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 .
This action is in response to the filing made 4/26/2024.
Claims 1-20 are pending.
Priority
This application claims the benefit of provisional application 63/272,2021, with a filing date of 10/26/2021.
No foreign priority is claimed.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 12-15 and 20 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, for the reasons described below.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
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(s) 1-11, 16, 17, 18, 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KR 101092692 to Kim, in view of CN 209512341 to CN 209512341 to Hongyu.
Regarding claim 1, Kim teaches an economizer (abstract) for a heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration (HVAC&R) system, comprising:
a housing (100, Fig. 2) defining a first chamber (chamber is the interior of the housing),
an inlet conduit (101) coupled to the housing and configured to direct a flow of working fluid into the first chamber; and a perforated sheet (200) disposed within the first chamber, wherein the perforated sheet is curved and is configured to direct the flow of working fluid received by the first chamber in a circular direction. (see Fig. 4, the wave pattern shown will direct flow in a circular fashion, at least over short distances)
Kim does not teach the housing having a first chamber and a second chamber.
Hongyu teaches a gas liquid separator for a refrigeration system with a first chamber 1 and a second chamber 2, Fig. 1
Multiple chambers would be an obvious feature, to a PHOSITA prior to the effective filing date of the invention, to include in the device since the courts have held that the mere duplication of parts has no patentable significance unless a new and unexpected result is produced. MPEP 2144.04.VI.B. Adding another chamber can increase the capacity of the system, which is not a new and unexpected result.
Regarding claim 2, Kim as modified teaches the economizer of claim 1, wherein the perforated sheet extends within the first chamber and divides the first chamber into a first section (Fig. 2, above inlet 101) and a second section (both middle section and far right defined by the additional perforated sheets (200), wherein the inlet conduit (101) is configured to direct the flow of working fluid into the first section.
Regarding claims 3, 4, Kim as modified teaches the economizer of claim 2, comprising
Claim 3 - a liquid outlet conduit extending between fluidly coupling the second section of the first chamber and the second chamber. (Hongyu item 8)
Claim 4 - wherein the liquid outlet conduit extends external to the housing.
Kim, Fig. 5, shows multiple chambers (71, 72, 73) with external liquid outlets (see valves 42, 43) going from one chamber to the next.
Regarding claim 5, Kim as modified teaches the economizer of claim 3, but does not teach wherein the liquid outlet conduit is curved and extends at least partially about the housing.
At the time the invention was made, it would have been an obvious mechanical expedient, to a person of ordinary skill in the art to include this feature, because Applicant has not disclosed that such feature provides an advantage, is used for a particular purpose, or solves a stated problem. One of ordinary skill in the art, furthermore, would have expected Applicant’s invention to perform equally well with the liquid either outlets in either of Kim or Hongyu.
Therefore, it would have been an obvious matter of design choice to modify Kim to obtain the invention as specified in claim 5.
Regarding claim 6, Kim as modified teaches the economizer of claim 3, wherein the perforated sheet comprises openings configured to direct liquid working fluid from the flow of working fluid into the second section, and the liquid outlet conduit is configured to direct the liquid working fluid from the second section to the second chamber. (see par. 26, 33, Figs. 2, 5, where the perforated sheet (200) has openings (202) between the inlet (101) and outlet (102), with the refrigerant conduit connecting items (71) and (72).
Regarding claim 7, Kim as modified teaches the economizer of claim 6, comprising an expansion device disposed along the liquid outlet conduit, wherein the expansion device is configured to adjust a flow of the liquid working fluid from the second section to the second chamber. (par. 33, Fig. 5, with exv 42 between the first economizer and the second economizer).
Regarding claim 8, Kim as modified teaches the economizer of claim 2, comprising a separation plate disposed within the housing and extending between the first chamber and the second chamber to separate the first chamber from the second chamber within the housing. (this is visible in Hongyu as the unnumbered separator between volumes 1 and 2)
Regarding claim 9, Kim as modified teaches the economizer of claim 1, wherein the perforated sheet is a first perforated sheet (for example in first chamber 71, in Fig. 5, which would have a perforated sheet as shown in Fig. 2),
a second perforated sheet extending within the second chamber, wherein the second perforated sheet divides the second chamber into an additional first section and an additional second section (this would be in chamber 72, Fig. 5); and
a liquid outlet conduit (42, Fig. 2) extending from the second section of the first chamber to the additional first section of the second chamber, wherein the liquid outlet conduit extends external to the housing.
