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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 02 January 2026 has been entered.
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 (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.
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) 1-8, 11-13, 16, 19 and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Coghlan (US Patent 11421693) in view of Streicher (US Patent 4,211,521).
With regards to claims 1 and 19, Coghlan discloses a stator for a progressive cavity device comprising a plurality of modular stator segments 32, each of the plurality of modular stator segments including a front surface 35b (Fig. 2D), a rear surface 35A (Fig. 2D), an internal helical cavity extending longitudinally from the front surface to the rea surface (figure 1A), wherein the plurality of modular stator segments are connected such that the internal helical cavities form a continuous helical chamber (figure 1A), a center stator segment 20 including a second internal helical cavity (Fig. 1A), wherein the center stator segment is configured to adjoin a first rear surface of a first modular stator segment of the plurality of modular stator segments, and adjoin to a second rea surface of a second modular stator segment of the plurality of modular stator segments (Fig. 1A since front and rear surfaces of the stator modular segments are similar). Coghlan discloses that the stator segments may be connected/bonded by mechanical fastening and other known connection/bonding techniques (col. 4, line 66 to col. 5, line 3). Coghlan does not specifically disclose that the mechanical fastening is provided by a set of connection holes opening at the front surface and extending longitudinally from the front surface to the rear surface, wherein each connection hole of the set of connection holes includes interior threads to receive a threaded portion of a bolt. However, Streicher teaches a progressive cavity pump made of a series of stator discs each having a front surface and a rear surface, each stator discs having a set of connection holes opening at the front surface and extending longitudinally from the front surface to the rear surface (fig. 5), wherein each connection hole of the set of connection holes includes interior threads to receive a threaded portion of a bolt (col. 6, lines 64-68). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have provided the mechanical fastening of Coghlan in the form of bolt holes and threaded connection holes of Streicher since it is a known suitable mechanical fastening techniques for stator segments as attested by Streicher.
Regarding claims 2 and 3, see figure 5 of Streicher.
Regarding claim 4, see bores 25 in figures 2, 3 and 5 of Streicher for example. Applicant should note that it is within the general skill level of a worker in the art to determine the appropriate number of bolt holes and connection holes that would receive bolts to securely hold the stator segments through routine experimentation.
Regarding claim 5, see figure 5 of Streicher.
Regarding claim 6, see col. 3, lines 36-43 of Coghlan. As it has been held ,”In the case where the claimed ranges ‘overlap or lie inside ranges disclosed by the prior art’ a prima facie case of obviousness exists.” See MPEP 2144.05.
Regarding claims 7, 8 and 20 see column 6, lines 46-55 and figures 5 and 12 of Streicher.
Regarding claim 11, see figure 5 of Streicher.
Regarding claim 12, see figure 1A of Coghlan.
Regarding claim 13, see figures 1A and 1B of Coghlan.
With regards to claim 16, Applicant should note that the recited assembly steps are inherent in assembling the stator of Coghlan/Streicher. As outlined above, Coghlan discloses a stator for a progressive cavity device comprising a plurality of modular stator segments 32, each of the plurality of modular stator segments including a front surface 35B (Fig. 2D), a rear surface 35A (Fig. 2D), an internal helical cavity extending longitudinally from the front surface to the rea surface (figure 1A), wherein the plurality of modular stator segments are connected such that the internal helical cavities form a continuous helical chamber (figure 1A), a center stator segment 20 including a second internal helical cavity (Fig. 1A), wherein the center stator segment is configured to adjoin a first rear surface of a first modular stator segment of the plurality of modular stator segments, and adjoin to a second rea surface of a second modular stator segment of the plurality of modular stator segments (Fig. 1A since front and rear surfaces of the stator modular segments are similar). Coghlan discloses that the stator segments may be connected/bonded by mechanical fastening and other known connection/bonding techniques (col. 4, line 66 to col. 5, line 3). Coghlan does not disclose a gasket groove on one or more of the front surface or the rea surface wherein the gasket surrounds an opening of the internal helical cavity, a set of connection holes opening at the front surface and extending longitudinally from the front surface to the rear surface, wherein each connection hole of the set of connection holes includes interior threads to receive a threaded portion of a bolt. However, Streicher teaches a progressive cavity pump made of a series of stator discs each having a front surface and a rear surface, a gasket groove 28 on one or more on the front or the rear surface, wherein the gasket groove surrounds an opening of the internal helical cavity (col. 6, lines 48-55 and figures 4, 5 and 12), each stator discs having a set of connection holes opening at the front surface and extending longitudinally from the front surface to the rear surface (fig. 5), wherein each connection hole of the set of connection holes includes interior threads to receive a threaded portion of a bolt (col. 6, lines 64-68). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have provided a gasket groove as claimed and to have inserted a compressible gasket to fit within the gasket groove, in light of the teachings of Streicher, in order to form a seal between the modular stator segments. Further, it would have also been obvious to have used a mechanical fastening technique in the method of Coghlan such as the bolts and threaded connection holes of Streicher since it is a known suitable mechanical fastening techniques for stator segments as attested by Streicher. Applicant should note that it is obvious that the set of bolt holes would have to first be aligned with the set of connection holes prior to inserting the bolts into the bolt holes and the connection holes and that the bolts would have to be tightened to compress the compressible gasket to form fluid-tight seal.
