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 .
Status
This Office Action is in response to the remarks and amendments filed on 01/23/2026. Claims 1-15 remain pending for consideration on the merits.
This Office Action contains a New Grounds of Rejection. Since this new ground of
rejection did not result from an amendment to the claims, this Office Action is being made to
Non-Final to afford the Applicant the opportunity to respond to the new grounds of rejection.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claims 1-3 and 10-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Saitou et al (EP 1959204 A1) in view of Hoffman (Hoffman et al (DE 102011007701 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Saitou teaches a heat exchanger assembly (abstract) comprising: a compressor (compressor 5) configured to compress a refrigerant (compressor 5 that compress a refrigerant, paragraph ); a first heat exchanger (plate heat exchanger 9) configured to exchange heat between the refrigerant and a liquid (plate heat exchanger 9 that exchanges heat between the refrigerant and water, paragraph 0023); a subcooler (air-refrigerant heat exchanger 6) configured to subcool the refrigerant (a liquid refrigerant from the air-refrigerant heat exchanger 6 is subcooled, paragraph 0026); and a base (base 105, figure 9) supporting the compressor and the first heat exchanger (as shown on figure 7 and 9).
Saitou teaches the invention as described above but fail to teach wherein the subcooler is supported on a side of the first heat exchanger.
However, Hoffman teaches teaches wherein the subcooler (subcooler heat exchanger 5) is supported on a side of the first heat exchanger (on a side of heat exchanger 4, figures 6-7).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the assembly in the teachings of Saitou to include wherein the subcooler is supported on a side of the first heat exchanger in view of the teachings of Hoffman in order to yield the predictable results of providing a low technical complexity in a different geometric orientation to each other.
Further, it is understood, claim 1 includes an intended use recitation, for example “…configured to...”. The applicant is reminded that a recitation with respect to the manner which a claimed apparatus is intended to be does not differentiate the claimed apparatus from a prior art apparatus satisfying the structural limitations of the claims, as is the case here. While features of an apparatus may be recited either structurally or functionally, the claims are directed to an apparatus must be distinguished from the prior art in terms of structure rather than function.
Regarding claims 2 and 10, the combined teachings teach further comprising a first support structure (cover 103a of Saitou) supported on the base (base 105, figure 9 of Saitou) and comprising a support (via fitting hole 105b to base 105, paragraph 0050 of Saitou) supporting the first heat exchanger (plate heat exchanger 9 of Saitou).
Regarding claims 3 and 11, the combined teachings teach further comprising a second support structure (flange 23 of Hoffman) comprising a support (figures 6-7 of Hoffman) supporting the subcooler (subcooler heat exchanger 5 of Hoffman) on the first heat exchanger (heat exchanger 4, figures 6-7 of Hoffman), wherein the second support structure (flange 23 of Hoffman) is connected to the first support structure (flange 24, figures 6-7 of Hoffman).
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Saitou as modified by Hoffman as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Cowans (US 20020029877 A1).
Regarding claim 8, Saitou teaches the invention as described above but fail to teach wherein the subcooler is spaced a specified distance from the base.
However, Cowans teaches wherein the subcooler (subcooler 120) is spaced a specified distance (figure 7) from the base (base 140).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the assembly in the teachings of Saitou to include wherein the subcooler is spaced a specified distance from the base in view of the teachings of Cowans in order to yield the predictable results of reducing the critical floor space area that is needed.
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Saitou et al (EP 1959204 A1) in view of Hoffman (Hoffman et al (DE 102011007701 A1) and Chung et al (US 20200340688 A1).
Regarding claim 9, Saitou teaches an outdoor unit (outdoor unit 1) including a heat exchanger assembly (abstract), the heat exchanger assembly comprising: a compressor (compressor 5) configured to compress a refrigerant (compressor 5 that compress a refrigerant, paragraph ); a first heat exchanger (plate heat exchanger 9) configured to exchange heat between the refrigerant and a liquid (plate heat exchanger 9 that exchanges heat between the refrigerant and water, paragraph 0023); a subcooler (air-refrigerant heat exchanger 6) configured to subcool the refrigerant (a liquid refrigerant from the air-refrigerant heat exchanger 6 is subcooled, paragraph 0026); one or more expanders (electronic expansion valve 15a) configured to expand the refrigerant transferred through the subcooler (the liquid refrigerant is reduced in pressure by the electronic expansion valve 15a to become a two-phase refrigerant. The two-phase refrigerant is evaporated in the air-refrigerant heat exchanger 6 to become a low-pressure gas refrigerant, paragraph 0025); and a base (base 105, figure 9) supporting the compressor (as shown on figure 7 and 9) and the first heat exchanger (as shown on figure 7 and 9).
