CTFR 18/366,855 CTFR 98426 Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA. Response to Arguments Applicant’s arguments, page 5 lines 3 – 9, with respect to claims 1 and 3 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument. Claims 1 and 3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Inoue in view of Hori (US20190329642A1). Applicant's arguments, page 5 lines 9 – 11, filed 02/11/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Applicant argues Inoue does not disclose the oil pump and the oil cooler are provided on the rear cover, and does not disclose the first oil passage and the second oil passage are provided on the rear cover. However, in Inoue Fig. 3A, it discloses oil pump (electric hydraulic pump 72) and oil cooler (73) are provided on both sides of a portion of the rear cover (second side wall portion 23 and partition wall portion 24), and discloses first oil passage (oil passage between electric hydraulic pump 72 and oil cooler 73) (below in annotated Inoue Fig. 3A) and second oil passage (inlet oil passage 23b and oil passage 24a) are provided in the rear cover. 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: 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 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. 07-20-aia AIA 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. 07-21-aia AIA Claim s 1 and 3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Inoue in view of Hori . Regarding Claim 1, Inoue discloses a vehicle power transmission device (vehicle drive device 100) that uses at least an electric motor (rotary electric machine 1) as a power source (Inoue Fig. 3A) , the device (Inoue Fig. 3A) comprising: a case (2) for accommodating the electric motor (Inoue Fig. 3A); and a cooling mechanism (oil passage 92) (Inoue Fig. 3A), the cooling mechanism includes an oil pump (electric hydraulic pump 72) that sucks up oil (Inoue Para [0030] lines 3 – 4), an oil cooler (73) that cools the oil discharged from the oil pump (Inoue Para [0030] lines 5 – 6), and a cooling oil passage (921) that guides the oil to the electric motor (Inoue Fig. 3A), the oil pump and the oil cooler are provided on the rear cover (second side wall portion 23 and partition wall portion 24) (Inoue Fig. 3A); the cooling oil passage is integrated in the rear cover (Inoue Fig. 3A discloses oil passage 921 is integrated at one end of second side wall portion 23 and the other end of partition wall portion 24), the cooling oil passage includes a first oil passage for guiding oil discharged from the oil pump to the oil cooler (see below in annotated Inoue Fig. 3A), and a second oil passage (inlet oil passage 23b and oil passage 24a) for guiding oil cooled by the oil cooler to the electric motor (via cooling oil passage 921) (Inoue Fig. 3A); PNG media_image1.png 578 498 media_image1.png Greyscale and the first oil passage and the second oil passage are provided in the rear cover (see below in annotated Inoue Fig. 3A). Inoue does not disclose: wherein the case includes a housing that forms a first space for accommodating a damper device, a planetary gear unit, a reduction large gear, a reduction small gear, and a differential device, a rear cover that is adjacent to the electric motor on one side of the electric motor which is farther from the housing than another side of the electric motor in a direction of a rotation axis of the electric motor and that is disposed perpendicularly to the rotation axis of the electric motor, and a casing that is inserted between the housing and the rear cover such that the casing and the rear cover form a second space for accommodating the electric motor. Hori discloses: wherein the case (housing case 60) includes a housing (62) that forms a first space (see below in annotated Hori Fig. 1) for accommodating a damper device (18) (Hori Fig. 1), a planetary gear unit (24) (Hori Fig. 1), a reduction large gear (32) (Hori Fig. 1), a reduction small gear (34) (Hori Fig. 1), and a differential device (48) (Hori Fig. 1), a rear cover (66) that is adjacent to the electric motor (first motor generator MG1 and second motor generator MG2) on one side of the electric motor which is farther from the housing than another side of the electric motor in a direction of a rotation axis of the electric motor and that is disposed perpendicularly to the rotation axis of the electric motor (Hori Fig. 1), PNG media_image2.png 628 388 media_image2.png Greyscale and a casing (intermediate case member 64) that is inserted between the housing and the rear cover such that the casing and the rear cover form a second space (MG housing space 86) for accommodating the electric motor (Hori Fig. 1). Inoue and Hori disclose a vehicle power transmission device therefore, Hori constitutes as prior art. Hori discloses a vehicle drive device comprising a plurality of housing members and a plurality of power transmission components. It would be obvious for a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have wherein the case includes a housing that forms a first space for accommodating a damper device, a planetary gear unit, a reduction large gear, a reduction small gear, and a differential device, a rear cover that is adjacent to the electric motor on one side of the electric motor which is farther from the housing than another side of the electric motor in a direction of a rotation axis of the electric motor and that is disposed perpendicularly to the rotation axis of the electric motor, and a casing that is inserted between the housing and the rear cover such that the casing and the rear cover form a second space for accommodating the electric motor of Hori for the purpose of 1) managing torque within the vehicle power transmission device and 2) having structural protection for the electric motor, the damper device, the planetary gear unit, the reduction large gear, a reduction small gear, and the differential device. Regarding Claim 3, Inoue and Hori disclose t he cooling mechanism of the vehicle power transmission device according to claim 1, wherein the oil pump is an electric oil pump (Inoue Para [0030] first sentence). Conclusion 07-40 AIA 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 THEODORE L PERKINS whose telephone number is (703)756-4629. The examiner can normally be reached 8:00am- 17:00pm. 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, Christopher Koehler can be reached on (571) 272-3560. 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. /THEODORE L PERKINS/Examiner, Art Unit 2834 /TERRANCE L KENERLY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2834 Application/Control Number: 18/366,855 Page 2 Art Unit: 2834 Application/Control Number: 18/366,855 Page 3 Art Unit: 2834 Application/Control Number: 18/366,855 Page 4 Art Unit: 2834 Application/Control Number: 18/366,855 Page 5 Art Unit: 2834 Application/Control Number: 18/366,855 Page 6 Art Unit: 2834
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