DETAILED ACTION
This office action is reply to the amendment dated November 19, 2025.
Claim 1 has been amended; and claims 19 and 20 have been canceled.
Claims 1-18 remain pending in this application.
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 1-3, 5-10, 12, 13 and 14-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bertsch (US 2023/0073185 A1) in view of Willi (US 2016/0348570 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Bertsch discloses an internal combustion engine (10) comprising: a cylinder block defining a cylinder (12); a cylinder head connected to the cylinder block (the Figure), the cylinder head defining a seat; a piston (14) disposed in the cylinder; a crankshaft operatively connected to the piston (known in the art, [0014]), the piston, cylinder and cylinder head defining a variable volume combustion chamber (20) therebetween; an air intake passage (30, [0016]) fluidly connected to the combustion chamber; an exhaust passage fluidly connected to the combustion chamber (not shown; known in the art); a fuel injector (22) fluidly connected to the combustion chamber for supplying fuel to the combustion chamber; a combustion pre-chamber housing connected to the cylinder head and extending in part into the combustion chamber (the Figure); fuel from the fuel injector being supplied outside of the combustion pre-chamber; a spark plug connected to the combustion pre-chamber housing; during operation of the engine: the air intake passage supplying air into the combustion chamber and the fuel injector supplying fuel into the combustion chamber to form an air-fuel mixture in the combustion chamber; part of the air-fuel mixture flowing from the combustion chamber to the combustion pre-chamber via the at least one orifice (28); the spark plug igniting the part of the air-fuel mixture in the combustion pre-chamber; and the ignited air-fuel mixture flowing from the combustion pre-chamber to the combustion chamber via the at least one orifice to ignite the air-fuel mixture in the combustion chamber [0015].
Bertsch is silent to the combustion pre-chamber housing having: a tapering portion; and a tip connected to the tapering portion, the tapering portion abutting the seat of the cylinder head, the tapering portion tapering toward the tip, the seat of the cylinder head and the tapering portion of the combustion pre-chamber housing having corresponding shapes, the combustion pre-chamber housing defining: a combustion pre-chamber; a spring biasing the tapering portion of the combustion pre-chamber housing against the seat of the cylinder head for sealing an interface between the tapering portion and the seat; and a spark plug connected to the combustion pre-chamber housing.
Willi discloses an internal combustion engine (Fig. 1; [0033]) comprising: a combustion pre-chamber housing (42, 82) connected to the cylinder head and extending in part into the combustion chamber (30), the combustion pre-chamber housing (42, 82) having: a tapering portion (portion abutting channel 144); and a tip (110) connected to the tapering portion, the tapering portion abutting the seat of the cylinder head (shown in Fig. 1), the tapering portion tapering toward the tip, the seat of the cylinder head and the tapering portion of the combustion pre-chamber housing (42, 82) having corresponding shapes (please see annotated figure below), the combustion pre-chamber housing defining: a combustion pre-chamber (89); and at least one orifice (101, 102, 103, 104, 106) fluidly communicating the combustion pre-chamber with the combustion chamber; a spring (52) biasing the tapering portion of the combustion pre-chamber housing against the seat of the cylinder head (the annotated figure shows multiple locations with seals 52 along the combustion pre-chamber, including one blow cavity 144); and a spark plug (44) connected to the combustion pre-chamber housing. It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the pre-chamber structure of Willi in the prechamber housing of Bertsch in order to properly mount the prechamber spark plug.
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Regarding claim 2, Bertsch is also silent to the cylinder head defining a coolant jacket (144); and the combustion pre-chamber housing extends through the coolant jacket (Fig. 1). Willi discloses the internal combustion engine of claim 1, wherein: the cylinder head defines a coolant jacket (144); and the combustion pre-chamber housing extends through the coolant jacket (Fig. 1). It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide cooling channels of Willi in the cylinder head of Bertsch in order to cool the prechamber housing.
Regarding claim 3, Bertsch as modified with Willi further discloses the internal combustion engine of claim 2, wherein: the combustion pre-chamber housing has an end portion (see Willi’s annotated Fig. 1); and the tapering portion is disposed between the tip and the end portion; and the internal combustion engine further comprises a seal (52) disposed between the end portion and the cylinder head, the coolant jacket passing between the seal and the seat in the cylinder head.
Regarding claim 5, Bertsch as modified with Willi discloses the internal combustion engine of claim 1, further comprising a spark plug tube (67) connected to the cylinder head; wherein: the spark plug extends in the spark plug tube; and the spring is disposed between the spark plug tube and the combustion pre-chamber housing (Fig. 1 depicts multiple locations for seals 52, including a seal provided between the spark plug tube and the pre-chamber housing).
