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 .
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.
Specification
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
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.
Claims 1-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 20200328645 A1 to Piispanen et al. in view of WO 2020094406 A1 to Weber (please refer to US 20210391116 A1 for citations listed below).
Regarding claim 1, Piispanen et al. discloses a stator comprising:
a stator core ([0029]: core structure); and
a coil (Fig. 1a: 106 and 107),
wherein a connection state of the coil is switched (switches 114 and 115),
the stator core includes a plurality of slots (Fig. 1d: slot for coils) and a plurality of tooth portions (two tooth portions on each side of slot) that are annularly aligned in an alternating manner,
the coil includes winding wires of a plurality of phases (Fig. 1a: 106a, 106b, 106c), including at least a first winding wire (Fig. 1d: 120-123) and a second winding wire (124-127) that are wound around the tooth portions, connection states of the first winding wire and the second winding wire being switched (Figs. 1b and 1c),
the first winding wire (Fig. 1d: 120-123) includes a first insertion portion that passes through a slot,
the second winding wire (124-127) includes a second insertion portion that passes through the slot through which the first insertion portion passes,
both the first insertion portion and the second insertion portion are disposed in the same slot (single slot in Fig. 1d).
However, it fails to disclose the first insertion portion includes a first core wire and a first coating portion that covers the first core wire, the second insertion portion includes a second core wire and a second coating portion that covers the second core wire, and a thickness of the second coating portion is smaller than a thickness of the first coating portion.
Weber teaches the first insertion portion (Fig. 4) includes a first core wire (16) and a first coating portion (17) that covers the first core wire, the second insertion portion (Fig. 3) includes a second core wire (16) and a second coating portion (17) that covers the second core wire, and a thickness of the second coating portion (Fig. 3: 25) is smaller than a thickness of the first coating portion (Fig. 4: 26).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use the teaching of the different thickness coating portions as disclosed by Weber to the first and second coating portions disclosed by Piispanen et al.
One would have been motivated to do so to use the different thickness coating portions in regions in which intersections with conductors of other phases have a large expected voltage difference. Refer to Weber, [0040].
Regarding claim 2, Piispanen et al. discloses the first winding wires (Fig. 1d: 120-123) include a plurality of first insertion portions that pass through a slot, the second winding wires (124-127) include a plurality of second insertion portions that pass through the slot through which the plurality of first insertion portions pass, and the first insertion portions and the second insertion portions are alternatingly aligned in a radial direction in the slot (see 120-124-122-126).
Regarding claims 3 and 5, the combination of Piispanen et al. and Weber discloses a second cross-section area of the second core wire when cut in a plane direction orthogonal to an extending direction of the second core wire is larger than a first cross-section area of the first core wire when cut in a plane direction orthogonal to an extending direction of the first core wire (Weber, [0041]).
Regarding claims 4 and 6, Piispanen et al. discloses the coil is switched between a first energized state (Fig. 1c) where both the first winding wire and the second winding wire are energized and a second energized state (Fig. 1b) where only the second winding wire is energized.
Conclusion
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/VIET P NGUYEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2834