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
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) 1-7 and 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ueno et al. (US Patent Application Pub. No.: US 2012/0319507 A1) in view of Nick et al. (Foreign Patent Document No.: DE 102011077457 A1) and Tokoi et al. (US Patent Application Pub. No.: US 2020/0395808 A1).
For claim 1, Ueno et al. disclose the claimed invention comprising a coil assembly (reference numeral 10, figure 1), wherein the coil assembly comprises: a plurality of winding cores (reference numeral 111, see figure 2) provided within a coil assembly housing (reference numeral 102, figure 1); a plurality of individual winding assemblies (reference numeral 110, see figure 1), each of the individual winding assemblies comprising: a hollow, non-metallic coil spool (reference numeral 114, figure 2); and an electrical coil (reference numeral 112) wound about the coil spool and held in place about the coil spool by a barrier material (reference numeral 113, see figure 2), wherein said barrier material (reference numeral 113) mechanically supports the electrical coil (reference numeral 112, see figure 2); wherein, for each of the winding cores (reference numeral 111), a corresponding one of the plurality of individual winding assemblies is installed over the winding core (reference numeral 111, see figures 1, 2), such that the winding core extends within and through a central cavity of the coil spool (reference numeral 114) of the individual winding assembly (i.e. winding core 111 extending through a cavity of coil spool 114 in which core portion 111a is disposed, see figure 2), the individual winding assembly (i.e. assembly 110, figure 2) being constrained in location by the winding core (reference numeral 111, see figure 2). Ueno et al. however do not specifically disclose the barrier material not being bonded to the electrical coil and not bonded to the coil spool; a plurality of wired connections configured to provide electrical communication among the electrical coils and/or between the electrical coils and an external power source or power receptor; and the individual winding assembly not being bonded to the winding core.
Having the winding core components not being bonded to each other is a known skill in the art as exhibited by Nick et al. which disclose winding support/end plates (reference numerals 510, 520, 530) not being bonded to the coil winding (reference numeral 410, see figure 5, and English translation of Nick et al., paragraph [0085]), which when applied to the barrier material and the winding core this would disclose the barrier material not being bonded to the electrical coil and not bonded to the coil spool and also the individual winding assembly not being bonded to the winding core. Tokoi et al. disclose a plurality of wired connections (reference numeral 80, figure 6) configured to provide electrical communication among the electrical coils (i.e. windings 12 of each core unit 14 being drawn to wired connections 80, see figures 6, 8, and paragraph [0040]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to not have bonding between the different winding core components as disclosed by Nick et al. and also have the wired connections among the electrical coils as disclosed by Tokoi et al. for the winding cores, barrier material, and the electrical coils of Ueno et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating stress reduction within the device.
For claim 2, Ueno et al. disclose the winding cores being ferromagnetic laminates (see paragraph [0062]).
For claim 3, Ueno et al. disclose the coil spool (reference numeral 114) being made of thermoplastic resin (see paragraph [0063]), i.e. the coil spool is made from an engineering plastic or a glass-filled fluoropolymer.
For claim 4, Ueno et al. disclose the barrier material (reference numeral 113) being a resin (see paragraph [0063]).
For claim 5, Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. disclose the claimed invention except for the wired connections being routed through a wire harness cavity. Tokoi et al. further disclose the wired connections (reference numeral 80) being routed through a wire harness cavity (i.e. cavities within component 80 in which wire 70 is disposed, see figure 8), and it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the wired connections being routed through a wire harness cavity as disclosed by Tokoi et al. for the wired connections of Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating proper connections within the device.
For claim 6, Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. disclose the claimed invention except for the wire harness cavity being formed between bracket support components. Tokoi et al. further disclose the wire harness cavity being formed between bracket support components (i.e. the wiring support portion for the wired connections 80 can be considered bracket support components as shown in figure 8), and it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the wire harness cavity being formed between bracket support components as disclosed by Tokoi et al. for the wired connections of Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating proper connections within the device.
For claim 7, Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. disclose the claimed invention except for the wire harness cavity being filled with a stabilizing substance that mechanically supports the wired connections but is not bonded to the wired connections, and is not bonded to the wire harness. Nick et al. already disclose a substance that would not cause bonding between components (i.e. release agent, see English translation of Nick et al., paragraph [0085]), and when applied to the wired connections of Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. this would disclose the wire harness cavity being filled with a stabilizing substance that mechanically supports the wired connections but is not bonded to the wired connections, and is not bonded to the wire harness. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the release agent as disclosed by Nick et al. so that the wire harness cavity is filled with a stabilizing substance that mechanically supports the wired connections but is not bonded to the wired connections, and is not bonded to the wire harness for Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating proper connections within the device.
