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 .
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.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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(s) 1-2 and 4-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by JP 2007098233 (hereinafter JP ‘233).
As regarding claim 1, JP ‘233 discloses the claimed invention for a filter pack (title) comprising: a filter medium (figs. 2-3) collecting fine particles in a gas and the filter medium comprising folds alternately repeated on an upstream side and on a downstream side of airflow by a pleating process, at least one pair of upstream ventilation surfaces which face each other via the fold on the downstream side therebetween and into which the airflow flows, and at least one pair of downstream ventilation surfaces which face each other via the fold on the upstream side therebetween and from which the airflow flows out; and a plurality of space maintaining members (2-4 of figs. 2-3 and 5) formed on each of the upstream ventilation surfaces and each of the downstream ventilation surfaces to maintain spaces of each pair of upstream ventilation surfaces and each pair of downstream ventilation surfaces, wherein the plurality of space maintaining members formed on the upstream ventilation surfaces are intermittently formed in a direction orthogonal to the fold (fig. 4), and at least one of the space maintaining members formed on one side of the pair of upstream ventilation surfaces is in contact at two or more places (figs. 2-3 and 5; no number) with at least one of the space maintaining members formed on the other side of the pair of upstream ventilation surfaces.
As regarding claim 2, JP ‘233 discloses all of limitations as set forth above. JP ‘233 discloses the claimed invention for wherein the plurality of space maintaining members formed on the downstream ventilation surfaces are intermittently formed in a direction orthogonal to the fold, and at least one of the space maintaining members formed on one side of the pair of downstream ventilation surfaces is in contact at two or more places (figs. 2-3 and 5; no number) with at least one of the space maintaining members formed on the other side of the pair of downstream ventilation surfaces.
As regarding claim 4, JP ‘233 discloses all of limitations as set forth above. JP ‘233 discloses the claimed invention for wherein at least one of the space maintaining members formed on the one side of the pair of upstream ventilation surfaces is in contact at two or more places (figs. 2-3 and 5; no number) with the plurality of space maintaining members adjacent thereto formed on the other side of the pair of upstream ventilation surfaces.
As regarding claim 5, JP ‘233 discloses all of limitations as set forth above. JP ‘233 discloses the claimed invention for wherein the plurality of space maintaining members formed on each of the upstream ventilation surfaces or each of the downstream ventilation surfaces have different heights (figs. 2-3 and 5; no number) according to the space set between the pair of upstream ventilation surfaces or the pair of downstream ventilation surfaces.
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(s) 3 and 6-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over JP 2007098233 (hereinafter JP ‘233) as applied to claim 1 above.
As regarding claim 3, JP ‘233 discloses all of limitations as set forth above. JP ‘233 discloses the claimed invention except for wherein the plurality of space maintaining members formed on each of the downstream ventilation surfaces are continuously formed in a direction orthogonal to the fold. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention was made to provide wherein the plurality of space maintaining members formed on each of the downstream ventilation surfaces are continuously formed in a direction orthogonal to the fold in order to prevent pleat-to-pleat contact, maintain consistent flow channels, improve mechanical stability and enable higher flow rates and longer service life, since it was known in the art as shown in Mbadinga-Mouanda et al (US 20120223009; hereinafter Mbadinga; abstract and fig. 17; 103a/103b and 122a/122b are space maintaining members). Both JP ‘233 and Mbadinga are directing to spacers for filter pack.
As regarding claim 6, JP ‘233 discloses all of limitations as set forth above. JP ‘233 discloses the claimed invention except for wherein each of the space maintaining members formed on the one side of the pair of upstream ventilation surfaces or the one side of the pair of downstream ventilation surfaces has a facing surface facing to each of the space maintaining members formed on the other side of the pair of upstream ventilation surfaces or the other side of the pair of downstream ventilation surfaces, and a sum of lengths of the facing surface along a direction orthogonal to the fold in contact with each of the space maintaining members formed on the other side of the pair of upstream ventilation surfaces or the other side of the pair of downstream ventilation surfaces is 1% or more and 10% or less of a length along a direction orthogonal to the fold of the facing surface. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention was made to provide wherein each of the space maintaining members formed on the one side of the pair of upstream ventilation surfaces or the one side of the pair of downstream ventilation surfaces has a facing surface facing to each of the space maintaining members formed on the other side of the pair of upstream ventilation surfaces or the other side of the pair of downstream ventilation surfaces, and a sum of lengths of the facing surface along a direction orthogonal to the fold in contact with each of the space maintaining members formed on the other side of the pair of upstream ventilation surfaces or the other side of the pair of downstream ventilation surfaces is 1% or more and 10% or less of a length along a direction orthogonal to the fold of the facing surface in order to maintain separation between adjacent pleats, preserve open flow channels, reduce pressure drop, and improve structural stability and filtration performance, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art. In re Aller, 105 USPQ 233.
As regarding claim 7, JP ‘233 discloses all of limitations as set forth above. JP ‘233 discloses the claimed invention except for an air filter comprising: the filter pack and a frame surrounding the filter pack so that the folds of the filter medium of the filter pack are arranged on the upstream and downstream sides of airflow passing through the filter medium. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention was made to provide As regarding claim 7, JP ‘233 discloses all of limitations as set forth above. JP ‘233 discloses the claimed invention except for an air filter comprising: the filter pack and a frame surrounding the filter pack so that the folds of the filter medium of the filter pack are arranged on the upstream and downstream sides of airflow passing through the filter medium as suggested by Izumiya et al (JP 2020062610; hereinafter Izumiya; frame 5 and filter medium 11) as this is a known arrangement for allowing the filter pact to be used as a filter.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DUNG H BUI whose telephone number is (571)270-7077. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:00 - 4:30 ET.
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, Benjamin L. Lebron can be reached at (571) 272-0475. 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.
/DUNG H BUI/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1773