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 .
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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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.
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 1-2 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 20100301713 A1 to Breuning et al. in view of EP 2112749 A2 to Fukasaku et al.
Regarding claim 1, Breuning et al. discloses a motor comprising:
a cylindrical main body (Fig. 3: 10), and configured to accommodate the motor (stator 11, rotor 13) therein and to increase an area of a neutral line (Fig. 1: S) of a three-phase power cable (U, V, W) connected to the motor by connecting the neutral line (Fig. 3: 2; see Fig. 1 module 2 has neutral point S) to an inner surface (14) of the cylindrical main body; and
a ground terminal (Fig. 6: G1-G3) mounted on an outer surface (Fig. 5: through opening 32 to connect circuit to the outside) of the cylindrical main body, and connected to ground.
However, it fails to disclose a cylindrical main body formed of a conductive material and configured to accommodate the underwater motor; so as to collect leakage current leaking from phase voltage lines of the three-phase power cable connected to the underwater motor.
Fukasaku et al. teaches a cylindrical main body formed of a conductive material ([0007]: the connecting portion and the housing are electrically conducted through the liquid refrigerant) and configured to accommodate the underwater motor ([0015]: hermetically sealed); so as to collect leakage current leaking from phase voltage lines of the three-phase power cable connected to the underwater motor ([0027]: Therefore, the current leaked from the connecting portion 36 flows toward the opened end of the insulating tube 38 through liquid refrigerant in the direction indicated by the arrow A along the elongated portion 37. Then, the leakage current flows to the housing 11 through the liquid refrigerant outside the insulating tube 38. The length of the arrow A represents the creepage distance between the connecting portion 36 and the housing 11).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use the teaching of the leakage current collection as disclosed by Fukasaku et al. to the motor disclosed by Breuning et al.
One would have been motivated to do so to remove the leakage current from the motor.
Regarding claim 2, Breuning et al. discloses the cylindrical main body formed of the conductive material has a circular cylindrical shape [0027].
Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 20100301713 A1 to Breuning et al. in view of EP 2112749 A2 to Fukasaku et al. as applied to claim 1 above and further in view of DE 102014002476 A1 to Honda.
Regarding claim 3, Breuning et al. and Fukasaku et al. discloses a motor as described above.
However, it fails to disclose the cylindrical main body formed of the conductive material has a polygonal cylindrical shape.
Honda teaches the cylindrical main body formed of the conductive material has a polygonal cylindrical shape [0047].
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use the teaching of the polygonal shape as disclosed by Honda to the motor disclosed by Breuning et al. and Fukasaku et al.
One would have been motivated to do so to match the shape of the motor or control circuit.
Conclusion
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/VIET P NGUYEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2834