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 Objections
Claims 3, 4 and 9 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Regarding claim 3, the claim language lacks proper antecedent basis for the phrase "the lower sides";
Regarding claim 4, the claim language lacks proper antecedent basis for the phrase "the upper sides";
Regarding claim 9, the claim language lacks proper antecedent basis for the phrase "the flow rate";
Appropriate correction is required.
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 1-10 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.
Regarding claim 1, the claim language lacks proper antecedent basis for the phrase “the other side” and introduces ambiguity as to where “the other side” is located in. It is unclear whether the claim language is referring to the side adjacent to “one side of the body part,” directly opposite to “one side of the body part,” or if its location is in relation to some other part of the claimed “body part,” rendering the claim indefinite.
Regarding claim 8 and 9, the phrase “approximately” is a term of degree and renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear whether the limitation(s) following the phrase are part of the claimed invention. In this case, it is unclear to what degree of deviation is acceptable in the claim language “approximately 6mm” in claim 8. Similarly, it is unclear to what degree of deviation is acceptable on the upper and lower bounds of the range “approximately 5.6 LPM to 11 LPM” in claim 9. For example, is “approximately” referring to +/- 1mm above and below 6mm, or +/- 0.1mm? Is “approximately” referring to only within the range 5.6-11 LPM, or +/- 1mm above and below the given range? See MPEP § 2173.05(d).
Regarding claim 10, the claim language lacks proper antecedent basis for the phrases “the other side of the brazing object,” “the other side of the cooling module,” and “the other side of the body part” as they introduce ambiguity as to where “the other sides” are located in relation to an undisclosed part in each of the claimed components, similar to claim 1.
Claims 2-7 inherit the above deficiencies and are rejected to due to dependency upon rejected-to claim.
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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Xu et al., CN 110280865 A.
Claim 1. Xu discloses a cooling module for cooling an object to be brazed, the cooling module comprising: (Xu, Fig. 2 shows a fixing sleeve 2 and cooling cover 3 corresponding to the claimed cooling module, where the electrode body 1 corresponding to the claimed object to be brazed.
Examiner’s Note: Xu discloses a brazing method for the manufacture of a plasma electrode using a fitting sleeve and a cooling module.)
a body part having a contact part in contact with the object to be brazed and cooling the object to be brazed; (Xu, Fig. 2 shows the fixing sleeve 2 in contact with the electrode body 1, which is cooled by the cooling cover 3, the fixing sleeve 2 and cooling cover 3 collectively corresponding to the claimed body part.)
a first nipple connected to one side of the body part and having a first supply flow path for receiving fluid from the outside; and a second nipple connected to the other side of the body part and having a first discharge flow path for discharging the fluid to the outside, (Xu, Fig. 2 shows a protrusion on the left side of the cooling cover with a cooling water injection port 5, and a similar protrusion on the right side of the cooling cover with a cooling water discharge port 7, annotated below.)
wherein the body part includes: a second supply flow path formed inside the body part so as to be connected to the first supply flow path; (Xu, Fig. 2 shows a left, descending portion of the cooling water circulation chamber 6 connected to the injection port 5 corresponding to the claimed second supply flow path, annotated below.)
a second discharge flow path formed inside the body part so as to be connected to the first discharge flow path; and (Xu, Fig. 2 shows a right, ascending portion of the cooling water circulation chamber 6 connected to the discharge port 7 corresponding to the claimed second discharge flow path, annotated below, annotated below.)
a connection flow path positioned to be adjacent to the contact part of the body part and connecting the second supply flow path and the second discharge flow path. (Xu, Fig. 2 shows the lower, conical part of the cooling water circulation chamber 6 corresponding to the claimed connection flow path, connecting the second supply flow and discharge paths together, positioned adjacent to the contact part of the body part, annotated below.)
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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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 2-4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Xu et al., CN 110280865 A, in view of Loong et al., US Patent Application Publication No. 20130264701 A1.
