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) 2 & 3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Nishiada et al. (US 20190047189).
2. Nishiada et al. teach:
A rotor 20, comprising:
a core 21 including magnet housing holes 31; and
magnets 23 that are fixed with thermoplastic 41 in a state in which the magnets are respectively accommodated in the magnet housing holes (fig 2 below),
wherein each of the magnet housing holes extends through the core in an axial direction of the core (fig 4) and includes an elongated hole portion 35 that extends in a direction Θ intersecting a radial direction of the core (fig 2 below),
a direction orthogonal to a lengthwise direction of each elongated hole portion is defined as a width direction 35, each elongated hole portion includes two inner surfaces 36 & 37 on opposite sides in the width direction (fig 2 below), one of the inner surfaces closer to a peripheral edge of the core being defined as a first inner surface 36, and
the other inner surface, farther from the peripheral edge of the core, being defined as a second inner surface 37, the magnet accommodated in each elongated hole portion includes two side surfaces 23a & 23b on opposite sides in the width direction (fig 2 below), one of the side surfaces closer to the peripheral edge of the core being defined as a first side surface 23b, and the other side surface, farther from the peripheral edge of the core, being defined as a second side surface 23a,
in each of the elongated hole portion, a gap (annotated fig 2 below) is formed between the first inner surface of the elongated hole portion and the first side surface of the magnet accommodated in the elongated hole portion, or between the second inner surface of the elongated hole portion and the second side surface of the magnet accommodated in the elongated hole portion (this limitation appears to be in Markush form which indicates that it is obvious), or
both between the first inner surface of the elongated hole portion and the first side surface of the magnet accommodated in the elongated hole portion (fig 2 below) and between the second inner surface of the elongated hole portion and the second side surface of the magnet accommodated in the elongated hole portion (this limitation appears to be in Markush form which indicates that it is obvious).
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3. Nishiada et al. teach:
The rotor according to claim 2, wherein, in each elongated hole portion, the gap is formed between the first inner surface of the elongated hole portion and the first side surface of the magnet accommodated in the elongated hole portion (fig 2 above).
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.
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.
Claim(s) 1 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nishiada et al..
1. Nishiada et al. teach:
A method for manufacturing a rotor 20,
wherein a rotor 20 is manufactured by injecting thermoplastic 41 into each of magnet housing holes 31 in a core 21 with a magnets 23 accommodated in each magnet housing hole, thereby fixing the magnets (fig 2 above), the method comprising:
preparing the core and the magnets (figs 6 & 7), the core including the magnet housing holes (figs 6 & 7), wherein each of the magnet housing holes extends through the core in an axial direction of the core (figs 6 & 7) and includes an elongated hole portion 35 that extends in a direction intersecting a radial direction of the core (figs 6 & 7), and
the elongated hole portion and the magnet are configured such that a difference between a dimension in a width direction, which is a direction orthogonal to a lengthwise direction of the elongated hole portion, and a dimension, in the width direction of the magnet when accommodated in the elongated hole portion, is greater than 0 (fig 2 above);
accommodating the magnets in the elongated hole portions of the magnet housing holes;
clamping the core between a first die 101 and a second die 115 in a state in which the magnets are accommodated in the elongated hole portions of the magnet housing holes (figs 6 & 7); and
injecting the thermoplastic (via injectors 111A & 111B, figs 6 & 7) into the magnet housing holes of the core clamped between the first die and the second die except for the relative dimensions “the elongated hole portion and the magnet are configured such that a difference between a dimension in a width direction, which is a direction orthogonal to a lengthwise direction of the elongated hole portion, and a dimension, in the width direction of the magnet when accommodated in the elongated hole portion, is less than or equal to 0.45 mm”.
This limitation appears to not carry any patentable weight because the resin is fixing the magnet in place regardless of the distance of being less than 0.45 mm. That being said, it has been held that whenever the only difference between the claimed invention and that of the prior art are relative dimensions, those dimensions don’t carry patentable weight (In Gardner v. TEC Syst., Inc., 725 F.2d 1338, 220 USPQ 777 (Fed. Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 830, 225 USPQ 232 (1984), MPEP 2144.04 section IV A).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TERRANCE L KENERLY whose telephone number is (571)270-7851. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9am-5pm.
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/TERRANCE L KENERLY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2834
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