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 § 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 1-14 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.
The terms “high-pressure”, “low-pressure” and “lower pressure” in claim 1 are relative terms which renders the claim indefinite. The terms “high-pressure” and “low-pressure”, and “lower pressure” are not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention.
The term “high-pressure” in claim 2 is relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “high-pressure” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-14 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:
Claim 1 is allowable over prior arts Thorsen et al. (US 2008/0169723), and Rivas Lopez et al. (US 2024/0269615).
Fig. 1 of Thorsen is annotated to indicate some of the claimed features of claim 1.
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Thorsen teaches a pressure retarded osmosis system (fig. 1) comprising a membrane unit (membrane modules) having a high pressure inlet connection (refer fig. 1 above) and a high pressure outlet connection (Refer fig. 1 above) on one side of a membrane and a low pressure inlet connection (Refer fig. 1 above) and a low pressure outlet connection (refer fig. 1 above) on the other side of the membrane, wherein the high pressure inlet connection is connected to a pressure exchanger and the high-pressure outlet connection is connected to a motor (refer turbine in fig. 1) and to a high pressure inlet port of the pressure exchanger (refer fig. 1 above, outlet conduit from upper part of membrane is branched off to pressure exchanger and to turbine).
However, Thorsen does not teach that the pressure exchanger comprises a first stage and a second stage, the first stage being arranged nearest to the high-pressure inlet connection of the membrane unit, wherein the high-pressure inlet port of the first stage is connected to the high-pressure outlet connection of the membrane unit and a high-pressure inlet port of the second stage is provided with fluid having a lower pressure and a high-pressure outlet port of the second stage is connected to a low-pressure inlet port of the first stage.
Rivas Lopez teaches a pressure exchange device comprising a pair of pumping circuits (2, 3) for pumping a low-pressure inflow of seawater in contact with another high-pressure inflow of reject brine. The device comprises: a first selector valve (11) for selecting an alternative inlet into the pumping circuits (2, 3), which is connected to an inlet collector (5) for collecting reject brine from the osmosis device (100); a second selector valve (12) for selecting an alternative outlet from the pumping circuits (2, 3), which is connected to an outlet collector (6) for collecting low-pressure reject brine for discharge to the sea; and retention valves (21, 22, 23, 24), wherein the phases of the first selector valve (11) and the second selector valve (12) are arranged crosswise (Refer abstract, fig. 1). However, Rovas Lopez does not remedy deficiencies of Thorsen.
As allowable subject matter has been indicated, applicant's reply must either comply with all formal requirements or specifically traverse each requirement not complied with. See 37 CFR 1.111(b) and MPEP § 707.07(a).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Tonner et al. (US 5306428) teaches recovering hydraulic energy using two recovery cylinders (pressure exchangers).
Brueckmann et al. (US 2005/016678) teaches a pressure exchanger system comprising two chambers (3.1 and 3.2).
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/PRANAV N PATEL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1779
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