Claim 2. Xu discloses the cooling module according to claim 1.
Xu does not explicitly disclose wherein the connection flow path includes: a plurality of first connection flow paths formed in parallel and spaced apart from each other; and a plurality of second connection flow paths disposed between the plurality of first connection flow paths.
Loong discloses wherein the connection flow path includes: a plurality of first connection flow paths formed in parallel and spaced apart from each other; and (Loong, Fig. 7 shows a similar U-shaped enclosure 70 between inlet and outlet nozzles 60 and 62, where enclosure 70 houses fins 30 that subdivide the coolant flow into different, parallel channels, corresponding to the claimed first connection flow paths shown further in Fig. 8 annotated below.)
a plurality of second connection flow paths disposed between the plurality of first connection flow paths. (Loong, Fig. 8 shows a second set of channels partitioned by fins 30 between the first set of channels, corresponding to the claimed second connection flow paths, annotated below.)
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Xu and Loong are analogous art because they are related to a cooling apparatus. Xu does not explicitly disclose a connection flow path subdivided into a plurality of flow paths that are parallel and spaced apart from each other. Loong discloses a similar U-shaped coolant flow enclosure 70, similar to the water circulation chamber 6 of Xu, where the enclosure 70 that connects the inlet flow and the outlet flow are subdivided into parallel channels. Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the water circulation chamber 6 of Xu with fins as taught by Loong. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make such a modification in order to “maximize the surface area where the cooling liquid contacts the barrier because the larger the surface area, the more area available to transfer heat… surface area can be further increased by increasing the number of fins, pins, or other structures, or by increasing the surface area of each fin, pin, or structure” (see Loong, [0037]).
Claim 3. Modified Xu discloses the cooling module according to claim 2,
wherein the lower sides of the plurality of first connection flow paths are formed to become narrower as they go downward. (Loong, [0045] and Fig. 4 shows how the fins 30 are cut using a tool 34, which has a wedge shape, forming the channels 36 between fins 30 that tapers at the bottom, annotated below.)
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Claim 4. Modified Xu discloses the cooling module according to claim 3,
wherein the plurality of second connection flow paths are disposed between the lower sides of the plurality of first connection flow paths, (Loong, Fig. 4 shows channels 36, annotated below as first and second connection flow paths. The one example of a second connection flow path between the first connection flow paths extend between the lower sides of the plurality of first connection flow paths, annotated above.)
the upper sides of the plurality of second connection flow paths are formed to be spaced apart from the plurality of first connection flow paths at a certain interval, and (Loong, Fig. 4 shows the upper side of the second connection flow paths are spaced apart from the first connection flow paths at an interval that is the width of the fins 30.)
the lower sides of the plurality of second connection flow paths are formed to become farther away from the plurality of first connection flow paths as they go downward. (Loong, Fig. 4 shows that the second connection flow paths are similarly tapered at the lower sides due to the wedge shaped cutter, corresponding to the claimed formed to become farther away from the plurality of first connection flow paths as they go downward.)
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Xu et al., CN 110280865 A, in view of Saito et al., JP 6607058 B2.
Claim 5. Xu discloses the cooling module according to claim 1.
Xu does not explicitly disclose which further includes a moving part that is connected to the body part and moves the body part in a vertical direction.
Saito discloses which further includes a moving part that is connected to the body part and moves the body part in a vertical direction. (Saito, Fig. 5 shows a plurality of support bodies 43 that aid the plurality of cooling bodies 41 in moving in the vertical direction; and [0049] “As shown in FIG. 5, the support body 43 includes movable parts 431 and 432 and a pressing part 433. The movable parts 431 and 432 have a configuration for allowing the cooling body 41 to tilt. The pressing part 433 has a configuration for pressing the cooling body 41 downward.”)
