bowl door 130, the various components of the cyclonic separation apparatus 8 (i.e. pre-fan filter 40, vortex finder assembly 50, inner wall 60, cyclone seal 70, cyclone assembly 80, intermediate wall 90, bulkhead 100, tapered funnel 110) are arranged upon each other by detachable connection, typically a snap-fit, bayonet fit, interlocking detents, or interference fit” as such the filter can be configured to be separated from the housing if the discharge cover is separated from the housing, without necessarily removing the motor).
As such it would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify the parts of Conrad to be detachable in such a way that the first filter could be accessible through the discharge cover, as doing so would increase the lifespan of the cleaner, by allowing for parts to easily be replaced due to the detachable nature.
Regarding Claim 14 Conrad as modified teaches all the limitations of claim 13, and in addition teaches wherein the second filter (866 of Conrad) surrounds an extension line of the shaft (20 of Smith) of the suction motor (16 of Smith) and extends in a circumferential direction along an outer circumference of the discharge cover (30 of Smith), and wherein the air exits (36 of Smith) are arranged along the second filter (866, see airflow arrows figure 8).
Regarding Claim 15, Conrad as modified teaches all the limitations of claim 13, and in addition teaches wherein the first filter (862 of Conrad) and the second filter (866 of Ford) are configured to be separated from the housing in a direction of the axis of the cyclonic flow (Smith Para [0098] “[0098] Between the annular roof wall 121 and the bowl door 130, the various components of the cyclonic separation apparatus 8 (i.e. pre-fan filter 40, vortex finder assembly 50, inner wall 60, cyclone seal 70, cyclone assembly 80, intermediate wall 90, bulkhead 100, tapered funnel 110) are arranged upon each other by detachable connection, typically a snap-fit, bayonet fit, interlocking detents, or interference fit.” As such 30 can be removed and filters can be removed in direction of the axis of the cyclonic flow).
Regarding Claim 19, Conrad as modified teaches all the limitations of claim 1 and in addition appears to teach wherein the first filter (862 of Conrad) is configured to be exposed to an outside of the cleaner based on the discharge cover being separated from the upper portion of the cleaner (Para [0098] of Smith “[0098] Between the annular roof wall 121 and the bowl door 130, the various components of the cyclonic separation apparatus 8 (i.e. pre-fan filter 40, vortex finder assembly 50, inner wall 60, cyclone seal 70, cyclone assembly 80, intermediate wall 90, bulkhead 100, tapered funnel 110) are arranged upon each other by detachable connection, typically a snap-fit, bayonet fit, interlocking detents, or interference fit. The permits disassembly and reassembly, without tools, of the cyclonic separation apparatus 8 in order to clean, or replace, its individual components.”).
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention to modify the discharge cover to be explicitly removable as doing so would allow for removal of components from the other direction than the dirt bowl door which would not require a total removal of all parts to access the filters at the upper end.
Regarding Claim 22, Conrad as modified teaches all the limitations of claim 15, and in addition teaches further comprising:
a dust container (Conrad 824) disposed below the housing and configured to collect dust (824 is a dirt collection chamber); and
a body cover (858) rotatably disposed at a lower portion of the dust container and configured to open and close the dust container, the body cover being configured to open the dust container by rotating relative to the dust container in a first direction away from the discharge cover (See figure 4 and 5A and Para [0058] “For example, one of the ends of the cyclone unit 114 may be openable. As exemplified in FIGS. 4 and 5A, in the example shown, front wall 158 is pivotaly mounted to the cyclone unit wall 115 at pivots 177 and serves as an openable door 158 of the dirt chamber 124, such that dirt collection chamber 124 is openable, and dirt collection chamber 124 may be emptied.”),
and Smith suggests wherein the discharge cover (30 of Smith) is configured to be separated from the housing in a second direction opposite to the first direction (Para [0098] of Smith “[0098] Between the annular roof wall 121 and the bowl door 130, the various components of the cyclonic separation apparatus 8 (i.e. pre-fan filter 40, vortex finder assembly 50, inner wall 60, cyclone seal 70, cyclone assembly 80, intermediate wall 90, bulkhead 100, tapered funnel 110) are arranged upon each other by detachable connection, typically a snap-fit, bayonet fit, interlocking detents, or interference fit. The permits disassembly and reassembly, without tools, of the cyclonic separation apparatus 8 in order to clean, or replace, its individual components.”).
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention to modify the discharge cover and post motor filter to be explicitly removable as doing so would allow for removal of components from the other direction than the dirt bowl door which would not require a total removal of all parts to access the filters at the upper end.
Regarding Claim 23, Conrad as modified teaches all the limitations of claim 22 and in addition appears to teach wherein the first filter is configured to be separated from the housing in the second direction through an upper side of the housing based on the discharge cover being separated from the housing (Para [0098] of Smith “[0098] Between the annular roof wall 121 and the bowl door 130, the various components of the cyclonic separation apparatus 8 (i.e. pre-fan filter 40, vortex finder assembly 50, inner wall 60, cyclone seal 70, cyclone assembly 80, intermediate wall 90, bulkhead 100, tapered funnel 110) are arranged upon each other by detachable connection, typically a snap-fit, bayonet fit, interlocking detents, or interference fit. The permits disassembly and reassembly, without tools, of the cyclonic separation apparatus 8 in order to clean, or replace, its individual components.”).