Claim(s) 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Coghlan/Streicher as applied to claim 16 above, and further in view of Tschirky’121 (US Patent 3,975,121).
Coghlan/Streicher discloses a stator as shown above. Coghlan/Streicher does not disclose connecting a connecting flange to at least one of the plurality modular stator segments with the set of bolts holes or the set of threaded connection holes of the at least one of the plurality of modular stator segments. However, Tschirky’121 teaches connecting a connecting flange 31 to at least one of a plurality of modular stator segments 18 with a set of bolts holes 37 of the at least one of the plurality of modular stator segments, see figure 5. Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have connected a connecting flange to at least one of the plurality modular stator segments of Coghlan/Streicher with the set of bolts holes of the at least one of the plurality of modular stator segments, in light of the teachings of Tschirky’121, in order to use the flange to connect the progressive cavity pump to other structures.
Claim(s) 1-5, 7, 8, 11-17, 19 and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Clouseau et al. (US 2014/0170011) in view of Streicher.
With regards to claims 1 and 19, Clouseau et al. discloses a stator for a progressive cavity device comprising a plurality of modular stator segments 14, each of the plurality of modular stator segments including a front surface (top end of each modular stator segment as viewed in Fig. 5), a rear surface (bottom end of each modular stator segment as seen in Fig. 5), an internal helical cavity extending longitudinally from the front surface to the rea surface (figure 5), wherein the plurality of modular stator segments are connected such that the internal helical cavities form a continuous helical chamber (figure 5), a center stator segment 16 including a second internal helical cavity (Fig. 5), wherein the center stator segment is configured to adjoin a first rear surface of a first modular stator segment of the plurality of modular stator segments, and adjoin to a second rea surface of a second modular stator segment of the plurality of modular stator segments (Fig. 5 since front and rear surfaces of the stator modular segments are similar. Clouseau et al. does not disclose that the stator segments are connected through a set of connection holes opening at the front surface and extending longitudinally from the front surface to the rear surface, wherein each connection hole of the set of connection holes includes interior threads to receive a threaded portion of a bolt. However, Streicher teaches a progressive cavity pump made of a series of stator discs each having a front surface and a rear surface, each stator discs having a set of connection holes opening at the front surface and extending longitudinally from the front surface to the rear surface (fig. 5), wherein each connection hole of the set of connection holes includes interior threads to receive a threaded portion of a bolt (col. 6, lines 64-68). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have connected stator segments of Clouseau et al. using bolts, bolt holes and threaded connection holes, in light of the teachings of Streicher, since it is a known suitable mechanical fastening techniques for stator segments as attested by Streicher. Applicant should note that although only two modular stator segments 14 are depicted in figure 5, each of those depicted modular stator segment could be further divided into smaller segments as attested by Streicher, see figures 1 and 4-11.
Regarding claims 2 and 3, see figure 5 of Streicher.
Regarding claim 4, see bores 25 in figures 2, 3 and 5 of Streicher for example. Applicant should note that it is within the general skill level of a worker in the art to determine the appropriate number of bolt holes and connection holes that would receive bolts to securely hold the stator segments through routine experimentation.
Regarding claim 5, see figure 5 of Streicher.
Regarding claims 7, 8 and 20 see column 6, lines 46-55 and figures 5 and 12 of Streicher.
Regarding claim 11, see figure 5 of Streicher.
Regarding claim 12, see figure 5 of Clouseau et al.
Regarding claim 13, see figure 5 Clouseau et al. and figures 4-11 of Streicher.
