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
This Action is in response to Applicant’s Reply of March 18, 2026.
Claims 2, 3, 7-10, 27-31, 35, and 36 have been cancelled.
Applicant’s amendment to claim 19 overcomes the previously presented 35 USC 112(b) rejection thereof.
Applicant’s amendments to claims 1, 23, and 32 overcome the respective 35 USC 103 rejections thereof.
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 sediment injector being used with solids containers as recited in claims 1 and 32 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.
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 1, 4-6, 11-26 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.
Regarding claim 1: Claim 1 has been amended to require “a sediment injector configured to dispose the sediment [from the one or more solids container] to the surface of the well or the different downhole location in the well.” Neither the “one or more solids container” nor the “sediment injector” is required to be located in the well while the “sediment separator” and “fluid separator” are required to be downhole. This unto itself is not unclear or an issue as it can be broadly interpreted. However the further recitation of movement of the sediment from the “sediment separator” to the containers and then to the sediment injector which moves the sediment to the surface of the well or a different downhole location is unclear. How can the sediment be moved to the surface of the well if it is not required to still be in the well? For the purposes of examination, all elements of the well system of claim 1 are being treated as being located in the well.
Regarding claims 4-6 and 11-22: These claims are considered indefinite due to their dependence on claim 1.
Regarding claim 23: Claim 23 has been amended to require “discharging the sediment to a sediment injector configured to be positioned downhole in the well” however lines 6-8 require that sediment be discharged to “one or more solids containers”. It is unclear if the sediment is being discharged to two different locations or if the newly added “discharging” step is referring to discharging the sediment form the “one or more solids containers”. For the purpose of examination, the “discharging” step is being treated as requiring the discharge of sediment from the “one or more solids containers” to “a sediment injector”.
Regarding claims 22-26: These claims are considered indefinite due to their dependence on claim 23.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 32-34 and 37-40 are allowed.
Claims 1, 4-6, and 11-26 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claims 1, 23, and 32: The prior art of record fails to disclose a downhole separation system that includes a sediment separator to separate solids from production fluid and nonproduction fluid, one or more solids containers that receive solids from the sediment separator during the separation process, and a sediment injector that receives solids from the one or more solids containers and moves the solids to the surface or a different downhole location as recited in the claimed combination and method.
Regarding claims 4-6, 11-22, 24-26, 33, 34, and 37-40: These claims are considered to be allowable due to their dependence on one of the above claims.
Conclusion
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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JENNIFER H GAY whose telephone number is (571)272-7029. The examiner can normally be reached Monday through Thursday, 6-3:30 and every other Friday 6-11.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Anita Y Coupe can be reached at (571)270-3614. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JENNIFER H GAY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3619
JHG
4/7/2026
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