DETAILED ACTION
The Amendment filed 05/27/26 has been entered. Claims 1-20 are currently pending, with claims 18-20 being newly added. Despite the claim amendments, the previous 102 and 103 rejections are maintained as detailed below. In addition, new drawing and specification objections as well as 112 rejections are detailed below. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the “elastomer spring comprising: an elastomer body made from one piece…; and a preload component…wherein the preload component is made in one piece,” must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). See claim 1. “Elastomer body 2” is discussed in the specification with regard to Figures 5-7, but this reference numeral does not appear in those figures. The specification states that “the elastomer body has at least one further, in particular two or three further, in particular identically shaped preload component.” See Application, at para. [0031]. So, it would seem that the “elastomer body 2” is composed of one or more “preload components 17,” rather than what claim 1 and 8 recite -- that the elastomer spring comprises a one-piece elastomer body AND a one-piece preload component. No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities: claim 1 recites the “elastomer spring comprising: an elastomer body made from one piece…; and a preload component…wherein the preload component is made in one piece,” must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). However, “Elastomer body 2” is discussed in the specification with regard to Figures 5-7, but this reference numeral does not appear in those figures. The specification states that “the elastomer body has at least one further, in particular two or three further, in particular identically shaped preload component.” See Application, at para. [0031]. So, it would seem that the “elastomer body 2” is composed of one or more “preload components 17,” rather than what claim 1 and 8 recite -- that the elastomer spring comprises a one-piece elastomer body AND a one-piece preload component.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claims 1-20 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.
Claim 1 recites the “elastomer spring comprising: an elastomer body made from one piece…; and a preload component…wherein the preload component is made in one piece,” must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). However, “Elastomer body 2” is discussed in the specification with regard to Figures 5-7, but this reference numeral does not appear in those figures. The specification states that “the elastomer body has at least one further, in particular two or three further, in particular identically shaped preload component.” See Application, at para. [0031]. So, it would seem that the “elastomer body 2” is composed of one or more “preload components 17,” rather than what claim 1 and 8 recite -- that the elastomer spring comprises a one-piece elastomer body AND a one-piece preload component.
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 1-20 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 1-20 are rejected because claims 1 and 8 use the phrase “one piece.” Applicant’s Figure 8 shoes various layers of elastomeric bodies interposed between a plurality of layers of disks, but this still constitutes “one piece.” Applicant is not specific here about what “one-piece” means – inseparable, or integral, or all made of a single material, or something else?
Claim 20 recites that the upper and lower “sides” are plates, but then is the “elastomer body” and/or the “preload component” still a “one piece” component. Defining a “side” as a “plate” (or disk) is confusing terminology – rather than an end/surface of a component, this claim seems to be referring to a different component.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Trede
Claim(s) 1-5, 8-14 and 17-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Trede (DE 10 2012 205090). Trede is directed to a gearbox mounting of a wind turbine. See Abstract.
Claim 1: Trede discloses an elastomer spring (41) [Fig. 9] for an azimuth brake (17) of an azimuth drive [see Translation (“yaw brakes 11, which serve to lock the azimuth adjustment of the rotor…gear 15 has a rotor brake 17”)] adapted to track a nacelle with a rotor (4, 5) relative to a tower (2) of a wind turbine (1), the elastomer spring comprising: an elastomer body (41) made from one piece and including upper and lower sides (top/bottom of 41) each pointing in a spring direction of the elastomer body and being adapted to transmit a spring force in the spring direction; and a preload component (41) connecting the upper and the lower sides, the preload component having a concavely curved lateral surface [see Fig. 9 (sides of 41)], wherein the preload component is made in one piece with the upper and the lower sides. See Fig. 9; see 112 rejection above.
Claim 2: Trede discloses that the preload component is adapted to elastically compress during compression such that a curvature of the lateral surface decreases. See Fig. 9.
Claim 3: Trede discloses that the preload component is adapted to expand during deflection such that a curvature of the lateral surface increases. See Fig. 9.
Claim 4: Trede discloses that the preload component is adapted to elastically compresses during compression, building up an elastic deformation restoring force, such that the elastomer body is adapted to transmit the deformation restoring force as a preload force in the spring direction via the upper and the lower sides. See Fig. 9.
Claim 5: Trede discloses that the elastomer body includes at least one further preload components, wherein the preload components and the at least one further preload component are arranged in series in the spring direction. See Fig. 9.
Claim 8: Trede is relied upon as in claim 1 above. Trede further discloses an azimuth brake for an azimuth drive adapted to track a nacelle with a rotor (4, 5) relative to a tower (2) of a wind turbine (1), the azimuth drive (10) having an azimuth ring (71, 72) [see Fig. 2] connected to the tower in a rotationally fixed manner [see Translation; Fig. 9], the azimuth brake comprising: a sliding disk (80) in sliding contact with the azimuth ring of the azimuth drive that is preloaded by the elastomer spring. See Figs. 2-5.
Claim 9: Trede discloses a nacelle-fixed receptacle adapted for the elastomer spring such that the elastomer spring is translationally displaceable. See Fig. 9.
