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 .
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.
Claim(s) 1-6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kaneki (Japanese Patent Publication JP2011179738A) in view of Tarraga Sanchez et al. (U.S. Patent Publication No. 2014/0496867, “Tarraga Sanchez”) and in further view of Bailey (United Kingdom Application GB2482650A).
Regarding claim 1, Kaneki discloses a heating wall panel (see fig 3, fig 4, and fig 9) comprising:
a first board (2);
wherein within the first board comprises:
a heating line (3) arranged in two layers (see annotated fig 9 below) in a manner coplanar with two outer surfaces of the first board (see annotated fig 4 below), wherein the heating line in the first layer is arranged in a form of a meander and has a length greater than in the second layer (see annotated fig 9 below);
a cold water line (see annotated fig 4 below) and a hot water line (see annotated fig 4 below) arranged one above another; and
an upper electrical installation duct (6, see annotated fig 9 below) and a lower electrical installation duct (6, see annotated fig 9 below) extending from a first side (see annotated fig 9 below) to a second side (see annotated fig 9 below) of the first board between the first layer and the second layer of the heating line (see annotated fig 9 below).
PNG
media_image1.png
677
687
media_image1.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image2.png
494
841
media_image2.png
Greyscale
However, Kaneki does not explicitly disclose wherein the second board comprises:
a second board adjacent to the first board;
wherein the cold water line and the hot water line are fixed by means of tees to ends of the heating line;
at a distance from the longer edges of the second board and in parallel to the longer edges of the second board, side indentations made in the surface of the second board that is adjacent to the first board.
Tarraga Sanchez, however, discloses a heating panel (fig 14) wherein a second board (16) comprises:
a second board adjacent to a first board (1);
wherein a line (6) is fixed by means of tees (17);
at a distance (see annotated fig 14 below) from the longer edges (see annotated fig 14 below) of the second board and in parallel to the longer edges of the second board, side indentations (for the Tees to be inserted to) made in the surface of the second board that is adjacent to the first board. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention for Kaneki to provide the second board and Tees of Tarraga Sanchez in order to attach plasterboard to the panel. This would result in the heating line (as the tees would fix the three lines via the first and second boards).
PNG
media_image3.png
520
767
media_image3.png
Greyscale
However, Kaneki, as modified, does not explicitly disclose in the lower part of the second board at the sides of the second board, inspection hatches having a form of board fragments delimited from the rest of the board surface by hatch indentations made in the surface of the second board that is adjacent to the first board. Bailey, however, discloses a heating panel (fig 1) wherein in a lower part of a board at the sides of the board (3), inspection hatches (1) having a form of board fragments delimited from the rest of the board surface by hatch indentations (created by the side of the inspection hatches) made in the surface of the second board that is adjacent to the first board. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention for Kaneki, as modified, to provide the hatches of Bailey in order to allow for inspection and repair of the lines.
Regarding claim 2, the combination of Kaneki, Tarraga Sanchez, and Bailey discloses all previous claim limitations. Kaneki, as modified, further discloses wherein the first board is a polyisocyanurate board (¶0014, Tarraga Sanchez).
Regarding claim 3, the combination of Kaneki, Tarraga Sanchez, and Bailey discloses all previous claim limitations. Kaneki, as modified, further discloses wherein the second board is a plasterboard (¶0029, Tarraga Sanchez).
Regarding claim 4, the combination of Kaneki, Tarraga Sanchez, and Bailey discloses all previous claim limitations. Kaneki further discloses wherein individual loops of the heating line have straight sections running in parallel to the shorter edge of the panel (see annotated fig 9 below).
PNG
media_image4.png
677
687
media_image4.png
Greyscale
Regarding claim 5, the combination of Kaneki, Tarraga Sanchez, and Bailey discloses all previous claim limitations. Kaneki, as modified, further discloses wherein the first board (1, Tarraga Sanchez) is attached to the second board (16, Tarraga Sanchez) by means of an adhesive (15, Tarraga Sanchez).
