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 .
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
This nonfinal action on the merits is in response to the request for continued examination including remarks and amendment received by the office on 13 July 2026. Claims 25 -38 are pending. Claims 25, 28, 30, and 38 are amended. No claims are added. No claims are cancelled.
Response to Amendment
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) 25-27, 30-33 35-38 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Application Publication 2018/0043614 to Greenfield et al. (‘614 hereafter) in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication 2018/0178284 to Martin et al. (‘284 hereafter) and U.S. Patent Application Publication 2019/0299289 to Kinya AOTA (‘289 hereafter), of record per applicant disclosure.
Regarding claim 25, ‘614 teaches an additive manufacturing apparatus comprising: a first beam source configured to emit at least a first beam (Fig 1 item 105), and a process chamber housing, wherein the process chamber housing comprises a process chamber, comprising: a bottom, a ceiling, and side walls, jointly enclosing a volume of the process chamber (Fig 1 item 101), an inert gas inlet configured to provide an inert gas into the process chamber (Fig 1 item 140), an inert gas outlet configured to release the inert gas out of the process chamber (Fig 1 item 141), wherein the bottom has an opening delimited by opening walls and a vertically movable support for supporting a powder bed, and a three-dimensional object located in between of the opening walls (Fig 1 items 114, 116, and 102), characterized in that and in that the inert gas inlet and the inert gas outlet are configured to remove the smoke plumes from the process chamber by a main inert gas flow (paragraph 0003). ‘614 does not teach a second beam source, an inert gas sensor, or a controller configured to act on the ouput of the inert gas sensor.
In the same field of endeavor additive manufacturing, ‘284 teaches at least a second beam source configured to emit at least a second beam (Fig 1 items 24) for the benefit of reducing production time and increasing apparatus throughput. It would have been obvious to one possessed of ordinary skill in the art at the time of effective filing to combine the teaching of ‘614 with that of ‘284 for the benefit of increasing production speed and throughput while also improving surface finish of the articles produced. ‘614 in view of ‘284 does not teach an inert gas sensor, or a controller configured to act on the output of the inert gas sensor
In the same field of endeavor, additive manufacturing, ‘289 teaches an inert gas sensor (Fig. 1 items 19 and 21) and a process chamber controlling device configured to control the additive manufacturing apparatus configured to determine, based on an output generated by the inert gas component sensor, a concentration and/or a partial pressure of a component of the inert gas, to calculate a duration of time during which additional delivery of the component of the inert gas into the process chamber would result in increase of the concentration and/or the partial pressure above a predefined threshold limit, and to open an inert gas component valve of the apparatus for said duration to provide said component of the inert gas into the process chamber (Fig. 1 item 22, paragraphs 0024-0026) for the benefit of removing impurities while maintaining the build volume’s inert atmosphere. It would have been obvious to one possessed of ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of ‘614 in view of ‘284 with those of ‘289 for the benefit of maintaining an inert build atmosphere.
Regarding claim 26, ‘614 teaches the additive manufacturing apparatus wherein the inert gas inlet and the inert gas outlet are positioned at opposite sides of the process chamber and/or the opening, thereby being configured to establish a flow of the inert gas in a main flow direction from the inert gas inlet over the opening to the inert gas outlet (Fig 1 items 140 and 141).
Regarding claim 27, ‘614 teaches the additive manufacturing apparatus wherein the flow of the inert gas in the main flow direction has a flow speed, and wherein that a mean flow speed of the inert gas flow measured at a location 0.5 cm over the opening is: above 0.75m/s, and/or below 4 m/s (insofar as this limitation is a recitation of intended use of the claimed apparatus and the prior art apparatus as disclosed is capable of being used in such a manner).
Regarding claim 30, ‘614 does not teach a heat exchanger, In the same field of endeavor, additive manufacturing, ‘284 teaches the additive manufacturing apparatus wherein the process chamber comprises a heat exchanger ( Paragraph 0035) configured to heat at least a portion of a flow of the inert gas flow through the process chamber to or above a temperature of at least one of 25°C, 40°C, 60°C, 80°C, 1000C, 1500C, 250°C, 300°C, 350°C, 400°C,and 450°C (insofar as the specific temperature is regarded as a recitation of intended use of the claimed apparatus and the applied prior art is capable of being operated in such a manner).
Regarding claim 31, ‘614 teaches the additive manufacturing apparatus wherein the inert gas outlet is in fluid communication with a vacuum pump and/or wherein the inert gas inlet is in fluid communication with an inert gas source, wherein a throttle valve is located upstream of the inert gas inlet (Fig 1 items 141, 170).
