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 § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 6 recites the limitation "dry gas inlet" in lines 3 and 4. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim, because it is not defined on claim 5 or claim 1.
Claim 6 recites “wherein the turbulence generation portion is formed on an inner wall of the dry gas inlet formed in the cap”. Claim 6 further recites that the fuel cell humidifier comprises “caps fastened to both ends of the humidification module”, from which is unclear on which cap the “dry gas inlet” is formed and therefore the location of the location of the “turbulence generation portion”.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kim, H. (KR 20130029301 A, see machine translation for citation).
Regarding claim 1, Kim teaches a membrane humidifier for a fuel cell [0001]. The membrane humidifier comprises a hollow fiber membrane module (20) comprising a plurality of hollow fiber membranes (29) [0030 and Fig. 1-3]. The hollow fiber membrane module (20) is installed in a coaxial structure within the housing (10) (humidification module), which comprise a first humid air inlet (13) through which humid air (off-gas) that has finished reacting from the fuel cell stack (40) is introduced into the membrane humidifier and a first humid air outlet (14) [0030, 0031 and Fig. 1-3]. The membrane humidifier further comprises a partition pipe (22), which separates the hollow fiber membrane module (20) into a ring-shaped edge (peripheral) portion (28) and a circular-shaped central portion (27) (sub-module) [0035 and Fig. 3]. The circular-shaped central portion (27) (sub-module) comprises a humid air inlet pipe (25) (off-gas inlet) which receives humid air (off-gas) discharged from the fuel cell stack (40) and a humid air outlet pipe (26) (off-gas outlet) which serves to send out the humid air (off-gas), from which moisture has been separated by the capillary action of the hollow fiber membranes in the central part (27) (sub-module) of the hollow fiber membrane module (20), to the outside [0038 and Fig. 2-3].
The hollow fiber membranes (29) humidify dry air supplied from an air blower through moisture exchange between the dry gas and an humid air (off-gas) flowing into the inside from a fuel cell stack [0031].
The membrane humidifier further comprises a flow control valve (30) (active flow control unit) which control the flow of humid air (off-gas) discharged from a fuel cell stack (40) and introduced into the housing (10) [0030 and Fig. 2]. The flow control valve (30) (active flow control unit) is connected between the fuel cell stack (40) and the humidifier housing (10), and depending on the state of the fuel cell stack (30), humid air (off-gas) can be supplied to either or both of the first and second humid air inlets (13, 23) (first and second off-gas inlets) selected to humidify dry air [0041 and Fig. 2].
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 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 non-obviousness.
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim, H. (KR 20130029301 A, see machine translation for citation) as applied to claim 1 above, further in view of Mizuno, Y. (JP H08138691 A, see machine translation for citation) and Baldea et al. (US 20180038513 A1).
Regarding claim 2, Kim teaches all the elements of the current invention in claim 1, except “wherein the active flow control unit is formed of a bimetal made in one rod shape by piling two or more metal plates having different coefficients of thermal expansion”.
Mizuno teaches a fuel cell that generates water by reacting a reaction gas and generates electricity in the process [0001]. On Fig. 16 embodiment, the fuel cell (1) comprises a moisture-absorbing chamber (82) which is opened and closed by a valve (85) [0069]. The valve (85) may be configured to operate automatically based on temperature, from which as an example, a temperature-activated bimetallic valve may be employed [0072].
Baldea teaches that thermally actuated valves could be created employing bimetallic strips which comprises two stacked metals with different thermal expansion coefficients [Abstract, 0017 and 0047]. Baldea teaches that with the implementation of bimetallic materials, temperature changes can be converted into a mechanical displacement, which can result in flow control among other applications [0016]. The rod shape of the bimetallic material can be considered a feature achievable for a skilled artisan on the field.
If the flow control valve (30) (active flow control unit) of Kim is modified to be a thermally actuated valve employing a rod shaped bimetallic material, the claimed limitations would be met.
