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
Claims 28-31 and 34 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 01/14/2026.
Applicant's election with traverse of species 1, Fig. 3, in the reply filed on 01/14/2026 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that the requirement for election of species did not describe the mutually exclusive characteristics of the species. This is not found persuasive because the characteristics are readily distinguishable based upon the Figures identified in the requirement. Furthermore, applicant has, in the aforementioned reply, correctly identified those claims and the language therein which describe features of one species to the exclusion of the other species. Specifically:
Claim 24 recites the projections of the radial channel respective outlets falling within the range of the projection of the stator winding specific to Fig. 3 and 7, which is not present in the other recited Figures.
Claim 26 recites the axial width of the annular channel > the axial width of the radial channel and the radial width of the annular channel > the radial width of each axial channel specific to Fig. 3 and 7, which is not present in the other recited Figures.
Claim 28 recites an annular extension part specific to Fig. 10 and 13, which is not present in the other recited Figures.
Claim 33 recites the axial channel passing through the first end plate along the axial direction of the motor specific to Fig. 3 and 7, which is not present in the other recited Figures.
Claim 34 recites bosses and cavities specific to Fig. 13, which are not present in the other recited Figures.
Claim 39 recites features similar to claims 24 and 33 specific to Fig. 3 and 7, which is not present in the other recited Figures.
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 01/03/2025 and 06/06/2025 are being considered by the examiner.
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.
(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.
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.
Claims 21-27 and 32-33 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by HOSSAIN (US 20140009015).
Regarding claim 21, HOSSAIN discloses a motor comprising:
a stator (24);
an end cover (61); and
a housing (6), wherein the housing (6) is configured to install the stator (24) and the end cover (61), the stator (24) and the end cover (61) are adjacently arranged along an axial direction (48) of the motor (see Fig. 1), the end cover (61) comprises an outer circumferential surface, a side surface, and an internal channel (90), the outer circumferential surface comprises at least one liquid inlet (94) configured to receive coolant through the housing (6)(see para [0013]), the side surface faces the stator (24) and comprises a plurality of liquid outlets (104,106,108), and the internal channel (90) is configured to connect to the at least one liquid inlet (94) and the plurality of liquid outlets (104,106,108) (see Fig. 1 and 3).
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Regarding claim 22, HOSSAIN discloses the motor according to claim 21, wherein the internal channel (90) comprises a radial channel and an axial channel (see Fig. 3), the radial channel is configured to connect to the at least one liquid inlet (94), the axial channel is configured to connect to the plurality of liquid outlets (104,106,108), and the radial channel is connected to the axial channel.
Regarding claim 23, HOSSAIN discloses the motor according to claim 22, wherein a width of the radial channel along the axial direction (48) of the motor is greater than a width of the axial channel along a radial direction of the motor (Fig. 3).
Regarding claim 24, HOSSAIN discloses the motor according to claim 22, wherein the axial channel passes through the side surface along the axial direction (48) of the motor (see Fig. 3), the stator (24) comprises a stator core (28) and a stator winding (30) wound around the stator core (28), and a projection of the radial channel or the plurality of liquid outlets (104,106,108) along the axial direction (48) of the motor falls within a range of a projection of the stator winding (30) along the axial direction (48) of the motor (see Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 25, HOSSAIN discloses the motor according to claim 22, wherein the internal channel (90) comprises at least one radial channel, an annular channel, and a plurality of axial channels, and the at least one radial channel is connected to the plurality of axial channels through the annular channel (see para [0014] and Fig. 2 and 3).
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Regarding claim 26, HOSSAIN discloses the motor according to claim 25, wherein a width of the annular channel along the axial direction (48) of the motor is greater than a width of the radial channel along the radial direction of the motor, and a width of the annular channel along the radial direction of the motor is greater than a width of each axial channel along the radial direction of the motor (see Fig. 3).
Regarding claim 27, HOSSAIN discloses the motor according to claim 24, wherein the plurality of liquid outlets (104,106,108) comprises an annular protrusion (84), the annular protrusion (84) faces the stator (24), the stator (24) comprises the stator core (28) and the stator winding (30), an inner diameter of the annular protrusion (84) is less than a diameter of the axial channel, and, along the radial direction of the motor, a spacing between the annular protrusion (84) and an axis of the motor is less than a spacing between an outer circumferential surface of the stator winding (30) and the axis of the motor (see Fig. 1 and 2).
Regarding claim 32, HOSSAIN discloses the motor according to claim 22, wherein the end cover (61) comprises a first end plate (84) and a second end plate (61) along the axial direction (48) of the motor, the first end plate (84) is away from the second end plate (61), the first end plate (84) is closer to the stator (24) than the second end plate (61), an annular gap is located between the first end plate (84) and the second end plate (61), the annular gap is used as an annular channel, and the radial channel is connected to the axial channel through the annular channel (see Fig. 1-3).
Regarding claim 33, HOSSAIN discloses the motor according to claim 32, wherein the axial channel passes through the first end plate (84) along the axial direction (48) of the motor (see Fig. 3).
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.
Claim 35 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over HOSSAIN in view of FUKUSHIMA (US 20100052441).
