DETAILED ACTION
This is the first action in response to US Patent Application No. 18/714,136, filed 29 May, 2024, as the National Stage Entry of International Application PCT/CN2022/134916, filed 29 November, 2022, and with priority to the following Chinese Applications, all of which were filed 29 November, 2021: CN 202111432360.5; CN 202111432536.7; CN 202111436675.7; CN 202111435804.0; and CN 202111432809.8. A certified copy of each document have been received.
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 .
Response to Amendment
The preliminary amendments filed 29 May, 2024, have been entered. Claims 1-2, 4-7, 19, 30, 37, 41, and 44 are amended. Claims 8-18, 21, 23-27, 29, 32-36, 42-43 are cancelled. Claims 1-7, 19-20, 22, 28, 30-31, 37-41, and 44-45 are pending and have been fully considered.
Claim Interpretation
Claim 1 is understood to be directed toward two distinct embodiments of a laundry treatment apparatus, the distinct embodiments differing with respect to the arrangement of an air inlet of a chamber, an air outlet of an air chamber, an air inlet pipeline, and an air outlet pipeline. In the first embodiment, an air inlet of the air chamber receives external air and an air outlet of the air chamber delivers air to an interior of a laundry treatment barrel via an air outlet pipeline. In the second embodiment, an air inlet of the air chamber receives air from an interior of a laundry treatment barrel via an air inlet pipeline, and an air outlet of the air chamber returns air to the laundry treatment barrel via an air outlet pipeline, establishing a recirculating air flow.
Optionally, the alternative embodiments of the claim could be more clearly set forth by adjusting the claim as shown below (or making similar adjustments).
(Optional Suggested Amendment) A laundry treatment apparatus including a housing, a laundry treatment barrel disposed inside the housing, and an optical plasma generation unit with an air chamber, wherein,
a photoplasma generation tube is arranged in the air chamber for irradiating air inside of
the air chamber includes an air inlet and an air outlet;
the air outlet of the air chamber communicates with an interior of the laundry treatment barrel via an air outlet pipeline;
the air inlet of the air chamber is communicated with at least one of:
external air; and
an interior of the laundry treatment barrel through an air inlet pipeline, to form a circulating air flow.
Claim 28 is an independent claim which is similar to claim 1, setting forth a laundry apparatus wherein a photoplasma tube is arranged within a drying air duct and the drying air duct connects to a front and rear of a laundry treatment barrel.
Claim 37, as amended, depends from independent claim 1, and is understood to further limit claim 1 by requiring a shell which forms the air chamber, a connecting pipeline between the air outlet of the air chamber and the air outlet pipeline, and a blocking member which connects or disconnects from the air chamber by moving along inside of the connecting pipeline.
The “photoplasma generation tube” referred to throughout the claims is understood to refer to a [generally tubular] light source which emits ionizing radiation, especially in the UVC or UVD (more commonly referred to as vacuum UV) light ranges (consider instant specification at page 7, 4th paragraph; page 8, final paragraph, through page 9, lines 1-4 and 8-11).
Claim Objections
Claims 4, 19, 37, and 44 are objected to for the minor informalities indicated below.
-Claim 4: a semicolon at the end of claim should be replaced with a period.
-Claim 19: the claim recites “an air outlet of the air chamber”, “an air outlet pipeline”, and “an air inlet of the air chamber”. If the components recited in claim 19 are the same as the corresponding components set forth in independent claim 1, claim 19 should be adjusted such that the terms are recited as “the air outlet of the air chamber”, “the air outlet pipeline”, and “the air inlet of the air chamber”. If the components of claim 19 are distinct from the components of claim 1, they should be referred to with a distinct term or phrase (e.g., “a second air outlet of the air chamber”).
-Claim 37: “an air outlet of the air chamber” (claim 37, line 8) should read “the air outlet of the air chamber” if referring to the same “air outlet of the air chamber” recited at line 7 of independent claim 1; otherwise, the limitation of claim 37 should be adjusted to establish that the air inlet is distinct (e.g., “a second air inlet of the air chamber”).
-Claim 37: the phrase “a blocking member, being configured to control to be connected with or disconnected from the air chamber” should be adjusted for grammatical clarity; for example, the phrase could be reworded as “a blocking member[[,]] disconnected from the air chamber”, or “a blocking member[[,]] controlled to connect and disconnect
-Claim 44: “an optical plasma generation unit” should read “the optical plasma generation unit” if the limitation is referring to the same optical plasma generation unit recited in independent claim 1; otherwise, the limitation of claim 44 should be adjusted to establish that the optical plasma generation unit is different (e.g., “ a second optical plasma generation unit”).
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.
Claims 37-41 and 44-45 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b), as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor, regards as the invention.
Claim 37 recites the limitation “the photoplasma generation unit”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. It is suggested that the limitation be replaced with “the optical plasma generation unit” to correspond with the limitation at line 2 of independent claim 1. Claims 38-41 and 44-45 are rejected by virtue of dependency on claim 37.
Claim 45 recites the limitation “the elastic member”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. It is suggested the first recitation of “the elastic member” in claim 45 be adjusted to read “an elastic member”.
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.
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.
Claims 1-5, 7 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over D’Alessandro et al. (EP 2072658 A1) in view of Stausgaard et al. (US 2011/0293484 A1).