Mizuno is analogous art to the current invention because it is concerned with the same field of endeavor, namely an active flow control unit applied to a fuel cell system moisture absorption process. Baldea is analogous art to the current invention because it is concerned with the same field of endeavor, namely thermally actuated valves employing bimetallic materials for flow control applications.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the flow control valve (30) (active flow control unit) of Kim to include the feature “wherein it is formed of a bimetal made in one rod shape by piling two or more metal plates having different coefficients of thermal expansion”, because Mizuno and Baldea teaches that with its implementation, temperature changes can be converted into a mechanical displacement, which can result in flow control, among other applications.
Claims 3 and 4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim, H. (KR 20130029301 A, see machine translation for citation) as applied to claim 1 above, further in view of Usuda, M. (JP 2008027674 A, se machine translation for citation).
Regarding claims 3 and 4, Kim teaches all the elements of the current invention in claim 1, except “wherein the active flow control unit performs automatic control so that the off-gas is able to be supplied to the at least one selected from the first and second off-gas inlets, depending on a temperature of the off-gas discharged from the fuel cell stack” (claim 3) and “wherein the active flow control unit performs automatic control so that the off-gas is able to be supplied to the at least one selected from the first and second off-gas inlets, depending on an output situation of the fuel cell stack” (claim 4).
Usuda teaches a fuel cell humidifier that houses a bundle of multiple hollow fiber membranes in a container and humidifies the supply gas that flows inside the hollow fiber membrane and is supplied to the fuel cell by exhaust gas discharged from the fuel cell and flowing on the outside of the hollow fiber membrane [0001]. The humidifier (10) comprises an exhaust gas detection unit (29), which detects the temperature, pressure, moisture content (water vapor content), relative humidity, and volumetric flow rate of the humid exhaust gas flowing from the fuel cell (3) [0023 and Fig. 1]. A control unit (59) receives the detection signals from the exhaust gas detection unit (29) and based on the temperature of the exhaust gas (output situation of the fuel cell stack) switching valves (53 and 57) are controlled (automatic control) [0036, 0038-0042 and Fig. 1]. It is taught that by controlling (automatically) the exhaust gas entering the system at a determined temperature, an effective use of the entire hollow fiber membrane is achieved, thereby improving humidification performance [0043].
If the flow control valve (30) (active flow control unit) of Kim is modified to include the detection and control unit (29 and 59) taught by Usuda, the claimed limitations would be met.
Usuda is analogous art to the current invention because it is concerned with the same field of endeavor, namely a fuel cell membrane humidifier comprising: a hollow fiber membrane module configured to accommodate a plurality of hollow fiber membranes therein, the hollow fiber membranes humidifying a dry gas supplied from a blower through moisture exchange between the dry gas and an off-gas flowing into the inside from a fuel cell stack; a humidification module including a first off-gas inlet through which the off-gas flows into the inside from the fuel cell stack and a first off-gas outlet through which the off- gas subjected to the moisture exchange is discharged and an active flow control unit formed between the fuel cell stack and the humidification module to perform automatic control so that the off-gas discharged from the fuel cell stack is able to be supplied to at least one selected from the first and second off-gas inlets.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the flow control valve (30) (active flow control unit) of Kim to include the feature “wherein the active flow control unit performs automatic control so that the off-gas is able to be supplied to the at least one selected from the first and second off-gas inlets, depending on a temperature of the off-gas discharged from the fuel cell stack” (claim 3) and “wherein the active flow control unit performs automatic control so that the off-gas is able to be supplied to the at least one selected from the first and second off-gas inlets, depending on an output situation of the fuel cell stack” (claim 4)”, because Usuda teaches that by controlling (automatically) the exhaust gas entering the system at a determined temperature, an effective use of the entire hollow fiber membrane is achieved, thereby improving humidification performance.
Claims 5 and 6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim, H. (KR 20130029301 A, see machine translation for citation) as applied to claim 1 above, further in view of Suzuki et al. (JP 2001202976 A, see machine translation for citation).
