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 17 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, because the specification, while being enabling for at least two monitoring sensors, does not reasonably provide enablement for how the method of monitoring a single melt pool would be achieved using at least two monitoring sensors belonging to separate additive manufacturing machines. The specification does not enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make the invention commensurate in scope with these claims. Correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112(b)
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 17 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b), as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor, regards as the invention. In particular, it is unclear how at least two monitoring sensors from separate machines are monitoring the same melt pool. Correction is required.
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.
Claims 10-13, 15-16, and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Pub. 2019/0323951 (“Gold”) in view of WO2021/015729 (“Garcia”).
Claim 10
Gold discloses a method for calibrating a melt pool monitoring sensor (38) in a melt pool monitoring system (361, 362) of an additive manufacturing machine (10) (Fig. 5), the method comprising at least the following steps: exposing the monitoring sensor (38) to the reference radiation (72) (Fig. 5, step 310); measuring and recording a value of the signal transmitted by the monitoring sensor (38) when the monitoring sensor (38) is exposed to the reference radiation (Fig. 5, step 320); calculating a correction coefficient for the monitoring sensor (38) from a reference value associated with the reference radiation and the values of the signal transmitted by the monitoring sensor (38) when the monitoring sensor (38) is not subjected to the reference radiation and when the monitoring sensor (38) is subjected to the reference radiation (paragraph [0049], calibration calculated).
Gold does not appear to explicitly disclose measuring and recording a value of a signal transmitted by the monitoring sensor (38) when the monitoring sensor (38) is not exposed to a reference radiation (72); and recording in a correction table the correction coefficient for the monitoring sensor (38) and the value of the signal transmitted by the monitoring sensor (38) when the monitoring sensor (38) is not exposed to the reference radiation (72).
Garcia discloses sensor calibration for an additive manufacturing device including recording of signals from the sensors to determine offset calibration (paragraph [0041-0045, 0057]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have incorporated measuring and recording a value of a signal transmitted by the monitoring sensor when the monitoring sensor is not exposed to a reference radiation; and recording in a correction table the correction coefficient for the monitoring sensor and the value of the signal transmitted by the monitoring sensor when the monitoring sensor is not exposed to the reference radiation, as disclosed by Garcia, into the device of Gold, for the purpose of providing more robust and reliable calculations for calibration (Garcia, paragraph 0045]).
Claim 11
Gold in view of Garcia discloses the method according to claim 10, wherein the correction table associated with the monitoring sensor (38) is recorded in the melt pool monitoring system of which the monitoring sensor (38) forms a part (Garcia, paragraph [0057], stored temperature offset).
Claim 12
Gold in view of Garcia discloses the method according to claim 10, wherein, an electronic gain of the monitoring sensor (38) being adjustable, the electronic gain is adjusted to a predefined value before the steps of measuring and recording the values of the signal transmitted by the monitoring sensor (38) (Gold, paragraph [0057], adjusting electronic gain).
Claim 13
Gold in view of Garcia discloses the method according to claim 12, wherein the electronic gain of the monitoring sensor (38) is set at a maximum before the steps of measuring and recording the values of the signal transmitted by the monitoring sensor (38) (Gold, paragraph [0057], adjusting electronic gain).
Claim 15
Gold in view of Garcia discloses the method according to claim 10, wherein the method is implemented with at least two different monitoring sensors, the method comprising at least the following steps: measuring and recording the value of the signal transmitted by each monitoring sensor (38) when each monitoring sensor (38) is not exposed to a reference radiation (72); exposing each monitoring sensor (38) to the reference radiation (72); measuring and recording the value of the signal transmitted by each monitoring sensor (38) when each monitoring sensor (38) is exposed to a reference radiation; calculating a correction coefficient for each monitoring sensor (38) from the reference value associated with the reference radiation and the values of the signal transmitted by each monitoring sensor (38) when each monitoring sensor (38) is not subjected to the reference radiation and when each monitoring sensor (38) is subjected to the reference radiation; and recording in the correction table the correction coefficient for each monitoring sensor (38) and the value of the signal transmitted by each monitoring sensor (38) when each monitoring sensor (38) is not exposed to the reference radiation (72).
Claim 16
Gold in view of Garcia discloses the method according to claim 15, wherein the method is implemented with at least two monitoring sensors belonging to the same additive manufacturing machine (Gold, paragraph [0035], plurality of sensors).
Claim 18
Gold in view of Garcia discloses the method according to claim 10, wherein the method is applied to one or more sensors for monitoring a melt pool in one or more machines for additive manufacturing by powder bed deposition and selective melting (Gold, paragraph [0003]).
Claim 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Pub. 2019/0323951 (“Gold”) in view of WO2021/015729 (“Garcia”), further in view of U.S. Patent Pub. 2022/0324026 (“Beckett”).
Claim 14
Gold in view of Garcia discloses the method according to claim 10, wherein, the reference radiation to which the monitoring sensor (38) is exposed originating from a light source calibrated with respect to a light intensity and wavelength (Gold, paragraph [0049]).
Gold in view of Garcia discloses a calibrated light source but does not appear to explicitly disclose the calibrated light source comprises a filament lamp equipped with a device for adjusting a light output power.
Beckett discloses an additive manufacturing device including a calibrated light source of a filament lamp for melting (paragraph [0094]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have incorporated the calibrated light source comprises a filament lamp equipped with a device for adjusting a light output power, as disclosed by Beckett, into the device of Gold in view of Garcia, for the purpose providing a higher signal to noise ratio with smaller deviation of data (Beckett, paragraph [0086]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ERICA S Y LIN whose telephone number is (571)270-7911. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8-4, TW M,W.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Douglas X Rodriguez can be reached at (571) 431-0716. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ERICA S LIN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2853