Regarding claim 1, D’Alessandro teaches a laundry treatment apparatus (device 1 for washing or drying articles—[0013]—such as a drier or tumble drier for treating laundry—[0014]) including
a housing (outer containment structure 2—[0016]),
a laundry treatment barrel inside the housing (means 4 for supporting articles to be washed or dried, housed within an inner compartment 3 of containment structure 2—[0016]; supporting means comprises a rotary drum 40 for housing textile articles—[0041]), and
an optical plasma generation unit (active particle emitter 70—[0018]; active particle generator 700 [of emitter 70] normally simultaneously generates both ozone and ions—[0023]; active particle generator 700 [of active particle emitter] may carry out its action using UV rays, e.g., a UV lamp—[0026]; emitter 70 is thus an optical plasma generation unit because it generates ionic gas species by irradiating air with UV light) with an air chamber (active particle generator 700 is depicted as a module with a housing having openings which allow air to flow between an air intake 713 and fan 711, see Fig. 2-5, especially Figs. 2d, 3, and 5a-2e, 3, Figs. 4-5; thus, the inside of active particle generator 700 module fairly defines an air chamber as depicted) wherein
an ultraviolet light source is arranged in the chamber for irradiating air being in the air chamber (active particle generator 700 may be a UV lamp—[0026]; based on depiction of Fig. 3, expected that UV lamp would be positioned air chamber formed by the housing of the active particle generator 700 module housing);
an air inlet of the air chamber is comminated with an external air (intake 713 on second covering element 62 is for a fluid which will be conveyed in the pipe, said fluid being air drawn from the outside environment—[0043]; intake 713 sucks in air from the outside environment—[0033]; active particle emitter 70 [comprising active particle generator 70] preferably located along pipe 710—[0033]; viewing Figs. 2, 3, and 4-5, it is evident that air from intake 713 will pass through a portion of the pipeline 710, and enter the air chamber defined by the module housing of active particle generator 700), and an air outlet of the air chamber is communicated with an interior of the laundry treatment barrel via an air outlet pipeline (pipeline 710 outlet 712 leads to inner compartment 3—[0036]; first covering element 61 partly delimits the inner compartment 3…pipe 710 outlet 712 is made on the first covering element 61—[0043]; from Figs. 2d and 3, it is evident that air exiting the chamber defined by active particle generator 700 is conveyed through a further section of pipe and ejected through outlet 712 into the laundry treatment barrel by action of fan 711, said section of pipe 710 fairly defining an air outlet pipeline); or
an air inlet and an air outlet of the air chamber are communicated with an interior of the laundry treatment barrel through an air inlet pipeline (upstream portion of pipeline 710) and an air outlet pipeline (downstream portion of pipeline 710) respectively to form a circulating air flow (alternatively, intake 713 could be made on first covering element 61, in which case the air is drawn from the inner compartment 3 and made to recirculate along the conveying means 71—[0043]; intake 713 may suck in air from the inner compartment 3—[0033]; pipe 710 outlet 712 leads into the inner compartment 3—[0036]; D’Alessandro thus sets forth an alternative embodiment wherein intake 713 takes air from the inner compartment 3, an upstream portion of pipeline 710 delivers the air to an air chamber of active particle generator 700, and a downstream portion of pipeline 710 delivers air from the air chamber to the inner compartment 3 via outlet 712).
D’Alessandro does not specify the particular arrangement of the active particle generator (700) when it includes an ultraviolet light source, such that it is ambiguous if said light source necessarily defines a photoplasma tube arranged in an air chamber having an air inlet and air outlet (D’Alessandro at [0026] explicitly indicates ultraviolet active particle generators are known and therefore not described in further detail).
However, in the analogous art of drying and sanitizing items (title) such as clothing (insertion of clothes, equipment and other items into the bag—[0027]; sanitized airflow moves past equipment and clothes therein—[0046]), Stausgaard teaches an apparatus (bag 10—[0027]) equipped with a sanitizing unit (11). The sanitizing unit (11) includes a housing defining an air chamber (implicit, see Fig. 2, [0028] discussing how air is directed into the sanitizing unit), a tubular (see Fig. 2) ultraviolet light source (21) arranged within the air chamber to irradiate air therein with 185-187 nm light ([0033]), and a catalyst member (frame 23 surrounding UV lamp 21 with a catalyst layer deposited thereon—[0034]), the sanitizing unit (11) functioning to form ozone and other oxidizers including super-oxide ions which are delivered to target items for sanitization (UV lamp and catalyst layer produces hydroxyl radicals, super-oxide ions, hydroperoxides and/or any other oxidizers…at least some of these oxidants pass into the volume of the bag, for further sanitizing the air and/or surfaces within [0034]; catalyst, bulb, and/or airflow within sanitizing unit 11 may be configured to allow some ozone to escape into the volume of the bag—[0049]). An inlet pipeline (inflow air channel 12) delivers air to an inlet of the sanitizing unit (11), and an outlet pipeline (outflow channel 13) delivers air from an outlet of the sanitizing unit (11) to a treatment chamber (interior of bag 10) (air drawn through inflow air channel 12 into sanitization unit 11…sanitized air through outlet air channel 13 is blown into the interior of the bag—Figs. 1-2, [0046]).
The sanitizing device (11) of Stausgaard is depicted in 2 below.
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It is emphasized that the ultraviolet lamp (21) of Stausgaard fairly defines a photoplasma tube which irradiates air within an air chamber because the lamp (21) has a generally tubular shape (see Figs. 2, 5) and serves to generate sterilizing gases including ionic species (hydroxyl radicals, super-oxide ions, hydroperoxides, and other oxidizers—[0034], [0057]) consistent with the instant specification (page 9, lines 9-11: hydroxyl ions, free oxygen atoms, superoxide ions, and other oxidants).
