DETAILED ACTION
1. Claims 1-10 and 12-21 of U.S. Application 18/836673 filed on August 7, 2024 are presented for examination.
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
2. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Priority
3. Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
4. The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on August 7, 2024 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
5. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
6. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(d):
(d) REFERENCE IN DEPENDENT FORMS.—Subject to subsection (e), a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, fourth paragraph:
Subject to the following paragraph [i.e., the fifth paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112], a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
7. Claim 14 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 14, lines 2-3, “within at least one cavity formed by the inward extension of the bridge portion,” it is not clear if the “cavity” refers to the cavity of claim 1 or a different cavity. The examiner will interpret as – within the at least one cavity formed by the inward extension of the bridge portion --.
8. Claim 19 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(d) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, 4th paragraph, as being of improper dependent form for failing to further limit the subject matter of the claim upon which it depends, or for failing to include all the limitations of the claim upon which it depends.
The limitations of claim 19, lines 1-2, “an electric machine comprising a stator assembly according to claim 1” fails further limit claim 1 from which it depends since all the limitations of claim 19 are present in claim 1.
Applicant may cancel the claim(s), amend the claim(s) to place the claim(s) in proper dependent form, rewrite the claim(s) in independent form, or present a sufficient showing that the dependent claim(s) complies with the statutory requirements.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
9. 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.
10. Claims 1-6, 15 and 19-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Strelow (DE 3931665, see applicant provided English Machine Translation).
Regarding claim 1, Strelow teaches (see figs. 2 and 3 below) a stator assembly (¶ 10) for an electrical machine, the stator assembly (¶ 10) comprising: a stator core (16) comprising a plurality of stator teeth (see annotated fig. 3 below) and at least one axially extending slot (see annotated fig. 3 below) for receiving an electrical conductor (15) disposed between adjacent stator teeth (¶ 19); and
a sealing element (13) forming a first layer extending around at least a part of the circumference of the stator (see annotated fig. 3 below) to provide at least one bridge portion (see annotated fig. 3 below) extending over a radially oriented opening of the at least one slot (see annotated fig. 3 below), to form a fluidic seal over the radially oriented opening (¶ 10; ¶ 19; ¶ 20);
wherein the sealing element (13) comprises: at least one tooth tip portion (see annotated fig. 3 below) extending across at least a part of a substantially radially facing tip of at least one of the stator teeth (see annotated fig. 3 below) (fig. 3; ¶ 19 to ¶ 21);
at least one bridge section (see annotated fig. 3 below) extending circumferentially across the radially oriented opening of the at least one slot (see annotated fig. 3 below) and extending radially into the at least one slot (see annotated fig. 3 below) (fig. 3; ¶ 19 to ¶ 21); and
a supplementary sealing element (14) forming a second layer extending around at least part of the circumference of the stator and co-operating with the sealing element (13) to create at least one cavity (17) between the bridge portion (see annotated fig. 3 below) and the supplementary sealing element (13); and a filler material (cooling medium that is pumped in cavity 17, see Abstract) disposed within the at least one cavity (17) formed by an inward extension of the bridge portion (see annotated fig. 3 below) into the slot (see annotated fig. 3 below) (Abstract; ¶ 19 to ¶ 21).
PNG
media_image1.png
577
690
media_image1.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image2.png
676
558
media_image2.png
Greyscale
Regarding claim 2/1, Strelow teaches (see figs. 2 and 3 above) the bridge section (see annotated fig. 3 above) comprises at least one radial extension (see annotated fig. 3 above) extending radially into the at least one slot (see annotated fig. 3 above) of the stator; and/or at least one circumferentially extending bridge section (see annotated fig. 3 above) extending circumferentially across the at least one slot (see annotated fig. 3 above) (Abstract; ¶ 10; ¶ 19 to ¶ 21).
Regarding claim 3/1, Strelow teaches (see figs. 2 and 3 above) the at least one radial extension (see annotated fig. 3 above) of the bridge section (see annotated fig. 3 above) extends against a radially extending wall of the at least one slot (see annotated fig. 3 above) (Abstract; ¶ 10; ¶ 19 to ¶ 21).
Regarding claim 4/1, Strelow teaches (see figs. 2 and 3 above) at least two bridge sections (see annotated fig. 3 above) of the sealing element (13) are formed continuously with the tooth tip portion (see annotated fig. 3 above) of the sealing element (13) therebetween (Abstract; ¶ 10; ¶ 19 to ¶ 21).
Regarding claim 5/4/1, Strelow teaches (see figs. 2 and 3 above) each bridge section (see annotated fig. 3 above) of the sealing element (13) is formed continuously with each adjacent bridge section (see annotated fig. 3 above) and the tooth tip portion (see annotated fig. 3 above) of the sealing element (13) therebetween (Abstract; ¶ 10; ¶ 19 to ¶ 21).