For claim 10, Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. disclose the claimed invention except for a plurality of key-stock pieces positioned above the individual winding assemblies and configured to prevent dislodging of the individual winding assemblies from the winding cores. Tokoi et al. further disclose a plurality of key-stock pieces (reference numeral 35, figure 3B) positioned above the individual winding assemblies (see figure 3B) and configured to prevent dislodging of the individual winding assemblies from the winding cores (see figure 3B, and paragraph [0039]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the key-stock pieces as disclosed by Tokoi et al. for the winding assemblies of Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating the proper assembly of the device.
Claim(s) 8 and 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. as applied to claims 1 and 7 above, and further in view of Manz (US Patent Application Pub. No.: US 2020/0136453 A1).
For claim 8, Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. disclose the claimed invention except for the stabilizing substance being a resin. Having a resin for stabilizing wire guide components is a known skill as exhibited by Manz (i.e. wire guide 36 being made of polymer, see paragraph [0065]), and it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the polymer as disclosed by Manz for the stabilizing substance for Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating proper connections within the device.
For claim 9, Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. disclose the claimed invention except for a wire feedthrough inserted into a cable exit port provided in the coil assembly housing, the wire feedthrough providing electrical access to the wired connections while excluding the process liquid from flowing past the wire feedthrough. Manz discloses wire being fed through a coil assembly housing (see figure 6) to a power source (reference numeral 48), i.e. cable exit port provided in the coil assembly housing for providing electrical access while preventing liquid from flowing past the housing of Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to feed wire through the assembly housing as disclosed by Manz so that a wire feedthrough inserted into a cable exit port is provided in the coil assembly housing and the wire feedthrough providing electrical access to the wired connections while excluding the process liquid from flowing past the wire feedthrough for Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating proper connections within the device.
Claim(s) 11 and 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. as applied to claim 10 above, and further in view of Johnson et al. (US Patent No.: 9614406).
For claim 11, Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. disclose the claimed invention except for the key-stock pieces being inserted between upper surfaces of the individual winding assemblies and overhanging teeth of the winding cores. Johnson et al. disclose key-stock pieces (reference numeral 140, see figure 16) being inserted between upper surfaces of the individual winding assemblies (reference numeral 24) and overhanging teeth of the winding cores (i.e. overhanging teeth 148, 150, see figure 16), and it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the key-stock pieces inserted between upper surfaces of the individual winding assemblies and overhanging teeth of the winding cores as disclosed by Johnson et al. for the key-stock pieces of Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al. and Tokoi et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating the proper assembly of the device.
For claim 12, Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al., Tokoi et al., and Johnson et al. disclose the claimed invention except for the key-stock pieces not being bonded to the individual winding assemblies and are not bonded to the overhanging teeth of the winding cores. Nick et al. already disclose a substance that would not cause bonding between components (i.e. release agent, see English translation of Nick et al., paragraph [0085]), and when applied to the key-stock pieces of Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al., Tokoi et al., and Johnson et al. this would disclose the key-stock pieces not being bonded to the individual winding assemblies and are not bonded to the overhanging teeth of the winding cores. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the release agent as disclosed by Nick et al. so that the key-stock pieces are not being bonded to the individual winding assemblies and are not bonded to the overhanging teeth of the winding cores for Ueno et al. in view of Nick et al., Tokoi et al., and Johnson et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating proper connections within the device.
Claim(s) 13-16 and 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ueno et al. (US Patent Application Pub. No.: US 2012/0319507 A1) in view of Tashiro et al. (US Patent No.: 9203274), Nick et al. (Foreign Patent Document No.: DE 102011077457 A1), and Tokoi et al. (US Patent Application Pub. No.: US 2020/0395808 A1).
