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 .
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.
Claim(s) 1-3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Johnston (US PGPub No. 2009/0200004).
Regarding claim 1, Campagna discloses a heat exchange structure (Figs. 1-5) comprising:
a flow channel (channels around tubes 8-14) thermally coupled with another flow passage (tubes 8-14) stacked on each other in a stacking direction (a horizontal stacking direction in Fig. 1); and
a path-configuration portion provided in the flow channel (baffles 18-21 and the structure of plurality of openings in the channels around the tubes 8-14);
wherein the path-configuration portion includes:
wall portions (support plates 18-21) forming a path (a meander path, defined by the baffles 18-21) of a main flow of a fluid (a vertical main flow of a fluid, Fig. 1); and
a porous body (the plurality of openings between the tubes 8-14) provided in the path and having permeability to the fluid (the plurality of openings allows a flow of the fluid and thus they have a permeability to the fluid); and wherein
wherein the wall portions (the support plate 20 and more or all support plates in the heat exchanger 1 were combined support plates 35, paragraph 0040) have permeability to the fluid (each combined support plate 35 has windows 42 that are permeable to the fluid); and
the permeability of the wall portions is lower than the permeability of the porous body to the fluid (the permeability of the combined support plate 35 is inherently lower than the openings of the plurality of openings between the tubes 8-14, since the metal support elements 40 take up a space within the openings between the tubes 8-14).
Regarding claim 2, Campagna further discloses wherein the wall portions (support plates 18-21) include surfaces (a flat surface of the support plates 18-21) extending (from its respective side of a shell 3) in a direction orthogonal to a longitudinal direction of the flow channel (orthogonal to vertical direction of the flow in Fig. 1), and
the wall portions are arranged with intervals in the longitudinal direction of the flow channel (a spacing between the support plates 18-21 in the vertical direction of Fig. 1) and are displaced (one support plates 18-21 extends from one side of the shell 3, another support plates 18-21extends from another side of the shell 3) in a direction parallel to the extending direction of the surfaces (both support plates are parallel to their respective extending direction of the flat surface).
Regarding claim 3, Campagna further discloses wherein the wall portions (support plates 18-21) are formed in plate shapes (see Fig. 1) extending in a longitudinal direction of the flow channel (horizontal direction of Fig. 1, from its respective side of a shell 3), and the wall portions are arranged in parallel with each other (the support plates 18-21 are parallel shown Fig. 1) with intervals in a width direction of the flow channel (the support plates 18-21 are spaced in vertical direction of Fig. 1).
Claim(s) 1, 5, 6 and 8-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Campagna (US Patent No. 8,272,431).
Regarding claim 1, Campagna discloses a heat exchange structure (Figs. 1 and 2) comprising:
a flow channel (channels around conduits 28) thermally coupled with another flow passage (conduits 28) stacked on each other in a stacking direction (a stacking direction of the hexagonal shaped foam body 30 in Fig. 2); and
a path-configuration portion provided in the flow channel (foam body 30);
wherein the path-configuration portion includes:
wall portions (hexagonal walls bordering each hexagonal shaped foam unit 30) forming a path (a meander path, defined by baffles 24 and carried by the hexagonal walls of the foam 30) of a main flow of a fluid (a fluid flow from inlet 20 to outlet 22, Fig. 1); and
a porous body (a radially intermediate portion of the foam 30 beneath the hexagonal walls of the foam 30) provided in the path and having permeability to the fluid (the intermediate portion provided in the channels around the conduits 28 and has a permeability to the fluid); and wherein
the wall portions have permeability to the fluid, and the permeability of the wall portions is lower than the permeability of the porous body to the fluid (according to paragraph 0019, foam 32 may be formed with a lower percentage of void space at a radially inner (i.e., near conduit 28) and/or a radially outer portion of foam body 30 as compared to a percentage of void space at a radially intermediate portion (i.e., between the inner and outer portions) of foam body 30. Therefore, the hexagonal walls of the metal foam 30 may have a lower percentage of void space having lower permeability compared to the radially intermediate portion of the metal foam 30).
