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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 3/28/2024 is being considered by the examiner.
Specification
The lengthy specification has not been checked to the extent necessary to determine the presence of all possible minor errors. Applicant’s cooperation is requested in correcting any errors of which applicant may become aware in the specification.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 3-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being incomplete for omitting essential structural cooperative relationships of elements, such omission amounting to a gap between the necessary structural connections. See MPEP § 2172.01. The omitted structural cooperative relationships are: claim 3 recites "on opposite sides from each other" in line 3. It is not clear from the claim language upon what basis the claimed opposition is structurally made:
in which direction/sense are the surfaces opposite, e.g. radial, circumferential, axial, or other?;
are the surfaces on opposite sides of some third element and, if so, what is that third element?;
are the surfaces opposing, i.e. facing, on another?; or
some other structural relationship.
Claims 4-6 depend from indefinite claim 3.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1-6, 10, and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by WANG (US 20050212377).
Regarding claim 1, WANG discloses a rotating electric machine system equipped with a rotating electric machine including a rotor and a stator (10), and a housing (‘shell’) in which the rotating electric machine is accommodated (see para [0033]),
wherein the housing accommodates the stator (10) (see para [0033]), and further includes a stator chamber through which a liquid coolant configured to cool the stator (10) flows, and
the stator (10) comprises:
a stator core (see para [0117]);
a coil unit including a plurality of coils (92) formed by a plurality of wires (90) that are wound around the stator core (see para [0037]), and a coil end portion (see Fig. 4) serving as end parts of the plurality of coils (92); and
a neutral point fixing structure (50) configured to fix to the coil end portion a neutral point (96) formed by bundling together and connecting terminal ends of the plurality of conductive wires that are pulled out from the coil unit (see para [0049]),
wherein the neutral point fixing structure (50) comprises:
a neutral point terminal (68-) disposed at the neutral point (96);
an insulating member (69-O) disposed between the neutral point terminal (68-) and the coil end portion (see Fig. 4); and
a coolant passage (66, 67) in order to allow the liquid coolant to pass between the neutral point terminal (68-) and the insulating member (69-O) (see para [0130-0131] and Fig. 6B), and
wherein the neutral point terminal (68-) is fixed to the coil end portion via the insulating member (69-O) (see Fig. 4).
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Regarding claim 2, WANG discloses the rotating electric machine system according to claim 1, wherein the insulating member (69-O) is a pedestal disposed at the coil end portion and on which the neutral point terminal (68-) is disposed (see Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 3, WANG discloses the rotating electric machine system according to claim 2, wherein the pedestal includes a first surface and a second surface that are surfaces on opposite sides from each other (i.e. on opposite outer radial sides of the pedestal; see annotated cutout, Fig. 4, below), the neutral point terminal (68-) is arranged on the first surface, the second surface abuts against the coil end portion, and the coolant passage (66) extends in parallel with the first surface and the second surface (see Fig. 4 and 6B).
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Regarding claim 4, WANG discloses the rotating electric machine system according to claim 3, wherein a first concave portion (67) is formed along the first surface on the first surface of the pedestal (see Fig. 6B), and the first concave portion constitutes the coolant passage (66, 67).
Regarding claim 5, WANG discloses the rotating electric machine system according to claim 4, wherein two of the first concave portions (67) are formed along the first surface on the first surface of the pedestal (see Fig 6B), and the two first concave portions (67) intersect one another (i.e. mutually communicate the hollow 61; see para [0047]).
Regarding claim 6, WANG discloses the rotating electric machine system according to claim 4, wherein the neutral point terminal (68-) is a tubular shaped member an outer circumferential surface of which abuts against the first surface of the pedestal (see Fig. 4 and 6A), the terminal ends of the plurality of conductive wires that are pulled out from the coil unit are inserted into an inner side space (69-I) of the tubular shaped member (see Fig. 4), within the tubular shaped member, a second concave portion (146) is formed by recessing a portion that faces toward the first concave portion toward an inner side of the tubular shaped member (see Fig. 6A), and the coolant passage (66, 67) is constituted by the first concave portion (67) and the second concave portion (146) (see para [0130]).
