DETAILED ACTION
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 § 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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1 and 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Fujimoto (US 12,055,211 B2). Fujimoto discloses a cooling and lubrication device of an electric drive assembly (fig. 1), wherein the electric drive assembly comprises a motor unit (2) and a reducer unit (3), the motor unit comprises a motor housing (housing of 41 surrounding 2), and the reducer unit comprises a reducer housing (housing of 41 surrounding 3), wherein:
Re claim 1, the cooling and lubrication device comprises an oil pumping unit (5), an oil pumping passage (7), and an oil returning passage (4203); the oil pumping passage comprises several oil distribution passages (passages branching out from path 73 indicated by oil flow path arrows in fig. 1), the oil distribution passages are oil pipes or oil paths (passages indicated by oil flow path arrows), and positions of outlets of oil distribution passages correspond to parts to be cooled and parts to be lubricated inside the motor housing (fig. 1 shows the outlet of some passages directed to parts inside of the motor housing), as well as parts to be cooled and parts to be lubricated inside the reducer housing (fig. 1 shows the outlet of some passages directed to parts inside of the reducer housing); the oil pumping unit comprises an oil inlet (51) and an oil outlet (52), the oil inlet is communicated with a first housing (housing surrounding 3), the oil outlet is communicated with the oil pumping passage (fig. 1), and the oil pumping unit is used to pump the lubricating oil inside the first housing into the oil pumping passage, and transfer the lubricating oil to the parts to be cooled and the parts to be lubricated inside the motor housing and the reducer housing through the oil distribution passages (fig. 1); the oil returning passage is provided at a bottom of a second housing (housing surrounding 2) to allow the lubricating oil inside the second housing to flow back into the first housing (fig. 2 shows oil flowing through 4203 from the second housing to the first housing); the first housing is the motor housing, and the second housing is the reducer housing; alternatively, the first housing is the reducer housing (fig. 1), and the second housing is the motor housing (fig. 1); wherein the cooling and lubrication device further comprises an oil filtering unit (col 13 ln 38-59) and a cooler unit (6), the oil filtering unit is provided at the bottom of the first housing so that lubricating oil at the bottom of the first housing enters the oil filtering unit under the action of gravity to filter the lubricating oil (col 13 ln 38-59 describes the filtering unit is positioned at the upstream end of 71, which is submerged under the oil pool P and positioned at the bottom end of the first housing; the oil is being pulled to the bottom of the housing by gravity and would enter the filter because the filter is submerged under the oil), and the cooler unit is provided on an oil passage (71,72) between the oil pumping unit and the oil filtering unit (col 13 ln 38-59 describes the filter is attached to the strainer which is at the bottom of the first housing) or between the oil filtering unit and the first housing (fig. 1: 6 is located on the oil passage downstream of the filtering unit and upstream of the first housing), and is used to cool the lubricating oil inside the oil passage (6 is described as a cooler for cooling oil).
Re claim 10, an electric drive assembly using the cooling and lubrication device according to claims 1 (see claim) for cooling and lubrication of the motor unit and the reducer unit (fig. 1).
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 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fujimoto (US 12,055,211 B2). Fujimoto discloses the cooling and lubrication device (as cited above). Fujimoto does not disclose:
Re claim 3, wherein the oil filtering unit is a detachable oil filter (Examiner takes Official Notice that this feature is known in the art).
Regarding claim 3, Examiner takes Official Notice that a detachable oil filter is known in the art. It would have been obvious to employ a detachable oil filter to easily swap out the old filter with a new one at the end of the filter’s lifecycle during maintenance.
Claim(s) 7-9, 12, and 18-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Fujimoto (US 12,055,211 B2) in view of Jono (US 2022/0321050 A1). Fujimoto discloses the cooling and lubrication device (as cited above):
Re claims 7, 12, wherein the oil pumping unit comprises an electronic oil pump (col 12 ln 7).
Re claims 18, 19, 20, an electric drive assembly using the cooling and lubrication device according to claims 7,8,9 (see claim) for cooling and lubrication of the motor unit and the reducer unit (fig. 1).
Fujimoto does not disclose:
Re claims 7, 12, an electronic control unit; and the electronic oil pump is provided at a bottom of the motor housing or the reducer housing, and the electronic control unit is used to control operation of the electronic oil pump.
Re claim 8, wherein the oil pumping unit further comprises several temperature sensors; and the temperature sensors are provided inside the motor housing and/or the reducer housing, and the electronic control unit controls operation of the electronic oil pump based on a temperature detected by the temperature sensors.
Re claim 9, wherein the oil pumping unit further comprises a rotational speed sensor; and the rotational speed sensor is used to detect a rotational speed of a motor or a reducer and transfer a detected rotational speed to the electronic control unit, and the electronic control unit controls operation of the electronic oil pump based on the rotational speed of the motor or the reducer.
However, Jono teaches a cooling and lubrication device (fig. 2):
Re claims 7, 12, wherein the oil pumping unit comprises an electronic oil pump (96) and an electronic control unit (par [0005] describes an electric oil pump and a pump control unit); and the electronic oil pump is provided at a bottom of the motor housing or the reducer housing (fig. 2), and the electronic control unit is used to control operation of the electronic oil pump (par [0006]).
Re claim 8, wherein the oil pumping unit further comprises several temperature sensors (71,73); and the temperature sensors are provided inside the motor housing and/or the reducer housing (fig. 1), and the electronic control unit controls operation of the electronic oil pump based on a temperature detected by the temperature sensors (par [0076-0079]).
Re claim 9, wherein the oil pumping unit further comprises a rotational speed sensor (par [0066,0071,0073] describes the ability to derive the motor rotation); and the rotational speed sensor is used to detect a rotational speed of a motor or a reducer and transfer a detected rotational speed to the electronic control unit, and the electronic control unit controls operation of the electronic oil pump based on the rotational speed of the motor or the reducer (par [0066,0071,0073]).
It would have been obvious to person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to employ the electronic control unit, as taught by Jono, to manage the operation of the pump.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 3/30/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
In the Remarks, Applicant argues Fujimoto does not disclose the newly added limitation in claim 1. Examiner respectfully disagrees, please see the rejection above for details as to how the prior art now reads on the amended claim. Fujimoto discloses a strainer/filter, see col 13 ln 38-59, located at the upstream inlet end of oil passage 71. The filter is submerged in the oil pool therefore the oil would passively enter the filter. Fujimoto fig. 1 shows the upstream end of 71, and therefore the filter, is positioned at the bottom of the first housing.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 MINH D TRUONG whose telephone number is (571)270-3014. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9-5 pm.
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/Minh Truong/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3654
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