Therefore, it would be obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to modify the apparatus of D’Alessandro by selecting the particle emitter module (700) to be the sanitizing unit (11) of Stausgaard for the benefit of delivering sanitizing gas species to clothes in need of treatment (Stausgaard indicates ozone and/or oxidizers including hydroxyl radicals, super-oxide ions, and hydroperoxides are generated by the sanitization unit 11 and may be delivered to clothing or other articles for sanitization—see [0034], [0049]). Thus modified, the apparatus of D’Alessandro includes a photoplasma tube (ultraviolet light 21 of Stausgaard) arranged withing an air chamber having an air inlet and air outlet (see sanitizing device 11 in Fig. 2 of Stausgaard).
Regarding claim 2, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard teaches the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 1. D’Alessandro further teaches the optical plasma generation unit (70/700) is arranged between the housing (62) and the laundry treatment barrel (3/4/40—[0016], [0041]) (between first and second covering elements 61 and 62 there is a housing 63 in which the active particle emitter is located…first covering element 61 partly delimits the inner compartment 3…second covering element 62 faces the outside environment—[0043]; thus evident that optical plasma generation unit 700 is positioned between panel 62 which forms part of an the outer housing, and the laundry treatment barrel within the inner compartment).
Regarding claim 3, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard teaches the laundry treatment apparatus of claim 2. D’Alessandro further teaches an air inlet end of the air outlet pipeline (portions of pipeline 710 downstream from active particle generator 700) is connected with the air chamber (of active particle generator/emitter 700/70), and an air outlet end (outlet 712) of the air outlet pipeline is connected with an upper front side of the laundry treatment barrel (3/4/40) (see Fig. 3, position of outlet 712 is positioned on an inner panel 61 of a front door to the laundry treatment compartment, and is reasonably proximate an “upper” portion thereof; also, rearranging the outlet to be in a more “upper” position is prima facie obvious absent persuasive evidence of significance, see MPEP 2144.04(VI.)(C.)), such that the external air in the air chamber irradiated by the photoplasma tube is blown into the laundry treatment barrel through the air outlet pipeline (when the door 6 is in the closed configuration, said at least one outlet 712 leads into the inner compartment 3—[0029]; conveying means 71/7111 generate a fluid flow suitable for drawing active particles along the pipe 710 from the emitter 70 to the outlet 712—[0034]; thus evident that the portions of pipeline 710 downstream of the emitter/generator 70/700 connect an output of the emitter/generator to the laundry treatment barrel).
Regarding claim 4, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard teaches the laundry treatment apparatus of claim 3. Claim 4 indicates a first air inlet is provided on the upper front side of the laundry treatment barrel, and the air outlet pipeline is communicated with an interior of the laundry treatment barrel through the first air inlet. Claim 3 already establishes that an air outlet end of the air outlet pipeline is connected with an upper front side of the laundry treatment barrel; thus, claim 4 essentially recites explicitly what is already strongly implied by claim 3. Accordingly, the outlet (712) of the outlet pipeline of D’Alessandro fairly defines/coincides with a first air inlet on the upper side of the laundry treatment barrel, the air outlet pipeline in communication with an interior of the laundry treatment barrel through the first air inlet (outlet 712 is made on the first covering element 61…first covering element 61 partly delimits the inner compartment 3—Fig. 3, [0043]; outlet 712 leads into inner compartment 3—[0029]).
Regarding claim 5, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard teaches the laundry treatment apparatus of claim 2. D’Alessandro indicates that the apparatus (device 1) is a tumble drier or washer (tumble drier or washer—[0014], [0040]-[0041]), wherein it is known by a person having ordinary skill in the art (and thus fairly implied) that such devices conventionally include a door seal arranged between the housing and a front flange of the laundry treatment barrel for confining the washing/drying conditions inside of the device from the outside environment (see Fig. 1 of D’Alessandro, a person of ordinary skill would expect that a seal is provided between door 6 and opening 41 to drum 40 so that fluids within the inner compartment 3 of the device 1 do not leak to an outside environment when the door is closed). Additionally, the air outlet end (712) of the air outlet pipeline of D’ D’Alessandro is connected to the door (6) (Fig. 3, [0043]), and thus is further connected with the door seal (at least indirectly, since the door is connected to the implied door seal). Additionally, D’Alessandro teaches air in the air chamber irradiated by the photoplasma tube is blown into the laundry treatment barrel through the air outlet pipeline ([0029], [0034], [0043]).
Regarding claim 7, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard teaches the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 1. D’Alessandro further teaches a fan (711) is arranged … for taking external air into the air chamber through the air inlet of the air chamber, and discharging air in the air chamber irradiated by the photoplasma tube into the air outlet pipeline through the air outlet of the air chamber (means 7111 for moving a fluid…for drawing active particles along the pipe 710 from the emitter 70 to the outlet 712…movement means 711 usually comprise a fan—[0034]; fluid flow generated along pipe 710 by fan 711 is an air flow, said air drawn from the outside environment—[0035]; pipe 710 outlet 712 is opposite opening 41 of drum 40 so fluid and active particles drawn are introduced into he inner compartment 3—[0041]; air drawn from outside environment at the intake 713—[0043]).
D’Alessandro does not clearly teach that the fan is necessarily located in the air chamber of the optical plasma generation unit.
