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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Claim Objections
Claim 4 is objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 4 includes redundant language “two combustion chamber heat insulation side plate portions spaced apart from each other in a left-right direction and configured to form an interior space of the combustion chamber together with the two general combustion chamber side plate portions”. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-3 and 6-12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Choi et al (WO 2014098282). Choi et al discloses a heat exchanger unit (100) comprising: a combustion chamber (137) in which a flame caused by a combustion reaction is located; a heat exchanger (110) located under the combustion chamber (SEE Figure 3), the heat exchanger including heat exchange pipes (125) configured to receive heat generated by the combustion reaction and to heat water flowing through a heat exchanger flow passage (within the outer enclosure) formed therein and a main case (130) having the heat exchange pipes accommodated in an interior space thereof; a combustion chamber heat insulation pipe (140) disposed adjacent to the combustion chamber and configured to receive the water and allow the water to flow through a combustion chamber flow passage formed therein to thermally insulate the combustion chamber; and a connecting adaptor (150) configured to connect the heat exchanger flow passage and the combustion chamber flow passage (SEE Figure 3). In re claim 2, Choi et al discloses that the combustion chamber includes a combustion chamber supply hole (131) configured to serve as an inlet of the combustion chamber flow passage and connected with the connecting adaptor (SEE Figure 4). In re claim 3, Choi et al discloses that the combustion chamber supply hole (131) is fluidically connected with the combustion chamber heat insulation pipe (SEE element 153 in Figure 3). In re claim 6, Choi et al discloses that the combustion chamber heat insulation pipe(140) includes a plurality of combustion chamber heat insulation pipes (Figure 3), and wherein the combustion chamber heat insulation pipes are sequentially connected in series to form a combustion chamber flow passage (Figure 3 and paragraph [34]). In re claim 7, Choi et al discloses that the heat exchanger further includes a heating-water discharge hole (113) configured to serve as an outlet of the heat exchanger flow passage and connected with the connecting adaptor (Figure 4). In re claim 8, Choi et al discloses that the heating-water discharge hole (113) is fluidically connected with the heat exchange pipes (as per Figures 4-5). In re claim 9, Choil et al discloses that the heat exchanger further includes a flow passage cap plate (123) (SEE Figure 4) configured to fluidically connect straight portions (125) adjacent to each other among a plurality of straight portions configured to form the heat exchange pipes (125), and wherein the heat exchange pipes and the heating-water discharge hole are fluidically connected to the flow passage cap plate such that water delivered through the heat exchange pipes is delivered to the heating-water discharge hole (Figure 5). In re claim 10, Choi et al discloses that the heat exchanger flow passage is a sensible heat flow passage, and wherein the heat exchanger further includes: a sensible heat exchanger (120) located under the combustion chamber and configured to receive heat generated by the combustion reaction and to heat water flowing through a sensible heat flow passage formed therein (between the heat exchanger connection unit 120 and the casing 110), wherein the sensible heat exchanger includes a sensible heat exchange pipe being one of the heat exchange pipes and a sensible heat exchanger case configured to accommodate the sensible heat exchange pipe in an interior space (within the case 110) thereof and to form the main case; and a sensible heat insulation pipe (125) disposed adjacent to the sensible heat exchanger case and configured to receive the water and allow the water to flow through the sensible heat insulation pipe to thermally insulate the sensible heat exchanger. In re claim 11, Choi et al discloses that the sensible heat insulation pipe (125) is additionally fluidically connected to the sensible heat exchange pipe to form the sensible heat flow passage, and wherein the connecting adaptor (150) connects the combustion chamber heat insulation pipe (140) and the sensible heat insulation pipe (125). In re claim 12, Choi et al discloses that the heat exchanger further includes a flow passage cap plate (121, 123) including flow passage caps configured to fluidically connect straight portions adjacent to each other among a plurality of straight portions configured to form the sensible heat exchange pipe (Figure 5) or fluidically connect the sensible heat insulation pipe and an end portion of the sensible heat exchange pipe adjacent to the sensible heat insulation pipe, and wherein the sensible heat insulation pipe (125) and the heating-water discharge hole (113) are fluidically connected to the flow passage cap plate such that water delivered through the sensible heat insulation pipe is delivered to the heating-water discharge hole (SEE Figure 5).
