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
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 § 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.
Claims 1-7, 9, 10 and 12-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) / (a)(2) as being anticipated by Matsuo (JP2007200752). An English machine translation of Matsuo (JP2007200752) is included with the Notice of Reference Cited (PTO-892).
With respect to the limitations of claim 1, Matsuo teaches an induction heating cooktop (title, abstract), comprising: a plate (Figs 1-4, top plate 3, 0011, 0013) configured to seat an object (cooking utensil 8, 0012) to be heated thereon; a working coil (induction heating coils 6, 7, 0013) positioned under the plate; a thin film installed on the plate (induction heating elements 17, 18, 0013) and arranged to intersect a magnetic field of the working coil, the working coil is configured to inductively heat at least one of the object or the thin film (0015).
With respect to the limitations of claims 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19, Matsuo teaches the thin film (17, 18) is arranged to overlap in a vertical direction with the working coil (6, 7);
the thin film (17, 18) is disposed in a plane intersecting the magnetic field (0015) of the working coil (6, 7);
the thin film (17, 18) defines a closed circuit in the plane (0015, closed loop is formed);
the magnetic field is configured to define a closed circuit and to pass through the thin film to reach the object (0017, the magnetic flux generated by the induction heating coil 6 passes through the induction heating element 17);
when the object is a magnetic material, the magnetic field is configured to pass through the thin film and be exhausted in the object to thereby inductively heat the object (0025, 0028), and when the object is a non-magnetic material, the magnetic field is configured to be exhausted in the thin film to thereby inductively heat the thin film (0029);
the thin film is coated on at least one of an upper surface (highly conductive ceramics 31, 32, 0013) or a lower surface of the plate;
a thickness of the thin film is formed to have a resistance value that can be heated by the working coil (0015);
the object and the thin film form an equivalent circuit, and an eddy current is applied to at least one of the thin film or the object depending a difference between (i) a resistance component and an inductance component of the thin film and (ii) a resistance component and an inductance component of the object (0015, 0026, 0027).
further comprising a thermal insulator (Figs 2, 3, heat insulators 19, 20, 0013) disposed between the thin film (17, 18) and the working coil (6, 7), the thermal insulator overlapping the thin film and the working coil in a vertical direction;
the working coil is provided in a plurality of the working coils (Figs 1, 2, induction coils 6, 7, 0013), the thin film (17, 18) overlaps with the plurality of working coils in a vertical direction, and the object is heated by at least one of the plurality of working coils corresponding to a position in the plate overlapping in the vertical direction with a region in which the object is placed (0015);
the thin film has a ring shape comprising a plurality of concentric circles having different diameters (Figs 3, 4, induction heating element 17, 0014);
an eddy current applied to the thin film is greater than 0 (0015);
the plate is parallel to the plane where the thin film is disposed (Figs 1, 2, top plate 3, induction heating elements 17, 18);
the thin film is made of a conductive material (0014, aluminum or copper);
further comprising: a plurality of working coils disposed under the plate and spaced apart from one another, the plurality of working coils including the working coil; and a plurality of thin films attached to the plate and spaced apart from one another, the plurality of thin films including the thin film, each of the plurality of thin films is positioned vertically above at a position corresponding to one of the plurality of working coils (Figs 1, 2, top plate 3, induction coils 6, 7, induction heating elements 17, 18);
the thin film is located vertically above the working coil at a position corresponding to the working coil (induction coils 6, 7, induction heating elements 17, 18), and the thin film has a predetermined thickness that enables the thin film to be inductively heated by the working coil (0015).
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Matsuo (JP2007200752) as applied to claim 1, further in view of Takeda (US 2012/0080423) or Sadahira (US 2001/0019052).
With respect to the limitations of claim 8, Matsuo discloses the claimed invention except for a thickness of the thin film is less than a skin depth of the thin film. However, Takeda discloses a thickness of the thin film (0046, claim 21, aluminum heating layer 12) is less than a skin depth (0043, the second heating layer has a thickness less than the skin depth) of the thin film (Fig 1, second heating layer 12, 0043) is known in the art. It would have been obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to adapt the induction heating cooktop of Matsuo having a thin film silent to a relationship of the film thickness and skin depth with a thickness of the thin film is less than a skin depth of the thin film of Takeda for the purpose of adjusting a thickness of the thin film so that magnetic flux can pass through the layer (0043), thereby allowing for increased heat generation and enhanced heating efficiency (0028).
Additionally, Sadahira discloses a thickness of the thin film is less than a skin depth of the thin film (Fig 6a, plates 601a, 0091, the total thickness of the cylindrical plates 601a in a direction r in FIG. 6A is sufficiently smaller than the skin depth) is known in the art. It would have been obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to adapt the induction heating cooktop of Matsuo having a thin film silent to a relationship of the film thickness and skin depth with a thickness of the thin film is less than a skin depth of the thin film of Sadahira for the purpose of providing a known film thickness that efficiently generates heat and thus uniform heat generation distribution in the heating element is obtained (0091).
Claim 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Matsuo (JP2007200752) as applied to claim 1, further in view of Matsui (US 2012/0223070).
With respect to the limitations of claim 11, Matsuo teaches further comprising: a case that houses (Fig 1, outer housing) the working coil therein. Matsuo discloses the claimed invention except for further comprising a shielding plate disposed at a lower surface of the working coil and configured to block the magnetic field generated vertically below the working coil based on the working coil being driven; a support member disposed between a lower surface of the shielding plate and a lower surface of the case and configured to support the shielding plate upward; and a cooling fan disposed inside the case and configured to cool the working coil.
However, Matsui discloses further comprising a shielding plate (Fig 1, heat dissipation plate 12A, 0062) disposed at a lower surface of the working coil (heating coil 4, 0061) and configured to block the magnetic field generated (0073) vertically below the working coil based on the working coil being driven; a support member (Fig 1, spring 13, 0067) disposed between a lower surface of the shielding plate (12A) and a lower surface of the case (Fig 1, bottom not labeled) and configured to support the shielding plate upward; and a cooling fan (blower 19, 0072) disposed inside the case and configured to cool the working coil is known in the art. It would have been obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to adapt the induction cooker of Hirota silent to a shielding plate and fan with the recited shielding plate, support member and cooling fan of Matsui for the purpose of providing a known shielding and cooling configuration that eliminates the influence of magnetic flux leaks (0073) and directs cooling air into the housing for cooling internal components (0072).
Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Matsuo (JP2007200752) as applied to claim 1, further in view of Helga (DE10127051). An English machine translation of Helga (DE10127051) is included with the Notice of Reference Cited (PTO-892).
With respect to the limitations of claim 20, Matsuo discloses the claimed invention except for the thin film is configured to contact the object placed on the upper surface of the upper plate. However, Helga discloses the thin film is configured to contact the object placed on the upper surface of the upper plate (Fig 1, plate 1, disk 4, 0017, the direct use of the susceptor surface as a cooking surface) is known in the art. It would have been obvious for one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to adapt the induction cooker of Matsuo having a thin film in contact with the lower surface of the upper plate with the thin film is configured to contact the object placed on the upper surface of the upper plate of Helga for the purpose of providing a known heating configuration that allows the thin film surface to be used as a cooking surface (0017).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THIEN S TRAN whose telephone number is (571)270-7745. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday [8:00-4:00].
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/THIEN S TRAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3761 2/10/2026