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 .
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.
Claims 1-2 and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yamamura (US5274286) in view of Dai et al. (CN208503482U), attached as a PDF and hereinafter referred to as Dai.
Regarding claim 1, Yamamura discloses a spindle unit comprising:
a spindle (Fig. 1 element 20) having a tip part (Fig. 1 element 22) to which a mount (Fig. 1 element 24) for mounting a processing tool (Fig. 1 element 25) is connected (Fig. 1);
a casing (Fig. 1 element 18) that surrounds at least a part (Fig. 1 element 21) other than the tip part of the spindle and is formed with an air jet port (Fig. 1 elements 47 and 48) for jetting air toward the spindle in order to form an air bearing (Fig. 1, 4:18-52, where "a static pressure bearing that is formed by the air" corresponds to an air bearing); and
a cover (Fig. 1 element 12) mounted to the casing in such a manner as to surround the tip part of the spindle with a gap therebetween (see annotated Fig. 4 below),
wherein a region (see annotated Fig. 4 below) of a side surface of the tip part of the spindle (Fig. 4, where the outer circumferential surface of the tip part of the spindle corresponds to a side surface), the region being opposed to an inside surface of the cover (Fig. 4, where the inner circumferential surface of the cover corresponds to an inside surface) with the gap therebetween see annotated Fig. 4 below, where the gap is the empty space defined between the outer circumferential surface of the tip part and the inner circumferential surface of the cover and therefore the gap is between the region of the side surface of the tip part and the inside surface of the cover), is formed with at least one groove (see annotated Fig. 4 below) in such a manner as to go round the spindle one time along a circumferential direction of the spindle (Fig. 4 and see annotated Fig. 4 below, where the grooves being shown on both sides of the tip part means that the grooves go round the spindle one time along a circumferential direction of the spindle), said at least one groove including a surface that is inclined at an angle relative to a longitudinal axis of the spindle (see annotated Fig. 4’ below, where the angle surface is at a 90° angle to the longitudinal axis).
Yamamura fails to disclose the angle is greater than 0 degrees and less than 90 degrees.
Dai is also concerned with a spindle unit and teaches at least one groove (see annotated Fig. 5 below) including a surface that is inclined at an angle relative to a longitudinal axis of the spindle (see annotated Fig. 5’ below), wherein the angle is greater than 0 degrees and less than 90 degrees (0028, where the angle being 10° meets this limitation). It 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 to modify the spindle unit of Yamamura to make the angle between the inclined surface and the longitudinal axis to be greater than 0 degrees and less than 90 degrees, as taught by Dai, because Dai teaches that an angle in this range “will guide the airflow and create an air pressure difference inside and outside the bearing seat 4 to achieve a better sealing effect” (0032). Examiner notes that this also includes providing an inclined surface to the cover (Fig. 5 element 7, as taught by Dai) to provide the cooperating relationship discussed in Dai (0027) to achieve the “better sealing effect” discussed above.
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Regarding claim 2, Yamamura, as modified, discloses the limitations of claim 1, as described above, and further discloses the at least one groove is a plurality of grooves (Yamamura, see annotated Fig. 4 above).
Regarding claim 5, Yamamura, as modified, discloses the limitations of claim 1, as described above, and further discloses the inside surface of the cover (Dai, Fig. 5 element 7) is inclined at an angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the spindle (Dai, Fig. 5 and see annotated Fig. 5’ above).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim 1 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection rely on a different combination of prior art as the combination of prior art challenged by Applicant in the Arguments/Remarks.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Takashima et al. (US20090263202) teaches an inclined surface (Fig. 2 element MK) which is greater than 0 degrees and less than 90 degrees to a longitudinal axis of the spindle unit (Fig. 2).
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 CALEB A HOLIZNA whose telephone number is (571)272-5659. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:00-4:30.
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/C.A.H./Examiner, Art Unit 3723 /MONICA S CARTER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3723
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