Claim(s) 1-4 and 6-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Shiotsu et al (10,890,356). Shiotsu et al discloses a heat exchanger unit (200) comprising: a combustion chamber (body part 13 is disposed close to a burner, this surrounding area is being interpreted as the combustion chamber, SEE column 2, lines 13-21) in which a flame caused by a combustion reaction is located; a heat exchanger (20) located under the combustion chamber (SEE Figure 2), the heat exchanger including heat exchange pipes (21) configured to receive heat generated by the combustion reaction and to heat water flowing through a heat exchanger flow passage (the area surrounding the heat exchanger pipes) formed therein and a main case (22) having the heat exchange pipes accommodated in an interior space thereof; a combustion chamber heat insulation pipe (131-133) disposed adjacent to the combustion chamber and configured to receive the water and allow the water to flow through a combustion chamber flow passage (area surrounding the pipes) formed therein to thermally insulate the combustion chamber; and a connecting adaptor (60) configured to connect the heat exchanger flow passage and the combustion chamber flow passage (SEE Figure 2). In re claim 2, Shiotsu et al discloses that the combustion chamber includes a combustion chamber supply hole (10a) configured to serve as an inlet of the combustion chamber flow passage and connected with the connecting adaptor (SEE Figures 2-3). In re claim 3, Shiotsu et al discloses that the combustion chamber supply hole is fluidically connected with the combustion chamber heat insulation pipe (Figure 2). In re claim 4, Shiotsu et al discloses that the combustion chamber heat insulation pipe includes a plurality of combustion chamber heat insulation pipes (131, 132, 133), wherein the combustion chamber includes: two general combustion chamber side plate portions (12) spaced apart from each other in a front-rear direction; two combustion chamber heat insulation side plate portions spaced apart from each other in a left-right direction and configured to form an interior space of the combustion chamber together with the two general combustion chamber side plate portions; and a combustion chamber flow passage cap plate (element 13 and its opposite side plate) including a combustion chamber flow passage cap (13) configured to form a connection space between the general combustion chamber side plate portions and the combustion chamber flow passage cap, wherein the connection space surrounds openings formed in end portions of the combustion chamber heat insulation pipes to fluidically connect the combustion chamber heat insulation pipes, and wherein the combustion chamber heat insulation pipe and the combustion chamber supply hole (10a) are fluidically connected to the combustion chamber flow passage cap (13) such that water delivered through the combustion chamber supply hole is delivered to the combustion chamber heat insulation pipe (131, as per Figure 2). In re claim 6, Shiotsu et al discloses that the combustion chamber heat insulation pipe includes a plurality of combustion chamber heat insulation pipes, and wherein the combustion chamber heat insulation pipes are sequentially connected in series to form a combustion chamber flow passage (SEE column 5, lines 13-15). In re claim 7, Shiotsu et al discloses that the heat exchanger further includes a heating-water discharge hole (20b) configured to serve as an outlet of the heat exchanger flow passage and connected with the connecting adaptor (60). In re claim 8, Shiotsu et al discloses that the heating-water discharge hole is fluidically connected with the heat exchange pipes (21) via (232). In re claim 9, Shiotsu et al discloses that the heat exchanger further includes a flow passage cap plate (22a, 22c) configured to fluidically connect straight portions (21c) adjacent to each other among a plurality of straight portions configured to form the heat exchange pipes, and wherein the heat exchange pipes and the heating-water discharge hole (20b) are fluidically connected to the flow passage cap plate (22a) such that water delivered through the heat exchange pipes is delivered to the heating-water discharge hole (SEE Figure 2).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5 and 13-20 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.
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/GREGORY A WILSON/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3762 August 8, 2026
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