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 of Group I, Species B, claims 1-11 in the reply filed on December 29, 2025 is acknowledged. Because applicant did not distinctly and specifically point out the supposed errors in the restriction requirement, the election has been treated as an election without traverse (MPEP § 818.01(a)). Claims 12-22 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention or species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.
Specification
Applicant is reminded of the proper language and format for an abstract of the disclosure.
The abstract should be in narrative form and generally limited to a single paragraph on a separate sheet within the range of 50 to 150 words. It is important that the abstract not exceed 150 words in length since the space provided for the abstract on the computer tape used by the printer is limited. The form and legal phraseology often used in patent claims, such as "means" and "said," should be avoided. The abstract should describe the disclosure sufficiently to assist readers in deciding whether there is a need for consulting the full patent text for details.
The language should be clear and concise and should not repeat information given in the title. It should avoid using phrases which can be implied, such as, "The disclosure concerns," "The disclosure defined by this invention," "The disclosure describes," etc.
The abstract of the disclosure is objected to because it contains phrases which can be implied (“Disclosed embodiments include”). Correction is required. See MPEP § 608.01(b).
Claim Objections
Claims 4, 8 and 9 are objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 4 line 2, “the same” would be clearer if written as --a same--.
In claim 8, twice in line 2, “pressure line” would be clearer if written as --pressure lines--.
In claim 8 line 5, “approximately parallel” would be clearer if written as --substantially parallel--.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claims 1-3, 5-7 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by U. S. Patent Publication 2023/0392478 Han.
Referring to claim 1, Han discloses a system for pumping fluid downhole into a well, comprises:
two pump banks (C, D) fluidly coupled to a wellbore (1-7) (Figures 3 and 7; paragraphs [0019]-[0031] and [0033], wherein the brine pumps and the slurry pumps are all in fluid communication with the manifold 315 for eventual delivery to the wellbore),
wherein each of the pump banks (C, D) comprises a plurality of pumping units (Figures 3 and 7; paragraphs [0019]-[0031] and [0033]), and
wherein each pump bank (C, D) has a red zone (zone around machinery and piping that is unsafe for people), and each pump bank (C, D) is disposed outside the red zone of the other pump bank (Figures 3 and 7; paragraphs [0019]-[0031] and [0033], wherein the barriers 761, 763 and 765 isolate the pump banks from each other such that their respective red zones do not overlap).
Referring to claim 2, Han discloses a system comprising all the limitations of claim 1, as detailed above and further discloses a system wherein:
the two pump banks (C, D) are disposed with a space therebetween, and the space therebetween is substantially open (Figures 2, 3 and 7; paragraphs [0019]-[0031] and [0033], wherein the barrier is disclosed as 0.25 to 6 inches and therefore does not consume much of the open space between the pump banks).
Referring to claim 3, Han discloses a system comprising all the limitations of claim 2, as detailed above and further discloses a system wherein:
the two pump banks (C, D) comprise a first dirty pump bank (C) and a second dirty pump bank (D) wherein each of the pump banks (C, D) comprises a plurality of pumping units (Figures 3 and 7; paragraphs [0019]-[0031] and [0033]).
Referring to claim 5, Han discloses a system comprising all the limitations of claim 3, as detailed above and further discloses a system comprising:
a clean pump bank (A, B); wherein the clean pump bank (A, B) comprises a plurality of pumping units; wherein the clean pump bank (A, B) is fluidly coupled to the first and second dirty pump banks (C, D) (they all discharge to the manifold 315); wherein the first dirty pump bank (C) and the clean pump bank (A, B) are disposed with a space therebetween, and the space therebetween is substantially open; wherein the second dirty pump bank (D) and the clean pump bank (A, B) are disposed with a space therebetween, and the space therebetween is substantially open; and wherein at least one of the pump banks (A-D) is disposed in proximity to the red zone of another of the pump banks (A-D) (Figures 2, 3 and 7; paragraphs [0019]-[0031] and [0033], wherein the barrier is disclosed as 0.25 to 6 inches and therefore does not consume much of the open space between the pump banks).
Referring to claim 6, Han discloses a system comprising all the limitations of claim 5, as detailed above and further discloses a system wherein:
the first (C) and second (D) dirty pump banks are each configured to be fluidly isolated from the clean pump bank (A, B) (Figures 3 and 7; paragraphs [0019]-[0031] and [0033], wherein in paragraph [0024] it is disclosed that either bank of dirty pumps can be “turned off and depressurized for performing maintenance” while the remaining dirty pump bank and clean pump banks continue to operate, which means that the dirty pumps are configured to be fluidly isolated from the clean pump bank as claimed).