However, Stausgaard does teach a fan (22) positioned within an air chamber of an optical plasma generation unit (sanitization device 11; see Fig. 2), the arrangement being suitable for delivering air containing ozone and/or ionized gas to clothing (fan 22 draws air from bag into inflow air channel 12 and to discharge the air through outflow air channel 13 into the interior of the bag, the fan 22 being a high flow fan which allows higher air flow to pass from the bag through the sanitizing unit 11 and back to the bag—[0033]). Therefore, when modifying D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard as proposed with respect to claim 1 above, it would be obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to include the fan of Stausgaard positioned within the air chamber, for the benefit of achieving a high air flow through the device (see Stausgaard at [0033]).
Regarding claim 19, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard teaches the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 1. As indicated with respect to claim 1, an air outlet of the air chamber is communicated with the laundry treatment barrel through an air outlet pipeline (pipeline 710 outlet 712 leads to inner compartment 3—[0036]; first covering element 61 partly delimits the inner compartment 3…pipe 710 outlet 712 is made on the first covering element 61—[0043]; from Figs. 2d and 3, it is evident that air exiting the chamber defined by active particle generator 700 is conveyed through a further section of pipe and ejected through outlet 712 into the laundry treatment barrel by action of fan 711, said section of pipe 710 fairly defining an air outlet pipeline). As further discussed with respect to claim 1:
an air inlet of the air chamber is communicated with the laundry treatment barrel through a first air inlet branch (alternatively, intake 713 could be made on first covering element 61, in which case the air is drawn from the inner compartment 3 and made to recirculate along the conveying means 71—[0043]; intake 713 may suck in air from the inner compartment 3—[0033]; in such embodiment, evident that there must be a pipeline segment from the inner compartment to the active particle emitter 700 which defines a first inlet branch);
or communicated with an external air through a second air inlet branch (intake 713 on second covering element 62 is for a fluid which will be conveyed in the pipe, said fluid being air drawn from the outside environment—[0043]; intake 713 sucks in air from the outside environment—[0033]; viewing Figs. 2, 3, and 4-5, it is evident that pathway from air intake 713 through pipeline 710 to the housing of active particle generator 700 defines a second air inlet branch).
It is noted that the language of claim 19 does not clearly establishing that both a first inlet branch and a second inlet branch must be present within he claimed invention
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over D’Alessandro et al. (EP 2072658 A1) in view of Stausgaard et al. (US 2011/0293484 A1), as applied to claim 5 above, and further in view of Gao (CN 212175265 U).
Regarding claim 6, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard teaches the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 5. D’Alessandro teaches a front of the laundry treatment barrel has an opening (drum 40 has an opening 41 fo4 inserting or removing textile articles—[0041]), and the air outlet pipeline is communicated with the opening on the front side of the laundry treatment barrel (pipe 710 outlet 712 is opposite the opening 41 in the drum, so the fluid and active particles are introduced into the inner compartment 3 directly on the articles to be treated—[0041]). Claim 6 further requires that a second air inlet is provided within an upper of the door seal corresponding to an upper front side of the laundry treatment barrel, the second air inlet establishing communication between the air outlet pipeline and the opening on the front of the laundry treatment barrel. D’Alessandro and Stausgaard do not clearly teach an air inlet positioned at the door seal (outlet 712 of D’Alessandro is in panel 61 of door 6, not in a seal associated with the door—see Fig. 3).
However, in the analogous art of sterilization and deodorization device for clothes positioned within an inner barrel of a washing machine (abstract), Gao teaches a drum washing machine comprising an outer housing (cabinet 1) provided with a front door (13) ([0038]), a drum assembly comprising an inner (2) and outer drum (3) positioned within the housing ([0039]), a door seal (12) between the door (13) and the drum assembly ([0042]), and a drying pipe (5) with a blowing port which passes through the door seal on the front side of the drum assembly ([0043]). The drying pipe further comprises a suction port at a rear side of the drum assembly, and an ozone generator (14) positioned within the drying pipe supplies ozone into the drum assembly via the blowing port ([0043]-[0045]). Accordingly, it is evident that alternative arrangements for introducing a sterilization gas into a laundry treatment apparatus are known, and the arrangement of Gao provides advantages of large air volume flow, fast sterilization and deodorization, and high circulation efficiency ([0044]). Therefore, it would be obvious toa person having ordinary skill in the art to rearrange the device of modified D’Alessandro such that the pipeline (710) and associated components are arranged between the inner compartment and outer housing of the apparatus with at least an air outlet pipeline delivering air containing sterilizing gasses into an air inlet defined at an upper side of the front door seal, as seen in Gao (see Fig. 9), for the benefit of achieving a large air volume flow, fast sterilization and deodorization, and a high circulation efficiency ([0044]).
Claims 20 and 22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over D’Alessandro et al. (EP 2072658 A1) in view of Stausgaard et al. (US 2011/0293484 A1), as applied to claim 19 above, and further in view of McAllister et al. (US 7,921,578 B2).
Regarding claim 20, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard teaches the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 19. As best understood, claim 20 essentially further limits claim 19 by positively reciting that both the first air inlet branch and the second air inlet branch are present and associated with distinct first and second inlets to the air chamber. D’Alessandro uses language which seems to present the external air receiving configuration (second inlet branch) and recirculating air configuration (first inlet branch) as alternative embodiments ([0033], [0043]). Thus D’Alessandro and Stausgaard do not clearly teach all features of claim 20.
