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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 2/23/2024 and 10/21/2025 was filed. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Objections
Claims 5, 8, 14, and 20 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claims 5, 14, and 20 recite “is the different from the second…” which should be amended to “is different from the second…”
Claim 8 recites “preforming a first…” and “preforming a second…” which should be amended to “pforming a first…” and “pforming a second…”
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
Claims 1, 2, 5, 6, 8, 18, and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Strelnikov (RU2674525C1) with citations made to attached machine translations.
PNG
media_image1.png
532
476
media_image1.png
Greyscale
Fig. 1 and 2 of Strelnikov
Regarding claim 1, Strelnikov teaches a method for forming a metal workpiece, comprising:
applying a concentrated energy (Pg. 6 Para. 3 heat of the welding arc 5) to a core wire (1, 2, 3), wherein the core wire (1, 2, 3) comprises at least two internal compartments (2, 3), wherein a first internal compartment (2) of the at least two internal compartments (2, 3) comprises a first powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 25-26 powder layer 2), wherein a second internal compartment (3) of the at least two internal compartments (2, 3) comprises a second powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 27-28 powder layer 3), and wherein the concentrated energy heats the core wire (1, 2, 3), the first powdered material (2), and the second powdered material (3) to generate a melted material (6) ; and
forming a metallic component (7) from the melted material (6) based on the concentrated energy (Pg. 6 Para. 3 heat of the welding arc 5).
Regarding claim 2, Strelnikov teaches the method of claim 1,
wherein the concentrated energy (5) is at least one of a direct electrical current or an alternating electrical current (Pg. 6 Para. 3 welding arc; understood to use at least one of a direct electrical current or an alternating electrical current by nature of being a welding arc).
Regarding claim 5, Strelnikov teaches the method of claim 1, wherein the core wire (1, 2, 3) is composed of a first metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 5 lines 24 metal sheath 1),
wherein the first powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 25-26 2 - core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 70 to 100% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components) is the different from the second powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 27-28 core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 0 to 20% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components),
and wherein the first metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 5 lines 24 metal sheath 1) is different than the first powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 25-26 2 - core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 70 to 100% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components) and the second powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 27-28 3- core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 0 to 20% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components).
Regarding claim 6, Strelnikov teaches the method of claim 1, wherein the metallic component (7) is formed on a substrate (Pg. 6 Para. 9 molten metal workpiece).
Regarding claim 8, Strelnikov teaches the method of claim 6, wherein the melted material (7) forms a first metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 6 Para. 7-8),
wherein the substrate is comprised of a second metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 6 Para. 9 molten metal workpiece)
and wherein the first metal or metal alloy material is different from the second metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 6 Para. 7-9 where weld point 7 includes slag-forming powder which is understood to not be in the substrate by nature of slag-forming powder only being in the wire).
Regarding claim 18, Strelnikov teaches a method of forming a metal workpiece, comprising:
receiving a core wire (1, 2, 3) comprising a first material (1), wherein the core wire comprises at least two internal compartments (2, 3), wherein a first internal compartment (2) of the at least two internal compartments (2, 3) comprises a first powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 25-26 powder layer 2), and wherein a second internal compartment (3) of the at least two internal compartments (2, 3) comprises a second powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 27-28 powder layer 3);
applying a concentrated energy (5) to heat the core wire (1, 2, 3), the first powdered material (2), and the second powdered material (3) to generate a melted material (6); and
forming a metallic component (7) from the melted material (6).
Regarding claim 20, Strelnikov teaches the method of claim 18,
wherein the core wire (1, 2, 3) is composed of a first metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 5 lines 24 metal sheath 1),
wherein the first powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 25-26 2 - core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 70 to 100% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components) is the different from the second powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 27-28 core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 0 to 20% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components),
and wherein the first metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 5 lines 24 metal sheath 1) is different than the first powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 25-26 2 - core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 70 to 100% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components) and the second powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 27-28 3- core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 0 to 20% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components).
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.
Claims 3, 7, 9-12, and 14-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Strelnikov (RU2674525C1) in view of Peters (US20150209889A1).
Regarding claim 3, Strelnikov teaches the method of claim 1, wherein a first end of a concentrated energy (5) circuit supplies an electrical current to the core wire (1, 2, 3), but is silent on and a second end of the concentrated energy circuit supplies the electrical current to a substrate.
PNG
media_image2.png
552
900
media_image2.png
Greyscale
Fig. 13 of Peters
Peters teaches a second end of the concentrated energy circuit (1310) supplies the electrical current to a substrate (S, Fig. 13).
Strelnikov and Peters are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of wires It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filling date of the claimed invention, to have modified Strelnikov to incorporate the teachings of Peters to connect the energy circuit to the substrate so that heating current may be applied to the wire and returned through a negative terminal as is generally known (Peters [0101]).
