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 § 102
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.
Claim(s) 1-6 and 13-17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Lunsman et al. (U.S. Patent Publication No. 2019/01892988, “Lunsman”).
Regarding claim 1, Lunsman discloses a module (400, fig 4A) for use in cooling one or more heat generating components (such as shown in fig 1 with components 110-1-110-N, see ¶0026), comprising:
a heat exchanger (406), having a plurality of ports for flow of a primary coolant carrying heat from the one or more heat generating components and for flow of a secondary coolant, the heat exchanger being configured to transfer heat from the primary coolant to the secondary coolant (¶0065); and
a volume compensator (412), fluidly coupled to the heat exchanger via one of the plurality of ports (see annotated fig 4A below), said volume compensator having an internal volume configured to increase or decrease in size depending on pressure (¶0062).
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Regarding claim 2, Lunsman further discloses a housing, for containing the heat generating components and the primary coolant (¶0056); and wherein the heat exchanger is within and/or attached to the housing (¶0056), the primary coolant being received at the heat exchanger from within the housing and at least some of the secondary coolant being received at the heat exchanger from outside the housing and/or being directed from the heat exchanger to outside the housing (¶0065).
Regarding claim 3, Lunsman further discloses wherein the volume compensator comprises a resiliently biased mechanism (“expansion tank”, ¶0062)
Regarding claim 4, Lunsman further discloses: a quick disconnect coupling is connected to each of at least one of the ports (¶0062).
Regarding claim 5, Lunsman further discloses wherein the volume compensator (412) is connected to the one port via a T-connector (see annotated fig 4A below).
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Regarding claim 6, Lunsman further discloses wherein the volume compensator (412) is connected to a quick disconnect coupling that is connected to the one port (¶0062).
Regarding claim 13, Lunsman further discloses a coolant flow arrangement (408, see annotated fig 4A below), configured to direct the primary coolant to the heat exchanger (406).
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Regarding claim 14, Lunsman further discloses wherein the coolant flow arrangement comprises at least one pump (408) located within the housing.
Regarding claim 15, Lunsman further discloses wherein the coolant flow arrangement comprises a manifold (see annotated fig 4A above), arranged to receive some of the primary coolant from the heat exchanger and provide multiple coolant flows, each coolant flow for a respective heat generating component (such as shown in figure 1).
Regarding claim 16, Lunsman further discloses a heat sink arrangement, configured to receive some of the primary coolant or the secondary coolant from the heat exchanger and to accumulate received coolant in an internal volume of the heat sink arrangement, such that heat is transferred to the accumulated received coolant from one of the heat generating components thermally coupled to the heat sink arrangement.
Regarding claim 17, Lunsman further discloses wherein the heat sink arrangement comprises a closed-loop cold plate (such as shown in figure 1).
Claim(s) 1, 9-12, 18, and 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Novotny et al. (U.S. Patent Publication 2010/0236772, “Novotny”).
Regarding claim 1, Novotny discloses a module for use in cooling one or more heat generating components (fig 4), comprising:
a heat exchanger (see annotated fig 4 below), having a plurality of ports (435, 455) for flow of a primary coolant carrying heat from the one or more heat generating components and for flow of a secondary coolant (¶0060), the heat exchanger being configured to transfer heat from the primary coolant to the secondary coolant (fig 4); and
a volume compensator (see annotated fig 4 below), fluidly coupled to the heat exchanger via one of the plurality of ports, said volume compensator having an internal volume configured to increase or decrease in size depending on pressure (see ¶0057).
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Regarding claim 9, Novotny further discloses wherein the heat exchanger (see annotated fig 4 above) has two ports (435) for flow of the primary coolant and four ports (455) for flow of the secondary coolant.
Regarding claim 10, Novotny further discloses wherein the one port (455) is a first of the four ports for flow of the secondary coolant (see fig 4).
Regarding claim 11, Novotny further discloses wherein a second port (455) of the four ports for flow of the secondary coolant is capable of being plugged (as the ports can be plugged as need, see ¶0060).
Regarding claim 12, Novotny further discloses wherein a third port (455) of the four ports for flow of the secondary coolant is configured for flow of the secondary coolant into the heat exchanger and a fourth port (455) of the four ports for flow of the primary coolant is configured for flow of the secondary coolant out of the heat exchanger (as the ports can be used as need, see ¶0060).
Regarding claim 18, Novotny discloses a cooled electronics system (fig 4), comprising: one or more modules, each module for use in cooling one or more heat generating components (¶0060) and comprising: a heat exchanger (see annotated fig 4 below), having a plurality of ports (435, 455) for flow of a primary coolant carrying heat from the one or more heat generating components and for flow of a secondary coolant, the heat exchanger being configured to transfer heat from the primary coolant to the secondary coolant (fig 4); and a volume compensator (see annotated fig 4 below), fluidly coupled to the heat exchanger via one of the plurality of ports, said volume compensator having an internal volume configured to increase or decrease in size depending on pressure (¶0057); and a secondary heat exchanger, configured to receive the secondary coolant from the one or more modules, to cool the received secondary coolant by transferring heat from the received secondary coolant to a heat sink and to return the cooled secondary coolant to the one or more modules (¶0060, such as free cooling).
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Regarding claim 19, Novotny further discloses a secondary coolant piping arrangement (see annotated fig 4 below), arranged to transfer the secondary coolant between the one or more modules and the secondary heat exchanger, such that the secondary coolant from each of the one or more modules is combined (fig 4).
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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) 7 and 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lunsman alone.
Regarding claim 7, Lunsman discloses all previous claim limitations. However, Lunsman, in this embodiment, does not explicitly disclose wherein the volume compensator is a first volume compensator connected to a first port of the plurality of ports, the module further comprising a second volume compensator, connected to a second port of the plurality of ports. Lunsman, in another embodiment (fig 1), teaches wherein the volume compensator is a first volume compensator (112-1) connected to a first port of the plurality of ports (fig 1), the module further comprising a second volume compensator (112-N), connected to a second port of the plurality of ports (fig 1). It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention for Lunsman to provide the compensators in order to provide optimal pressure within the fluid pipes of the cooling device.
Regarding claim 8, Lunsman, as modified, discloses all previous claim limitations. Lunsman, as modified, further discloses wherein the first port is configured for flow of a coolant out of the heat exchanger and the second port is configured for flow of the coolant into the heat exchanger (¶0014-0015).
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.
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/HARRY E ARANT/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3763
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