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 .
This Office action is in response to the application filed 10/18/2023. Claims 1-20 are pending.
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.
Claims 8-13 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 applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 8 recites “a turbo generator” in the last line however “a turbo generator” has been previously recited in lines 2-3 making it unclear whether this is the same turbo generator or there are two turbo generators rendering the scope of the claim unclear and indefinite.
Claims not explicitly referenced are included in the rejection based on their dependency to an indefinite claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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) 1 and 4-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Singh et al. (US PG Pub. 2006/0010872).
Regarding claim 1, Singh discloses a cooling subsystem for a fuel cell system having a fuel cell stack (“Fuel Cell”, Fig. 1), the cooling subsystem comprising: an evaporator (Heat Recovery Heat Exchanger “a”) configured to receive working fluid heated by waste heat generated by the fuel cell stack (paragraph 39), wherein the evaporator is configured to further heat the working fluid using the waste heat (paragraph 39); and a turbo generator (Expander “b”) downstream of and configured to receive heated working fluid from the evaporator, wherein the turbo generator is configured to generate electrical power from the heated working fluid (paragraph 40), wherein the working fluid that leaves the turbo generator has a lower temperature and a lower pressure than that of the heated working fluid received from the evaporator (temperature and pressure of the working fluid would be lower after expansion through the turbo generator); a condenser (d) downstream of and configured to receive working fluid from the turbo generator and condense the working fluid to a liquid (paragraph 40); a pump (f) downstream of and configured to receive the liquid from the condenser and raise a pressure of the liquid before pumping the liquid into the evaporator (paragraph 40).
Regarding claim 4, Singh discloses the cooling subsystem as recited in claim 1, wherein the working fluid is water (paragraph 43).
Regarding claim 5, Singh discloses the cooling subsystem as recited in claim 4, wherein the working fluid leaves the evaporator as steam (vaporized water or steam; paragraph 40).
Regarding claim 6, Singh discloses the cooling subsystem as recited in claim 1, wherein the turbo generator (b) is an expansion turbine configured to provide rotary motion (via connected shaft) to drive an electric generator (c) to produce electric power (paragraph 40).
Regarding claim 7¸ Singh discloses the cooling subsystem as recited in claim 1, wherein cooling subsystem is a closed loop system (loop between fuel cell and HRHE shown as a closed loop, Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 8, Singh discloses a method of recycling waste heat generated by a fuel cell stack, the method comprising: providing a closed loop cooling system (Fig. 1), comprising an evaporator (Heat Recovery Heat Exchanger “a”), a turbo generator (Expander “b”), a condenser (d), and a pump (f); operating a fuel cell stack (“Fuel Cell”); capturing waste heat from the fuel cell stack in working fluid (paragraph 39); evaporating the working fluid (paragraph 40); and feeding the evaporated working fluid to a turbo generator (b) to produce electric power (paragraph 40).
Regarding claim 9, Singh discloses the method as recited in claim 8, further comprising: condensing (via condenser “d”) evaporated working fluid exiting the turbo generator (b) into a liquid (paragraph 40); and pressurizing the liquid (via pump “f”); and pumping the liquid into the evaporator (paragraph 40).
Regarding claim 10, Singh discloses the method as recited in claim 8, wherein capturing waste heat from the fuel cell stack in working fluid takes place in a heat exchanger (heat exchanger of fuel cell picking up heat and transferring the heat to evaporator “a” through heat exchange loop with pump “g”), wherein the working fluid flows through the heat exchanger (paragraphs 41-42).
Regarding claim 11, Singh discloses the method as recited in claim 10, wherein pumping the liquid (via pump “g”) into the evaporator comprises passing the liquid through the heat exchanger to capture waste heat from the fuel cell (portion of loop “h” picking up heat from fuel cell) before the liquid enters the evaporator (“a”).
Regarding claim 12, Singh discloses the method as recited in claim 9, wherein the working fluid is water (paragraph 43).
Regarding claim 13, Singh discloses the method as recited in claim 9, wherein the working fluid exits the evaporator as steam (vaporized water or steam; paragraph 40).
Regarding claim 14, Singh discloses a method of generating electrical power using a cooling subsystem of a fuel cell assembly, the method comprising: pressurizing a fluid (via pump “f”) in a condensed phase (liquid from condenser “d”); evaporating the fluid in an evaporator (Heat Recovery Heat Exchanger “a”); and feeding the fluid from the evaporator into an expansion turbine (b) configured to provide rotary motion to drive an electric generator (c) to produce electric power (paragraphs 39-40).
Regarding claim 15, Singh discloses the method as recited in claim 14, further comprising: condensing fluid from the expansion turbine into a liquid (via condenser “d”); and pumping the liquid back to the evaporator (via pump “f”).
Regarding claim 16, Singh discloses the method as recited in claim 14, wherein fluid leaving the expansion turbine (b) has a temperature and a pressure lower than a temperature and pressure of the fluid entering the expansion turbine (temperature and pressure of the working fluid would be lower after expansion through the turbo generator).
Regarding claim 17, Singh discloses the method as recited in claim 14, wherein the pressurized fluid in a condensed phase is water (paragraph 43).
Regarding claim 18, Singh discloses the method as recited in claim 17, wherein the fluid fed into the expansion turbine is steam (vaporized water or steam; paragraph 40).
Regarding claim 19, Singh discloses the method as recited in claim 14, further comprising using a heat exchanger attached to a fuel cell stack (fuel cell heat exchanger picking up heat in secondary loop “h”) to capture waste heat from the fuel cell stack (“Fuel Cell”; Fig. 2) in the fluid flowing through the heat exchanger (Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 20, Singh discloses the method as recited in claim 15, further comprising pumping (via pump “g”) the liquid through the heat exchanger before pumping the liquid back into the evaporator (Fig. 2).
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:
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 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) 2-3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Singh et al. (US PG Pub. 2006/0010872) in view of Vanderwees (US PG Pub. 2009/0239112).
Regarding claim 2, Singh discloses the cooling subsystem as recited in claim 1, further comprising at least one heat exchanger and configured to dissipate waste heat from the fuel cell stack and wherein working fluid from the at least one heat exchanger flows from the at least one heat exchanger to the evaporator
Singh does not explicitly teach the at least one heat exchanger attached to a face of the fuel cell stack.
Vanderwees teaches the concept of a cooling subsystem for a fuel cell system having at least one heat exchanger (64, 84, 104, 106) attached to a face of the fuel cell stack (62) that provides for the benefits of integrated heat exchangers that may utilize the same plates as used in the fuel cell stack, the number of different plate configurations used in the fuel cell system may be reduced, and placement of heat exchangers with similar dimensions at the ends of the fuel cell stack may allow space savings to be achieved (paragraph 90). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to modify the cooling subsystem of Singh to have the at least one heat exchanger attached to a face of the fuel cell stack taught by Vanderwees in order to integrate the heat exchanger to the fuel cell stack leading to a more compact, space savings design of the system.
Regarding claim 3, Singh as modified discloses the cooling subsystem as recited in claim 2, wherein the pump (“g”) is configured to pump the liquid into the at least one heat exchanger before the liquid enters the evaporator (heat exchanger of fuel cell picking up heat and transferring the heat to evaporator “a” through heat exchange loop with pump “g”; Fig. 2).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Biederman et al. (US 2010/0291455) Rankine cycle integrated with fuel cell.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOSEPH F TRPISOVSKY whose telephone number is (571)270-5296. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 8AM-4PM.
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/JOSEPH F TRPISOVSKY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3763