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 .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they do not include the following reference sign(s) mentioned in the description: reference character “140” and “150” (paragraph 0079). 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. 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.
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) 1-26 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Crichlow (US 2010/0234663).
With regards to claim 1-5, 9-18 and 22-25, Crishlow discloses a hazardous waste repository system (figure 1), comprising: at least one vertical access drillhole (14) formed from a terranean surface (12) into one or more subterranean formations (16, 18; e.g. shale is one of many exemplary formations), the at least one vertical access drillhole comprising an entry sized to receive a plurality of hazardous waste canisters (38) that enclose hazardous waste into and through the at least one vertical access drillhole; a first horizontal drillhole portion (20) coupled to the at least one vertical access drillhole and sized to receive a first hazardous waste canister of the plurality of hazardous waste canisters, the first horizontal drillhole portion comprising a first hazardous waste repository area formed at a first depth within a storage subterranean formation; and a second horizontal drillhole portion (20) coupled to the at least one vertical access drillhole and sized to receive a second hazardous waste canister of the plurality of hazardous waste canisters, the second horizontal drillhole portion comprising a second hazardous waste repository area formed at a second depth within the storage subterranean formation; further comprising: a third horizontal drillhole portion (20) coupled to the at least one vertical access drillhole and sized to receive a third hazardous waste canister of the plurality of hazardous waste canisters the third horizontal drillhole portion comprising a third hazardous waste repository area formed at the first depth within the storage subterranean formation, wherein the third horizontal drillhole portion is horizontally spaced apart from the first horizontal drillhole portion by a distance; further comprising: a fourth horizontal drillhole portion coupled to the at least one vertical access drillhole and sized to receive a fourth hazardous waste canister of the plurality of hazardous waste canisters, the fourth horizontal drillhole portion comprising a fourth hazardous waste repository area formed at the second depth within the storage subterranean formation, the fourth horizontal drillhole portion horizontally spaced apart from the third horizontal drillhole portion; and further comprising: a fifth horizontal drillhole portion coupled to the at least one vertical access drillhole and sized to receive a fifth hazardous waste canister of the plurality of hazardous waste canisters, the fifth horizontal drillhole portion comprising a fifth hazardous waste repository area formed at a third depth within the storage subterranean formation (figure 1-4; paragraph 0021 and 0037-0038). Crishlow discloses the invention substantially as claimed. However, Crishlow is silent about that a difference between the first and second depths is at least as much as a vertical drilling uncertainty, the second horizontal drillhole portion horizontally spaced apart from the first horizontal drillhole portion by a distance less than a horizontal drilling uncertainty; wherein the horizontal drilling uncertainty and the vertical drilling uncertainty form an uncertainty ellipsoid; the third horizontal drillhole portion horizontally spaced apart from the second horizontal drillhole portion by a distance less than the horizontal drilling uncertainty; wherein the third horizontal drillhole portion is horizontally spaced apart from the first horizontal drillhole portion by a distance at least as much as the horizontal drilling uncertainty; the fourth horizontal drillhole portion horizontally spaced apart from the third horizontal drillhole portion by a distance less than the horizontal drilling uncertainty; a difference between the second and third depths is at least as much as the vertical drilling uncertainty, the fifth horizontal drillhole portion horizontally spaced apart from the second horizontal drillhole portion by a distance less than the horizontal drilling uncertainty. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to at the time the inventio was filed to have vertical and horizontal spacing between horizontal drilling portion as claimed, since it has been held that a mere reconfiguration of the essential working part of a device only involves routing skill in the art. In re Japikse, 181 F.2d 1019, 86 USPQ 70 (CCPA 1950). Furthermore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in in the art at the time the invention was made to have a vertical uncertainty of 3 meters and a horizontal uncertainty of 10 meters, since it has been held that discovering optimum value of a result of effective variable involves only routine skill in the art. In re Boesch, 617 2d. 272, 205 USPQ 215 (CCPA 1980). In this case one skilled in the art would have know to have a minimum spacing between borehole to prevent caving.
As to claim 6 and 19, Crishlow discloses wherein the at least one vertical access drillhole (14) comprises only one vertical access drillhole (figure 1).
As to claim 7-8 and 20-21, Crishlow discloses wherein the hazardous waste comprises radioactive waste (abstract).
As to claim 26, Crishlow discloses further comprising: moving the first hazardous waste canister (38) from the terranean surface into the first hazardous waste repository area; and moving the second hazardous waste canister (38) from the terranean surface into the second hazardous waste repository area (abstract; figure 1-10).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CARIB A OQUENDO whose telephone number is (571)270-7411. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 9am-5:30pm.
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, Amber Anderson can be reached at 571-270-5281. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/CARIB A OQUENDO/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3678
Prosecution Insights