DETAILED ACTION
Election/Restrictions
1. Claims 15-21 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to nonelected inventions, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 8/18/26.
Applicant’s election without traverse of claims 1-4, 6-14 and 22 in the reply filed on 8/18/26 is acknowledged.
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 .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(4) because reference characters "A3" and "A4" have both been used to designate the separator axis and the electrolyzer axis in Figures 2 and 3. Specifically, it would appear that Fig. 2 has A3 and A4 reversed from what it actually should be which is as labeled in Figure 3. 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. 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 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.
Claims 1, 2, 4, 6-14 and 22 are 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.
Specifically, it is noted that both independent claims 1 and 22 require the “one or more hydrogen electrolyzers” to be “spaced laterally along a first axis” (see claim 1 at line 11 and claim 22 at line 11). As such, each of the claims would appear to include contradictory limitations in that claims 1 and 22 only require the presence of one or more hydrogen electrolyzers but then also requires that those one or more electrolyzers be spaced laterally along the first axis. While it is possible to have two or more hydrogen electrolyzers spaced laterally as claimed, it is unclear how a single, i.e. one, hydrogen electrolyzer can be spaced laterally as claimed. Consequently, while the claim explicitly only requires one or more hydrogen electrolyzer it would seem that the later limitation requiring the electrolyzers be “spaced laterally” would seem to contradict there just being a single electrolyzer.
Please note, for claim interpretation purposes the examiner will be treating the independent claims as requiring two or more hydrogen electrolyzers since this is in keeping with the disclosure and would remove the above noted ambiguity of claim scope.
It is further noted that dependent claims 2, 4 and 6-14 are included herein as a result of their dependency. Furthermore, claim 3 is not included since the claim further limits independent claim 1 by requiring at least four hydrogen electrolyzers and so remedies the above noted issue.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 3 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Claims 1 and 22 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
US Pub. No. 2022/0220620 to Dykstra, et al., teaching a high power water electrolysis plant configuration optimized for section maintenance
US Pub. No. 2021/0292919 to Purucker et al., teaching an electrolysis unit and method for operating the electrolysis unit
US Pub. No. 2018/0202053 to Harano et al., teaching a hydrogen production apparatus and hydrogen production system
KR 960009108 to Joo et al., teaching a separating apparatus of hydrogen and oxygen
JP H08-144078 to Mamoru et al., teaching a gas-liquid separation device of water electrolyzer
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Bryan D. Ripa whose telephone number is (571)270-7875. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 8:00AM-4:00PM ET.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, James Lin can be reached at (571) 272-8902. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BRYAN D. RIPA/Primary Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1794
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