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 Group I, claims 1-10, in the reply filed on 04-20-2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 11-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 04-20-2026.
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) 1-3, 6-7, and 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kanaya ‘434 (WO 2019/004434 A1 - English language translation provided herewith and referenced herein).
Regarding claim 1, Kanaya ‘434 teaches a glass melting vessel (melting furnace 1; p. 3, lines 30-34) comprising:
a heating mechanism (electrodes 7A, 7B; p. 3, lines 38-39)
a floor (bottom portion 1a) comprising at least one layer comprising a refractory ceramic material (bricks 9A, 9B; p. 1, lines 50-51; p. 3, lines 57-58) and a layer comprising an electrical resistivity enhancing material (bricks 10; p. 1, lines 53-55; p. 4, lines 12-19).
Kanaya ‘434 is silent regarding the electrical resistivity enhancing material diffusing into the at least one layer comprising the refractory ceramic material during operation of the glass melting vessel. However, bricks 9 and bricks 10 are directly contacting each other, including at molten glass-contacting interfaces. Thus it is considered that one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have found it obvious that the material of bricks 10 is capable of diffusing to some degree into bricks 9 during operation of the glass melting vessel, depending on the particular conditions under which the vessel is operated.
Regarding claim 2, Kanaya ‘434 further teaches the at least one layer comprises a first layer comprising a first refractory ceramic material (one of the blocks 9A or 9B; p. 1, lines 50-51; p. 3, lines 57-58) and a second layer comprising a second refractory material (another one of the blocks 9A or 9B; p. 1, lines 50-51; p. 3, lines 57-58), and the layer comprising the electrical resistivity enhancing material is positioned between the first layer and the second layer (blocks 10, Figs. 2-9).
Regarding claim 3, Kanaya ‘434 further teaches a shielding layer (“SL” block 10 in annotated Fig. 2 below) is positioned between the layer comprising the electrical resistivity enhancing material (“EREM” block 10 in annotated Fig. 2 below) and the second layer (“2nd” block 9A in annotated Fig. 2 below; wherein “1st” block 9A is the first layer).
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Alternatively, Kanaya ‘434 further teaches a shielding layer (“SL” block 10 in annotated Fig. 8 below) is positioned between the layer comprising the electrical resistivity enhancing material (“EREM” block 10 in annotated Fig. 8 below) and the second layer (block 9B around electrode 7B, Fig. 8; wherein block 9A around electrode 7A is the first layer).
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Regarding claim 6, Kanaya ‘434 further teaches the layer comprising the electrical resistivity enhancing material (blocks 10) surrounds the at least one layer comprising a refractory ceramic material (blocks 9A, 9B, Figs. 3, 6).
Regarding claim 7, Kanaya ‘434 further teaches the electrical resistivity enhancing material comprises from about 0.1 to about 100 weight percent of the layer comprising the electrical resistivity enhancing material (p. 1, lines 53-55; p. 4, lines 12-19 - wherein the whole brick is made to be of an enhanced electrical resistivity, which is about 100 weight percent).
Regarding claim 10, Kanaya ‘434 further teaches the layer comprising the electrical resisting enhancing material comprises at least one of alumina, silica, or glass (p. 4, lines 15-17).
Claim(s) 4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kanaya ‘434 (WO 2019/004434 A1 - English language translation provided herewith and referenced herein) in view of Snow ‘513 (US 2022/0381513 A1).
Regarding claim 4, Kanaya ‘434 is silent regarding the first refractory ceramic material comprising zirconia and the second refractory ceramic material comprising alumina. In analogous art of refractories for glass melting vessels, Snow ‘513 suggests that alumina zirconia may be used as refractory lining of a glass melting vessel because of its resistance to corrosion (¶ [0004], [0040]). Kanaya ‘434 also desires for the first refractory ceramic material and the second refractory ceramic material to be resistant to corrosion (p. 1, lines 43-44). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the apparatus of Kanaya ‘434 by making the first refractory ceramic material and the second refractory ceramic material comprising alumina zirconia, as a substitution of corrosion-resistant refractories for linings of glass melting vessels, in which case the first refractory ceramic material would comprise zirconia and the second refractory ceramic material would comprise alumina.
Claim(s) 5 and 8-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kanaya ‘434 (WO 2019/004434 A1 - English language translation provided herewith and referenced herein) in view of Costin ‘339 (US 4,052,339).
Regarding claim 5, Kanaya ‘434 is silent regarding the layer comprising the electrical resistivity enhancing material comprising first regions and second regions, wherein the first regions comprise higher concentrations of electrical resistivity enhancing material than the second regions. In analogous art of linings for glass melting vessels, Costin ‘339 suggests a glass melting vessel comprising at least one layer comprising a refractory ceramic material (insulators 16/layer 12; column 6, lines 43-49), and a layer comprising an electrical resistivity enhancing material (layer of brick 10; column 1, lines 63-67; column 6, lines 41-42; Examples 1, 3-6; Table 1) in a similar arrangement (Fig. 2) to that of Kanaya ‘434. Costin ‘339 further suggests the electrical resistivity enhancing material comprises first regions (inner face surface regions, Fig. 3; column 6, lines 55-61) and second regions (bulk regions below surface regions, Fig. 3; column 6, lines 55-61), wherein the first regions comprise higher concentrations of electrical resistivity enhancing material than the second regions (column 6, lines 55-61) as a substitution for a homogeneous material, with a predictable result of maintaining an electrical resistivity enhanced material in contact with the molten glass (column 6, lines 55-61). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the apparatus of Kanaya ‘434 making the layer comprising the electrical resistivity enhancing material comprising first regions and second regions, wherein the first regions comprise higher concentrations of electrical resistivity enhancing material than the second regions, as a substitution for a homogeneous material, with a predictable result of maintaining an electrical resistivity enhanced material in contact with the molten glass, as suggested by Costin ‘339.
Regarding claims 8 and 9, Kanaya ‘434 is silent regarding the electrical conductivity enhancing material comprising at least one material as claimed, and specifically Ta2O5. Costin ‘339 suggests a glass melting vessel comprising at least one layer comprising a refractory ceramic material (insulators 16/layer 12; column 6, lines 43-49), and a layer comprising an electrical resistivity enhancing material (layer of brick 10; column 1, lines 63-67; column 6, lines 41-42; Examples 1, 3-6; Table 1) in a similar arrangement (Fig. 2) to that of Kanaya ‘434. Costin ‘339 further suggests the electrical resistivity enhancing material comprises at least one material selected from Ta, Nb, Mo, W, V, Cr, Ta2O5, and Nb2O5 for the benefit of controlling electrical conductivity/resistivity of the refractory material (column 3, lines 1-24; column 4, lines 56-64; Examples 1, 3-6). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the apparatus of Kanaya ‘434 by making the electrical resistivity material comprise at least one material selected from the list as claimed, and specifically to comprise Ta2O5, for the benefit of controlling electrical conductivity/resistivity of the refractory material, as suggested by Costin ‘339.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Erin Snelting whose telephone number is (571)272-7169. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday, 8:00 to 5:00.
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/ERIN SNELTING/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1741
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