However, in the analogous art of fabric treatment appliances (title), McAllister teaches an arrangement of ductwork with respect to a laundry treatment barrel (perforated drum 30C/D—column 5, lines 22-26) wherein an air chamber (lint filter 74) connected via an outlet pipeline leading to a laundry treatment barrel can either receive air from an outside air intake pipeline (84) or a recirculation pipeline (86), depending on the position of a valve (85) (Figs. 9A-9B, column 13, lines 52-67). Although the arrangement of McAllister shows the two pipe branches (84, 86) merging before entering the identified air chamber (74), it is noted that the air chamber could be defined as including the merged potions of the branches such that the air chamber has distinct first and second inlets for the first and second branches. Therefore, it would be obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to configure the system of D’Alessandro such that the intake ducting to the air chamber includes a first inlet connected to a first inlet branch for recirculated air, and a second inlet connected to a second branch for receiving outside air, as substantially seen in McAllister, for the benefit of allowing the system to be toggled between operating modes depending on desired performance outcomes.
Regarding claim 22, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard teaches the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 19. As best understood, claim 22 essentially further limits claim 19 by requiring that both the first inlet branch and the second inlet branch are present, wherein the branches have distinct first and second inlets but merge at or upstream of a common outlet leading to the air chamber. As similarly discussed with respect to claim 20 above, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard do not clearly teach the claimed arrangement of the intake piping. However, McAllister teaches a ductwork arrangement wherein an outside air pipe (84) and a recirculated air pipe (86) merge prior to entering an air chamber (74) and then proceeding to enter a laundry treatment chamber (30C) via a further pipe (Figs. 9A-9B, column 13, lines 52-67). Therefore, it would be obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to configure the system of D’Alessandro such that the intake ducting to the air chamber includes a first inlet branch for recirculated air and a second inlet branch for receiving outside air, which merge upstream of the air chamber and deliver air to an inlet of the air chamber, as substantially seen in McAllister, for the benefit of allowing the system to be toggled between operating modes depending on desired performance outcomes.
Claims 28 and 30-31 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gao et al. (CN 323275265 U, see machine translation provided with this communication) in view of Stausgaard et al. (US 2011/0293484 A1).
Regarding claim 28, Gao teaches a laundry treatment apparatus (drum washing machine having inner drum 2 located inside of an outer drum 3 fixed inside a casing 1—[0039]; clothes to be sterilized in inner drum 2 come into contact with ozone—[0041]; thus, machine of Gao clearly treats laundry), including
a laundry treatment barrel (inner drum 2—see [0039]) and,
a drying air duct (5) for allowing hot air to flow into the laundry treatment barrel (drying pipe 5 comprising an air blowing port located at the front side of and connecting to inner cylinder 2, and an air suction port located at a rear side and connecting to outer cylinder 3…the air blowing port blows ozone generated by the ozone generated into the inner cylinder, and the blown air enters the drying pipe again through the air suction port to form a circulation—[0043]; drying pipeline is equipped with an ozone generator 14 and a heater 6 for drying heating—[0045]—thus evident that the drying pipe 5 delivers heated, ozone containing air to the inner cylinder 2), wherein, both ends of the drying air duct are respectively connected with a front and a rear of the laundry treatment barrel (see [0043], blowing port of drying pipe 5 is located at front of cylinder assembly, and suction port of drying pipe is located at rear of cylinder assembly), and the drying air duct is provided with an ozone generator (14) for generating ozone in the hot air in the drying air duct (drying pipeline 5 is also equipped with ozone generator 14—[0045]).
The arrangement of the blowing port and suction port of the drying air duct (drying pipe 5) at the front and rear of the laundry barrel (inner cylinder 2 within outer cylinder 3) is depicted in Figs. 8 and 9 below, and Fig. 4 shows the position of ozone generator (14) along the path of the air duct (5).
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Gao is not clear in indicating if the ozone generator necessarily includes a photoplasma tube for irradiating the hot air of the dying air duct.
However, it is first noted that Gao indicates that the apparatus should operate to carefully control ozone to be at low levels (during the sterilization process, the ozone concentration int he inner and outer drum assemblies is maintained at 3-5 ppm so as to provide a highly efficient sterilization effect without damaging the clothes—[0052]) and must decompose residual ozone at the end of a sterilization procedure to ensure human safety (after sterilization, the remaining ozone in the inner and outer cylinder assemblies need to be catalytically decomposed…to 0.05-0.08 ppm, reaching the safe value that meets the emission regulations, and avoiding harm to human body and environment caused by excessive ozone concentration—[0054]). Accordingly, it is evident that Gao recognized that excessive ozone concentrations can cause damage to clothing and pose a safety concern for humans; therefore, a person of ordinary skill in the art would reasonably consider alternative means for delivering sterilizing gas species to clothes within the laundry barrel (inner cylinder 2) which reduce the damage and harm of ozone.