Regarding claim 5, Campagna further discloses wherein each of the wall portions is made of an assembly of blocks (each hexagonal wall is made of the assembly of each hexagonal shaped foam unit 30).
Regarding claim 6, Campagna further discloses wherein the wall portions are metal foams formed of open celled bodies (each hexagonal wall is metal foams at outer portions of metal foam body 30 and the foam has open pores).
Regarding claim 8, Campagna further discloses wherein the porous body is formed of an assembly of blocks (the foam body is formed of hexagonal foam blocks 32, see Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 9, Campagna further discloses wherein the porous body is a metal foam formed of an open celled body (paragraph 0019, the foam body 30 is a metal foam, comprises hexagonal foam bodies or cells 32, and each cell 32 is open which conduits 28 may traverse).
Regarding claim 10, Campagna further discloses wherein the path-configuration portion is continuously disposed from an inlet of the flow channel (20) to an outlet of the flow channel (22).
Regarding claim 11, Campagna further discloses wherein the path-configuration portion is divided into sections arranged along the flow channel (the foam body 30 is divided into sections by the baffles 24).
Regarding claim 12, Campagna in claim 11 further discloses wherein the divided path-configuration portions are arranged at intervals along the flow channel (the sections of the foam body 30 is at intervals defined by the thickness of the baffles 24).
Regarding claim 13, Campagna in claim 12 further discloses wherein the intervals between the divided path-configuration portions or lengths of the divided path-configuration portions vary stepwise along the flow channel (a shown in Fig. 1, the length of the section of the foam body 30 that is closest to the inlet 20 is the shortest, the length of the section of the foam body 30 in the middle is the longest, and the length of the section of the foam body 30 that is closest to the outlet 22 is between the two other sections. Hence their lengths vary stepwise along the channel).
Regarding claim 14, Campagna further discloses wherein the permeability of the porous body varies stepwise according to a position of the porous body in the flow channel (according to paragraph 0019, foam 32 may be formed with a lower percentage of void space at a radially inner (i.e., near conduit 28) and/or a radially outer portion of foam body 30 as compared to a percentage of void space at a radially intermediate portion (i.e., between the inner and outer portions) of foam body 30).
Regarding claim 15, Campagna further discloses wherein the path-configuration portion is formed separately from the flow channel (baffles 24 and foam body 30 are separate structures in the channels around conduits 28).
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(s) 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Campagna (US PGPub No. 2009/0084520) in view of Laumen (WO 91/08432 A1).
Regarding claim 16, Campagna fails to disclose wherein a catalyst is supported on the porous body.
Laumen discloses a catalyst is coated onto a sintered packing (paragraph 0015).
Therefore, a catalyst may be coated onto the metal foam 30 of Campagna so that the heat exchanger of Campagna becomes a heat exchanging reactor allowing the heat to be supplied or received from fluid reactants.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have provided wherein a catalyst is supported on the porous body in Campagna in view of Laumen in order to produce chemical products from reactants through the heat exchanger.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 11/19/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
In response to applicant’s argument that Campagna’s baffle 24 must be disclosed as having a permeable structure, the “wall portions” in claim 1 only requires “wall portions forming a path of a main flow of a fluid”. Therefore, the hexagonal walls are wall portions of the foam 30 of Campagna, which are porous themselves, form a fluid path within the walls and the fluid path is a part of a general meandering flow. The hexagonal walls have a less permeability due to a less void space compared to the intermediate side of the foam 30 as specified in paragraph 0019 of Campagna.
Also, applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument (i.e., Johnston, US PGPub No. 2009/0200004).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Clyde (US 4,222,432, Fig. 8) discloses ceramic sponge baffles 401-403.
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/JIANYING C ATKISSON/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3763
/F.K.L/Examiner, Art Unit 3763
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