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 with respect to the amended claims 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.
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.
Claims 1-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over JPH0195237U (Translation provided by applicant) in view of Fothergill et al. (US 3,994,480).
Regarding claim 1, JPH0195237U discloses a water heating device for mixing hot water and cold water and supplying the mixture ([0003]), the water heating device comprising: a hot-water flow inlet (4, Figures 1-2) serving as a flow inlet through which the hot water flows in; a cold-water flow inlet (2) serving as a flow inlet through which the cold water flows in; a flow path through (6, Figure 2) which a hot water mixture, obtained by mixing of the hot water and the cold water, flows; and a flow outlet (7, Figure 1) through which the hot water mixture flows out, wherein an inner peripheral surface of the flow path is formed in a cylindrical shape (See 7, Figures 1-2), the hot-water flow inlet and the cold-water flow inlet are formed on one end side of the flow path, and the flow outlet is formed on the other end side of the flow path, and a flow inlet that is at least one of the hot-water flow inlet and the cold-water flow inlet is opened on the inner peripheral surface of the flow path, and in a flow path cross section of circular orthogonal to a central axis of the flow path, the flow inlet has an outer wall extending from the inner peripheral surface of the flow path in a direction of a tangent of the inner peripheral surface, and a central axis of the flow inlet is disposed closer to the inner peripheral surface of the flow path connected to the outer wall with respect to the central axis of the flow path ([0018-0020]).
JPH0195237U does not disclose that the flow outlet is connected to an upstream portion of a hot-water supply pipe having an inner diameter smaller than an inner diameter of the flow path, and extending in the direction of the central axis of the flow path.
However, Fothergill discloses a mixing device (Abstract, Figure 1) wherein the supply pipe (3) has a diameter less than the diameter of the flow path (1). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of this application to provide a reducing point to allow the device to connect to common diameter piping in a conventional water supply system, thus alleviating the need for custom couplings to attach to the mixing device which would same installation costs.
Regarding claim 2, JPH0195237U ,as modified, discloses the water heating device according to claim 1, wherein each of the hot-water flow inlet (JPH0195237U-4, Figures 1-2) and the cold-water flow inlet (JPH0195237U-2) has the outer wall and is opened on the inner peripheral surface of the flow path, and a positional relationship between the hot-water flow inlet and the cold-water flow inlet is that the hot-water flow inlet and the cold-water flow inlet are disposed at different positions by a predetermined angle in a circumferential direction of the inner peripheral surface of the flow path or at the same position in the circumferential direction (JPH0195237U-Figure 2).
Regarding claim 3, JPH0195237U ,as modified, discloses the water heating device according to claim 2, wherein a total length of an inner diameter of the hot- water flow inlet (JPH0195237U-4, Figures 1-2) and an inner diameter of the cold-water flow inlet (JPH0195237U-2) is set to be equal to or less than an inner diameter of the flow path (JPH0195237U-7).
Regarding claim 4, JPH0195237U ,as modified, discloses the water heating device according to claim 1, wherein the hot-water flow inlet (JPH0195237U-4, Figures 1-2) and/or the cold-water flow inlet (JPH0195237U-2) are disposed at angles where the central axes of the flow inlet substantially orthogonal to the central axis of the flow path (JPH0195237U-7, Figure 2).
Regarding claim 5, JPH0195237U, as modified, discloses the water heating device according to claim 2, wherein the hot-water flow inlet (JPH0195237U-4, Figures 1-2) and/or the cold-water flow inlet (JPH0195237U-2) are disposed at angles where the central axes of the flow inlet substantially orthogonal to the central axis of the flow path (JPH0195237U-7, Figure 2).
Regarding claim 6, JPH0195237U, as modified, discloses the water heating device according to claim 3, wherein the hot-water flow inlet (JPH0195237U-4, Figures 1-2) and/or the cold-water flow inlet (JPH0195237U-2) are disposed at angles where the central axes of the flow inlet substantially orthogonal to the central axis of the flow path (JPH0195237U-7, Figure 2).
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 JOHN E BARGERO whose telephone number is (571) 270-1770. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Steve McAllister can be reached at (571) 272-6785. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JOHN E BARGERO/Examiner, Art Unit 3762
/STEVEN B MCALLISTER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3762