Xu and Saito are analogous art because they are related to a cooling apparatus. Xu does not explicitly disclose a moving part connected to the body part to enable it to move in the vertical direction. Saito discloses a support body 43 with a pressing part 433 that has a compression spring 433b that applies a reaction force when compression load is applied (see Saito, [0057]). Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the cooling module of Xu with a support body 43 similar to Saito, including a pressing part 433 with a compression spring 433b. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make such a modification in order to ensure firm contact with the object to be brazed to ensure optimal heat transfer and prevent thermal deformation during welding (see Saito, [0002]).
Claim(s) 8-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Xu et al., CN 110280865 A, in view of Galyon et al., US Patent Application Publication No. 5016090 A.
Claim 8. Xu discloses the cooling module according to claim 1.
Xu does not explicitly disclose wherein the first nipple has an inner diameter of approximately 6 mm.
Galyon discloses wherein the first nipple has an inner diameter of approximately 6 mm. (Galyon, col. 4 line 51 “The holes 502 act as nozzles, increasing the velocity of the water as it travels through. The hole diameter, geometry, and density can be varied depending on the performance desired. An exemplary hole would be circular and have a diameter of 0.7 mm.”)
Claim 9. Xu discloses the cooling module according to claim 8.
Xu does not explicitly disclose wherein the flow rate of the fluid flowing through the first nipple is approximately 5.6 LPM to 11 LPM.
Galyon discloses wherein the flow rate of the fluid flowing through the first nipple is approximately 5.6 LPM to 11 LPM. (Galyon, col. 4 line 51 “The holes 502 act as nozzles, increasing the velocity of the water as it travels through. The hole diameter, geometry, and density can be varied depending on the performance desired. An exemplary hole would be circular and have a diameter of 0.7 mm”; and col. 7 line 29 “The inlet and outlet channels are separated to assist in uniform or customized flow distribution (i.e. channel pitch, size, and high can vary to control flow rate as dictated by device power).”)
Regarding claims 8 and 9, Xu and Galyon are analogous art because they are related to cooling apparatuses. Although Xu does not explicitly disclose an inlet with an inner diameter of approximately 6 mm or a fluid flow rate of 5.6 LPM to 11 LPM, Galyon teaches that the varying diameter of holes, which act as nozzles, directly affect the velocity of water as it travels through the opening and consequently the performance of the cooling apparatus, establishing hole diameter and the flow rate as a result-effective variables. Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the injection port 5 of Xu with a sufficient diameter, thus also varying the flow rate, based on the cooling performance desired. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make such a modification since the diameter of the inlet directly affect the velocity of water as it enters the water circulation chamber 6 and the efficiency of heat transfer of the cooling module, and it has been held that discovering an optimum or workable range, or an optimum value of a result effective involves only routine skill in the art (see MPEP § 2144.05 II. A.).
Claim(s) 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Aoyama et al., US Patent Application Publication No. 20050284847 A1, in view of Xu et al., CN 110280865 A.
Claim 10. Aoyama discloses a brazing apparatus including: (Aoyama, [0016], [0023] and [0027] describes an invention for projection welding a part 2 which is a projection bolt with a stem 3, flange 4 and a welding projection 5, to a mating member (not shown) which may be a steel plate part, using an upper and lower electrode.)
a first fixing part capable of contacting one side of a brazing object and provided with a first electrode; (Aoyama, Fig. 4 shows a lower electrode 1, corresponding to the claimed “first fixing part” with an end cover 10 that contacts part 2 and the steel plate part, corresponding to the claimed brazing object.)
a second fixing part capable of contacting the other side of the brazing object and provided with a second electrode electrically connected to the first electrode through the brazing object; (Aoyama, [0027] “That is, though illustration is omitted, if the electrode 1 shown in FIG. 4 is a lower electrode, then an upper electrode is positioned thereabove,” where the upper electrode corresponding to the claimed second fixing part.