Regarding claim 6/1, Strelow teaches (see figs. 2 and 3 above) the sealing element (13) is formed of a single layer of material (Abstract; ¶ 10; ¶ 19 to ¶ 21).
Regarding claim 15/1, Strelow teaches (see figs. 2 and 3 above) the supplementary sealing element (14) is formed of a single layer of material (Abstract; ¶ 10; ¶ 19 to ¶ 21).
Regarding claim 19/1, Strelow teaches (see figs. 2 and 3 above) an electric machine comprising a stator assembly according to claim 1 (Abstract; ¶ 10; ¶ 19 to ¶ 21).
Regarding claim 20/19/1, Strelow teaches (see figs. 2 and 3 above) an aircraft comprising the electric machine of claim 19 (intended use limitation not given patentable weight) (Abstract; ¶ 10; ¶ 19 to ¶ 21).
Regarding claim 21, Strelow teaches (see figs. 2 and 3 above) a method of forming a stator assembly (¶ 10) for an electrical machine (Abstract; ¶ 10), comprising the steps of:
providing a stator core (16) comprising a plurality of teeth (see annotated fig. 3 above) and at least one axially extending slot (see annotated fig. 3 above) for receiving an electrical conductor (15) disposed between adjacent teeth (see annotated fig. 3 above) (¶ 19); and
providing a sealing element (13) extending around at least a part of the circumference of the stator (see annotated fig. 3 above) to form at least one bridge portion (see annotated fig. 3 above) extending over a radially oriented opening of the at least one slot (see annotated fig. 3 above), to form a fluidic seal over the radially oriented opening (¶ 10; ¶ 19; ¶ 20),
wherein the sealing element (13) comprises: at least one tooth tip portion (see annotated fig. 3 above) extending across at least a part of a substantially radially facing tip of at least one tooth of the stator (fig. 3; ¶ 19 to ¶ 21); and
at least one bridge section (see annotated fig. 3 above) extending circumferentially across the radially oriented opening of the at least one slot (see annotated fig. 3 above) and extending radially into the at least one slot (see annotated fig. 3 above) (fig. 3; ¶ 19 to ¶ 21); and
providing a supplementary sealing element (14) forming a second layer extending around at least part of the circumference of the stator and co-operating with the sealing element (13) to create at least one cavity (17) between the bridge portion (see annotated fig. below) and the supplementary sealing element (14); wherein the sealing element (14) further comprises a filler material (cooling medium that is pumped in cavity 17, see Abstract) disposed within the at least one cavity (17) formed by an inward extension of the bridge portion (see annotated fig. 3 below) into the slot (see annotated fig. 3 below) (Abstract; ¶ 19 to ¶ 21).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
11. 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.
12. Claims 1 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Baudelocque (US 20100295395) in view of Schaefer (US 2698911).
Regarding claim 1, Baudelocque teaches (see fig. 2 below) a stator assembly (150) for an electrical machine (Abstract),
the stator assembly (150) comprising: a stator core (see annotated fig. 2 below) comprising a plurality of stator teeth (154) and at least one axially extending slot (see annotated fig. 2 below) for receiving an electrical conductor (152) disposed between adjacent stator teeth (154) (Abstract; ¶ 39 to ¶ 42; ¶ 47); and
a sealing element (101) forming a first layer extending around at least a part of the circumference of the stator (150) to provide at least one bridge portion (111) extending over a radially oriented opening of the at least one slot (see annotated fig. 2 below), to form a fluidic seal over the radially oriented opening (Abstract; ¶ 44; ¶ 47);
wherein the sealing element (101) comprises: at least one tooth tip portion (155) extending across at least a part of a substantially radially facing tip of at least one of the stator teeth (154) (Abstract; ¶ 40 to ¶ 42);
at least one bridge section (see annotated fig. 2 below) extending circumferentially across the radially oriented opening of the at least one slot (see annotated fig. 2 below) and extending radially into the at least one slot (see annotated fig. 2 below) (Abstract; ¶ 44; ¶ 47);
at least one cavity (see annotated fig. 2 below) formed by an inward extension of the bridge portion (111) into the slot (see annotated fig. 2 below) (Abstract; ¶ 44; ¶ 47).
PNG
media_image3.png
616
576
media_image3.png
Greyscale
Baudelocque does not explicitly teach a supplementary sealing element forming a second layer extending around at least part of the circumference of the stator and co-operating with the sealing element to create at least one cavity between the bridge portion and the supplementary sealing element; and a filler material disposed within the at least one cavity.
However, Schaefer teaches (see figs. 1 and 3 below) a supplementary sealing element (48, 49) forming a second layer extending around at least part of the circumference of the stator (11) and co-operating with the sealing element to create at least one cavity (see annotated fig. 3 below) between the bridge portion (see annotated fig. 3 below) and the supplementary sealing element (48, 49); and a filler material (47) disposed within the at least one cavity (see annotated fig. 3 below) (col. 4: 60-55; col. 5: 1-2; col. 6: 9-27) in order to facilitate the removal of heat from the stator (Schaefer, col. 6: 9-27).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device of Baudelocque and provide a supplementary sealing element forming a second layer extending around at least part of the circumference of the stator and co-operating with the sealing element to create at least one cavity between the bridge portion and the supplementary sealing element; and a filler material disposed within the at least one cavity as taught by Schaefer in order to facilitate the removal of heat from the stator (Schaefer, col. 6: 9-27).