Regarding claim 6, Kaneki discloses a heating wall panel (see fig 3, fig 4, and fig 9), the heating wall panel being formed by a heating line (3, see annotated fig 4 below), a hot water line (5, see annotated 4 below), and cold water line (5, see annotated fig 5 below) arranged in two layers (see annotated fig 9 below) in a shape of a meander, so that its successive sections are parallel to each other, wherein the first layer of the heating line is arranged more densely than the second layer (see annotated fig 9 below), and between the layers there is an upper electrical installation duct (12, see annotated fig 13 below) and a lower electrical installation duct (12, see annotated fig 13below) parallel to the upper electrical installation duct.
PNG
media_image5.png
494
841
media_image5.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image6.png
677
687
media_image6.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image7.png
359
243
media_image7.png
Greyscale
However, Kaneki does not explicitly disclose a plasterboard, wherein the ends of the heating line are fixed to tees, located one above another, to which a cold water line of a heating system and a hot water line of the heating system are connected, and wherein the heating line, the upper electrical installation duct, the lower electrical installation duct, and the tees are entirely embedded in a polyisocyanurate-type insulation board and flush with its surface, wherein the polyisocyanurate-type insulation board is permanently bonded by means of an adhesive with the plasterboard having dimensions corresponding to the dimensions of the polyisocyanurate-type insulation board, and the indentations along the longer edges of the board allow the panel to be adjusted to wall bends.
Tarraga Sanchez, however, discloses a heat panel (fig 14) having a plasterboard (16), wherein the ends of a line (6) are fixed to tees (17), wherein the line and the tees are entirely embedded in a polyisocyanurate-type insulation board and flush with its surface, wherein the polyisocyanurate-type insulation board (1) is permanently bonded by means of an adhesive (15) with the plasterboard having dimensions corresponding to the dimensions of the polyisocyanurate-type insulation board, and the indentations along (for the tees, see annotated fig 14 below) the longer edges of the board allow the panel to be adjusted to wall bends. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention for Kaneki to provide the second board and Tees in order to attach plasterboard to the panel. This would result in wherein the heating line, the upper electrical installation duct, the lower electrical installation duct, and the tees are entirely embedded in a polyisocyanurate-type insulation board and flush with its surface.
However, Kaneki, as modified, does not explicitly disclose wherein the plasterboard has, in its lower part on both sides, inspection hatches on the edges, while the indentations of the board surface along the two edges of the hatches enable their disassembly in the event of a failure. Bailey, however, discloses a heating panel (fig 1) wherein a board (3) has, in its lower part on both sides, inspection hatches (created by the sides of the inspection hatches) on the edges, while the indentations of the board surface along the two edges of the hatches enable their disassembly in the event of a failure. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention for Kaneki, as modified, to provide the hatches of Bailey in order to allow for inspection and repair of the lines.
The limitations of milled and milling and cuts are considered product-by-process limitations. In product-by-process claims, “once a product appearing to be substantially identical is found and a 35 U.S.C. 102/103 rejection [is] made, the burden shifts to the applicant to show an unobvious difference.” MPEP 2113. This rejection under 35 U.S.C. 102/103 is proper because the “patentability of a product does not depend on its method of production.” In re Thorpe, 227 USPQ 964, 966 (Fed. Cir. 1985).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 7 and 8 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:
The prior art does not teach a cold water line is at distance equal to 100 mm of lower short edge of an insulation board or wherein the distances between the sections of the first layer of the heating line are equal to each other and are equal to 100 mm. Kaneki, considered the closest prior art teaches a cold water line and an insulation board with a lower short edge, and a first layer and heating line. However, Kaneki fails to teach the claimed distances.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HARRY E ARANT whose telephone number is (571)272-1105. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 10-6 ET.
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.
/HARRY E ARANT/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3763