Referring to claim 7, Han discloses a system comprising all the limitations of claim 6, as detailed above and further discloses a system wherein:
the clean pump bank (A, B) is configured to be fluidly isolated from both the first (C) and second (D) dirty pump banks simultaneously (Figures 3 and 7; paragraphs [0019]-[0031] and [0033], wherein it is disclosed that either bank of brine pumps can be “turned off and depressurized for performing maintenance” while the remaining clean pump bank and dirty pump banks continue to operate, which means that the clean pumps are configured to be fluidly isolated from the dirty pump bank as claimed).
Referring to claim 10, Han discloses a system comprising all the limitations of claim 7, as detailed above and further discloses a system comprising:
a controller (at least the remotely controlled actuators), wherein the controller is configured to control fluid isolation of pump banks in the system (Figures 3 and 7; paragraphs [0019]-[0031] and [0033], wherein it is disclosed that either bank of brine pumps can be “turned off and depressurized for performing maintenance” while the remaining clean pump bank and dirty pump banks continue to operate, and that either bank of dirty pumps can be “turned off and depressurized for performing maintenance” while the remaining dirty pump bank and clean pump banks continue to operate, which means that the clean pumps and dirty pumps are each configured to be fluidly isolated from the other dirty and clean pump banks as claimed).
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 4 and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U. S. Patent Publication 2023/0392478 Han.
Referring to claim 4, Han teaches a system comprising all the limitations of claim 3, as detailed above, and while the size of bank C and bank D in Fig. 7 are the same, which implies that they contain the same number of pumps, such is not explicitly disclosed. However, Figure 3 shows dirty pump banks B and C being of the same size and comprising a same number of pumping units (Figures 3 and 7; paragraphs [0019]-[0031] and [0033]).
It would have been obvious before the invention was effectively filed, to a person having ordinary skill in the art, to modify the system taught by Han Figure 7 with the dirty pump banks having the same number of dirty pumps as taught by Han Figure 3 in order to use the appropriate number of pumps to provide the needed flow for the operation being performed by the system.
Referring to claim 11, Han teaches a system comprising all the limitations of claim 3, as detailed above, and further teaches that the red zone extends around high pressure equipment (the Examiner notes that high pressure is defined in paragraph [0048] of the Applicant’s specification as filed) which has an increased probability of leaking or failing and states that the area around high pressure pumps is a red zone.
It would have been obvious before the invention was effectively filed, to a person having ordinary skill in the art, that the red zones taught by Han include the high pressure pumps as disclosed (paragraph [0020]), in the form of rotational equipment or the drivers therefore as is well known in the art, and also includes other high pressure equipment as explicitly disclosed in paragraph [0020].
Claims 8 and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U. S. Patent Publication 2023/0392478 Han in view of U. S. Patent Publication 2023/0024323 to Fripp.
Referring to claim 8, Han teaches a system comprising all the limitations of claim 3, as detailed above, but is silent as to the physical details of the high pressure lines. Fripp teaches a system wherein:
each dirty pump bank (115a-d) further comprises one or more high-pressure line; wherein for each dirty pump bank (115a-d), the one or more high-pressure line comprises a primary high-pressure line, and each of the corresponding plurality of pumping units (120a-d) is fluidly coupled to the corresponding primary high-pressure line for the dirty pump bank (115a-d); and wherein the primary high-pressure line for first (115a) and second (115b) dirty pump banks extend approximately parallel to each other Fig. 1, annotated below; paragraphs [0026]-[0028]).
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Annotation of Fripp Figure 1.
It would have been obvious before the invention was effectively filed, to a person having ordinary skill in the art, to modify the system taught by Han with the high pressure lines taught by Fripp in order to connect all the pumps for operation as disclosed.
Referring to claim 9, Han and Fripp teach a system comprising all the limitations of claim 8, as detailed above, and Han further teaches a system wherein:
the red zone for the first dirty pump bank (C) does not extend to encompass a primary high-pressure line corresponding to the second dirty pump bank (D), and the red zone for the second dirty pump bank (D) does not extend to encompass the primary high-pressure line corresponding to the first dirty pump bank (C) (Figures 3 and 7; paragraphs [0019]-[0031] and [0033], wherein the barriers 761, 763 and 765 isolate the pump banks from each other such that their respective red zones do not overlap and as such the primary high-pressure line connected directly to the second dirty pump bank D, that is in the red zone therefore, cannot also be in the red zone for the first dirty pump bank C, and the high-pressure line connected directly to the first dirty pump bank C, that is in the red zone therefore, cannot also be in the red zone for the second dirty pump bank D).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Shampine and Scott teach similar systems as claimed.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRYAN MATTHEW LETTMAN whose telephone number is (571)270-7860. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8am-4pm.
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/BRYAN M LETTMAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3746