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention to modify the discharge cover to be explicitly removable as doing so would allow for removal of components from the other direction than the dirt bowl door which would not require a total removal of all parts to access the filters at the upper end.
Regarding Claim 24, Conrad as modified discloses all the limitations of claim 13 and in addition discloses wherein the discharge cover, the impeller, the suction motor, and the second cyclone unit are sequentially arranged to overlap one another along the extending direction of the shaft (See Annotated figure below showing arranged to overlap in the direction of the shaft, Conrad as modified has an impeller and shaft, in the direction with the airflow arrows).
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Annotated Figure (Fig 8 of Conrad)
Regarding Claim 29, Conrad as modified discloses all the limitations of claim 19 but does not explicitly disclose wherein a bottom portion of the discharge cover contacts an upper end of the first filter and is configured to press the first filter downward, thereby fixing the first filter within the cleaner in a state in which the discharge cover is coupled to the upper portion of the cleaner.
However, Smith discloses wherein a bottom portion of a discharge cover (121) contacts an upper end of the first filter (40) and is configured to press the first filter downward, thereby fixing the first filter within the cleaner in a state in which the discharge cover is coupled to the upper portion of the cleaner (discharge cover 121 is capable of pressing the first filter downward into the cleaner body, See Fig. 2 of Smith).
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention to modify the discharge and first filter such that the first filter is pressed downwardly by the discharge cover as doing so would allow for easy access to the filter for cleaning and replacing as advantageously suggested by Smith, See Para [0098] “Between the annular roof wall 121 and the bowl door 130, the various components of the cyclonic separation apparatus 8 (i.e. pre-fan filter 40, vortex finder assembly 50, inner wall 60, cyclone seal 70, cyclone assembly 80, intermediate wall 90, bulkhead 100, tapered funnel 110) are arranged upon each other by detachable connection, typically a snap-fit, bayonet fit, interlocking detents, or interference fit. The permits disassembly and reassembly, without tools, of the cyclonic separation apparatus 8 in order to clean, or replace, its individual components.”
Regarding Claim 30, Conrad as modified discloses all the limitations of claim 1 but does not explicitly disclose wherein the first filter is configured to be exposed to an outside of the cleaner by separating the discharge cover from the upper portion of the cleaner without disassembling other parts of the cleaner.
Smith discloses wherein the first filter (40) is configured to be exposed to an outside of the cleaner by separating the discharge cover (121) from the upper portion of the cleaner without disassembling other parts of the cleaner (See Fig. 2 121 and filter 40 and [0098] “Between the annular roof wall 121 and the bowl door 130, the various components of the cyclonic separation apparatus 8 (i.e. pre-fan filter 40, vortex finder assembly 50, inner wall 60, cyclone seal 70, cyclone assembly 80, intermediate wall 90, bulkhead 100, tapered funnel 110) are arranged upon each other by detachable connection, typically a snap-fit, bayonet fit, interlocking detents, or interference fit. The permits disassembly and reassembly, without tools, of the cyclonic separation apparatus 8 in order to clean, or replace, its individual components.”).
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention to further modify Conrad as modified such that the first filter 40 can be accessed via separating the discharge cover without disassembling the other parts of the cleaner as doing so would allow for the filter to be easily cleaned or replaced, simplifying the process for the user.
Claim(s) 27 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Conrad (US Patent Pub US 20100229324 A1) in view of Smith (US Patent Pub US 20130091660 A1), Andre (DE 102012211247 A1) and Liddell (US Patent Pub US 20100223751).
Regarding Claim 27, Conrad as modified discloses all the limitations of claim 1 but does not explicitly disclose:
a printed circuit board (PCB) that is located vertically between the suction motor and the second cyclone unit and vertically overlaps with the suction motor and the second cyclone unit along the axis.
However, Hara discloses a cleaner with a suction motor (13) and a cyclone (See Para [0031] “Furthermore, the separating means is not limited to a filter, but a cyclone may be used, or a filter and a cyclone may be combined as separating means.”) and a printed circuit board (PCB) (181), and suggests different possible locations for the in the circuit board (See Para [0031] “In addition, it is possible to use a common space for the space in which the controller is located and the space in which the electric motor is located, without separating them with a vertical wall. In addition, by arranging the battery and the controller upstream of the electric motor with respect to the motor cooling air, it is possible to improve the cooling efficiency of the battery and the controller.”).
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the invention to modify location of the printed circuit board to be located between the second cyclone and the suction motor, as advantageously disclosed by Hara, doing so would cool the circuit board, increasing the efficiency of the controller.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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 Tyler James McFarland whose telephone number is (571)272-7270. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7:30AM-5PM (E.S.T), Flex First Friday.
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/T.J.M./Examiner, Art Unit 3723
/DAVID S POSIGIAN/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3723
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