Saitou teaches the invention as described above but fail to teach wherein the subcooler is supported on a side of the first heat exchanger.
However, Hoffman teaches teaches wherein the subcooler (subcooler heat exchanger 5) is supported on a side of the first heat exchanger (on a side of heat exchanger 4, figures 6-7).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the assembly in the teachings of Saitou to include wherein the subcooler is supported on a side of the first heat exchanger in view of the teachings of Hoffman in order to yield the predictable results of providing a low technical complexity in a different geometric orientation to each other.
The combined teachings teach the invention as described above but fail to teach a second heat exchanger configured to exchange heat between the refrigerant and air or a liquid.
However, Chung teaches a second heat exchanger (outdoor heat exchanger 120) configured to exchange heat between the refrigerant and air (the refrigerant flowing to the outdoor heat exchanger 120 may be condensed by being heat-exchanged with external air, paragraph 0054) or a liquid.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the assembly in the combined teachings to include a second heat exchanger configured to exchange heat between the refrigerant and air or a liquid in view of the teachings of Chung in order to yield the predictable results of properly condensing the refrigerant with external air.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-7 and 12-15 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is an examiner's statement of reasons for allowance:
Regarding claim 4, the subject matter which is considered to distinguish from the closest prior art of record, Guya et al (KR 101319654 B1). The prior art of record when considered as a whole, alone, or in combination, neither anticipates nor renders obvious "wherein the first support structure comprises: a first first bracket positioned on a first side of the first heat exchanger; a first first coupling portion configured to fix the first first bracket to the first side and the base portion; a second first bracket positioned on a second side opposite to the first side; and a second first coupling portion configured to fix the second first bracket to the second side and the base, and the second support structure comprises: a second bracket supporting one or more surfaces of the subcooler; a first second coupling portion configured to fix the first first bracket to an end portion of the second bracket; and a second second coupling portion configured to fix the second first bracket to another end portion of the second bracket". The closest prior art, Guya teaches the second heat exchanger 260 is supported while the bottom surface is in contact with the top surface of the mounting bracket 265 is mounted on the base 240. In other words, the surface of the second heat exchanger 260 having a large area is mounted to the base 240 so as to be disposed in a direction crossing the vertical line. The lower end of the bent front end and the rear end of the mounting bracket 265 are fixed by being fastened with a screw or the like while contacting the upper surface of the base 240.
Regarding claim 12, the subject matter which is considered to distinguish from the closest prior art of record, Guya et al (KR 101319654 B1). The prior art of record when considered as a whole, alone, or in combination, neither anticipates nor renders obvious " wherein the first support structure comprises: a first first bracket positioned on a first side of the first heat exchanger; a first first coupling portion configured to fix the first first bracket to the first side and the base portion; a second first bracket positioned on a second side opposite to the first side; and a second first coupling portion configured to fix the second first bracket to the second side and the base portion, and the second support structure comprises: a second bracket supporting one or more surfaces of the subcooler; a first second coupling portion configured to fix the first first bracket to an end portion of the second bracket; and a second second coupling portion configured to fix the second first bracket to another end portion of the second bracket". The closest prior art, Guya teaches the second heat exchanger 260 is supported while the bottom surface is in contact with the top surface of the mounting bracket 265 is mounted on the base 240. In other words, the surface of the second heat exchanger 260 having a large area is mounted to the base 240 so as to be disposed in a direction crossing the vertical line. The lower end of the bent front end and the rear end of the mounting bracket 265 are fixed by being fastened with a screw or the like while contacting the upper surface of the base 240.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
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/DARIO ANTONIO DELEON/Examiner, Art Unit 3763
/JERRY-DARYL FLETCHER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3763