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 . Claims 1-5 are pending.
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.
Claims 1-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nakamura et al. (US 20100308688 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Nakamura discloses a sliding contact material for a motor brush (para [0001]: “The present invention relates to a sliding contact material suitable for a motor commutator performing electrical opening and closing by means of mechanical sliding operation. More particularly, it relates to a sliding contact material suitable for a high-capacity small electric DC motor whose initial starting current is 1 ampere or higher, which is used for an electrically-driven retractable mirror and the like of an automobile.”), the sliding contact material comprising:
ZnO particles (para [0015]: “The sliding contact material of the present invention may be a material in which an oxide of one kind or two or more kinds of Mg, Fe, Co, Ni and Zn is further dispersed.”) and Ta205 particles dispersed in the matrix, wherein the sliding contact material has a ZnO particle content of 0.1% by mass or more and 12% by mass or less and a Ta2O5 particle content of 0.1% by mass or more and 6.0% by mass or less (para [0012]: “the present invention provides a sliding contact material in which metal oxide particles are dispersed in an Ag alloy matrix, wherein the Ag alloy matrix is an Ag alloy containing 0.01 to 10.0 wt % of at least one kind of Fe, Co, Ni and Cu in Ag, and as the metal oxide, 0.1 to 3.0 wt % of a Ta oxide is dispersed.”, and [0015]: “The content of oxide of one kind or two or more kinds of Mg, Fe, Co, Ni and Zn is made 0.1 to 10.0 wt %.” and “Among the oxides of Mg, Fe, Co, Ni and Zn, at least one kind of Mg oxide and Zn oxide is preferably dispersed.”).
Nakamura does not disclose the Ag is pure. However, to optimize the design, controlling the impurity level or the composition of the Ag as a matrix is within the skills of those having ordinary skills in the art.
To optimize the design of the sliding contact material, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skills in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use pure Ag as a matrix.
Regarding claim 2, Nakamura as modified in claim 1 discloses the sliding contact material for a motor brush according to claim 1, wherein the pure Ag as a matrix is pure Ag having an Fe/Cr/Ni total content of 0.3% by mass or less (see [0012] and [0015]: “The content of oxide of one kind or two or more kinds of Mg, Fe, Co, Ni and Zn is made 0.1 to 10.0 wt %.”) .
Regarding claim 3, Nakamura discloses a composite material for a motor brush (para [0013]), the composite material comprising: a base material comprising a Cu-based material; and a sliding contact material jointed to at least a part of the base material, wherein the sliding contact material jointed is the sliding contact material defined in claim 1 or 2 (see para [0016]: “In the case where the above-described sliding contact material of the present invention is used as the motor commutator, to make the construction material of commutator more suitable, the sliding contact material is preferably used as a clad composite material in which a base material consisting of Cu or Cu alloy is used, and the sliding contact material of the present invention is embedded in a part of the base material.”).
Regarding claim 4, Nakamura discloses a motor brush for a DC motor (para [0001]), the motor brush comprising the composite material defined in claim 3 (see para [0016]).
Regarding claim 5, Nakamura discloses a DC motor comprising: a motor brush; and a commutator ([0004]), wherein the motor brush is the motor brush defined in claim 4 (see para [0016]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MASOUD VAZIRI whose telephone number is (571)272-2340. The examiner can normally be reached M-F, 8am-5pm EST..
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, the examiner’s supervisor, SEYE IWARERE can be reached on (571) 270-5112. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/MASOUD VAZIRI/Examiner, Art Unit 2834
/OLUSEYE IWARERE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2834
Prosecution Insights