Furthermore, Stausgaard, in the analogous art of drying and sanitizing items (title) such as clothing (insertion of clothes, equipment and other items into the bag—[0027]; sanitized airflow moves past equipment and clothes therein—[0046]), teaches an apparatus (bag 10 comprising bag body with walls 17, 18, 19, 34, 35, and cover panel 20, the bag made of a rigid frame enclosed with durable, flexible material—[0027]) with a main chamber (bag body interior) for receiving and sanitizing clothing (cover panel 20 provides access to the interior of the bag for the insertion of clothes—[0027]; sanitizing unit 11/41…blows sanitized and clean air into the bag interior—[0028], [0056]—moving past the equipment and cloths therein, thus drying them and carrying out any contaminants therein—[0031], [0046]; [sanitizing unit 11] produces ozone, hydroxyl radicals, super-oxide ions, hydroperoxides, and other oxidizers… at least some of which pass into the volume of the bag for further sanitizing of the air and surfaces within it—[0034], [0057]; the sanitizing unit 11 may be configured to allow some ozone to escape into the volume of the bag—[0049], [0064]; thus evident that the ozone and/or oxidizer containing air introduced into the bag sanitizes the clothes therein).
The apparatus of Stausgaard includes an inflow air channel (12) and an outflow air channel (13) arranged at opposite ends of the main chamber (interior of bag body) (see Fig. 1), which are configured to circulate air between the main chamber and an air treatment chamber of the sanitizing unit (11) ([0028]; see Fig. 2, sanitizing unit clearly defines an air treatment chamber). Air from the main chamber enters the air treatment chamber (of the sanitizing unit 11) via the inflow channel (12) (see Fig. 2), inside of which the air is exposed to ultraviolet radiation from a tubular UV lamp (21) (see Fig. 2) emitting light having wavelengths near 185 nm to generate ozone within the airflow ([0034]). The generated ozone within the air treatment chamber further reacts with a catalyst structure (catalyst layer deposited onto inner and outer walls of frame 23 that surrounds the UV lamp 21) within the air chamber to generate hydroxyl radicals, super-oxide ions, hydroperoxides, and other oxidizers, which pass back into the main chamber via the outlet air channel (13) ([0034]). Stausgaard further indicates that the catalyst structure reduces the amount of ozone in the air returned to the main chamber ([0034]), but that the sanitizing unit (11) can be configured such that some ozone is also introduced into the main chamber ([0049], [0064]). By providing low levels of ozone to the main chamber, the apparatus of Stausgaard prevents damage to items within the main chamber and reduces the need for complex safety mechanisms (Since the airflow that is blown into the bag from the outflow channels 43 is substantially free of ozone, or at least the level of ozone is low, there is no need of expensive monitoring means to monitor the amount of the ozone within the bag and also the equipment within the bag is not exposed to the ozone thus preventing any damage to it—[0036], [0059]).
An embodiment of the apparatus (10) of Stausgaard and the sanitizing device (11) thereof is depicted in Figs. 1 and 2 below.
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Accordingly the ultraviolet lamp (21) of Stausgaard fairly defines a photoplasma tube which irradiates air within a duct because the lamp (21) has a generally tubular shape (see Figs. 2, 5) and serves to generate sterilizing gases including ionic species (hydroxyl radicals, super-oxide ions, hydroperoxides, and other oxidizers—[0034], [0057]) consistent with the instant specification (page 9, lines 9-11: hydroxyl ions, free oxygen atoms, superoxide ions, and other oxidants). Also, in view of teachings of Stausgaard discussed above, it is evident that the sanitizing device (11) of Stausgaard [or elements thereof] defines an ozone generator which advantageously provides low concentrations of ozone alongside other sterilizing gasses, avoiding damage to clothing articles while providing appropriate sanitization thereof (see [0036] and [0059] regarding lack of damage to equipment within bag, and [0034] and [0057] indicating oxidants have sanitizing effect on surfaces within the bag).
Therefore, it would be obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to modify the apparatus of Gao such that the ozone generator (14) of Gao is substantially replaced with the sanitizing module (11) of Stausgaard [or parts thereof, especially ultraviolet lamp 21 and catalyst frame 23], positioned along the path of airflow through heating pipe (5), and configured to generate and deliver to the laundry treatment barrel low levels of ozone alongside gaseous oxidizers for the benefit of sanitizing clothing within the laundry treatment barrel without causing damage to the clothing (see advantages of Stausgaard discussed in paragraph above). Thus modified, the apparatus of Gao includes a photoplasma tube (ultraviolet lamp 21 of Stausgaard, see paragraph above) arranged to irradiate air passing through the air drying duct.
Regarding claim 30, Gao in view of Stausgaard teaches the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 28. Gao further teaches a fan is arranged in the dying air duct (fan 8 is installed in the drying duct 5—[0044]), the drying air duct has an air duct inlet (air suction port) and an air duct outlet (air blowing port—[0043]), the fan is arranged on a position of the drying air duct close to the air duct inlet (see Fig. 9, fan 8 is nearer intake portion of duct 5). Gao indicates the ozone generator is positioned “below” the fan ([0011], [0045], Fig. 4), which would not correspond with the claimed position of the photoplasma tube being arranged on a position of the drying air duct close to the air duct outlet.
However, Stausgaard teaches a photoplasma tube (21) positioned downstream of a fan (22) (see Fig. 2), the arrangement being suitable for delivering ozone and/or oxidizers to clothes to be treated (see rejection of claim 28 above). Therefore, it would be obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to further modify the device of Gao (as modified in view of Stausgaard) such that the ozone generator is comprises a photoplasma tube positioned within the air duct further downstream (and thus more proximate an air duct outlet) than the fan, for the benefit of delivering ozone and oxidizers to clothing within the laundry treatment barrel. A person of ordinary skill would further recognize positioning an ionizing radiation source (photoplasma tube) close to the outlet would increase the amount of active particles delivered to the clothing (i.e., because the ionized/oxidized particles would be generated substantially immediately before being discharged from the air duct, they would have less opportunity to decompose or interact with the air duct walls, such that a greater effective concentration of active particles could be delivered to the clothing in the laundry treatment barrel).