Examiner’s Note: the upper and lower electrode function as a pair of electrodes in double sided welding operations such as welding a projection bolt to a steel plate part, as disclosed by Aoyama.)
a supply hose […] supplying fluid […] and a discharge hose […] discharging the fluid […] (Aoyama, Fig. 4 shows an inlet pipe 34 and an outlet pipe 35 for supplying and discharging cooling water to the system.)
Aoyama does not explicitly disclose a cooling module for cooling the brazing object; [a supply hose] connected to one side of the cooling module and [supplying fluid] to the cooling module; [and a discharge hose] connected to the other side of the cooling module and [discharging the fluid] of the cooling module to the outside, wherein the cooling module includes: a body part having a contact part in contact with the brazing object; a first nipple connected to one side of the body part and provided with a first supply flow path connected to the supply hose to receive the fluid; and a second nipple connected to the other side of the body part and provided with a first discharge flow path connected to the discharge hose to discharge the fluid to the outside, wherein the body part includes: a second supply flow path formed inside the body part so as to be connected to the first supply flow path; a second discharge flow path formed inside the body part so as to be connected to the first discharge flow path; and a connection flow path positioned to be adjacent to the contact part of the body part and connecting the second supply flow path and the second discharge flow path.
Xu discloses a cooling module for cooling the brazing object; (Xu, Fig. 2 shows a fixing sleeve 2 and cooling cover 3 corresponding to the claimed cooling module.)
[a supply hose] connected to one side of the cooling module and [supplying fluid] to the cooling module; and [a discharge hose] connected to the other side of the cooling module and [discharging the fluid] of the cooling module to the outside, (Xu, Fig. 2 shows the cooling module for the brazing object itself has an inlet and outlet that is part of its structure for injecting and discharging cooling fluid from the system.)
wherein the cooling module includes: a body part having a contact part in contact with the brazing object; (Xu, Fig. 2 shows the fixing sleeve 2 in contact with the electrode body 1, which is cooled by the cooling cover 3, the fixing sleeve 2 and cooling cover 3 collectively corresponding to the claimed body part.)
a first nipple connected to one side of the body part and provided with a first supply flow path connected to the supply hose to receive the fluid; and a second nipple connected to the other side of the body part and provided with a first discharge flow path connected to the discharge hose to discharge the fluid to the outside, (Xu, Fig. 2 shows a protrusion on the left side of the cooling cover with a cooling water injection port 5, and a similar protrusion on the right side of the cooling cover with a cooling water discharge port 7, annotated below.)
wherein the body part includes: a second supply flow path formed inside the body part so as to be connected to the first supply flow path; (Xu, Fig. 2 shows a left, descending portion of the cooling water circulation chamber 6 connected to the injection port 5 corresponding to the claimed second supply flow path, annotated below.)
a second discharge flow path formed inside the body part so as to be connected to the first discharge flow path; and (Xu, Fig. 2 shows a right, ascending portion of the cooling water circulation chamber 6 connected to the discharge port 7 corresponding to the claimed second discharge flow path, annotated below, annotated below.)
a connection flow path positioned to be adjacent to the contact part of the body part and connecting the second supply flow path and the second discharge flow path. (Xu, Fig. 2 shows the lower, conical part of the cooling water circulation chamber 6 corresponding to the claimed connection flow path, connecting the second supply flow and discharge paths together, positioned adjacent to the contact part of the body part, annotated below.)