For claim 13, Ueno et al. disclose the claimed invention comprising: providing a plurality of winding cores (reference numeral 110, see figures 1, 2); preparing a plurality of individual winding assemblies (reference numeral 110, see figure 1), wherein for each of the individual winding assemblies, said preparing of the individual winding assembly comprises: winding insulated wire (reference numeral 112) about a hollow, non-metallic coil spool (reference numeral 114, see figure 2), the insulated wire being thereby formed into an electrical coil (reference numeral 112, see figure 2); applying a barrier material (reference numeral 113) to the electrical coil (see figure 2), such that said barrier material (reference numeral 113) mechanically supports the electrical coil (reference numeral 112, see figure 2), the coil spool (reference numeral 114), electrical coil (reference numeral 112), and applied barrier material (reference numeral 113) thereby forming the individual winding assembly (reference numeral 110, see figure 2); and for each of the winding cores, installing a corresponding one of the plurality of individual winding assemblies (reference numeral 110) over the winding core (reference numeral 111, see figure 2), such that the winding core (reference numeral 111) extends within and through a central cavity of the coil spool (reference numeral 114) of the individual winding assembly (i.e. core 111 extending through the cavity of coil spool 114 in which core portion 111a is disposed, see figure 2), the individual winding assembly (reference numeral 110) being constrained in location by the winding core (reference numeral 111, see figure 2). Ueno et al. however do not specifically disclose placing the coil spool together with said electrical coil onto a fixture, said fixture having a shape that is substantially identical to a shape of a corresponding one of the plurality of winding cores; applying a first release agent to the electrical coil; the barrier material being prevented by the first release agent from bonding to the electrical coil; removing the individual winding assembly from the fixture; the individual winding assembly not being bonded to the winding core; and forming a plurality of wired connections to the electrical coils, wherein the wired connections provide electrical communication among the electrical coils and/or between the electrical coils and an external power source or an external power receptor.
Having an electrical coil wound on a fixture is a known skill in the art as exhibited by Tashiro et al. (fixture T on which a coil spool 20 is wound, see figure 9, shape of fixture shown can be considered for fixing on cores), which when applied to the coil spool of Ueno et al. would disclose placing the coil spool together with said electrical coil onto a fixture, said fixture having a shape that is substantially identical to a shape of a corresponding one of the plurality of winding cores, and also removing the individual winding assembly from the fixture. Applying a first release agent is disclosed by Nick et al. (see English translation of Nick et al., paragraph [0085]), which when applied to the electrical coil and barrier material of Ueno et al. would disclose applying a first release agent to the electrical coil; the barrier material being prevented by the first release agent from bonding to the electrical coil; and also when applied to the individual winding assembly this would disclose the individual winding assembly not being bonded to the winding core. Tokoi et al. disclose a plurality of wired connections (reference numeral 80, figure 6) configured to provide electrical communication among the electrical coils (i.e. windings 12 of each core unit 14 being drawn to wired connections 80, see figures 6, 8, and paragraph [0040]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the fixture as disclosed by Tashiro et al., the first release agent as disclosed by Nick et al., and the wired connections as disclosed by Tokoi et al. for the electrical coil and winding cores of Ueno et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating stress reduction within the device.
For claim 14, Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., and Tokoi et al. disclose the claimed invention except for the method further comprising routing the wired connections through a wire harness cavity of the coil assembly. Tokoi et al. further disclose the wired connections (reference numeral 80) being routed through a wire harness cavity (i.e. cavities within component 80 in which wire 70 is disposed, see figure 8), and it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the wired connections being routed through a wire harness cavity as disclosed by Tokoi et al. for the wired connections of Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., and Tokoi et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating proper connections within the device.
For claim 15, Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., and Tokoi et al. disclose the claimed invention except for the wire harness cavity being formed between bracket support components. Tokoi et al. further disclose the wire harness cavity being formed between bracket support components (i.e. the wiring support portion for the wired connections 80 can be considered bracket support components as shown in figure 8), and it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the wire harness cavity being formed between bracket support components as disclosed by Tokoi et al. for the wired connections of Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., and Tokoi et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating proper connections within the device.