Regarding claim 7, Strelnikov teaches the method of claim 6, wherein the melted material (7) forms a first metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 6 Para. 7-8), but is silent on wherein the substrate is comprised of a second metal or metal alloy material, and wherein the first metal or metal alloy material.
Peters teaches wherein the substrate is comprised of a second metal or metal alloy material ([0109, 0113] workpiece, a structure or workpiece using a mixture of stainless steel and mild steel),
and wherein the first metal or metal alloy material ([0100] mild steel electrode, which is understood to become the melted material) is the same as the second metal or metal alloy material ([0109, 0113] workpiece, a structure or workpiece using a mixture of stainless steel and mild steel).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filling date of the claimed invention, to have modified Strelnikov to incorporate the teachings of Peters to have the substrate and melted material may be made of the same material such that a desired structure may be manufactured by a process that can operate at high speeds with a high level of precision (Peters [0003, 0113]).
Regarding claim 9, Strelnikov teaches the method of claim 1, but is silent on wherein forming the metallic component from the melted material further comprises: preforming a first deposition process to form a first layer on a substrate; and preforming a second deposition process to form a second layer over the first layer.
Peters teaches the metallic component from the melted material further comprises: preforming a first deposition process to form a first layer ([0109] L#1) on a substrate (S, Fig. 13); and
preforming a second deposition process to form a second layer ([0109] L#2) over the first layer (L#1).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filling date of the claimed invention, to have modified Strelnikov to incorporate the teachings of Peters to deposit a first and second layer, the second layer being on top of the first so that a device may be made with different heights and widths (Peters [0109]).
Regarding claim 10, Strelnikov teaches system, comprising:
a concentrated energy source (5);
a force mechanism (4);
commanding the concentrated energy source to apply a concentrated energy (Pg. 6 Para. 3 heat of the welding arc 5) to a core wire (1, 2, 3), wherein the core wire (1, 2, 3) comprises at least two internal compartments (2, 3), wherein a first internal compartment (2) of the at least two internal compartments (2, 3) comprises a first powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 25-26 powder layer 2), wherein a second internal compartment (3) of the at least two internal compartments (2, 3) comprises a second powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 27-28 powder layer 3), and wherein the concentrated energy heats the core wire (1, 2, 3), the first powdered material (2), and the second powdered material (3) to generate a melted material (6)
forming a metallic component (7) from the melted material (6) based on the concentrated energy (Pg. 6 Para. 3 heat of the welding arc 5), but is silent on a controller; and a tangible, non-transitory memory configured to communicate with the controller, the tangible, non-transitory memory having instructions stored thereon that, in response to execution by the controller, cause the controller to perform operations.
Peters teaches a controller (195); and a tangible, non-transitory memory configured to communicate with the controller (195), the tangible, non-transitory memory having instructions stored thereon that, in response to execution by the controller ([0102]), cause the controller to perform operations.
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filling date of the claimed invention, to have modified Strelnikov to incorporate the teachings of Peters to have a controller to cause the manufacturing device to move and create the manufactured object (Peters [0039]).
Regarding claim 11, Strelnikov and Peters teach the system of claim 10, and Strelnikov teaches wherein the concentrated energy (5) is at least one of a direct electrical current or an alternating electrical current (Pg. 6 Para. 3 welding arc; understood to use at least one of a direct electrical current or an alternating electrical current by nature of being a welding arc).
Regarding claim 12, Strelnikov and Peters teach the system of claim 10, and Strelnikov teaches wherein a first end of a concentrated energy (5) circuit supplies an electrical current to the core wire (1, 2, 3), but is silent on and a second end of the concentrated energy circuit supplies the electrical current to a substrate on which the metallic component is produced.
Peters teaches a second end of the concentrated energy circuit supplies the electrical current to a substrate (S, Fig. 13) on which the metallic component is produced (L#1-4).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filling date of the claimed invention, to have modified Strelnikov to incorporate the teachings of Peters to connect the energy circuit to the substrate so that heating current may be applied to the wire and returned through a negative terminal as is generally known (Peters [0101]).
Regarding claim 14, Strelnikov and Peters teach the system of claim 10, and Strelnikov teaches wherein the core wire (1, 2, 3) is composed of a first metal or metal alloy material ((Pg. 5 line 24 metal sheath 1),
wherein the first powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 25-26 2 - core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 70 to 100% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components) is the different from the second powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 27-28 core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 0 to 20% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components),
and wherein the first metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 5 lines 24 metal sheath 1) is different than the first powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 25-26 2 - core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 70 to 100% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components) and the second powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 27-28 3- core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 0 to 20% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components).
Regarding claim 15, Strelnikov and Peters teach the system of claim 10, and Strelnikov teaches wherein the metallic component (7) is formed on a substrate (Pg. 6 Para. 9 molten metal workpiece).
