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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Invention I, claims 1-11, in the reply filed on 04/09/2026 is acknowledged.
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.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 1-4, 7, and 9-11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Momo (JP2007186627, citations based on machine translation provided).
Regarding claim 1, Momo teaches a reaction apparatus (Figure 1 and 3) comprising:
a cylindrical reaction furnace including a supply port configured to receive a raw material to be supplied at one end and a discharge port configured to discharge a reaction product at another end [0014];
a temperature control region including a heating apparatus or a cooling apparatus configured to control a temperature of the reaction furnace at a predetermined position in an intermediate part between the supply port and the discharge port [0015]-[0016];
a screw extending from the one end of the reaction furnace to the other end thereof configured to be able to convey the raw material supplied from the supply port toward the discharge port by rotating (Figure 1, 3, and 4 and [0015]);
a first fluid control region including a first fluid inlet configured to allow a first fluid to pass through the reaction furnace in a predetermined region in the intermediate part (Figure 1, item 11A);
a small collection port (Figure 1, item 58 and [0058]) suitable for use as a first outlet; and
a second fluid control region including a second fluid inlet configured to allow a second fluid to pass through a region different from the first fluid control region in the intermediate part (Figure 1, item 11B).
However, Momo teaches a plurality of inlet supply ports [0058]- [0060]. While the supply ports of Momo are not used as fluid outlets, given that the inlets are ports accessing the cavity of reaction apparatus, the inlets are capable of fluid outlets.
Regarding claim 2, Momo teaches the apparatus as applied to claim 1, further comprising a screw drive apparatus capable of varying a rotation speed of the screw (Figure 1, item 15 and [0058]-[0059]).
Regarding claim 3, Momo teaches the apparatus as applied to claim 1, wherein the screw has a structure in which a pitch of projections for conveying the raw material varies in a convey direction (Figure 1c and [0067] and [0092]).
Regarding claim 4, Momo teaches the apparatus as applied to claim 1, wherein the screw including a projection having a surface or arrangement forming an angle in a range of 0 degrees to 180 degrees with respect to the convey direction for the purpose of retaining, stirring, mixing, kneading, or grinding the raw material (Figure 1 and [0015]).
Regarding claim 7, Momo teaches the apparatus as applied to claim 1, further comprising an airflow stirring part including a blowing hole for generating an airflow inside the reaction furnace in the intermediate part (Figure 1, item 12).
Regarding claim 9, Momo teaches the apparatus as applied to claim 1, wherein the reaction furnace comprises a plurality of the supply ports capable of receiving a plurality of different raw materials at the one end of the reaction furnace (Figure 1).
Regarding claim 10, Momo teaches a reaction system comprising a first reaction apparatus and a second reaction apparatus, the first reaction apparatus and the second reaction coupled in series (Figure 3 and 4 and [0077]-[0080]).
Momo does not explicitly teach a first and second fluid outlet and the first and section reaction apparatus are the reaction apparatus of claim 1.
In a single reaction apparatus embodiment, Momo teaches the reaction apparatus (Figure 1 and 3) comprising:
a cylindrical reaction furnace including a supply port configured to receive a raw material to be supplied at one end and a discharge port configured to discharge a reaction product at another end [0014];
a temperature control region including a heating apparatus or a cooling apparatus configured to control a temperature of the reaction furnace at a predetermined position in an intermediate part between the supply port and the discharge port [0015]-[0016];
a screw extending from the one end of the reaction furnace to the other end thereof configured to be able to convey the raw material supplied from the supply port toward the discharge port by rotating (Figure 1, 3, and 4 and [0015]);
a first fluid control region including a first fluid inlet configured to allow a first fluid to pass through the reaction furnace in a predetermined region in the intermediate part (Figure 1, item 11A);
a small collection port (Figure 1, item 58 and [0058]) suitable for use as a first outlet; and
a second fluid control region including a second fluid inlet configured to allow a second fluid to pass through a region different from the first fluid control region in the intermediate part (Figure 1, item 11B).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date of the invention to modify the reaction apparatus system of Momo with a plurality of reaction furnaces, as taught by Momo.
However, Momo teaches a plurality of inlet supply ports [0058]- [0060]. While the supply ports of Momo are not used as fluid outlets, given that the inlets are ports accessing the cavity of reaction apparatus, the inlets are capable of fluid outlets.
Regarding claim 11, Momo teaches a reaction system comprising a first reaction apparatus and a second reaction apparatus, the first reaction apparatus and the second reaction coupled in series (Figure 3 and 4 and [0077]-[0080]), thereby providing a kneader or granulator suitable for kneading or granulating prior to the second reaction apparatus.
Momo teaches the second reaction apparatus (Figure 1 and 3) comprising:
a cylindrical reaction furnace including a supply port configured to receive a raw material to be supplied at one end and a discharge port configured to discharge a reaction product at another end [0014];
a temperature control region including a heating apparatus or a cooling apparatus configured to control a temperature of the reaction furnace at a predetermined position in an intermediate part between the supply port and the discharge port [0015]-[0016];
a screw extending from the one end of the reaction furnace to the other end thereof configured to be able to convey the raw material supplied from the supply port toward the discharge port by rotating (Figure 1, 3, and 4 and [0015]);
a first fluid control region including a first fluid inlet configured to allow a first fluid to pass through the reaction furnace in a predetermined region in the intermediate part (Figure 1, item 11A);
a small collection port (Figure 1, item 58 and [0058]) suitable for use as a first outlet; and
a second fluid control region including a second fluid inlet configured to allow a second fluid to pass through a region different from the first fluid control region in the intermediate part (Figure 1, item 11B).
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Momo (JP2007186627, citations based on machine translation provided), as applied to claim 1, in further view of Yao (PG-PUB 2004/0076073).
Regarding claim 5, Momo teaches the apparatus as applied to claim 1.
Momo does not teach a plurality of the screws arranged in parallel inside the reaction furnace.
Yao teaches an agitator in different shapes [0046] in an apparatus for mixing, kneading milling, compressing, melting, dissolving, reducing, or reaction [0047]. Yao teaches an embodiment of using a single agitator or two agitators disposed in parallel (Figure 7 and [0045]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date of the invention to modify the apparatus of Momo, in particularly a single screw configuration, with a double screw configuration as taught by Yao, a known suitable screw configuration for reacting and mixing as taught by Yao.
Claim(s) 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Momo (JP2007186627, citations based on machine translation provided), as applied to claim 1, in further view of Cal (PG-PUB 2020/0101642).
Regarding claim 6, Momo teaches the apparatus as applied to claim 1.
Momo does not teach each of the first or second fluid control region includes a fluid discharge mechanism configured to forcibly discharge a fluid from the reaction furnace.
Cal teaches an apparatus comprising a reactor which houses the plastic material to be purified, an opening connected to a vacuum pump, stirrers to ensure the stirring of the plastic material inside of the reactor, and a heading mechanism (Figure 1 and 2). Cal teaches a plurality of degassing ports coupled to vacuum pumps (Figure 2, [0054], [0081], [0083], [0085].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing date of the invention to modify the apparatus of Momo with a port and vacuum pump as taught by Cal, to yield the predictable result of degassing and venting contaminant vapor.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 8 is 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.
Regarding claim 8, the cited prior art do not teach or suggest the airflow stirring part has a labyrinth structure in which the blowing hole includes a bent part. The combination of limitations of claim 8 would not have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art.
Conclusion
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HANA C. PAGE
Examiner
Art Unit 1745
/HANA C PAGE/Examiner, Art Unit 1745
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