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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 1/8/2026 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1-9 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.
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.
Claim 1-5 are rejected under Chen (US 2019/0074751) and in view of Yin (TW I502862).
As to claim 1, Chen discloses A motor comprising: a bearing (114; Fig. 1); a stator housing
including an inner peripheral portion having a bearing holder (Fig. 1), an outer peripheral portion (Fig.
1), and a coupling portion coupling the inner peripheral portion and the outer peripheral portion (Fig. 1);
a stator supported by the outer peripheral portion of the stator housing (Fig. 1); a rotor housing
covering the stator housing and the stator (Fig. 1); and a magnet supported by an outer peripheral
portion of the rotor housing (Fig. 1), wherein the rotor housing includes a rotation axis (Fig. 1), the stator
includes an upper surface portion provided at an inner side of the magnet (Fig. 1), supported by the
outer peripheral portion of the stator housing and positioned at the outer peripheral portion of the
stator housing in a rotation axis direction (Fig. 1), and a lower surface portion opposing an outside in the
rotation axis direction (Fig. 1), and a surface of the magnet supported by the rotor housing is provided at
a side of the upper surface portion of the stator in the rotation axis direction (Fig. 1).
PNG
media_image1.png
651
888
media_image1.png
Greyscale
Chen fails to disclose a coupling portion extending in a radial direction between the inner peripheral portion and the outer peripheral portion, and the coupling portion extends further in the radial direction than in the rotation axis direction.
Yin, however, discloses a coupling portion extending in a radial direction between the inner peripheral portion and the outer peripheral portion (Fig. 8), and the coupling portion extends further in the radial direction than in the rotation axis direction (Fig. 8).
PNG
media_image2.png
665
473
media_image2.png
Greyscale
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have provided the motor of Chen with a coupling portion extending in a radial direction between the inner peripheral portion and the outer peripheral portion, and the coupling portion extends further in the radial direction than in the rotation axis direction, as disclosed by Yin, to enhance the structure of the motor.
As to claim 2, the combination of Chen and Yin discloses the motor according to claim 1, wherein a gap is formed between the upper surface portion of the stator and the rotor housing in the rotation axis direction (Fig. 1 of Chen).
PNG
media_image3.png
626
756
media_image3.png
Greyscale
As to claim 4, the combination of Chen and Yin discloses the motor according to claim 1, wherein the rotor housing includes a positioning portion configured to position the surface of the magnet supported by the rotor housing in the rotation axis direction (Fig. 1 of Chen).
PNG
media_image4.png
435
704
media_image4.png
Greyscale
As to claim 6, the combination of Chen and Yin discloses the motor according to claim 1, wherein the positioning direction of the stator and the positioning direction of the magnet are same with each other in the rotation axis direction (Fig. 1).
PNG
media_image5.png
566
715
media_image5.png
Greyscale
As to claim 7, the combination of Chen and Yin discloses the motor according to claim 1, wherein the stator includes a stator core including an annular portion and a plurality of magnetic pole units (Para 003 of Chen), the annular portion includes the upper surface portion and the lower surface portion (Fig. 1 of Chen).
PNG
media_image6.png
581
730
media_image6.png
Greyscale
As to claim 8, the combination of Chen and Yin discloses the motor according to claim 1, wherein an inner peripheral surface of the stator is opposed to an end portion of the outer peripheral portion of the stator housing at the lower surface portion side (Fig. 8 of Yin).
PNG
media_image2.png
665
473
media_image2.png
Greyscale
As to claim 9, the combination of Chen and Yin discloses the motor according to claim 1, wherein the positioning portion of the stator housing protrudes in the radial direction (Fig. 8 of Yin).
PNG
media_image2.png
665
473
media_image2.png
Greyscale
Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C 103 as being unpatentable over Chen (20190074751), Yin, and in view of Masaaki (JP 2019154082).
As to claim 3, the combination of Chen and Yin discloses the motor according to claim 1.
Chen fails to disclose the stator housing includes a positioning portion configured to position the
first surface of the stator in a rotation axis direction.
Masaaki, however, discloses the stator housing includes a positioning portion configured to
position the first surface of the stator in a rotation axis direction (Fig. 2).
PNG
media_image7.png
707
655
media_image7.png
Greyscale
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have provided the motor of Chen with the stator housing includes
a positioning portion configured to position the first surface of the stator in a rotation axis direction, as
disclosed by Masaaki, in order to properly align the stator.
Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C 103 as being unpatentable over Chen, Yin, and in view of Chen780 (US 20220302780).
As to claim 5, the combination of Chen and Yin discloses the motor according to claim 4, and a rotor housing.
Chen fails to disclose a second positioning portion protruding from the positioning portion in the
rotation axis direction.
Chen780, however, discloses a second positioning portion protruding from the positioning
portion in the rotation axis direction (Fig. 12).
PNG
media_image8.png
685
680
media_image8.png
Greyscale
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have provided the motor of Chen with a second positioning
portion protruding from the positioning portion in the rotation axis direction, as disclosed by Chen780,
in order to properly align the magnet.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner
should be directed to ETHAN N VO whose telephone number is (571)270-7593. The examiner can
normally be reached Mon-Fri 8:30am - 5pm.
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,
Christopher M Koehler can be reached on 571 272 3560. The fax phone number for the organization
where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To
file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit
https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and
https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional
questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free).
If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199
(IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/ETHAN NGUYEN VO/
Examiner, Art Unit 2834
/CHRISTOPHER M KOEHLER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2834
Prosecution Insights