Regarding claim 16, Strelnikov and Peters teach the system of claim 15, and Strelnikov teaches wherein the melted material (7) forms a first metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 6 Para. 7-8), but is silent on wherein the substrate is comprised of a second metal or metal alloy material and wherein the first metal or metal alloy material.
Peters teaches wherein the substrate is comprised of a second metal or metal alloy material ([0109, 0113] workpiece, a structure or workpiece using a mixture of stainless steel and mild steel),
and wherein the first metal or metal alloy material ([0100] mild steel electrode, which is understood to become the melted material) is the same as the second metal or metal alloy material ([0109, 0113] workpiece, a structure or workpiece using a mixture of stainless steel and mild steel).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filling date of the claimed invention, to have modified Strelnikov to incorporate the teachings of Peters to have the substrate and melted material may be made of the same material such that a desired structure may be manufactured by a process that can operate at high speeds with a high level of precision (Peters [0003, 0113]).
Regarding claim 17, Strelnikov and Peters teach the system of claim 15, and Strelnikov teaches wherein the melted material (7) forms a first metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 6 Para. 7-8),
wherein the substrate is comprised of a second metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 6 Para. 9 molten metal workpiece)
and wherein the first metal or metal alloy material is different from the second metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 6 Para. 7-9 where wled point 7 includes slag-forming powder which is understood to not be in the substrate).
Claims 4 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Strelnikov (RU2674525C1) as applied to claims 1 and 18 above, and further in view of Paton (EP0301095A1) with citations made to attached machine translations.
Regarding claim 4, Strelnikov teaches the method of claim 1, wherein the core wire (1, 2, 3) is composed of a first metal or metal alloy material ((Pg. 5 line 24 metal sheath 1), and wherein the first metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 5 lines 24 metal sheath 1) is different than the first powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 25-26 2 - core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 70 to 100% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components) and the second powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 27-28 3- core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 0 to 20% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components), but is silent on wherein the first powdered material is the same as the second powdered material.
PNG
media_image3.png
356
338
media_image3.png
Greyscale
Fig. 8 of Paton
Paton teaches wherein the first powdered material is the same as the second powdered material ([0024] FIG. 8 consists of a metallic carrier 31 and a mixture 32 which is located in four symmetrical cavities 33, 34, 35 and 36).
Strelnikov and Paton are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of wires. It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filling date of the claimed invention, to have modified Strelnikov to incorporate the teachings of Paton to have the first and second powder material be the same guarantees a welding performance equal to or even higher than that of solid wires, provided there is no spatter and the welds are well formed (Paton [0008]).
Regarding claim 19, Strelnikov teaches the method of claim 18, wherein the core wire (1, 2, 3) is composed of a first metal or metal alloy material ((Pg. 5 line 24 metal sheath 1), and wherein the first metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 5 lines 24 metal sheath 1) is different than the first powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 25-26 2 - core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 70 to 100% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components) and the second powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 27-28 3- core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 0 to 20% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components), but is silent on wherein the first powdered material is the same as the second powdered material.
Paton teaches wherein the first powdered material is the same as the second powdered material ([0024] FIG. 8 consists of a metallic carrier 31 and a mixture 32 which is located in four symmetrical cavities 33, 34, 35 and 36).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filling date of the claimed invention, to have modified Strelnikov to incorporate the teachings of Paton to have the first and second powder material be the same guarantees a welding performance equal to or even higher than that of solid wires, provided there is no spatter and the welds are well formed (Paton [0008]).
Claim 13 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Strelnikov (RU2674525C1) and Peters (US20150209889A1) as applied to claim 10 above, and further in view of Paton (EP0301095A1) with citations made to attached machine translations.
Regarding claim 13, Strelnikov and Peters teach the system of claim 10, and Strelnikov teaches wherein the core wire (1, 2, 3) is composed of a first metal or metal alloy material ((Pg. 5 line 24 metal sheath 1), and wherein the first metal or metal alloy material (Pg. 5 lines 24 metal sheath 1) is different than the first powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 25-26 2 - core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 70 to 100% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components) and the second powdered material (Pg. 5 lines 27-28 3- core layer of cored wire with a percentage of metal powder from 0 to 20% by weight, and the rest is slag-forming powder components), but is silent on wherein the first powdered material is the same as the second powdered material.
Paton teaches wherein the first powdered material is the same as the second powdered material ([0024] FIG. 8 consists of a metallic carrier 31 and a mixture 32 which is located in four symmetrical cavities 33, 34, 35 and 36).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filling date of the claimed invention, to have modified Strelnikov and Peters to incorporate the teachings of Paton to have the first and second powder material be the same guarantees a welding performance equal to or even higher than that of solid wires, provided there is no spatter and the welds are well formed (Paton [0008]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ABIGAIL RHUE whose telephone number is (571)272-4615. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday, 10-6.
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, Steven Crabb can be reached at (571) 270-5095. 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.
/ABIGAIL H RHUE/Examiner, Art Unit 3761 8/14/2026
Prosecution Insights