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) 1-2 and 4-24 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Pan CN 205953604 in view of Ouyang et al. CN 114405133.
Claim 1, Pan teaches a filter cartridge comprising: a housing (1) enclosing a filter chamber and a filter element (3) disposed therein, a valve assembly comprising: a coupling configured to engage an adapter of a filtration system, an inlet channel (11 to 23) that is in fluid communication with the coupling and the filter chamber, a wastewater outlet valve (5) disposed in an outlet channel that is in fluid communication with the coupling and the filter chamber, wherein the wastewater outlet valve comprises an outlet valve poppet that is biased to seal against an outlet valve housing (see below) by a biasing member (52), wherein the outlet valve housing is connected to an outlet valve socket (see below) formed in the housing of the filter cartridge, and the biasing member is disposed between the outlet valve socket and the outlet valve poppet, a purified water outlet channel extending through the outlet valve poppet, wherein a purified water outlet channel is in fluid communication with a purified outlet of the filter element, and a purified water outlet valve (at 6), disposed in the purified water outlet channel, wherein the purified water outlet valve is capable of being moved into an open condition by a central protrusion extending from an adapter (fig. 1-3). Pan does not teach the filter element comprising a center channel or an outlet tube extending into the filter chamber through the center channel of the filter element. The recitation of the filter cartridge being for a water filtration system which comprises an adapter including a central protrusion and one or more outer protrusions is a recitation of intended use and does not provide any further structural limitations to the filter cartridge.
Pan teaches the filter element is a reverse osmosis filter (abstract). Ouyang teaches a reverse osmosis filter element (130) comprising a center channel and an outlet tube (at 134) that extends into a filter chamber of a housing (110) through the center channel of the filter element (fig. 1). Reverse osmosis filter elements with an center channel with an outlet tube is a very common feature in the art and would have been well within the normal capabilities of one of ordinary skill in the art. The claim would have been obvious because a particular known technique was recognized as part of the ordinary capabilities of one skilled in the art, KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 82 USPQ2d 1385 (2007).
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Claim 12, Pan in view of Ouyang teaches a water filtration system comprising: an adapter (9) comprising an inlet (91), an outlet (93), a cartridge receptacle in fluid communication with the inlet and an outlet receptacle in fluid communication with the outlet and a filter cartridge according to claim 1, as detailed above (fig. 1-3).
Pan teaches the filter cartridge comprises a central protrusion (6) and an outer protrusion (53) that are part of the valve assembly that interact with the adapter to open the valve assembly (fig. 2). The recitation of the adapter comprising the central protrusion and outer protrusion is a recitation of a rearrangement of the parts of Pan, namely moving the protrusions of Pan from the filter cartridge to the adapter. Shifting the position of an element is unpatentable if shifting the position of the element would not modify the operation of the device, In re Japikse, 86 USPQ 70 (1950). Moving the protrusions to the location as claimed would not modify the operation of the device as the protrusions would act on the valve assembly to open the valve assembly.
Claims 2, 5, 8-9, 13, 16 and 19-20, Pan further teaches an inlet valve (4) disposed in the inlet channel, the inlet valve is configured to be opened by water pressure applied to the inlet valve via the inlet channel (fig. 1-2); the inlet channel is offset from a center of the valve assembly and the outlet channel is in a center of the valve assembly (fig. 1-2); the outlet valve housing comprises an outlet valve chamber having a frustoconical valve seat (at 51) for forming a seal with the outlet valve poppet (fig. 1-2); and the outlet valve poppet comprises a seal member (51) for forming a seal with the valve seat of the outlet valve housing (fig. 1-2).
Claims 4 and 14, the wastewater outlet valve and purified water outlet valve can be opened simultaneously by protrusions of an adapter.
Claims 10 and 21, Pan further teaches the outlet valve poppet comprises a seal element (the smooth surface) for forming a seal with a purified water outlet of the housing (fig. 1-2) and Ouyang further teaches the outlet tube comprises a seal element for forming a seal with a purified water outlet of the housing (fig. 2).
Claims 11 and 22, Pan further teaches the filter element is a reverse osmosis filter (abstract) and Ouyang further teaches the outlet tube comprises a plurality of perforations (fig. 1).
Claim 15, Pan further teaches the central protrusion and the outer protrusion simultaneously cause the wastewater outlet valve and the purified water outlet valve to open when the filter cartridge is coupled to the adapter (fig. 1-2).
Claim 23, Pan in view of Ouyang teaches the cartridge of claim 1, and further teaches the filter cartridge comprises a central protrusion (6) and an outer protrusion (53) that are part of the valve assembly that interact with an adapter to open the valve assembly (fig. 2). The recitation of the adapter comprising the central protrusion and outer protrusion is a recitation of a rearrangement of the parts of Pan, namely moving the protrusions of Pan from the filter cartridge to the adapter. Shifting the position of an element is unpatentable if shifting the position of the element would not modify the operation of the device, In re Japikse, 86 USPQ 70 (1950). Moving the protrusions to the location as claimed would not modify the operation of the device as the protrusions would be able to act on the valve assembly to open the valve assembly. Additionally, providing the protrusion (6) of the purified water outlet valve on the adapter rather than on the purified water outlet valve would make the purified water outlet valve to have an actuating end that is recessed within the outlet valve poppet as shown in the annotated figure below. Also, providing a recessed actuating end of a valve is a known feature as demonstrated by Ouyang as shown in the annotated figure below. The claim would have been obvious because a particular known technique was recognized as part of the ordinary capabilities of one skilled in the art, KSR International Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 82 USPQ2d 1385 (2007).
Claim 24, as shown below, if the protrusion (6) of Pan were moved from the purified water outlet valve to an adapter, the purified water outlet valve would be entirely disposed within the purified water outlet channel (see below).
Claims 25-27, Pan further teaches the outlet valve housing is at least partially positioned within the outlet valve socket (see above); the outlet valve poppet is at least partially positioned within the outlet valve housing (see above); and the biasing member is a coil spring that fits around a portion of the housing and the outlet valve poppet (fig. 1).
Claim 28, Pat further teaches the outlet valve socket is formed in the housing of the filter cartridge but does not specifically teach the outlet valve socket being integrally formed in the housing. [T]he use of a one piece construction instead of the structure disclosed in [the prior art] would be merely a matter of obvious engineering choice; In re Larson 144 USPQ 23 1952.
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Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 5/27/26 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant’s arguments are addressed in the body of the rejection above.
Conclusion
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/BENJAMIN M KURTZ/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1779
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