Regarding claim 10, Kim as modified teaches the economizer of claim 1, wherein the first chamber and the second chamber are arrayed vertically relative to one another in an installed configuration of the economizer. (This is the orientation of chambers 1 and 2 in Hongyu).
Regarding claim 11, 16, 17, 18 and 19, these claims duplicate the limitations of claims 1-10, and are obvious for the same reasons as claims 1-10.
11. An economizer for a heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration (HVAC&R) system, comprising:
a housing defining a first chamber and a second chamber; (Kim Fig. 2)
an inlet conduit coupled to the housing and configured to direct a flow of working fluid into the first chamber; (Kim Fig. 2)
a perforated sheet disposed within the first chamber, wherein the perforated sheet is configured to direct the flow of working fluid received by the first chamber in a circular direction, (Kim, Fig. 2, 4)
the perforated sheet is configured to separate the flow of working fluid into vapor working fluid and liquid working fluid; (Kim, abstract, item 200 separates refrigerant into steam and liquid)
a liquid outlet conduit (Kim Fig. 5, Hongyu, Fig. 1) extending from the first chamber to the second chamber, wherein the liquid outlet conduit is configured to direct the liquid working fluid from the first chamber toward the second chamber. (in Hongyu it is apparent from the Figure that pipe 8 is for liquid, while pipe 4 is for vapor).
16. The economizer of claim 15, comprising a vapor outlet conduit fluidly coupled to the first section of the first chamber (Kim Fig. 2, there must be a vapor outlet out of section 1, for vapor to reach vapor pipe (103), wherein the vapor outlet conduit is configured to discharge the vapor working fluid from the first chamber and direct the vapor working fluid toward a compressor (Kim, 20, 10, Fig. 1) of the HVAC&R system.
17. The economizer of claim 11, wherein the first chamber and the second chamber are vertically stacked on top of one another in an installed configuration of the economizer. (Hongyu, Fig. 1, items 2 and 3)
18. An economizer for a heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration (HVAC&R) system, comprising:
a housing defining a first chamber and a second chamber, wherein the first chamber is configured to receive a flow of working fluid from a vapor compression circuit; (Kim, Fig. 1 and 2, Hongyu Fig. 1)
a separation plate disposed within the housing to separate the first chamber from the second chamber within the housing; (Hongyu, unnumbered plate between chamber 1 and 2)
a perforated sheet (20, Kim) disposed within the housing, wherein the perforated sheet extends within the first chamber, the perforated sheet divides the first chamber into a first section and a second section (Kim, Fig. 2), the perforated sheet is configured to direct the flow of working fluid received by the first chamber in a circular direction (see wavy pattern in Kim Fig, 4), and the perforated sheet is configured to separate the flow of working fluid into vapor working fluid (Kim, 103) and liquid working fluid (Kim, 102); and a liquid outlet conduit extending from the first chamber to the second chamber (Kim, Fig. 5, lines through 42 and 43), wherein the liquid outlet conduit is configured to direct the liquid working fluid from the first chamber (71, Kim, Fig. 5) toward the second chamber (72).
19. Kim as modified teaches the economizer of claim 18, wherein the first chamber (Hongyu 1) is disposed vertically above the second chamber (2) in an installed configuration of the economizer with the HVAC&R system, and the separation plate (Hongyu, unnumbered) extends in a generally horizontal direction in the installed configuration of the economizer with the HVAC&R system.
Claims 12-15 and 20 contain allowable subject matter.
Claims 12 and 20. The art of record does not teach, “the liquid outlet conduit is configured to direct the liquid working fluid in the circular direction.” Note that the “curved direction” used in rejecting certain claims above is the localized curvature produced by the wavy plates in Fig. 4 of Kim, and the outlet conduit does not follow the same curvature.
Claims 13-15 depend from claim 12.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HENRY T CRENSHAW whose telephone number is (571)270-1550. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00 am to 5:00 pm.
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/HENRY T CRENSHAW/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3763