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 .
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.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I (claims 1-5, 10-15, and 20) in the reply filed on 6/24/26 is acknowledged.
Claim Objections
Claims 1 and 11 are objected to because of the following informalities: in line 2, --is—should be inserted between “bipolar plate (100)” and “made of a material”. Appropriate correction is required.
Applicant is advised that should claim 1 be found allowable, claim 11 will be objected to under 37 CFR 1.75 as being a substantial duplicate thereof. When two claims in an application are duplicates or else are so close in content that they both cover the same thing, despite a slight difference in wording, it is proper after allowing one claim to object to the other as being a substantial duplicate of the allowed claim. See MPEP § 608.01(m).
Similarly, should claims 2 and 10 be found allowable, claims 12 and 20, respectively, will be objected to under 37 CFR 1.75 as being a substantial duplicate thereof.
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 1-5, 11-15, and 20 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.
Claims 1 and 11 recite the limitation "the flow channels (205) in order to guide the second operating medium" in lines 16-17. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. It is suggested to amend “in order to guide” to --for guiding-- so as to refer to the “flow channels (205) for guiding the second operating medium” as introduced in lines 7 and 13.
Claims 5 and 15 recite the limitation "flow channels of the top shell (200) and the bottom shell (300) formed on the top side are formed mirror-symmetrically, at least in regions, with respect to a mirror axis extending between the top shell (200) and the bottom shell (300)" in lines 2-4. This limitation is unclear as to whether “formed on the top side” also applies to the flow channels of the top shell (200) or only to the flow channels of the bottom shell (300). Are the flow channels of the top shell (200) referring to the flow channels for guiding a first operating medium (which would be on the top side of the top shell)? or is the limitation referring to the flow channels for guiding a second operating medium (which are formed between the bottom side of the top shell and the top side of the bottom shell)?
Note that if it is the former, the mirror-symmetry is unclear, as in lines 3-4, the mirror axis is between the top shell and the bottom shell (how is the flow channels on the upper side of the top shell mirror symmetric with the upper side of the bottom shell?).
It appears applicant is trying to claim one of the following two situations of mirror symmetry:
Is applicant intending for the flow channels of the top shell and the bottom shell formed on their respective top sides to be formed mirror symmetrically, at least in regions, to their respective bottom sides? (mirror axis will be within each of the top shell and bottom shell)
or
Is applicant intending for the flow channels on the bottom side of the top shell to be mirror symmetric with that on the top side of the bottom shell (with mirror axis extending between the top and bottom shell)?
For examination purposes, the claim will be treated as broadly encompassing any form of mirror symmetry of either the first or the second interpretation.
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) 1-5, 10-15, and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kim et al (US 2009/0311566, cited in PTO-892 mailed 6/18/26).
Regarding claims 1 and 11, Kim et al teaches a bipolar plate for a fuel cell system (abstract, separating plate for a fuel cell stack, figs 3-15),
wherein the bipolar plate made of a material comprising plastic (figs 3-4, note the separator plate 18 is formed by bonding the two composite sheets 30 of figure 3, paragraph [0070], the composite material may be a carbon fiber prepeg using thermoplastic resin as a matrix or a polymer containing a conductive carbon fiber, carbon black, graphite particles, and metal particles),
wherein the bipolar plate comprises a top shell (figs 3-4, note the top half of the separator plate 18 of figure 4 formed from the top composite sheet 30 shown in figure 3) and a bottom shell (figs 3-4, note the bottom half of the separator plate 18 of figure 4 formed from the bottom composite sheet 30 shown in figure 4) with respectively a top side and a bottom side that is opposite the top side (figs 3-4, top side of top half defining channels 22, bottom side of the top half defining channels for the upper portion of members 32, top side of bottom half defining channels for the lower portion of members 32, bottom side of bottom half defining channels 20),
wherein flow channels for guiding a first operating medium through the bipolar plate are formed on the top side of the top shell (fig 3, channels formed on top side of top sheet 30, fig 4, see air flow channel 22, paragraph [0078]),
wherein flow channels for guiding a second operating medium through the bipolar plate are formed between the bottom side of the top shell and the top side of the bottom shell (figs 3-4, note members 32 defining coolant channels between the bottom side of top sheet and top side of bottom sheet, note that instead of embedding members 32, removable inserts 40 can be used for formation of the cooling water flow channels between the two sheets of composite material 30, see paragraph [0081]), wherein flow channels for guiding a third operating medium through the bipolar plate are formed on the bottom side of the bottom shell (fig 3, channels formed on bottom side of bottom sheet 30, fig 4, see hydrogen flow channels 20, paragraph [0078]),
