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 .
This office action is in response to the application of 3/13/2024.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the first runner and the second runner must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities: the first runner and the second runner have not been assigned part numbers.
Appropriate 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.
Claim 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kondo (JP 2004286404 A) in view of Siefert (DE 102005052163 A).
Kondo discloses a liquid-cooling heat exchange device at least comprising a box body 1, wherein the box body is internally provided with a temperature control component (the combination of at least a pump 2 and a tank 4, see the Abstract), a first pipeline 9/10, and a second pipeline 7/8; the temperature control component has a first runner (in 9/10 according to the definition of a “runner” which is an open channel) and a second runner (in 7/8 according to the definition of a “runner” which is an open channel), the runners being respectively connected to the first pipeline and the second pipeline to form a first loop and a second loop wherein the first loop and the second loop exchange heat through contact [0017, 0021]; and the first pipeline is provided with a filter 5 component to ensure that a fluid flowing along the first loop flows through the filter component (Abstract and [0026]). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made that the filter would comprise an external shell housing a filter element. Kondo does not disclose the shell being detachable connected to the first pipeline. Seifert teaches a heat exchanger 1 comprising a filter 5 in which the filter comprises a shell and is detachably connected to the heat exchanger. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to have replaced the filter of Kondo with a filter that detachable as taught by Siefert so the filter can be replaced when necessary. Regarding claim 2, Kondo also discloses the first pipeline comprising a container inlet pipe and a container return pipe of a container 4, and the container inlet and outlet pipes are respectively connected to the ends of the first runner (of 9/10), and the container inlet and outlet pipes are connected to the container as recited such that a liquid inside the container flows through the first loop and exchanges heat with the second loop. Regarding claim 3, a pump 2 is arranged on the container inlet pipe, and the liquid inside the container circulates along the first loop by the pump. Regarding claim 4, both the container inlet pipe and the container return pipe are provided with the filter as recited, since fluid flows from the container to the pump and the filter and returns to the container. Claim 5 would have involved a mere change in the shape of an object and the location of an object which are generally recognized as being within the level of ordinary skill in the art when the device will still carry its intended functions with the arrangements.
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kondo in view of Siefert as applied to claim 5 above, and further in view of Schmidt.
Schmidt teaches a cooling circuit comprising sensors to measure the electrical conductivity of the coolant so the coolant circuit can be turned off when necessary. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the invention was made to have provided an electrical conductivity meter to measure the electrical conductivity of a cooling medium so that the coolant circuit can be turned off when necessary (page 4, paragraph 2) as taught by Schmidt.
carry its intended functions with the arrangements.
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kondo in view of Siefert as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Ohazama et al. (JP 2016148476 A).
Ohazama et al. teaches a cooling device 11 comprising a coolant temperature sensor S to help control the operations of the device. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the invention was made to have modified the prior art device by providing a coolant temperature sensor to help control the operations of the device as taught by Ohazama et al.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8-10 are 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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Davis Hwu whose telephone number is (571)272-4904.
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/DAVIS D HWU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3763