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Regarding claim 10, WANG discloses the rotating electric machine system according to claim 1, wherein the rotor includes a rotating shaft (see para [0033]), and permanent magnets (16) disposed on the rotating shaft, the rotating electric machine system further comprises an oil circulation supply device (see para [0116]) configured to circulate and supply a cooling oil, which is the liquid coolant, to the stator chamber, and the oil circulation supply device includes an oil supply line configured to supply the cooling oil to the stator chamber, and an oil recovery line configured to recover the cooling oil that has flowed through the stator chamber (see para [0117]).
Regarding claim 11, WANG discloses the rotating electric machine system according to claim 10, further comprising a cylindrically shaped partition wall member (76) interposed between the rotor and the stator (10) in a diametrical direction of the rotating shaft, wherein the partition wall member partitions the interior of the housing into the stator chamber, and a rotor chamber in which the rotor is accommodated.
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 7-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over WANG in view of WANG’384 (US 20120098384).
Regarding claim 7, WANG discloses the rotating electric machine system according to claim 2.
However, WANG does not disclose the neutral point fixing structure further comprises a first threaded member wound around the pedestal and the neutral point terminal that is arranged on the pedestal.
WANG‘384 discloses a similar rotating electric machine system in which the neutral point fixing structure comprises a first threaded member C wound around a pedestal 148 and a neutral point terminal 152 that is arranged on the pedestal 148 (see para [0079] and Fig. 2).
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WANG‘384
It 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 to provide the system of WANG with threaded phase wires wherein the neutral point fixing structure further comprises a first threaded member wound around the pedestal and the neutral point terminal that is arranged on the pedestal similar to WANG’384.
A person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains would have been motivated to make such modification in order to provide a three-phase motor with a neutral point and interconnect wires at ends of a stator and easily trim excess end portions of the wires, as taught by WANG’384 (see para [0079, 0081, 0083, and 0085-0086])
Regarding claim 8, WANG in view of WANG‘384 teaches the rotating electric machine system according to claim 7, wherein WANG‘384 discloses a locking groove 170c configured to cause the first threaded member to be locked is formed on a portion within a surface of the pedestal that does not come into contact with the neutral point terminal 146 (see Fig. 5).
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WANG‘384
Regarding claim 9, WANG discloses the rotating electric machine system according to claim 2,
However, WANG does not disclose the neutral point fixing structure further comprises a second threaded member wound around the coil end portion and the pedestal that is disposed on the coil end portion.
WANG‘384 discloses a similar rotating electric machine system in which the neutral point fixing structure comprises a second threaded member B wound around a pedestal 148 and a neutral point terminal 152 that is arranged on the pedestal 148 (see para [0081] and Fig. 3).
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WANG‘384
It 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 to provide the system of WANG with threaded phase wires wherein the neutral point fixing structure further comprises a second threaded member wound around the coil end portion and the pedestal that is disposed on the coil end portion similar to WANG’384.
A person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains would have been motivated to make such modification in order to provide a three-phase motor with a neutral point and interconnect wires at ends of a stator and easily trim excess end portions of the wires, as taught by WANG’384 (see para [0079, 0081, 0083, and 0085-0086])
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US-20160211712-A1 Patel discloses a rotating electric machine system with coolant passages in end winding fixing structures; US-20200212742-A1 Sridharan discloses a rotating electric machine system with coolant passages in end winding fixing structures; US-20210384802-A1 TAMURA discloses a rotating electric machine system with coolant passages in neutral point fixing structures; US-20220271595-A1 KAWAMOTO discloses a rotating electric machine system with coolant passages in end winding fixing structures.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JUSTIN STEFANON whose telephone number is (703)756-4648. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Thursday and alternate Fridays 8AM - 5PM EDT.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Oluseye Iwarere can be reached at (571) 270-5112. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JUSTIN STEFANON/Examiner, Art Unit 2834
/OLUSEYE IWARERE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2834