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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species A (Figures 1A-1C with perpendicular H-type fin) in the reply filed on 5/22/2026 is acknowledged.
Status of Claims
The status of the claims as filed in the submission dated 5/22/2026 are as follows:
Claims 1-14 are pending;
Claims 1-14 are being examined.
Claim Interpretation
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(f):
(f) Element in Claim for a Combination. – An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph:
An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof.
The claims in this application are given their broadest reasonable interpretation using the plain meaning of the claim language in light of the specification as it would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. The broadest reasonable interpretation of a claim element (also commonly referred to as a claim limitation) is limited by the description in the specification when 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is invoked. As explained in MPEP § 2181, subsection I, claim limitations that meet the three-prong test will be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph.
Currently, no claim limitations invoke 112(f).
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.
Claims 1-4, 12, and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Olcese (CN104718422A, as cited in the IDS).
Re Claim 1. Olcese teaches a heat transfer structure with an improved thermal convection effect, comprising:
a part close to a heat source (at 9), wherein the part close to the heat source is configured to receive thermal energy from the heat source (see annotated figure 1 below, wherein the heat source is at 9);
a part far away (outer section generally denoted by 11, see annotated figure 1 below) from the heat source, wherein the part far away from the heat source is located opposite the part close to the heat source such that an accommodation space is formed between the part far away from the heat source and the part close to the heat source (see annotated figure 1 below); and
a first-tier H-type fin (see annotated figure 1 below) provided in the accommodation space, wherein the first-tier H-type fin is adjacent to the part close to the heat source and is connected to the part close to the heat source, and the first-tier H-type fin comprises: a first right fin connected to the part close to the heat source; a first left fin connected to the part close to the heat source, wherein the first left fin and the first right fin are located opposite each other in a left-right direction; and a first middle piece connecting the first left fin and the first right fin (see annotated figure 1 below which illustrates a plurality of first tier H-type fins).
PNG
media_image1.png
412
600
media_image1.png
Greyscale
Re Claim 2. Olcese teaches a second-tier H-type fin provided in the accommodation space and located opposite the first-tier H-type fin, wherein the second-tier H-type fin is adjacent to the part far away from the heat source and is connected to the part far away from the heat source, the second-tier H-type fin is connected to the first-tier H-type fin to form an H-type fin structure, and the second-tier H-type fin comprises: a second right fin connected to the part far away from the heat source; a second left fin connected to the part far away from the heat source, wherein the second left fin and the second right fin are located opposite each other in the left-right direction; and a second middle piece connecting the second left fin and the second right fin (see annotated figure 1 below which illustrates second tier H-type fin opposite to the first tier H-type fin).
PNG
media_image2.png
412
600
media_image2.png
Greyscale
Re Claim 3. Olcese teaches a connecting piece (piece in between the first and second H-type fins as shown in the annotated figure 1 below) connecting the first-tier H-type fin and the second-tier H-type fin and located between the first-tier H-type fin and the second-tier H-type fin, wherein the first-tier H-type fin, the connecting piece, and the second-tier H-type fin jointly form the H-type fin structure (see annotated Figure 1 below).
PNG
media_image3.png
412
600
media_image3.png
Greyscale
Re Claim 4. Olcese teaches at least one first reinforcing piece connecting the first middle piece of the first-tier H-type fin and the part close to the heat source and located between the first middle piece and the part close to the heat source; and/or at least one second reinforcing piece connecting the second middle piece of the second-tier H-type fin and the part far away from the heat source and located between the second middle piece and the part far away from the heat source (see annotated Figure 1 below).
PNG
media_image4.png
413
600
media_image4.png
Greyscale
Re Claim 12. Olcese teaches there are N said first-tier H-type fins, N said connecting pieces, and N said second-tier H-type fins so as to form N said H-type fin structures, where N is a positive integer greater than one (Figure 1 illustrates a plurality of fins).
Re Claim 14. Olcese teaches a thermal energy storage device (Figure 7), comprising: the heat transfer structure of claim 2 (as discussed above); and a phase-change material (6) provided in the accommodation space between the part far away from the heat source and the part close to the heat source, wherein the phase-change material contacts the first-tier H-type fin and the second-tier H-type fin (Figures 1 and 7).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5-11 and 13 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Claim 5 recites “the first middle piece has a length less than a length of the second middle piece; and/or a distance between orthographic projections of the second left fin and of the second right fin in a normal direction of, and onto, the part close to the heat source is greater than a distance between orthographic projections of the first left fin and of the first right fin in the normal direction of, and onto, the part close to the heat source”. The first middle piece of Olcese has a length less that is the same length of the second middle piece, wherein modifying the first middle piece of Olcese to be shorter would alter the geometry of Olcese to be non-functional since the fin is designed to be uniform and connectable to other fins. By shortening the first middle piece of Olcese, all the other angles and lengths of the fin would be affected, thereby destroying the principle design and operation of Olcese. There would be no motivation to further modify the prior art without utilizing impermissible hindsight reasoning or without changing the principle of operation of the prior art. Therefore, the invention is novel and non-obvious in view of the prior art. Claim 10 is objected to a being dependent upon claim 5.
Claim 6 recites “the first right fin of the first-tier H-type fin and the connecting piece form a first angle therebetween, the second right fin of the second-tier H-type fin and the connecting piece form a second angle therebetween, and the first angle is less than the second angle”. Similarly, as with claim 5, changing the angles of the connecting piece would affect the geometry and pattern of Olcese to be non-functional. There would be no motivation to further modify the prior art without utilizing impermissible hindsight reasoning or without changing the principle of operation of the prior art. Therefore, the invention is novel and non-obvious in view of the prior art. Claim 11 is objected to a being dependent upon claim 6.
Claims 7-9 recite “the part close to the heat source is an inner tube, the part far away from the heat source is an outer tube, the inner tube is provided in the outer tube, the outer tube and the inner tube form an annular space therebetween, the H-type fin structure is provided in the annular space, the outer tube and the inner tube are coaxial and are concentrically arranged, and the outer tube and the inner tube jointly form a circular tube with concentric tube walls”. Olcese teaches that the fins are located throughout an outer shell (2), but fails to teach the specific configuration of the inner and outer tube with the H-type fin structure in the annular space therebetween as recited in the claims. Olcese also fails to teach the outer tube and the inner tube are coaxial and are concentrically arranged, and the outer tube and the inner tube jointly form a circular tube with concentric tube walls. There would be no motivation to further modify the prior art without utilizing impermissible hindsight reasoning or without changing the principle of operation of the prior art. Therefore, the invention is novel and non-obvious in view of the prior art. Claim 13 is objected to a being dependent upon claim 6.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See PTO-892 for other relevant prior art.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TRAVIS RUBY whose telephone number is (571)270-5760. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 9AM-5PM.
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, Jianying Atkisson can be reached at 571-270-7740. 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.
/TRAVIS RUBY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3763
Prosecution Insights