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 § 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) 1-4 and 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WIPO Publication WO 2019/131737 A1 to Sato et al. ("Sato") in view of U.S. Patent No. 11,015,761 to Villarreal (“Villarreal”).
This figure, now referred to as Sato annotated Fig. 3, used for the rejection of claims 1-4 and 6 has been replicated below, and the Examiner has added reference points for ease of explanation, and said reference points will be used for the rejection of claims 1-4 and 6 below.
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As to claim 1, Sato teaches a high-pressure tank liner comprising: a body portion (first liner component 12) formed from a cylindrical body (Sato Fig. 1 shows the first liner component 12 forms a cylindrical body shape); a diameter-expanded part (bottom portion 22) formed into a cylindrical body at the body portion with a larger diameter than an outside diameter of a general part of the body portion (Sato Fig. 3 shows the larger diameter of the bottom portion 22 than the thickness T1 of the first liner component 12); and a staircase portion (Sato annotated Fig. 3 shows two steps) including two or more stairs and formed at a stepped portion between the general part and the diameter-expanded part of the body portion (Sato annotated Fig. 3 shows the steps are formed between the thickness T1 of the first liner component 12 and the bottom portion); but does not teach wherein a distance from a corner on the diameter-expanded part side of the stepped portion to a peripheral surface of the general part while passing through corners of the two or more stairs constituting the staircase portion is shorter than a lateral width of roving formed from reinforced fibers arranged in such a way as to extend in a circumferential direction of the body portion.
Villarreal teaches wherein a distance from a corner on the diameter-expanded part side of the stepped portion to a peripheral surface of the general part while passing through corners of the two or more stairs constituting the staircase portion is shorter than a lateral width of roving (layer 15) formed from reinforced fibers (Villarreal, col. 5, lines 1-3) arranged in such a way as to extend in a circumferential direction of the body portion (Villarreal, col. 5, lines 19-31). When adding the roving of Villarreal to the liner as taught by Sato it would cover the two or more stairs.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use carbon fiber roving and resin layer of Villarreal with the tank liner as taught by Sato to provide a reinforced vessel having superior strength, durability and gas barrier properties when compared to that used in current are pressure vessels (Villarreal, col. 2, lines 36-38).
As to claim 2, Sato modified by Villarreal teaches the high-pressure tank liner according to claim 1, wherein the staircase portion is formed at least on one end side in an axial direction of the cylindrical body of the diameter-expanded part (Sato Fig. 3 shows the side 24 is formed at least on one end side in an axial direction of the first liner component 12).
As to claim 3, Sato modified by Villarreal teaches the high-pressure tank liner according to claim 1, wherein the staircase portion is formed alternately on one end side and another end side in an axial direction of the cylindrical body of the diameter-expanded part along a circumferential direction of the diameter-expanded part (Sato Fig. 1 shows the flange portion 20, that includes the bottom 22 and side 24, extends along the outside of the liner 10).
As to claim 4, Sato modified by Villarreal teaches the high-pressure tank liner according to claim 1, wherein of the two or more stairs constituting the staircase portion, a rising surface of each stair except a first stair formed closest to the general part, the rising surface rising in a direction to recede from an axis of the cylindrical body, is formed into an inclined surface (slope 32) inclined in such a way as to recede gradually from the axis of the cylindrical body from the general part side toward the diameter-expanded part side (Sato Fig. 3 shows the slope recedes toward the bottom 22).
As to claim 6, Sato teaches a high-pressure tank comprising: a high-pressure tank liner including a body portion (first liner component 12) formed from a cylindrical body (Sato Fig. 1 shows the first liner component 12 forms a cylindrical body shape), a diameter-expanded part (bottom portion 22) formed into a cylindrical body at the body portion with a larger diameter than an outside diameter of a general part of the body portion (Sato Fig. 3 shows the larger diameter of the bottom portion 22 than the thickness T1 of the first liner component 12), and a staircase portion (Sato annotated Fig. 3 shows two steps) including two or more stairs and formed at a stepped portion between the general part and the diameter-expanded part of the body portion (Sato annotated Fig. 3 shows the steps are formed between the thickness T1 of the first liner component 12 and the bottom portion); and a fiber-reinforced resin layer provided in such a way as to cover an outer side of the high-pressure tank liner (Sato, pg. 2, line 21-pg. 3, line 2); but does not teach wherein reinforced-fiber roving constituting the fiber-reinforced resin layer is disposed in such a way as to be wound around an outer peripheral surface of the high-pressure tank liner around an axis of the high-pressure tank liner, and the roving has a width larger than a distance in the high-pressure tank liner from a corner on the diameter-expanded part side of the stepped portion to a peripheral surface of the general part while passing through corners of the two or more stairs constituting the staircase portion.
Villarreal teaches wherein reinforced-fiber roving (layer 15) constituting the fiber-reinforced resin layer (Villarreal, col. 5, lines 1-3) is disposed in such a way as to be wound around an outer peripheral surface of the high-pressure tank liner around an axis of the high-pressure tank liner (Villarreal, col. 5, lines 19-31), and the roving has a width larger than a distance in the high-pressure tank liner from a corner on the diameter-expanded part side of the stepped portion to a peripheral surface of the general part while passing through corners of the two or more stairs constituting the staircase portion (Villarreal, col. 5, lines 19-31). When adding the roving of Villarreal to the liner as taught by Sato it would cover the two or more stairs.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use carbon fiber roving and resin layer of Villarreal with the tank liner as taught by Sato to provide a reinforced vessel having superior strength, durability and gas barrier properties when compared to that used in current are pressure vessels (Villarreal, col. 2, lines 36-38).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 5-9, filed 12/29/2025, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1-4 and 6 under 103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of newly found prior art reference.
Conclusion
Applicant is duly reminded that a complete response must satisfy the requirements of 37 C.F. R. 1.111, including: “The reply must present arguments pointing out the specific distinctions believed to render the claims, including any newly presented claims, patentable over any applied references. A general allegation that the claims “define a patentable invention” without specifically pointing out how the language of the claims patentably distinguishes them from the references does not comply with the requirements of this section. Moreover, “The prompt development of a clear Issue requires that the replies of the applicant meet the objections to and rejections of the claims.” Applicant should also specifically point out the support for any amendments made to the disclosure. See MPEP 2163.06 and MPEP 714.02. The ''disclosure'' includes the claims, the specification and the drawings.
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/M.L.P/Examiner, Art Unit 3733
/NATHAN J JENNESS/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3733 23 January 2026