DETAILED ACTION
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 23 is allowed.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) have been considered but are not persuasive.
An interview was conducted to expedite prosecution but applicants did not agree with amendment to claims to make case allowable.
Applicants’ arguments that limitation added “wherein…plane view” overcomes all rejection and claims are allowable over Zhang is not persuasive.
Applicants’ argument claim 20 is not taught by Zhang is not persuasive since Zhang teaches the limitations of claim 20, see rejection below.
Applicants should review all the drawing objection and/or 112 rejections.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the limitation in claim 20 (“wherein each…diameter side” ) must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. The limitation of claim 20, “wherein one of the opening portions and one of the fluid supply grooves communicating with the one of the opening portions are partially defined by a side wall surface facing toward an outer diameter”, unclear how this is possible in view of one of opening portions stated in claim 20?
The limitation of claim 20, “wherein the side wall surface has a protruded surface portion which is angularly protruded toward the outer diameter side at a location in which the one of the opening portions and the one of the fluid grooves communicate with each other”) continuously…view”, unclear how this is possible when angularly or incline surfaces are defined in figures?
Applicant is advised to use limitation that provides proper antecedent basis with the specification to provide clear claim limitations.
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 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Zhang (CN108506494).
Zhang discloses a pair of sliding components (e.g. sliding components in Zhang) disposed at a relatively rotating position to face each other when a rotating machine is driven (e.g. intended use given little or no patentable weight see MPEP 2113-2114 and the sliding components of Zhang is capable of this), wherein at least one sliding surface of the pair of sliding components is provided with a plurality of opening portions (e.g. OP) each of which are formed on an outer peripheral edge portion of the at least one sliding surface, arranged in a circumferential direction and opened to an outer diameter side space of the at least one sliding surface (e.g. see figure below), a plurality of fluid supply grooves (e.g. SG) each of which is disposed between adjoining two of the opening portions, and has a first end portion (e.g. 1st E) communicating with one of the adjoining two of the opening portions and a second end portion (e.g. 2nd E) communicating with a remaining one of the adjoining two of the opening portions, the first end portion and the second end portion being opposed to each other in the circumferential direction, wherein each of the opening portion is partially defined by a wall facing toward an outer diameter side, wherein each of the fluid supply grooves is partially defined by a wall facing toward the outer diameter side, wherein each adjacent two of the walls of the opening portions and the walls of the fluid supply grooves intersect with each other, thereby forming an annular wall (e.g. see all of S, figure below) continuously formed in the circumferentially direction and wherein the annular wall partially defines of the fluid circulation path and facing toward an outer diameter side and is formed in a polygon or Reuleaux polygon shape constituted by straight lines, curved lines or a combination of straight lines and curved lines in a plan view (e.g. see figure 1 below, s for each of the opening portions and each of the supply grooves).
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Regarding claim 2: Wherein depths of the opening portion and the fluid supply groove are equal to each other (e.g. see figure above which shows depth of fluid supply groove and the opening portions are equal).
Regarding claim 20: Zhang discloses a pair of sliding components disposed at a relatively rotating position to face each other when a rotating machine is driven, wherein at least one sliding surface of the pair of sliding components is provided with a plurality of opening portions each of which is formed on an outer peripheral edge portion of the at least one sliding surface, arranged in a circumferential direction and opened to an outer diameter side space of the at least one sliding surface, and a plurality of fluid supply grooves each of which is disposed between adjoining two of the opening portions, and has a first end portion communicating with one of the adjoining two of the opening portions and a second end portion is opened to the outer diameter side space of the at least one sliding surface (see rejection of claim 1 and figure below), the first end portion and the second end portion being opposed to each other in the circumferential direction, and wherein each of the opening portions is partially defined by a wall facing toward an outer diameter side (e.g. S in figure above that are of OP), wherein each of the fluid supply grooves is partially defined by a wall facing toward the outer diameter side (e.g. S in figure above that are of SG), wherein adjacent two of the walls of the opening portions and the walls of the fluid supply grooves form one pair, and the adjacent two of the walls of the one pair directly intersect with each other (see all the walls S in figure above that directly intersect), thereby forming a protruding wall portion which is protruded toward the outer diameter side (e.g. see location adjacent to OP and 1st E or OP and 2nd E, the S that forms the annular wall in claim 1).
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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.
Claim(s) 3 and 8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhang in view of Examiners official notice.
Zhang discloses the invention as claimed above but fails to disclose an annular opening concave portion(s) is cooperatively formed by the pair of sliding components on a radially outer side or a radially inner side of the sliding surface and wherein each of the opening portions communicates with the annular opening concave portion. Examiner takes official notice that the structure of an annular opening concave portion provided on one component relative to another component is well known in the art and furthermore assignee has many applications and/or patents shown this feature. It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to configure the other of the at least two components of Zhang to have concave portion that cooperates with the opening portions as taught by Examiners’ Official Notice with reasonable expectation of success to provide proper fluid flow between components (e.g. inherent since two bodies form an opening to provide fluid to communication groove, also evidence is provided by EP16796413A teaches concave portion on inner diameter of 7 adjacent to opening portions 11b, US20180073394A1 teaches concave portions (tapered sections) on each of sliding components on the outer diameter adjacent to opening portions 10 and many references on form 892 or 1449).
Claim(s) 22 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhang in view of Examiners Official notice.
Zhang orients all the structure (e.g. opening portions and fluid supply grooves) to an outer diameter but fails to teach what is stated in claim 22, in short orient all the structure to an inner diameter. Examiner takes official notice that to have opening portions and fluid supply grooves to an inner diameter of a component is well known in the art (see assignees own applicants and/or patents on Form 1449 and Form 892). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to configure all the structure of Zhang to the inner diameter as taught by Examiner Official Notice with reasonable expectation of success to provide sealing of fluid from an inner diameter (inherent since the fluid is provided from the opening portion and supply grooves at the inner diameter). Evidence is provided by US6446976, figure 2 with outer diameter with elements 73 and figure 3 with inner diameter elements 73-1 and further evidence is also in applicant own art (assignees own patents and/or applications).
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 VISHAL A PATEL whose telephone number is (571)272-7060. The examiner can normally be reached 7:00 am to 4:00pm.
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/VISHAL A PATEL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3675