Regarding claim 5, Kim teaches all the elements of the current invention in claim 1. Kim teaches that conventional membrane humidifiers has the shape shown on Fig. 9, from which would be reasonable to say that its membrane humidifier would comprise caps on both ends of its device. Given that Kim’s invention is focused on increase the utilization of the hollow fiber membrane within the housing and improve humidification efficiency, the end caps feature present on conventional membrane humidifiers from where the dry air is going to be charged and the humidified air is going to be discharged, can be maintained.
Kim does not teach the feature “a turbulence generation portion configured to change a flow direction of the dry gas flowing into the inside from the blower so that the dry gas is evenly distributed to the hollow fiber membranes”.
Suzuki teaches humidifier that houses a number of water-permeable hollow fiber membranes arranged along the longitudinal direction of the housing, passes gases with different moisture contents between the inside and outside of the hollow fiber membranes to exchange moisture between the gases, and humidifies a dry gas with a low moisture content, characterized in that the inner wall surface of the housing is a turbulence generating structure [0007]. According to a fifth embodiment, large number of protrusions (71a) (turbulence generation portion) at appropriate intervals on the inner wall surface of a cylindrical housing (71) are employed. The projections (71a) (turbulence generation portion) can be a mountain shape or a pyramidal shape, as long as it is a projection that protrudes toward the center of the housing (71) [0032 and Fig. 9]. Suzuki teaches that by providing a turbulence generation structure on the inner wall surface of the housing the flow of dry gas collides with the turbulence generation structure on the inner wall surface and becomes turbulent. As a result, it flows evenly across the outer surface of the hollow fiber membrane bundle housed inside the housing, and the amount of water recovered (humidification) that can be recovered from the humid gas with a high moisture content by the dry gas with a low moisture content via the water-permeable hollow fiber membrane increases [0008].
Suzuki is analogous art to the current invention because it is concerned with the same field of endeavor, namely a fuel cell membrane humidifier comprising a hollow fiber membrane module configured to accommodate a plurality of hollow fiber membranes therein, the hollow fiber membranes humidifying a dry gas supplied from a blower through moisture exchange between the dry gas and an off-gas flowing into the inside from a fuel cell stack; a humidification module including a first off-gas inlet through which the off-gas flows into the inside from the fuel cell stack and a first off-gas outlet through which the off- gas subjected to the moisture exchange is discharged, the humidification module accommodating the hollow fiber membrane module therein.
If the membrane humidifier of Kim is modified such that the inner walls of its end caps comprise the protrusions (71a) (turbulence generation portion) taught by Suzuki on the dry gas inlet section, the claimed limitations would be met.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to the modify membrane humidifier of Kim to include the feature “a turbulence generation portion configured to change a flow direction of the dry gas flowing into the inside from the blower so that the dry gas is evenly distributed to the hollow fiber membranes”, because Suzuki teaches that by employing it, the dry air flows evenly across the outer surface of the hollow fiber membrane bundle housed inside the housing, and the amount of water recovered (humidification) that can be recovered from the humid gas with a high moisture content by the dry gas with a low moisture content via the water-permeable hollow fiber membrane increases.
Regarding claim 6, Kim and Suzuki teach all the elements of the current invention in claim 5. From claim 5 discussion the claimed limitations are met.
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim, H. (KR 20130029301 A, see machine translation for citation) in view of Suzuki et al. (JP 2001202976 A, see machine translation for citation) as applied to claim 6 above, further in view of Sorkin et al. (US 20070042237 A1).
Regarding claim 7, Kim and Suzuki teach all the elements of the current invention in claim 6, except where “the plurality of protrusions are disposed to be spaced apart from each other in a zigzag shape”.
Sorkin teaches a fuel cell system comprising a mass/enthalpy exchange module which recycles un-reacted fuel, water and heat from the stack exhaust to incoming fresh oxidant [0008 and 0009]. The mass/enthalpy exchange module is a membrane vapor exchange device in which hollow fiber materials can be employed [0010]. On Fig. 6 is shown a membrane vapor exchange module (104) having two flow plates (120) with flow passages (122) for passing gaseous flows over the membrane [0039]. Another possible configuration for the vapor exchange module (104) would be the “tube and shell” configuration similar to fuel cell humidifiers. The flow passages (122) can be of various geometrically defined configurations such as, for example, zigzags [0039]. It is taught that this pattern effectively permits distribution of the gas phase over a large area of the membrane surface [0039].