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Aoyama and Xu are analogous art because they are related to heat management for a brazing apparatus. Although Aoyama does not explicitly disclose a cooling module for the brazing object, it has a cooling module for the guide sleeve 12 which “requires sufficient cooling in terms of heat” and by extension also cools the end cover, “thereby preventing the end cover from obtaining abnormally high temperatures” which reduces the warping of the end cover 10 by the flange 4 of the projection bolt part 2 from high heat during welding (see Aoyama, [0004] and [0006]). The cooling system of Aoyama shown Fig. 4 shows an inlet 34, a cooling passage 32 and an outlet 35 cooling the electrode being used to braze an object. Similarly, Xu has a cooling system with a cooling water injection port 5, a cooling water circulation chamber 6, and a colling water discharge port 7, in the same orientation as the cooling system of Aoyama. However, the cooling injection, circulation and discharge sections of Xu are part of the collective cooling module made up of a fixing sleeve 2 and a cooling cover 3 in order to cool the object to be brazed, which is the electrode body 1 fitted into the sleeve. Where Aoyama does not specifically detail the projection bolt being cooled by the cooling system, Xu’s cooling system is designed to specifically cool the object being brazed.
Aoyama also teaches a welding-side 7 detachable from fixed-side member 8 through threads 9, the welding-side 7 being the component that the inlet and outlet pipes are attached to in order to supply the cooling water. Similarly, the injection port 5 and the discharge port 7 of Xu are directly built into the cooling system made up of the fixing sleeve 2 and cooling cover 3. Unlike Aoyama, who’s cooling system is meant to cool the electrode being used to braze the object, the corresponding flow path of Xu is optimized to cool the object to be brazed via the fixing sleeve 2 and cooling cover 3 that is collectively the cooling module.
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the detachable lower part of the welding-side 7, and corresponding the guide sleeve 12 and the end cover 10 of Aoyama with the cooling injection, circulation and discharge configuration of the cooling system of Xu in order to extend the cooling system and consequently supply cooling water to cool projection bolt being brazed. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make such a modification in order to more efficiently prevent the projection bolt 2 from achieving high temperatures during welding capable of warping the end cover, thus decreasing the need for replacing the warped parts of the electrode (see Aoyama, [0003]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 6 and 7 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.
Xu in view of Saito, as detailed above in claim 5, is considered the closest prior art to the claimed invention. Modified Xu differs from the claimed invention in that it does not explicitly disclose wherein the body part includes: a first coupling part formed to protrude outward from the body part and provided with a first coupling hole; and a second coupling part formed to protrude outward from the body part, disposed on a side opposite to the first coupling part and provided with a second coupling hole, […] a third coupling part protruding from the moving body part to correspond to the first coupling part and provided with a third coupling hole corresponding to the first coupling hole; a fourth coupling part protruding from the moving body part to correspond to the second coupling part, disposed on a side opposite to the third coupling part and provided with a fourth coupling hole corresponding to the second coupling hole; a first bolt inserted through the first coupling hole and the third coupling hole to be bolt-coupled thereto; and a second bolt inserted through the second coupling hole and the fourth coupling hole to be bolt-coupled thereto.
Regarding claim 6, Saito discloses a plurality of support bodies 43 moving in the vertical direction corresponding to the claimed moving part with a predetermined length along the vertical direction, and also discloses a plurality of cooling bodies 41 corresponding to the claimed body part, but both the moving part and the body part lack any protrusions that serve as coupling locations in order to attach the parts to each other via a plurality of coupling holes and bolts.
Regarding claim 7, Saito discloses a singular spring 433b inside each support body 43 which corresponding to the claimed elastic part, but does not disclose multiple springs surrounding the bolts between the first and third, and second and fourth coupling parts in the orientation described in the claim language of claim 6.
Although Saito uses similar components movable in the vertical direction in order to facilitate firm contact of the cooling module to the welded workpiece for optimal heat transfer and preventing thermal deformation, Saito fails to teach or suggest the specific coupling part protrusion structures as claimed. Accordingly, one of ordinary skill in the art would not consider it obvious to modify the cooling apparatus of Xu using the configuration found in Saito to arrive at the claimed invention as required in claims 6 and 7.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KRYSTENE NHELLE B MACEDA whose telephone number is (571)272-2380. The examiner can normally be reached M-Th 7:30a-5:00p.
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/K.B.M./Examiner, Art Unit 3761
/JUSTIN C DODSON/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3761
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