Claim 10: Trede discloses that the elastomer spring includes at least two clamping sections arranged at a distance from one another in the spring direction of the elastomer spring, the at least two clamping sections being in circumferential contact with the receptacle and being connected to one another via a concavely curved lateral surface. See Fig. 9.
Claim 11: Trede discloses that the at least two clamping sections are supported on the receptacle when the elastomer spring is compressed to increase the preload force on the sliding disk such that the at least to clamping sections are moved towards each other and the curvature of the lateral surface decreases. See Fig. 9.
Claim 12: Trede discloses that the preload force is adjustable via a degree of compression of the elastomer spring. See Fig. 9.
Claim 13: Trede discloses a mechanical, hydraulic, or pneumatic unit adapted to compress the elastomer spring. See Fig. 9 (mechanical).
Claim 14: Trede discloses an azimuth drive adapted to track a nacelle having a rotor relative to a tower of a wind turbine, the azimuth drive comprising: at least one servomotor (10); and an azimuth brake according to claim 8. See Figs. 1, 9.
Claim 17: Trede discloses that the nacelle-fixed receptacle adapted for the elastomer spring such that the elastomer spring and the sliding disk is translationally displaceable. See Fig. 9.
Claim 18: Trede discloses that the elastomer body is rotationally shaped and axially symmetrical with respect to a center axis. See Figs. 10, 11, 14, 15.
Claim 19: Trede discloses that the lateral surface has a constant radius of curvature and is circumferentially closed with respect to a longitudinal direction of the elastomer body. See Figs. 10, 11, 14, 15.
Claim 20: Trede discloses that the upper and lower sides each comprise a planar disc or plate. See Translation (spring “may be made in a known manner by a layering of metallic plates and interposed elastic material”).
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.
Trede in view of Bonnet
Claim(s) 6-7 and 15-16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bonnet (U.S. Patent No. 7,819,624). Bonnet is directed to a suspension system. See Abstract. Also of note is that this reference was explicitly referred to in the Trede reference.
Claim 6: Trede is relied upon as in claims 1 and 5 above but does not disclose detailed features of the elastomer spring, namely that each component is separated by a “cutting disc.” Bonnet discloses an elastomer spring for use in a nacelle of a wind turbine, wherein two adjacent preload components, of the preload component and the at least one further preload component, are separated from each other by a cutting disc adapted to remain undeformed during compression and/or extension. See Fig. 4a. It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art at the effective filing date of the invention to include these features because Trede explicitly refers to the Bonnet reference in its specification, for details on the elastomer spring in connection with a nacelle or a wind turbine.
Claim 7: Bonnet discloses that the cutting disc has a same shape and/or outer dimension as the upper and the lower sides. See Fig. 4a.
Claims 15 and 16: Bonnet discloses that the elastomer spring is made of a cast elastomer, specifically polyurethane. See col. 4, line 53.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 05/27/26 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant traverses the 102 rejection because Trede allegedly does not disclose an elastomer spring for an azimuth brake. See Remarks, page 6. Applicant focuses on yaw brakes 11 and points to no connection with the housing of the gearbox 15, depicted in Figure 9, which the rejection points to. In response, the Trede “azimuth brake” is the “rotor brake 17,” which is connected to the gearbox 15, as seen in Figure 1.
Next, Applicant asserts that Trede element 41 has composite flat bodies and that this differs from a preload component made in one piece with upper and lower sides. See Remarks, pages 6-7. In response, it is clear from the Drawings and dependent claim 20 (which recites that the sides can be a “plate” or “disk”) that a flat body is acceptable. Applicant also mentions an embodiment discussed in Trede regarding the inclusion of layers of metallic plates interposed between elastic material, but this is only one embodiment. This does not appear in Figure 9. Regardless, this still constitutes “one piece,” just like Applicant’s Figure 8 shoes various layers of elastomeric bodies interposed between a plurality of layers of disks, still constituting “one piece.” Applicant is not specific here about what “one-piece” means – inseparable, or integral, or all made of a single material, or something else?
Finally, in response to applicant's argument that Bonnet is nonanalogous art, it has been held that a prior art reference must either be in the field of the inventor’s endeavor or, if not, then be reasonably pertinent to the particular problem with which the inventor was concerned, in order to be relied upon as a basis for rejection of the claimed invention. See In re Oetiker, 977 F.2d 1443, 24 USPQ2d 1443 (Fed. Cir. 1992). In this case, Bonnet is also directed to an elastomer spring adapted for damping in the tower of a wind turbine, where the spring includes a series of preload components (elastomeric bodies) with sides that a laterally concave-curved, and may include disks/plates interposed therebetween. Simply put, this is as close to analogous as it gets for a teaching reference. Applicant’s argument is without merit. If Bonnet further discussed an azimuth brake, then it would be used as a 102 reference.
For the foregoing reasons, all pending claims remain rejected as detailed above.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
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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VISHAL SAHNI
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3657
/VISHAL R SAHNI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3616 June 8, 2026
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