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.
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant's claim for foreign priority based on an application filed in Germany on 6/27/2023. It is noted, however, that applicant has not filed a certified copy of the 23181711.5 application as required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Claim Objections
Claims 1 and 8 are objected to because of the following informalities: the recitations “magnetised”, “polarisation”, and “centre” are not consistent with American spelling. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
Claims 1 and 3-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by DE 102022004792 A1 to Fuchslocher et al.
Regarding claim 1, Fuchslocher et al. discloses a drive comprising: an axial flux machine (Fig. 5: 10) with a permanent magnet arrangement (14) for use as a rotor (16) or stator of the axial flux machine, wherein the permanent magnet arrangement has a plurality of permanent magnets (14) arranged in a ring-shaped manner (cut out section of circular rotor) around a machine axis (bottom axis) and each magnetized (12) in an axial direction running parallel to the central axis, wherein permanent magnets arranged adjacent to one another each have an oppositely aligned polarization [0012], wherein each permanent magnet extends away from an inner surface (bottom surface) of the permanent magnet facing the machine axis to an outer surface (top surface) of the permanent magnet, wherein each permanent magnet has a first side surface (left side of 14) and a second side surface (right side of 14) opposite the first side surface, wherein the two side surfaces (left and right side) connect the inner surface and the outer surface (top and bottom surface) to one another, wherein the first side surface (left side) of each permanent magnet is aligned in the direction of the second side surface (right side) of a respectively immediately adjacent permanent magnet, wherein each first side surface has a stepped course (14 has stepped configuration on left side) from the inner surface to the outer surface, wherein a ratio of a step width to a step height of steps of the stepped course of the first side surface increases from the inner surface to the outer surface (height of magnets decrease from inner surface to outer surface and width increases from inner surface to outer surface) (Fig. 5 of Fuchslocher et al. is comparable to Fig. 1 of the present invention).
Regarding claim 3, Fuchslocher et al. discloses each second side surface has a stepped course from the inner surface to the outer surface (Fig. 5: 14 has stepped configuration on right side).
Regarding claim 4, Fuchslocher et al. discloses a ratio of a step width to a step height of steps of the stepped course of the second side surface increases from the inner surface to the outer surface (height of magnets decrease from inner surface to outer surface and width increases from inner surface to outer surface).
Regarding claim 5, Fuchslocher et al. discloses all cut surfaces of each permanent magnet are congruent through section planes perpendicular to the machine axis [0012].
Regarding claim 6, Fuchslocher et al. discloses the inner surface of each permanent magnet runs in sections along an inner ring circumference of the permanent magnet arrangement (bottom surface) and the outer surface of each permanent magnet runs in sections along an outer ring circumference of the permanent magnet arrangement (top surface).
Regarding claim 7, Fuchslocher et al. discloses a length of the outer surface in the circumferential direction is greater than a length of the inner surface (top surface has larger length than bottom surface).
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 10-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over DE 102022004792 A1 to Fuchslocher et al. in view of US 20170250637 A1 to King et al.
Regarding claims 10-11, Fuchslocher et al. discloses a drive as described above.
However, it fails to disclose the limitations from claims 10-11.
King et al. teaches:
the axial flux machine comprises a coil arrangement (Fig. 1: 28) and the permanent magnet arrangement (36), wherein the coil arrangement has a plurality of electrical machine coils (28) arranged adjacent to one another in a ring-shaped manner around the machine axis (21), wherein the coil arrangement (28) is arranged axially displaced, adjacent to the permanent magnet arrangement (1).
the inner ring circumference (Fig. 2A: 39) and the outer ring circumference (36) of the permanent magnet arrangement correspond substantially to corresponding ring circumferences of the coil arrangement (28).
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 coil arrangement as disclosed by King et al. to the drive disclosed by Fuchslocher et al.
One would have been motivated to do so to use the rotor of the drive as a motor.
Claim 12 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over DE 102022004792 A1 to Fuchslocher et al. in view of US 20170250637 A1 to King et al. as applied to claims 1 and 10 above and further in view of Hirtenlehner et al.
Regarding claim 12, Fuchslocher et al. and King et al. discloses a drive as described above.
However, it fails to disclose the limitations from claim 12.
Hirtenlehner et al. teaches the door drive is used as a swing leaf door, a sliding door, or a revolving door drive [0021].
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 door drive as disclosed by Hirtenlehner et al.to the drive disclosed by Fuchslocher et al. and King et al.
One would have been motivated to do so to use the drive to operate doors.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8-9 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.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to VIET P NGUYEN whose telephone number is (571)272-9457. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 12-8.
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/VIET P NGUYEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2834