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 § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. In claim 3, it is claimed that the height difference H between the highest point of the cushioning portion of the cushioning module and the highest point of the cutting tooth edge is: -D<H<D, where D is the diameter of the cutting tooth. While “D” is claimed to be the diameter of the cutting tooth, it is unclear from where this diameter is being measured, as the annotation “D” is not present in the drawings. It is additionally unclear what dimension is being represented by “-D”, which is also not present in the drawings.
Claims 9 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. In claim 9, ranges measures of inclination and deflection angle are presented but it is unclear against what axes these measurements are being measured against.
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.
Claim 1 recites the limitation "the drill bit body" in line 4. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 8 recites the limitation "the PDC cutting structure" in lines 2-3. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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 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.
Claims 1, 2, and 8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Boehm (U.S. Pub. No. 2019/0078392).
Regarding Claim 1, Boehm discloses a diamond drill bit with a self-adaptive cushioning module, comprising a drill body (Boehm: 204) and a blade (Boehm: 216) extending from the drill body (Boehm: 204), the blade (Boehm: 216) being provided with cutting teeth (Boehm: 302), at least one cushioning module (Boehm: 256) being provided on the drill bit (Boehm: 202), characterized in that the cushioning module (Boehm: 256) is rotatably connected to the drill bit body (Boehm: 204), and the cushioning portion (Boehm: Paragraph [0063]) of the cushioning module (Boehm: 256) is eccentrically arranged relative to a rotation axis of the cushioning module (Boehm: 256);
When the cushioning portion (Boehm: Paragraph [0063]) of the cushioning module (Boehm: 256) in the initial position bears the impact force from the formation rock, the cushioning portion (Boehm: Paragraph [0063]) absorbs the impact load, reduces the impact force of the blade cutting teeth (Boehm: 302), and cushions the cutting teeth (Boehm: 302)(Boehm: Paragraph [0062]);
The cushioning portion (Boehm: Paragraph [0063]) of the cushioning module (Boehm: 256) is under the action of the force in contact with the bottom hole rock, and rotates relative to the cutting teeth (Boehm: 302) to perform a shrinking trend movement, so as to reduce or avoid the impact of the cushioning module (Boehm: 256) on the intrusion depth of the cutting teeth (Boehm: 302) (Boehm: Paragraph [0062]);
When the cushioning portion (Boehm: Paragraph [0063]) of the cushioning module (Boehm: 256) is out of contact with bottom hole rock or when the contact resistance torque is less than reset torque, under the action of a reset mechanism (Boehm: Paragraph [0063]: spring/actuator), the cushioning portion (Boehm: Paragraph [0063]) rotates to the initial position of the cushioning portion (Boehm: Paragraph [0063]) in a rotational manner, so as to realize a protruding tendency movement relative to the cutting teeth (Boehm: 302)(Boehm: Paragraph [0066]);
The position of the cushioning portion (Boehm: Paragraph [0063]) relative to the cutting teeth (Boehm: 302) is raised, which plays a cushioning role for the subsequent impact of the cutting teeth (Boehm: 302).
Regarding Claim 2, Boehm discloses the diamond drill bit with a self-adaptive cushioning module according to claim 1, characterized in that the cushioning module (Boehm: 256) is arranged on the blade (Boehm: 216) and is rotatably connected to the blade (Boehm: 216)(Boehm: Figure 6).
Regarding Claim 8, Boehm discloses the diamond drill bit with a self-adaptive cushioning module according to claim 1, characterized in that the cushioning module (Boehm: 256) is installed on the drill bit in which the PDC cutting structure is combined with other cutting structures comprising movable cutting structures (Boehm: Figure 6: other cutting structures on drill bit).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-7 and 11-13 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance: The use of language directed toward the additional features of the cushioning module including an eccentrically arranged cushion tooth, specifically: “the cushioning module comprises a rotating body and a cushion tooth, and the rotating body is rotatably installed in a base hole of the blade, the cushion teeth are eccentrically arranged with respect to the rotation axis of the rotating body to form a cushioning portion, and the rotating body is connected to the reset mechanism”, when combined with the other limitations of claim 4, is sufficient to distinguish the applicant’s invention from prior art and obvious variations thereof.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US 11788362 (Piston-based backup assembly for drill bit), US 20220162913 (FORCE MODULATION SYSTEM FOR A DRILL BIT), US 20160348440 (HYBRID DRILL BIT), US 20140311801 (Drill Bit with Self-Adjusting Pads), US 6142250 (Rotary drill bit having moveable formation-engaging members), US 6102142 (Drilling tool with shock absorbers), US 5560440 (Bit for subterranean drilling fabricated from separately-formed major components).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DOUGLAS S WOOD whose telephone number is (571)270-5954. The examiner can normally be reached Monday through Thursday 8:30 AM - 7:00 PM EST.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Nicole A Coy can be reached at (571) - 272 - 5405. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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DOUGLAS S. WOOD
Examiner
Art Unit 3672
/DOUGLAS S WOOD/Examiner, Art Unit 3672
/Nicole Coy/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3672
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