Regarding claim 31, Gao in view of Stausgaard teaches the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 30. Gao further teaches a heating pipe (6) arranged in the drying air duct (drying pipeline 5 is equipped with a heater 6—[0045]), the heating pipe being downstream of the fan (see position of fan 8 and heater 6 in duct 5 in Fig. 9). Gao does not indicate that the heater is upstream of the photoplasma tube, so that hot air in the drying air duct flows toward the photoplasma tube.
However, as substantially discussed above with respect to claim 30, when modifying Gao in view of Stausgaard such that the ozone generator is configured as a photoplasma tube as proposed with respect to claims 28 and 30 above, it would be obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to arrange the photoplasma tube adjacent the air duct outlet for the benefit of maximizing the effective concentration of sterilizing gasses in the discharged air (see rejection of claim 30 above). Accordingly, such modification leads to an arrangement wherein the heater is arranged between the fan and the photoplasma tube, so that the hot air in the drying air duct flows toward the photoplasma tube.
Claims 37-40 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over D’Alessandro et al. (EP 2072658 A1) in view of Stausgaard et al. (US 2011/0293484 A1), as applied to claim 19 above, and further in view of Kim (KR 20070087343 A, see machine translation provided with this correspondence).
Regarding claim 37, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard teaches the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 1.
As modified with respect to claim 1, the system of D’Alessandro incorporates the sanitization unit (11) of Stausgaard, the sanitization unit of Stausgaard defining a photoplasma generation unit including:
a shell, in which an the air chamber is formed (see Stausgaard at Fig. 2, unit 11 clearly includes a shell/housing which defines an air chamber); and
the photoplasma tube (21) for irradiating air in the air chamber (see Stausgaard at Fig. 2).
Also, the system of D’Alessandro includes a type of blocking member (gate 8) which essentially functions as a one way valve which prevents air from entering an outlet portion of the pipeline (710) (gate 8 is closed when fluid movement means [fan] 711 is disabled, to limit the risk of foreign bodies which enter through the outlet 712 reaching the active particle emitter…when the fluid movement means 7111 are active, it is the fluid flow in the inner compartment 3 that prevent the flying foreign bodies from reaching the active particle emitter 70…the gate 8 may be moved by an electric motor which opens it when the emitter 70 or the fluid movement means are activated and closes it when the emitter 70 or the fluid movement means 711 are disabled…alternatively, the gate 8 is elastically operated by a spring 80—[0040]). The gate is located downstream of the photoplasma tube position (active particle emitter 70) and upstream or at the outlet (712) of the pipeline leading into the laundry treatment barrel ([0038]). Thus, the gate of D’Alessandro fairly defines a blocking member positioned along a pipeline leading from the air chamber to the laundry treatment barrel.
Nonetheless, D’Alessandro does not clearly teach: a connecting pipeline, wherein, an air inlet end of the connecting pipeline is connected with an air outlet of the air chamber, an air outlet end of the connecting pipeline is communicated with the interior of the laundry treatment barrel through the air outlet pipeline; and
The blocking member being configured to control to be connected with or disconnected from the air chamber, such that the blocking member reciprocates along an inside of the connecting pipeline.
However, in the analogous art of check valves for controlling the direction of air flows (abstract), Kim teaches an air chamber (200) provided with a sterilization device (500) which discharges at least one of anions, ozone, and UV radiation (Fir. 2, page 5, second paragraph), wherein an outlet of the air chamber (lower part of exhaust duct 300) connects to a connecting pipeline (check valve housing 410) which further connects to an outlet pipeline (upper part of exhaust duct 300) (page 4: it is preferable that the above-mentioned exhaust duct 300 be separated into upper and lower sections to facilitate repair or replacement work on the check valve 400 fixed inside…check valve includes ball 420 which sits in a housing 410 that is fixed inside the exhaust duct, and a cover plate 430 which limits motion of the ball 420—see page 5, lines 11-24). See Figs. 2-3, and 5 of Kim below.
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As best seen in Fig. 3 of Kim, the blocking member (ball 420) within the connecting pipeline (410) is configured to disconnect from the air chamber under the pressure of discharge air coming from air chamber, and connect [and block access to] the air chamber when there is not sufficient discharge pressure from the air chamber to displace the ball (see Fig. 3, and page 5, lines 19-22), with a cover plate (430) ensuring the blocking member does not escape out of the apparatus (page 5, last five lines of top paragraph). The connecting pipeline, blocking member, and cover plate of Kim thus operate as a check valve which can prevent backflows of discharged air (see page 4, lines 12-14), the design of the check valve being less prone to clogging (the problem of organic pollutants getting stuck or accumulating in the inlet of the check valve is preventing, thereby preventing malfunctioning of the check valve—page 5, last three lines, through page 6, first two lines).
Therefore, it would be obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to reconfigure the modified apparatus of D’Alessandro such that the gate (8) mechanism of D’Alessandro is replaced with the check valve arrangement of Kim, comprising a connecting pipeline (check valve housing 410) arranged between an outlet of the air chamber and an inlet of the outlet pipeline and a blocking member (ball 420) positioned within the connecting pipeline (410) and bound by a cover (430), as seen in Kim, for the benefit of maintaining the ability of the system to prevent backflow into the air chamber (Kim: prevent backflows—page 4, lines 12-14; D’Alessandro: gate 8 limits the risk of foreign bodies which enter through outlet 712 from reaching the active particle emitter 70—[0040]) and improving the reliability of the system (check valve of Kim less prone to malfunction by clogging—see page 5, last three lines, through page 6, first two lines).