For claim 16, Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., and Tokoi et al. disclose the claimed invention except for the method further comprising: applying a second release agent to the wired connections; and filling the wire harness cavity with a stabilizing substance such that the stabilizing substance mechanically supports the wired connections but is prevented by the second release agent from bonding to the wired connections and from bonding to the wire harness. Nick et al. already disclose a substance that would not cause bonding between components (i.e. release agent, see English translation of Nick et al., paragraph [0085]), and when applied to the wired connections of Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., and Tokoi et al. this would disclose applying a second release agent to the wired connections; and filling the wire harness cavity with a stabilizing substance such that the stabilizing substance mechanically supports the wired connections but is prevented by the second release agent from bonding to the wired connections and from bonding to the wire harness. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the release agent as disclosed by Nick et al. so that the wire harness cavity is filled with a stabilizing substance such that the stabilizing substance mechanically supports the wired connections but is prevented by the second release agent from bonding to the wired connections and from bonding to the wire harness for Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., and Tokoi et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating proper connections within the device.
For claim 18, Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., and Tokoi et al. disclose the claimed invention except for positioning key-stock pieces above the individual winding assemblies such that the key-stock pieces prevent dislodging of the individual winding assemblies from the winding cores. Tokoi et al. further disclose a plurality of key-stock pieces (reference numeral 35, figure 3B) positioned above the individual winding assemblies (see figure 3B) such that the key-stock pieces prevent dislodging of the individual winding assemblies from the winding cores (see figure 3B, and paragraph [0039]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the key-stock pieces as disclosed by Tokoi et al. for the winding assemblies of Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., and Tokoi et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating the proper assembly of the device.
Claim(s) 17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., and Tokoi et al. as applied to claim 16 above, and further in view of Manz (US Patent Application Pub. No.: US 2020/0136453 A1).
For claim 17, Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., and Tokoi et al. disclose the claimed invention except for the stabilizing substance being a resin. Having a resin for stabilizing wire guide components is a known skill as exhibited by Manz (i.e. wire guide 36 being made of polymer, see paragraph [0065]), and it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the polymer as disclosed by Manz for the stabilizing substance for Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., and Tokoi et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating proper connections within the device.
Claim(s) 19 and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., and Tokoi et al. as applied to claim 18 above, and further in view of Johnson et al. (US Patent No.: 9614406).
For claim 19, Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., and Tokoi et al. disclose the claimed invention except for installing the key-stock pieces including inserted the key-stock pieces between upper surfaces of the individual winding assemblies and overhanging teeth of the winding cores. Johnson et al. disclose key-stock pieces (reference numeral 140, see figure 16) being inserted between upper surfaces of the individual winding assemblies (reference numeral 24) and overhanging teeth of the winding cores (i.e. overhanging teeth 148, 150, see figure 16), and it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the key-stock pieces inserted between upper surfaces of the individual winding assemblies and overhanging teeth of the winding cores as disclosed by Johnson et al. for the key-stock pieces of Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., and Tokoi et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating the proper assembly of the device.
For claim 20, Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., Tokoi et al., and Johnson et al. disclose the claimed invention except for installing the key-stock pieces does not include bonding the key-stock pieces to the upper surfaces of the individual winding assemblies, and does not include bonding the key-stock pieces to the overhanging teeth of the winding cores. Nick et al. already disclose a substance that would not cause bonding between components (i.e. release agent, see English translation of Nick et al., paragraph [0085]), and when applied to the key-stock pieces of Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., Tokoi et al., and Johnson et al. this would disclose not bonding the key-stock pieces to the upper surfaces of the individual winding assemblies, and not bonding the key-stock pieces to the overhanging teeth of the winding cores. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the release agent as disclosed by Nick et al. so that the key-stock pieces are not being bonded to the upper surfaces of the individual winding assemblies, and does not include bonding the key-stock pieces to the overhanging teeth of the winding cores for Ueno et al. in view of Tashiro et al., Nick et al., Tokoi et al., and Johnson et al. for predictably providing desirable configuration for facilitating proper connections within the device.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The following references disclose embodiments of coil winding configurations: US 9985488 B2 (Goodyear; Brett T. et al.), US 7467648 B2 (Hashimoto; Shingo et al.), US 7380335 B2 (Hashimoto; Shingo et al.), US 20220186736 A1 (MCSHEERY; Tracy et al.), US 20210317729 A1 (SHETH; Ketankumar Kantilal et al.), US 20210320549 A1 (SHETH; Ketankumar Kantilal et al.), US 20180278108 A1 (Goodyear; Brett T. et al.), US 20130022163 A1 (Goodyear; Brett T. et al.), US 20110192019 A1 (Shijo; Daisuke et al.).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ALEX W MOK whose telephone number is (571)272-9084. The examiner can normally be reached 8am-4pm.
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/ALEX W MOK/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2834