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 .
Election/Restrictions
Claims 1-7 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 10/21/2025.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 10/13/2023 and 08/14/2024 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements have been considered by the examiner.
Claim Objections
Claim(s) 15 is/are objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 15, last two lines, “the second method comprises control logic is based on the characteristic of the suction side of the compressor” should read “the second method comprises control logic that is based on the characteristic of the suction side of the compressor”
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claim(s) 10 and 17-18 is/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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
Claim 10 calls for the limitation “the discharge superheat”, which limitation lacks antecedent basis.
For examination purposes, “the discharge superheat” will be interpreted as a discharge superheat.
Claim 17 calls for the limitation “the initial opening for the expansion valve”; which limitation is indefinite as it is unclear which of the previously recited first and second expansion valve the applicant is referring to. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim(s) 18 is/are indefinite for their dependency on an indefinite base claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
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) 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Lifson (US 20100242508 A1).
Regarding claim 8:
Lifson discloses a method of operating a refrigerant loop (Fig. 1-2), the method comprising:
defining an initial opening of an expansion valve #26, wherein the initial opening is substantially open or substantially closed (inherently present. See [0009] & [0012]);
detecting a characteristic of a discharge side of a compressor (via #34; [0010]);
determining whether the characteristic of the discharge side of the compressor is outside of a predetermined range of a threshold value; and changing a size of the opening of the expansion valve in response to the characteristic of the discharge side of the compressor being outside of the predetermined range of the threshold value (See [0010-0014]: the degree of opening of the EV #26 is modified because the characteristic of the discharge side of the compressor is outside of a threshold value as measures by sensor #36).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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.
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.
The factual inquiries set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 9-11 and 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lifson (US 20100242508 A1) in view of Andreuccetti (US 20220134843 A1).
Regarding claim 9:
Lifson discloses all the limitations, except for an operation mode comprising a cold startup mode that is triggered when a detected ambient temperature is below 0°C.
Nonetheless, cold start-ups in which the ambient temperature is below a given temperature threshold (e.g., below freezing) are known in the art as taught by Andreuccetti ([0038]).
Thus, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skills in the art before the effective filing date to have provided the apparatus of Lifson with an operation mode comprising a cold startup mode that is triggered when a detected ambient temperature is below 0°C; in a similar manner as taught by Andreuccetti.
One of ordinary skills would have recognized that doing so would have compensated for low-temperature challenges such as increased oil viscosity; thereby, protecting components of the refrigerant loop.
Regarding claim 10:
Lifson as modified discloses all the limitations; except for decreasing the size of the opening of the expansion valve if a discharge superheat is below the threshold value.
Nonetheless, Lifson discloses modifying the size of the opening of the expansion valve as a function of a discharge superheat ([0013]).
This is strong evidence that modifying the size of the opening of the expansion valve as a function of a discharge superheat being below the threshold value would produce predictable results (e.g. optimized capacity and efficiency). See para [0011] of Lifson.
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to have provided the method of Lifson as modified with decreasing the size of the opening of the expansion valve if a discharge superheat is below the threshold value.
One on ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that doing so would have yielded the predictable result of optimizing the capacity and efficiency of the method.
Regarding claim 11:
Lifson as modified discloses all the limitations; except for wherein the threshold value is in a range of 0 °C to 50 °C.
The difference between the claimed invention and the prior art is with regards to the optimal operating temperature range. However, differences in temperature will not support the patentability of subject matter encompassed by the prior art unless there is evidence indicating such temperature is critical. The range of 0 °C to 50 °C is very broad to entail criticality.
Since the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, it is not inventive to discover the optimum or workable ranges by routine experimentation. In re Aller, 220 F.2d 454, 456, 105 USPQ 233, 235 (CCPA 1955)
Thus, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skills in the art before the effective filing date to have provided the apparatus of Lifson as modified with the threshold value being in a range of 0 °C to 50 °C.
One on ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that doing so would have yielded the predictable result of optimizing the capacity and efficiency of the method for a specific operation.
Regarding claim 13:
Lifson as modified discloses all the limitations.
Lifson further discloses detecting one of a suction superheat, suction quality, suction pressure, or suction temperature of the compressor (via #36), and controlling the opening of the second expansion valve based on the detected suction superheat, suction quality, suction pressure, or suction temperature ([0010-0012]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 15-16 and 19-20 are allowed.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance:
With respect to claim 15; Lifson discloses a method of operating a refrigerant loop, the method comprising determining a characteristic of a discharge side of a compressor; controlling an expansion valve using a first method, wherein the first method comprises control logic that is based on the characteristic of a discharge side of the compressor; determining a characteristic of a suction side of the compressor (see rejection of claim 8 above; and sensor #36 of Lifson). Lifson does not disclose wherein in response to the characteristic of the suction side of the compressor meeting predefined criteria, controlling the expansion valve using a second method, wherein the second method comprises control logic that is based on the characteristic of the suction side of the compressor. There is no teaching in the prior art of record that would, reasonably and absent impermissible hindsight, motivate one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the teachings of the Lifson either alone or in combination with the prior art of record so as to provide the aforementioned control scheme.
With respect to claims 15 and 19; the combination of elements as set forth in these claims are not disclosed or made obvious by the prior art of record.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Claims 12 and 14 are 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
There is no teaching in the prior art of record that would, reasonably and absent impermissible hindsight, motivate one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the teachings of Lifson in combination with Andreuccetti so as to provide a second expansion valve with an initial opening of fully open as required by claim 12; and, the plurality of operation modes comprising a switch-activated mode that is triggered by an activation of a switch that is communicatively coupled to the controller, the switch-activated mode including controlling the opening of the first expansion valve to be substantially open as required by claim 14.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Hirosaki (US 20220146165 A1), Rite (US 20150068231 A1), Huerta-Ochoa (US 20120260679 A1), Ohta (US 7467525 B1), Aikawa (US 20060288727 A1), and Yamaguchi (US 6182456 B1) teaches pertinent method and system for controlling expansion valves.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to LIONEL W NOUKETCHA whose telephone number is (571)272-8438. The examiner can normally be reached on Mon - Fri: 08:00 AM - 04:00 PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Frantz Jules can be reached on 571-272-6681. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/LIONEL NOUKETCHA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3763