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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on July 2, 2024 has been considered by the Examiner.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities: page 19, line 11, L13 should read L23. Appropriate correction or clarification is required.
Claim Objections
Claim 1 objected to because of the following informalities: Applicant may wish to add “an” before “offset” at the last line of the claim. Appropriate correction or clarification is required.
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 Cai et al. (US 10,647,346) in view of Miyazaki (JP 2012-137154).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
Cai discloses and shows at Fig. 1, for example, ball screw device, comprising:
a screw shaft (46) having a groove (48) on an outer periphery of the screw shaft;
a ball screw nut (58) having a groove (60) on an inner periphery of the ball screw nut;
a plurality of return tubes (64,66); and
a plurality of balls (62), wherein
the groove of the screw shaft faces the groove of the ball screw nut to form a helical rolling path,
each of the plurality of return tubes includes (col. 2:40-48, as Cai teaches the aforementioned components, it would have been expected to for the components to further have the following features, absent an objective showing to the contrary):
a return path configured to create a connection between two points of the rolling path, the return path and the rolling path forming a circulation path in which the balls are disposed,
a first end portion that serves as an entrance for the balls to enter the return path when the screw shaft or the ball screw nut rotates clockwise, and that serves as an exit for the balls to be discharged from the return path when the screw shaft or the ball screw nut rotates counterclockwise, and
a second end portion that serves as an exit for the balls to be discharged from the return path when the screw shaft or the ball screw nut rotates clockwise, and that serves as an entrance for the balls to enter the return path when the screw shaft or the ball screw nut rotates counterclockwise,
the ball screw nut has a plurality of attaching portions configured such that the plurality of return tubes is attached from a same attaching direction,
the plurality of return tubes includes at least a first return tube and a second return tube,
a position of the first end portion of the second return tube relative to a position of the first end portion of the first return tube in a circumferential direction of the ball screw nut is a first relative position, and a position of the second end portion of the second return tube relative to a position of the second end portion of the first return tube in the circumferential direction is a second relative position.
The Cai ball screw device does not specify at least one of the first relative position and the second relative position includes an offset in the circumferential direction. Miyazaki discloses and shows at Fig. 4 a ball screw device return tube where a first end portion is offset from a second send portion in the circumferential direction. The end having part 32a (the shorter end) aids in the delivery of the balls into the return tube.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the Cai ball screw device to where at least one of the first relative position and the second relative position are offset in the circumferential direction so as to aid in the delivery of balls into the return tube as taught by Miyazaki.
Cl. 2 –While Miyazaki does not describe any offset amount as claimed in claim 2, the offset amount may be determined through the use of routine experimentation during the engineering design process (as noted in the specification) to optimize the functionality of the device, suited to the intended use and desired load carrying parameters. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to modify the Cai/Miyazaki ball screw to where a sum of an offset amount in the circumferential direction of the first relative position and an offset amount in the circumferential direction of the second relative position is different from an integer multiple of a diameter of each of the balls, as the offset may be optimized to the desired operational and load carrying parameters through the use of routine experimentation. A person of ordinary skill in the art undertaking such experimentation would have had a reasonable expectation of success and the results would have been predictable.
Cl. 3 – Cai does not show the leg portions of the return tubes. However, it is well known for ball screw devices with return tubes where each of the plurality of return tubes includes a first leg portion having a length along the attaching direction, and a second leg portion having a length along the attaching direction, the length of the first leg portion of the first return tube and the length of the second leg portion of the first return tube are equal to each other, and the length of the first leg portion of the second return tube and the length of the second leg portion of the second return tube are equal to each other, where ultimately the length of all four legs are equal to each other.
Cl. 4 – Cai does not show the leg portions or linking portions of the return tubes. However, it is well known for ball screw devices with return tubes where each of the plurality of return tubes have leg portions having a length along the attaching direction and a linking portion that links a first leg portion and a second leg portion to each other, the linking portion having a length along a direction intersecting the attaching direction. The length of the linking portions of the first return tube and the length of the linking portions of the second return tube are neither shown nor described.
However, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have linking portions of different lengths in lieu of MPEP 2144.04(IV)(A), which states, “limitations relating to the size are not sufficient to be patentably distinguishable over the prior art” in citing In re Rinehart, 531 F.2d 1048, 189 USPQ 143 (CCPA 1976) and also states, “where the only difference between the prior art and the claims was a recitation of relative dimensions of the claimed device and a device having the claimed relative dimensions would not perform differently than the prior art device, the claimed device was not patentably distinct from the prior art device” in citing Gardner v. TEC Syst., Inc., 725 F.2d 1338, 220 USPQ 777 (Fed. Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 830, 225 USPQ 232 (1984).
Cl. 5 – Cai does not show the leg portions or linking portions of the return tubes. However, it is well known for ball screw devices with return tubes where each of the plurality of return tubes have leg portions having a length along the attaching direction and a linking portion that links a first leg portion and a second leg portion to each other, the linking portion having a length along a direction intersecting the attaching direction. The lengths of the first leg portion, the second leg portion and the linking portions of the first return tube and the length of the linking portions of the second return tube for each of the return tubes are neither shown nor described.
However, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have a plurality of return tubes where the first leg portions, second leg portions and linking portions have different lengths in lieu of MPEP 2144.04(IV)(A), which states, “limitations relating to the size are not sufficient to be patentably distinguishable over the prior art” in citing In re Rinehart, 531 F.2d 1048, 189 USPQ 143 (CCPA 1976) and also states, “where the only difference between the prior art and the claims was a recitation of relative dimensions of the claimed device and a device having the claimed relative dimensions would not perform differently than the prior art device, the claimed device was not patentably distinct from the prior art device” in citing Gardner v. TEC Syst., Inc., 725 F.2d 1338, 220 USPQ 777 (Fed. Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 830, 225 USPQ 232 (1984).
Cl. 6 – Cai and Miyazaki disclose and show a steering system including the ball screw device according to claim 1 and a steering shaft linked to the screw shaft (Cai, col. 2:58-61).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Patent Document CN 103511577 shows a ball screw device having a return tube where the right leg portion (Fig. 2) is offset from the left leg portion. However, the offset is due to damage and deformation to the return tube.
Patent Documents JP 2014-9790 and JP 2006-125581 show a ball screw device having a return tube having a first leg portion, second leg portion and linking portion therebetween. Figs. 4 and 5, respectively, shows end portions of first and second legs shown in Figs. 4a and 5a are offset from end portions of first and second legs shown in Figs. 4b and 5b. The figures, 4a and 5a, with the longer leg portions, and 4b and 5b, with the shorter leg portions, show differences in scooping angles and the number of balls under load. It is understood that either one or the other, not both return tubes shown together, are used as the two return tubes in the ball screw device shown at Fig. 1.
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/BOBBY RUSHING, JR/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3618
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