Regarding claim 6, Bertsch as modified with Willin discloses the internal combustion engine of claim 5, wherein the spring is a disc spring (it is known in the art that cylindrical seals are shaped as discs).
Regarding claim 7, Bertsch as modified with Willi discloses the internal combustion engine of claim 5, wherein the spark plug is screwed into the combustion pre-chamber housing (Willi: [0044]).
Regarding claim 8, Bertsch as modified with Willi discloses the internal combustion engine of claim 1, wherein: the combustion pre-chamber has: a frustoconical portion; a hemispherical portion; and a cylindrical portion extending between the frustoconical portion and the hemispherical portion; and the at least one orifice extends from the hemispherical portion (shown in Fig. 1 of Willi).
Regarding claim 9, Bertsch as modified with Willi discloses the internal combustion engine of claim 1, wherein the at least one orifice is defined in the tip (Fig. 1; [0055]).
Regarding claim 10, Bertsch as modified with Willi discloses the internal combustion engine of claim 1, wherein the at least one orifice is a plurality of orifices (Fig. 1; [0055]).
Regarding claim 12, Bertsch as modified with Willi discloses the internal combustion engine of claim 10, wherein: the orifices of the plurality of orifices are disposed about a central axis; and the orifices extend at an angle relative to the central axis (Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 13, Bertsch as modified with Willi does not disclose the internal combustion engine of claim 12, wherein: the cylinder defines a cylinder axis; and the central axis is parallel to or coaxial with the cylinder axis (Fig. 1). However, it would have been obvious matter of design choice to provide a precombustion chamber with orifices central axis being coaxial with the cylinder axis since the applicant has not provided that the particular modification would benefit the invention.
Regarding claim 14, Bertsch as modified with Willi discloses the internal combustion engine of claim 12, wherein the combustion pre-chamber defines a pre-chamber axis; and the pre-chamber axis is angled relative to the cylinder axis (the Figure of Bertsch).
Regarding claim 15, Bertsch as modified with Willi discloses the internal combustion engine of claim 1, wherein the cylinder defines a cylinder axis, the combustion pre-chamber defines a pre-chamber axis, the spark plug defines a spark plug axis coaxial with the pre-chamber axis, and the pre-chamber axis and spark plug axis are angled relative to the cylinder axis.
Regarding claim 16, Bertsch as modified with Willi discloses the internal combustion engine of claim 1, wherein the tip is hemispherical (Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 17, Willi discloses the internal combustion engine of claim 1, wherein the tapering portion of the combustion pre-chamber housing is frustoconical (Fig. 1).
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bertsch (US 2023/0073185 A1) in view of Willi (US 2016/0348570 A1), and in further view of Pierz (US 9,217, 360 B2).
Regarding claim 4, Bertsch modified with Willi does not disclose the combustion pre-chamber housing having ribs disposed in the coolant jacket. Pierz discloses a combustion pre-chamber housing having ribs disposed in the coolant jacket (Fig. 5 – Fig. 7). It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the ribs in the housing of Bertsch as modified with Willi as taught by Pierz, in order to cool the pre-chamber more efficiently.
Claim 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bertsch (US 2023/0073185 A1) in view of Willi (US 2016/0348570 A1), and in further view of Lejon et al. (US 2021/0355860 A1), hereafter Lejon.
Regarding claim 11, Bertsch modified with Willi is silent to having six orifices. Lejon discloses a pre-chamber having six orifices ([0024], Fig. 2b). It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide six orifices at the tip of the pre-chamber of Bertsch modified with Willi as taught by Lejon in order to achieve more stable combustion results.
Claim 18 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bertsch (US 2023/0073185 A1) in view of Willi (US 2016/0348570 A1), and in further view of Kivi et al. (FI 125706 B).
Regarding claim 18, Bertsch modified with Willi is silent to having a fuel injector in the air intake passage upstream of the combustion chamber. Kivi discloses the internal combustion engine of claim 1, wherein the fuel injector supplies fuel in the air intake passage upstream of the combustion chamber (Fig. 1). It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide a fuel injector in the intake and upstream of the combustion chamber in the engine of Bertsch modified with Willi, and as taught by Kivi, in order to help in the chosen combustion process.
Response to Arguments
Applicant' s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1-20 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on grounds of rejection disclosed in the current rejection.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TEUTA B HOLBROOK whose telephone number is (571)270-3276. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8am-4:30pm EST.
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/TEUTA HOLBROOK/
Examiner
Art Unit 3747
/GEORGE C JIN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3747