wherein the flow channels for guiding the first operating medium connect first inlet channels and first outlet channels for the first operating medium in a straight line (fig 5, note the introduction sections 50, figure 11, paragraph [0101], air flows from the introduction section 50 on one side (construed as the inlet channel), the air flow channels 22 in the channel section 24 (shown as straight lines), to the introduction section 50 on the other side (outlet channels)),
wherein the flow channels for guiding the second operating medium extend in a straight line between second inlet channels and second outlet channels for the second operating medium (fig 3-5, note introduction section 50 on one side and introduction section 50 on the other side as the inlet and outlet, and that the coolant channels defined by members 32 in channel section 24 are shown in a straight line), wherein the second inlet channels and the second outlet channels for the second operating medium extend orthogonally to the flow channels in order to guide the second operating medium (fig 5, note that the introduction sections 50 are orthogonal to the flow channels 24, see fig 7 which is along line B-B of figure 5 showing the introduction section 50 orthogonal to coolant flow channels), and
wherein the flow channels for guiding the third operating medium extend in a straight line between third inlet channels and third outlet channels for the third operating medium (fig 5, note the introduction sections 50, figure 10, paragraph [0100], hydrogen flows from the outer surface of introduction section 50 on one side (inlet channel), through the hydrogen flow channels 20 of the channel section (shown as straight lines), through the outer surface of the introduction section 50 on the other side (outlet channel)), wherein the third inlet channels and the third outlet channels for the third operating medium extend orthogonally to the flow channels for guiding the third operating medium (fig 10, note the introduction section area upstream and downstream of channels 20 shown to be orthogonal to channels 20).
Regarding claims 2 and 12, Kim et al teaches that a connection line between the second inlet channels and the second outlet channels intersects with a connection line between the third inlet channels and the third outlet channels (fig 5, note that the connection line between the second inlet and the second outlet (coolant) would be horizontal lines in figure 5 extending from 26b to 26e, fig 10, note that the connection line between the third inlet and third outlet (hydrogen) extends from the bottom left 60a to upper right 60b, thus would intersect with the connection line of the coolant).
Regarding claims 3 and 13, Kim et al teaches that the plastic is an electrically and thermally conductive thermoplastic (paragraph [0027] and [0070], thermoplastic, polymer containing a conductive carbon fiber, a carbon black, graphite particles and metal particles, paragraph [0022], excellent electrical conductivity, note that the material is inherently thermally conductive (also the plastic contains the carbon particles and metal particles which would increase the thermal conductivity)).
Regarding claims 4 and 14, Kim et al teaches that flow channels of the top shell and the bottom shell formed on their respective top sides differ at least in regions in their cross-section, and/or their orientation, and/or the number of flow channels formed on their respective bottom sides (fig 15, note that the channels differ in cross-sectional shape, as the interior channels defining the coolant channels are shaped according to the hollow members 32 shown having a circular cross-section, compared to the shape of the trapezoidal cross-section of channels 22 and 20).
Regarding claims 5 and 15, Kim et al teaches that flow channels of the top shell and the bottom shell formed on the top side are formed mirror-symmetrically, at least in regions, with respect to a mirror axis extending between the top shell and the bottom shell (see 112(b) rejection above, see Kim et al figures 3-4 and 7-8, note that a mirror axis extending between the top shell and the bottom shell as claimed will be positioned between the composite sheets 30 of figure 3 of Kim, note fig 4 in that the mirror axis will be a plane through the center of members 32, the flow channels of the bottom side of the top half are thus mirror symmetric to the flow channels on the top side of the bottom half, as the composite sheets will be shaped against the hollow members 32).
Regarding claims 10 and 20, Kim et al teaches a fuel cell system (abstract) having the bipolar plate (abstract) as claimed above.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Blunk et al (US 2002/0182473) is relevant to claim 3 as Blunk et al teaches a composite separator plate for a fuel cell having a low-carbon loading and a high-polymer loading (abstract), formed to include a percentage of conductive fibrous filler oriented to achieve desired electrical and thermal conductivity requirements (abstract).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JACKY YUEN whose telephone number is (571)270-5749. The examiner can normally be reached 9:30 - 6:00.
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/JACKY YUEN/
Examiner
Art Unit 1735
/KEITH WALKER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1735
Prosecution Insights