PNG
media_image4.png
870
404
media_image4.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image5.png
482
441
media_image5.png
Greyscale
Regarding claim 10/1, Baudelocque in view of Schaefer teaches the device of claim 1, Baudelocque further teaches (see fig. 2 above) at least one support member (190) is disposed within and extends across at least one slot of the stator core (151) to support the bridge portion (111) (¶ 40 to ¶ 46).
13. Claims 7-9 and 16-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Strelow in view of Hovermann (DE 102019207078, see applicant provided English Machine Translation).
Regarding claim 7/1, Strelow teaches the device of claim 1 but does not explicitly teach the sealing element comprises a composite material.
However, Hovermann teaches (see fig. 2 below) the sealing element (30) comprises a composite material (¶ 9; ¶ 35) in order to provide reduced weight and high mechanical stability (Hovermann, ¶ 8; ¶ 35).
PNG
media_image6.png
583
509
media_image6.png
Greyscale
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device of Strelow and provide the sealing element comprises a composite material as taught by Hovermann in order to provide reduced weight and high mechanical stability (Hovermann, ¶ 8; ¶ 35).
Regarding claim 8/7/1, Strelow in view of Hovermann teaches the device of claim 7 but does not explicitly teach the sealing element comprises a fibre-reinforced polymer composite.
However, Hovermann further teaches (see fig. 2 above) the sealing element (30) comprises a fibre-reinforced polymer composite (¶ 9; ¶ 35) in order to provide reduced weight and high mechanical stability (Hovermann, ¶ 8; ¶ 35).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device of Strelow in view of Hovermann and provide the sealing element comprises a fibre-reinforced polymer composite as further taught by Hovermann in order to provide reduced weight and high mechanical stability (Hovermann, ¶ 8; ¶ 35).
Regarding claim 9/8/7/1, Strelow in view of Hovermann teaches the device of claim 8 but does not explicitly teach the sealing element comprises glass fibre.
However, Hovermann further teaches (see fig. 2 above) the sealing element (30) comprises glass fibre (¶ 9; ¶ 35) in order to provide reduced weight and high mechanical stability (Hovermann, ¶ 8; ¶ 35).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device of Strelow in view of Hovermann and provide the sealing element comprises glass fibre as further taught by Hovermann in order to provide reduced weight and high mechanical stability (Hovermann, ¶ 8; ¶ 35).
Regarding claim 16/1, Strelow teaches the device of claim 1 but does not explicitly teach the supplementary sealing element comprises a composite material.
However, Hovermann teaches (see fig. 2 above) the sealing element (30) comprises a composite material (¶ 9; ¶ 35) in order to provide reduced weight and high mechanical stability (Hovermann, ¶ 8; ¶ 35).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device of Strelow and provide the supplementary sealing element comprises a composite material as taught by Hovermann in order to provide reduced weight and high mechanical stability (Hovermann, ¶ 8; ¶ 35).
Regarding claim 17/16/1, Strelow in view of Hovermann teaches the device of claim 16 but does not explicitly teach the supplementary sealing element comprises a fibre-reinforced polymer composite.
However, Hovermann further teaches (see fig. 2 above) the sealing element (30) comprises a fibre-reinforced polymer composite (¶ 9; ¶ 35) in order to provide reduced weight and high mechanical stability (Hovermann, ¶ 8; ¶ 35).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device of Strelow in view of Hovermann and provide the supplementary sealing element comprises a fibre-reinforced polymer composite as further taught by Hovermann in order to provide reduced weight and high mechanical stability (Hovermann, ¶ 8; ¶ 35).
Regarding claim 18/17/16/1, Strelow in view of Hovermann teaches the device of claim 17 but does not explicitly teach the supplementary sealing element comprises glass fibre.
However, Hovermann further teaches (see fig. 2 above) the sealing element (30) comprises glass fibre (¶ 9; ¶ 35) in order to provide reduced weight and high mechanical stability (Hovermann, ¶ 8; ¶ 35).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device of Strelow in view of Hovermann and provide the supplementary sealing element comprises glass fibre as further taught by Hovermann in order to provide reduced weight and high mechanical stability (Hovermann, ¶ 8; ¶ 35).
Allowable Subject Matter
14. Claims 12-13 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.
15. Claim 14 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
16. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ALEXANDER A SINGH whose telephone number is (571)270-0243. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9am to 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, Seye Iwarere can be reached at 571-270-5112. 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.
/ALEXANDER A SINGH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2834
Prosecution Insights