Regarding claim 32, ‘614 teaches the additive manufacturing apparatus wherein the process chamber further comprises: at least one auxiliary gas outlet in at least one of the bottom, the support, the opening walls, and the opening bottom; and/or at least one auxiliary inert gas inlet in the ceiling (Fig 1 items 145 and 143).
Regarding claim 33, ‘614 teaches the additive manufacturing apparatus wherein the auxiliary gas outlet is connected to an auxiliary gas outlet control valve, and/or the auxiliary gas outlet is connected to a gas inlet of an auxiliary outlet vacuum pump (Fig 1 items 186, 187, 188, 189 and 170).
Regarding claim 35, ‘614 teaches the additive manufacturing apparatus wherein the process chamber housing further comprises at least one beam entry window located above the opening (Fig 1 item 107).
Regarding claim 36, ‘614 teaches the additive manufacturing apparatus wherein the process chamber housing further comprises at least one inert gas jet stream inlet nozzle, positioned to provide an inert gas jet stream between the window and the support, and/or at least one inert gas jet stream outlet nozzle, positioned to provide an inert gas jet stream between the window and the support (Fig 1 item 160 and item 148).
Regarding claim 37, ‘614 teaches the additive manufacturing apparatus wherein the least one inert gas jet stream inlet nozzle has a nozzle outlet opening that is oriented substantially parallel within an angle ajs to the inert gas inlet, wherein ajs belongs to set A, and A = {30°, 20°, 10°, 5°, 2.5°, 1°, 0°} (Fig 1 item 148 shows a gas flow from inlet to outlet parallel to at least the window and build surface).
Regarding claim 38, ‘614 teaches a beam source placed outside the build chamber, and emitting a beam into build chamber through a window (Fig 1 items 105, 106 and 107) while ‘284 teaches two beam sources (Fig 1 items 24) for the benefit of reducing production time, increasing apparatus throughput and improving surface finish of the articles made. It would have been obvious to one possessed of ordinary skill in the art at the time of effective filing to combine the teaching of ‘614 with that of ‘284 for the benefit of increasing production speed and throughput while also improving surface finish of the articles produced.
Claim(s) 28 and 29 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over ‘614 in view ‘284 and ‘289 as applied to claim 25 above, and further in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication 2017/0304945 to Christopher John Sutcliffe (‘945 hereafter).
Regarding claim 28, ‘614 in view of ‘284 and ‘289, while teaching an inert gas sensor, does not teach the claimed position of the inert gas sensor. In the same field of endeavor, additive manufacturing, ‘945 teaches the additive manufacturing apparatus wherein the process chamber comprises at least one gas component concentration sensor, wherein the at least one gas component concentration sensor is located on the bottom, and/or in a recess of the bottom, and/or below a location at a distance of 5 cm above the bottom, and/or on the support and/or below the support, and/or at or within a distance of at least one of 10 cm, 5 cm, 2.5 cm, 1 cm, 0.5 cm from an edge in the bottom encircling the opening, and/or in a duct connecting the inert gas outlet with the inert gas inlet (Fig 1 item 167) for the benefit of maintaining a reducing atmosphere. It would have been obvious to one possessed of ordinary skill in the art at the time of effective filing to combine the teachings of ‘ ‘614 in view of ‘284 and ‘289 with whose of ‘945 for the benefit of maintaining an inert atmosphere in an inert gas additive manufacturing environment.
Regarding claim 29, ‘284 teaches the additive manufacturing apparatus wherein the process chamber housing further comprises at least one inert gas component source that is fluidly connected via an inert gas component valve with the inert gas inlet of the process chamber (Fig 2 item 74).
Claim(s) 34 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over ‘614 in view of ‘284 and ‘289 as applied to claim 33 above, and further in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication 2014/0265045 to Cullen et al. (‘045 hereafter).
Regarding claim 34, ‘614 in view of ‘284 and ‘289 does not teach a check valve. In the same field of endeavor, additive manufacturing, ‘045 teaches that it is known to incorporate check valves in to gas environmental cleaning circuits in additive manufacturing (paragraph 0021) for the benefit of preventing pollution of the cleaned gas. It would have been obvious to one possessed of ordinary skill in the art at the time of effective filing to combine the teaching of ‘614 in view of ‘284 and ‘289 with those of ‘045 for the benefit of maintaining the cleanliness of the clean gas stream.
Response to Arguments
In support of the patentability of the instant claims, applicant has argued that the amendments of 13 July 2026 overcome the previous prior art rejections as well as the 32 USC 112 (b) indefiniteness rejection. Examiner agrees. Accordingly, the 35 USC 112 (b) rejection has been withdrawn. Regarding the prior art rejection, an updated search was conducted and newly relevant prior art was identified and applied above.
Conclusion
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/JPR/Examiner, Art Unit 1743
/GALEN H HAUTH/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1743
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