Regarding claims 14 and 15 see figure 3 of Clouseau et al. where rotor 2 forms an interference fit with the stator, and see paragraph [0033] where Clouseau et al. discloses that the use of elastomeric materials as stator coatings is well-known in the art.
With regards to claim 16, Applicant should note that the recited assembly steps are inherent in assembling the stator of Clouseau et al./Streicher. As outlined above, Clouseau et al. discloses a stator for a progressive cavity device comprising a plurality of modular stator segments 14, each of the plurality of modular stator segments including a front surface (top end as seen in figure 5), a rear surface (bottom end as seen in figure 5, an internal helical cavity extending longitudinally from the front surface to the rea surface (figure 5), wherein the plurality of modular stator segments are connected such that the internal helical cavities form a continuous helical chamber (figure 5), a center stator segment 16 including a second internal helical cavity (Fig. 5), wherein the center stator segment is configured to adjoin a first rear surface of a first modular stator segment of the plurality of modular stator segments, and adjoin to a second rea surface of a second modular stator segment of the plurality of modular stator segments (Fig. 5 since front and rear surfaces of the stator modular segments are similar). Clouseau et al. does not disclose a gasket groove on one or more of the front surface or the rea surface wherein the gasket surrounds an opening of the internal helical cavity, a set of connection holes opening at the front surface and extending longitudinally from the front surface to the rear surface, wherein each connection hole of the set of connection holes includes interior threads to receive a threaded portion of a bolt. However, Streicher teaches a progressive cavity pump made of a series of stator discs each having a front surface and a rear surface, a gasket groove 28 on one or more on the front or the rear surface, wherein the gasket groove surrounds an opening of the internal helical cavity (col. 6, lines 48-55 and figures 4, 5 and 12), each stator discs having a set of connection holes opening at the front surface and extending longitudinally from the front surface to the rear surface (fig. 5), wherein each connection hole of the set of connection holes includes interior threads to receive a threaded portion of a bolt (col. 6, lines 64-68). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have provided a gasket groove as claimed and to have inserted a compressible gasket to fit within the gasket groove, in light of the teachings of Streicher, in order to form a seal between the modular stator segments. Further, it would have also been obvious to have used a mechanical fastening technique in the method of Coghlan such as the bolts and threaded connection holes of Streicher since it is a known suitable mechanical fastening techniques for stator segments as attested by Streicher. Applicant should note that it is obvious that the set of bolt holes would have to first be aligned with the set of connection holes prior to inserting the bolts into the bolt holes and the connection holes and that the bolts would have to be tightened to compress the compressible gasket to form fluid-tight seal.
Claim(s) 9 and 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Clouseau et al./Streicher as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Downton et al. (US 20080023123).
While Clouseau discloses that using elastomeric materials in stators of progressive cavity pumps is known (paragraph [0033] for example),, Clouseau et al. does not specifically disclose that the elastomeric materials are provided as coating or that the elastomeric coating is cured prior to connecting a modular segment. However, Downton et al. teaches a progressive cavity pump that comprises modular segments that comprise an elastomeric coating on a first internal helical cavity, wherein the elastomeric coating is cured, see paragraphs [0051]-[0053] . Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have used modular stator segments that include an elastomeric coating on the first internal cavity and to have cured the elastomeric coating prior to connecting a first modular segment to a second modular segment of the plurality of the modular segments in making the stator of Clouseau et al./Streicher, in light of the teachings of Downton et al., as is known in the art.
Regarding claim 17, see paragraph [0038] of Clouseau that discloses that central stator segment may be made of metal.
Claim(s) 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Clouseau et al./Streicher as applied to claim 16 above, and further in view of Tschirky’121 (US Patent 3,975,121).
Clouseau et al./Streicher discloses a stator as shown above. Coghlan/Streicher does not disclose connecting a connecting flange to at least one of the plurality modular stator segments with the set of bolts holes or the set of threaded connection holes of the at least one of the plurality of modular stator segments. However, Tschirky’121 teaches connecting a connecting flange 31 to at least one of a plurality of modular stator segments 18 with a set of bolts holes 37 of the at least one of the plurality of modular stator segments, see figure 5. Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have connected a connecting flange to at least one of the plurality modular stator segments of Clouseau/Streicher with the set of bolts holes of the at least one of the plurality of modular stator segments, in light of the teachings of Tschirky’121, in order to use the flange to connect the progressive cavity pump to other structures.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1-20 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
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/ESSAMA OMGBA/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3746