Thus modified, the apparatus of D’Alessandro is consistent with claim 37.
Regarding claim 38, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard and Kim teaches the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 37. As modified with respect to claim 38, the apparatus of D’Alessandro incorporates the connecting pipeline (410) and blocking member (420) of Kim, wherein said connecting pipeline of Kim includes an inclined pipeline section extending obliquely upward along an air flow direction (see Fig. 3, housing 410 tapers from a narrower base to a wider top—page 5, lines 13-16) lines, and the blocking member (420) is arranged in the inclined pipeline section (Fig. 3).
All of D’Alessandro (movement means 711 comprising a fan—[0034]), Stausgaard (fan 22—[0033]), and Kim (fan 110—Fig. 2, page 5, line 7), teach a fan, with D’Alessandro indicating the fan can be positioned substantially anywhere along an airflow pathway to drive air therethrough (fan 711 maybe downstream or upstream of active particle emitter—[0034]), Stausgaard depicting the fan within an air chamber (fan 22 in shell of sanitizing device 11—Fig. 2), and Kim placing the fan in connection with an air chamber (200) which can receive UV radiation from a source (500) (see Fig. 2).
Kim further indicates that the airflow generated by the fan drives the blocking member to more upward, so that the connecting pipeline is communicated with the air chamber (see Fig.3, floating ball 420 can float into the air due to the exhaust pressure of the air being discharged—page 5, lines 19-20).
From these combined teachings, it would be obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to further modify the device of D’Alessandro and arrive at an embodiment wherein the fan is arranged in the air chamber for the benefit of generating sufficient discharge pressure to drive the blocking member upward and establish fluid communication with the outlet pipeline (consider Kim at Fig. 3, page 5, lines 19-20).
Regarding claim 39, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard and Kim teaches the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 38. As modified with respect to claim 37, the apparatus of D’Alessandro incorporates the ball valve arrangement of Kim, which includes a cover plate (430) and rib (450) which define a limiting rib extending in a radial direction of the inside of the inclined pipeline section (410), and air is configured to flow through the inclined pipeline section (410) to drive the blocking member (420) to move upward and be in contact with the limiting rib (430/450), so that the blocking member is stopped moving upward (A cover plate 430 is provided on the upper surface of the housing 410 to prevent the floating ball 420, which moves up and down inside the housing 410 , from escaping to the outside…the cover plate 430 is connected to upper surface of the housing 410 by a rib 440 so that contaminated air can be discharged through the rib 440—page 5, last five lines of first paragraph).
Regarding claim 40, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard and Kim teaches the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 38. As modified with respect to claim 37, the apparatus of D’Alessandro incorporates the ball valve arrangement of Kim, which includes a an inner diameter of the inclined pipeline section which gradually increases in an air flow direction (see Fig. 3, diameter of housing 410 increases in direction of airflow—also see page 5, lines 13-16).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 41 and 44-45 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejections under 35 U.S.C. 112(b), set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Regarding claim 41, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard and Kim teaches the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 37. Claim 37 indicates that part of the shell is recessed toward an interior of the air chamber to form an accommodating chamber having an opening in a horizontal direction, an elastic member is arranged in the accommodating chamber and in interference fit with the accommodating chamber, and an insertion hole is formed in the elastic member.
In view of the instant specifications, these features are understood to be directed toward features which allow the optical plasma generation unit to be detachable from the overall apparatus housing.
Generically, making parts separable is prima facie obvious absent evidence or persuasive evidence of significance; see MPEP 2144.04(V.). Additionally, Stausgaard does suggest configuring an optical plasma generation unit to be detachable (sanitizing unit 11 may be detachable—[0029]). However, claim 41 does not merely indicate that the optical plasma generation unit is detachable, and instead sets forth a further set of structures including an accommodating chamber formed out of a recess in part of the shell, an elastic member arranged with an interference fit within the accommodating chamber, and an insertion hole formed in the elastic member.
While various mechanisms for detachably connecting components are known, no prior art has been found which discloses all features of claim 41 or otherwise fairly suggests further modification of the apparatus of D’Alessandro to include all of the claimed accommodating chamber, elastic member, and insertion hole.
Accordingly, the subject matter of claim 41 is considered novel and non-obvious over the prior art.
Regarding claim 44, D’Alessandro in view of Stausgaard and Kim teaches the laundry treatment apparatus according to claim 37. Similar to claim 41, claim 44 is directed toward a detachable mounting arrangement for the optical plasma generation unit. Although claim 44 appears somewhat more generic than claim 41, it remains the case that no prior art was found which disclosed all features of claim 44 or otherwise fairly suggested further modification of the apparatus of D’Alessandro to include all of a beam arranged on a top of the housing, and fixedly connected with a mounting bracket, the shell of the optical plasma generation unit being detachably connected with the mounting bracket through a plug-in structure. Accordingly, the subject matter of claim 44 is considered novel and non-obvious over the prior art.
Claim 45 includes allowable subject matter at least by virtue of dependency on claim 43.
Conclusion
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/BRADY C PILSBURY/Examiner, Art Unit 1799
/JENNIFER WECKER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1797
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