Regarding claim 35, HOSSAIN discloses the motor according to claim 32, wherein the housing (6) comprises: a bottom wall that faces the stator (24), wherein the bottom wall is used as the second end plate (61), an annular gap is comprised between the bottom wall and the first end plate (84), and the annular gap is used as the annular channel; and a peripheral side wall (14) that surrounds the bottom wall
However, HOSSAIN does not disclose the peripheral side wall comprises a liquid injection opening, wherein the liquid injection opening passes through the peripheral side wall along a radial direction of the motor and the liquid injection opening is configured to transmit coolant to the at least one liquid inlet.
FUKUSHIMA discloses cooling system for a motor wherein a peripheral side wall 2 that comprises a liquid injection opening 7a, wherein the liquid injection opening passes through the peripheral side wall along a radial direction of the motor and the liquid injection opening is configured to transmit coolant to at least one liquid inlet 5 (see Fig. 2).
It 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 to provide the motor of HOSSAIN with the peripheral side wall comprises a liquid injection opening, wherein the liquid injection opening passes through the peripheral side wall along a radial direction of the motor and the liquid injection opening is configured to transmit coolant to the at least one liquid inlet, similar to FUKUSHIMA.
A person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains would have been motivated to make such modification in order to provide the oil supply with a common, predetermined pressure to be distributed throughout the system, as taught by FUKUSHIMA (see para [0021])
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FUKUSHIMA
Claims 36-40 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over HOSSAIN in view of JUNG (WO 2020130200).
Regarding claim 36, HOSSAIN discloses a powertrain comprising; a motor, wherein the motor comprises a stator (24), an end cover (61), and a housing (6), the housing (6) is configured to install the stator (24) and the end cover (61), the stator (24) and the end cover (61) are adjacently arranged along an axial direction (48) of the motor (see Fig. 1), the end cover (61) comprises an outer circumferential surface, a side surface, and an internal channel (90), the outer circumferential surface comprises at least one liquid inlet (94), the at least one liquid inlet (94) is configured to receive coolant through the housing (6)(see para [0013]), the side surface faces the stator (24) and comprises a plurality of liquid outlets (104,106,108), the internal channel (90) is configured to connect to the at least one liquid inlet (94) and the plurality of liquid outlets (104,106,108) and an output shaft (44) of the motor (see Fig. 1 and 3).
However, HOSSAIN does not disclose the output shaft is in a transmission connection to an input shaft of a speed reducer or a gearbox.
JUNG discloses a similar powertrain with a motor attached to a gearbox (see BACKGROUND).
It 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 to provide the motor of HOSSAIN attached a gearbox, similar to JUNG.
A person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains would have been motivated to make such modification in order to convert the disclosed torque output of HOSSAIN to provide motive force to a vehicle, as is well known in the art (see HOSSAIN para [0002])
Regarding claim 37, HOSSAIN in view of JUNG teaches the powertrain according to claim 36, wherein the internal channel (90) comprises a radial channel and an axial channel, the radial channel is configured to connect to the at least one liquid inlet (94), the axial channel is configured to connect to the plurality of liquid outlets (104,106,108), and the radial channel is connected to the axial channel (see Fig. 3).
Regarding claim 38, HOSSAIN in view of JUNG teaches the powertrain according to claim 37, wherein a width of the radial channel along the axial direction (48) of the motor is greater than a width of the axial channel along a radial direction of the motor (see Fig. 3).
Regarding claim 39, HOSSAIN in view of JUNG teaches the powertrain according to claim 37, wherein the axial channel passes through the side surface along the axial direction (48) of the motor, the stator (24) comprises a stator core (28) and a stator winding (30), the stator winding (30) is wound around the stator core (28), and a projection of the radial channel or the plurality of liquid outlets (104,106,108) along the axial direction (48) of the motor falls within a range of a projection of the stator winding (30) along the axial direction (48) of the motor (see Fig. 1 and 3).
Regarding claim 40, HOSSAIN discloses the powertrain according to claim 37, wherein the internal channel (90) comprises at least one radial channel, an annular channel, and a plurality of axial channels, and the at least one radial channel is connected to the plurality of axial channels through the annular channel (see para [0014] and Fig. 2 and 3).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US-20200389062-A1 SAKAI discloses radial, annular, and axial channels and a plurality of liquid outlets in a range of a projection of a stator; US-20210036581-A1 NONAKA discloses an end cover with radial, annular, and axial channels and a plurality of liquid outlets in a range of a projection of a stator; US-20230421017-A1 Hake discloses an end cover with radial, annular, and axial channels and a plurality of liquid outlets in a range of a projection of a stator; US-20240048009-A1 LUO discloses an end cover with radial, annular, and axial channels and a plurality of liquid outlets in a range of a projection of a stator.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JUSTIN STEFANON whose telephone number is (703)756-4648. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Thursday and alternate Fridays 8AM - 5PM EDT.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Oluseye Iwarere can be reached at (571) 270-5112. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JUSTIN STEFANON/Examiner, Art Unit 2834
/OLUSEYE IWARERE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2834