Sorkin is analogous art to the current invention because it is concerned with the same field of endeavor, namely a membrane vapor exchange device in which hollow fiber materials can be employed, which can have a configuration similar to fuel cell humidifiers.
Given that the flow passages (122) taught by Sorkin start on the inlet of the dry gas, if the membrane humidifier of Kim is modified such that the protrusions (71a) (turbulence generation portion) taught by Suzuki are arranged in a zigzag pattern, the claimed limitations would be met.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the membrane humidifier protrusions (turbulence generation portion) of Kim and Suzuki to include the feature where “the plurality of protrusions are disposed to be spaced apart from each other in a zigzag shape”, because Sorkin teaches that this pattern effectively permits distribution of the gas phase over a large area of the membrane surface.
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim, H. (KR 20130029301 A, see machine translation for citation) in view of Suzuki et al. (JP 2001202976 A, see machine translation for citation) as applied to claim 6 above, further in view of Kim (KR 20100108092 A, see machine translation for citation).
Regarding claim 8, Kim (‘301) and Suzuki teach all the elements of the current invention in claim 6, except “wherein the turbulence generation portion further includes a through hole formed to penetrate the turbulence generation portion in a direction parallel to a dry gas flow direction inside the dry gas inlet”.
Kim (‘092) teaches a humidifier (200) for a fuel cell includes a housing (210) containing a bundle of hollow fiber membranes (220). A first inlet (211a) is formed on one side of the housing (210) to receive reaction gas (dry gas) to be supplied to the fuel cell, and a first outlet (212a) is formed on the other side of the housing (210) to supply reaction gas to the fuel cell [0006 and Fig. 2]. An unreacted gas (off-gas) introduced into the central part of the housing (210) through the second inlet (211b) contains a large amount of moisture, so a difference in humidity occurs inside and outside the hollow fiber membrane (220). Due to the difference in humidity inside and outside the hollow fiber membrane (220), moisture from the unreacted gas (off-gas) selectively permeates through the membrane into the hollow portion, and the humidity of the reaction gas moving along the hollow portion of the hollow fiber membrane (220) toward the first outlet (212a) increases. As a result, by operating the humidifier of the present invention as described above, it becomes possible to supply a reaction gas (dry gas) having a higher humidity than the original reaction gas (off-gas) to the fuel cell.
A gas distributor (240) (turbulence generator analogous) is located between the first inlet (211a) and the bundle of hollow fiber membranes (220), having a number of holes (in a direction parallel to a dry gas flow direction inside the dry gas inlet) formed on it [0006]. It is taught that this gas distributor (240) (turbulence generator analogous) serves to uniformly deliver the gas (dry gas) to the entire bundle of hollow fiber membranes (220) fixed within the housing (210) [0006 and 0007].
Kim (‘092) is analogous art to the current invention because it is concerned with the same field of endeavor, namely a fuel cell humidifier housing a bundle of hollow fiber membranes and receiving a reaction gas (dry gas) which is humidified to be supplied to a fuel cell.
If the protrusions (71a) (turbulence generation portion) of Kim (‘301) and Suzuki as taught for claim 6, are modified to include a through hole in a direction parallel to a dry gas flow direction inside the dry gas inlet as taught by Kim (‘092), the claimed limitations would be met.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the protrusions (71a) (turbulence generation portion) of Kim (‘301) and Suzuki to include the feature “a through hole formed to penetrate the turbulence generation portion in a direction parallel to a dry gas flow direction inside the dry gas inlet”, because Kim (‘092) teaches that it serves to uniformly deliver the gas (dry gas) to the entire bundle of hollow fiber membranes fixed within the housing.
Conclusion
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/G.R./Examiner, Art Unit 1725
/JAMES M ERWIN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1725 03/19/2026