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 .
Response to Amendment
Claims 1, 3-9, 11-17 and 19-21 remain pending in the application. Claims 3-5 and 19 remain withdrawn from consideration.
Applicant’s arguments regarding the rejection of claims 1, 6-9, 11-17 under 35 U.S.C. 103 as unpatentable over Li in view of Wu have been fully considered, and are persuasive. The rejection is withdrawn.
Regarding Applicant’s argument that Li fails to teach the “fluid-guiding structure connecting any two adjacent fan blades”, refer to Li Fig. 1. Fig. 1 shows the fluid guiding structure 3 that is attached to each and any of the blades (There are no gaps or discontinuities in the fluid guiding structure. Where the sloped sections end, they are connected at a lower part of the same blade).
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 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 of this title, 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 1, 6-9, 11-17 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Li (US2023/0100668) in view of Lin (US6345956).
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Regarding claim 1, Li teaches a fan assembly, comprising: a hub (see annotated figure); a plurality of fan blades (2) surrounding the hub; and a fluid-guiding structure (3) connecting any two adjacent fan blades to each other, wherein each of the fan blades includes a first end connected to the hub and a second end opposite to the first end (see annotated figure), a distance between the fluid-guiding structure and the second end is less than a distance between the fluid-guiding structure and the first end (the flow-guiding structure is on the outer radial side of the blades), and the fluid-guiding structure includes at least one streamlined surface (see paragraph [0034] where Li describes the flow-guiding structure as wave-shaped or arc-shaped, which are both considered streamlined surface shapes), wherein the fluid-guiding structure comprises a first surface (the upper surface in Fig. 1) and a second surface (the lower surface in Fig. 1).
Li fails to teach the first surface and second surface intersecting each other at two intersecting lines.
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In an analogous art, Lin teaches a blower having air guiding ribs (55). Lin teaches the cross-sectional profile of the ribs can be eye-shaped (Fig. 10A) to improve the performance of the blower (See Col. 4 lines 59-67).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art to modify the fan assembly of Li and change it so that the first surface and second surface intersect each other at two intersecting lines as taught by Lin to improve the performance of the fan assembly.
Regarding claims 6-7, Li as modified teaches the fan assembly as claimed in claim 1, and further teaches both the first surface and the second surface are streamlined surfaces (see Lin Fig. 10A), wherein a first mean curvature of the first surface is equal to a second mean curvature of the second surface.
Regarding claim 8, Li as modified teaches a shaft (not shown but understood to fit in the hub to rotate the fan blades) having an axial direction, wherein when viewed along the axial direction, the fluid-guiding structure is ring-shaped (see Fig. 3, for example).
Regarding claim 9, Li as modified teaches when viewed along the axial direction, the fluid-guiding structure surrounds the hub (see Fig. 3).
Regarding claim 11, Li as modified teaches an inner axial size of an inner portion of the fan blades that is relatively close to the hub is different from an outer axial size of an outer portion of the fan blades (in Fig. 1 it is evident that on the inner radial side, a depression indicates that the fan blades are smaller in size).
Regarding claim 12, Li as modified teaches the inner axial size of the inner portion of the fan blades that is relatively close to the hub is less than the outer axial size of the outer portion of the fan blades (in Fig. 1 it is evident that on the inner radial side, a depression indicates that the fan blades are smaller in size).
Regarding claim 13, Li as modified teaches the fan blades and the fluid-guiding structure are formed integrally (Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 14, Li as modified teaches the fan blades are equally spaced apart from each other (Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 15, Li as modified teaches a heat dissipation device, comprising: a casing (paragraph [0028]); a fan frame (Li discloses brackets or clips) connected to the casing; and the fan assembly as claimed in claim 1 (see rejection of claim 1 above), wherein the fan assembly is disposed in the fan frame.
Regarding claim 16, Li as modified teaches the casing comprises a front casing and a rear casing (Li teaches an outer casing, which is understood to have a front a rear to cover the fan), and the fan frame is disposed between the front casing and the rear casing (the brackets or clips would necessarily be disposed inside the casing to hold the fan).
Regarding claim 17, Li as modified teaches the fluid-guiding structure is relatively close to the rear casing and relatively far away from the front casing (the fluid-guiding structure is skewed to one of the axial ends of the fan, as shown in Fig. 1. Thus, the fluid-guiding structure would be closer to what could be considered the rear than the front of the casing).
Regarding claim 20, Li as modified teaches the heat dissipation device as claimed in claim 15, and further teaches both the first surface and the second surface are streamlined surfaces (see Lin Fig. 10A).
Claim 21 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Li in view of Lin, and further in view of Duong et al. (US2021/0062659).
Regarding claim 21, Li as modified teaches the fan assembly of claim 1, but fails to teach a first pressure generated when a fluid flows through the first surface is different from a second pressure generated when the fluid flows through the second surface, thereby generating an axial force.
In an analogous art, Duong teaches an airfoil. Duong teaches a pressure side (448) representing a first pressure, and a suction side (449) representing a second pressure. The pressure differential generates a force known as lift (see paragraph [0028]).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art to modify the fan assembly of Li as modified and change it so that a first pressure generated when a fluid flows through the first surface is different from a second pressure generated when the fluid flows through the second surface, thereby generating an axial force as taught by Duong and as is well known in the art for generating lift.
Conclusion
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/CAMERON A CORDAY/ Examiner, Art Unit 3745
/COURTNEY D HEINLE/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3745
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