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 Objections
Claim 15 objected to because of the following informalities: Claim 15 improperly depends on a higher number claim 16. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
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.
Claims 1-36 are 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.
Claim 1 recites “the outside ambient moisture content”. There is a lack of antecedent basis for “the outside ambient moisture content” in previous claim limitations. Claims 2-18 depend on claim 1 and hence are also rejected.
Claims 18 , 36 recites “the cooled reactivation out air”. There is a lack of antecedent basis for “the cooled reactivation out air” in previous claim limitations.
Claim 19 recites “the outside ambient moisture content”. There is a lack of antecedent basis for “the outside ambient moisture content” in previous claim limitations. Claims 20-36 depend on claim 1 and hence are also rejected.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1,2,5-7,9,11-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A).
Chinese reference(CN102261703A) in figure 1 teaches an adsorption moisture pump based air to water harvesting device, comprising: a rotary desiccant unit, including: a desiccant wheel (dehumidifying rotor 1) including at least a process sector and a reactivation sector , and a wheel drive; a reactivation air inlet (regenerating air inlet duct 13) and a reactivation air outlet(regenerating air outlet duct 12), such that reactivation air is supplied from the reactivation air inlet to the reactivation air outlet through the reactivation sector; a process air inlet (air inlet duct 15) and a process air outlet (connected to blower 16), such that process air is supplied from the process air inlet to the process air outlet through the process sector; a heat pump unit, comprising: at least one compressor(compressor 3), an expansion valve(throttle valve 8); an evaporator(first evaporator 6), main condenser(condenser 4), and such that a refrigerant fluid is flown sequentially within the compressor, the main condenser, the expansion valve, and the evaporator; wherein: the main condenser receives the reactivation air from the reactivation air inlet(shown in figure 1), before supplying the same to the reactivation sector, a second heat pipe evaporator end(10) receives reactivation air from the dehumidifying rotor, the compressor is a capacity controlled compressor. Chinese reference(CN102261703A) is silent as to the evaporator receives the reactivation air from the reactivation air outlet after the same exits the reactivation sector causing condensation of water from the reactivation air passing therethrough. Examiner respectfully submits Chinese reference(CN102261703A) teaches providing a second heat pipe evaporation end to provide cooling to the regeneration air on a downstream end of the dehumidifying rotor, therefore examiner respectfully submits it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the first evaporator(6) onto the regenerating air outlet duct in order to provide an equivalent cooling of the regeneration air.
Chinese reference(CN102261703A) is silent as to the reactivation air in the reactivation air outlet is mixed with process air in the process air inlet whenever higher in moisture content than the outside ambient moisture content. Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in figure 5 teaches a dehumidification unit including a rotary desiccant wheel(dehumidifying wheel 1), a reactivation air inlet(inlet conduit into regeneration area(3), a reactivation air outlet(outlet through blower 15), a process air inlet(outside air OA into adsorption area 2), a process air outlet, and wherein the reactivation air in the reactivation air outlet is mixed with process air in the process air inlet(noting damper 25; also noting para 0075 stating “by setting a circulation path from the exhaust gas EA to the external gas OA, dampers 25 and 26 are used to return part or all of the exhaust gas EA to before the first cooler 7”). It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide reactivation air of Chinese reference(CN102261703A) to mix with process air in order to provide partial recycling of the regeneration air into the process air.
Chinese reference(CN102261703A) is silent as to a control unit, the control unit is adapted to receive one or more input parameters from the group consisting of an ambient temperature, an ambient humidity, a reactivation air inlet temperature, an operating mode; and control one or more of compressor capacity, reactivation air outlet process air inlet react-to-process air, react run-around, auxiliary condenser, evaporator temperature, based on the received input parameters. Chinese reference(CN104169653A) in figure 12 teaches a dehumidification unit including a rotary desiccant wheel(rotor 1), a reactivation air inlet(7), a reactivation air outlet(8), a process air inlet(4), a process air outlet(5), and an control unit(controller 12), the control unit is adapted to receive one or more input parameters from the group consisting of an ambient temperature, an ambient humidity, a reactivation air inlet temperature(paras 0090-0095 stating “the sensed variables include any combination of one or more of the following: temperature of the reactivation air entering rotor”) , an operating mode(para 0089 stating “the reactivation process can be optimized to achieve one or more of several objectives”); and control one or more of compressor capacity, reactivation air outlet process air inlet react-to-process air, react run-around, auxiliary condenser, evaporator temperature, based on the received input parameters(para 0096 – 0099 stating “controlled variables may include any combination of one or more of the following: … reactivate air heat input”. It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the dehumidification unit of Chinese reference(CN102261703A) with a control unit so that a control unit is adapted to receive one or more input parameters and provide control to one or more process variables. Examiner respectfully submits that the control unit of the prior art is only required to be capable of performing the claimed functional process of claim 1, wherein anticipation is based on mapping a control unit of the prior art to the claimed control unit. Examiner also notes the limitations “adsorption moisture pump based air to water harvesting device” in the preamble are directed to an intended use, wherein the rotary desiccant unit and heat pump unit of the claim provide for a dehumidification structure which may provide purpose as a water harvesting device.
With regards to claim 2, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the operation mode is configured to either maximize water extraction in terms of liters/day or reduce energy consumption in terms of liters/kW (Examiner notes the stated limitations are functional limitations and are not given patentable weight for prior art analysis).
With regards to claim 5, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the main condenser of the heat pump unit facilitates heat transfer from the inflowing refrigerant fluid to the reactivation air flowing therethrough.
With regards to claim 6, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the evaporator of the heat pump unit facilitates heat transfer from the reactivation air flowing therethrough to the inflowing refrigerant fluid, to cause condensation of water from the reactivation air.
With regards to claim 7, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) is silent as to comprising a storage unit for receiving the condensed water from the evaporator unit. Chinese reference(CN102261703A) teaches a dehumidifier to remove moisture from an inlet airflow and regenerating a dehumidifying rotor to remove stored moisture from a desiccant, and examiner noting storage containers for dehumidification are common structures, therefore it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide a storage unit for receiving the condensed water from the dehumidifier of Chinese reference(CN102261703A) in order to provide a mechanism for holding condensed water.
With regards to claim 9, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the compressor is a capacity controlled compressor wherein the compressor capacity is varied by varying either through speed or electronic control or hot gas bypass, based on the input parameters received by the control unit, in order to achieve a desired water extraction capacity or energy minimizing (Examiner notes the stated limitations are functional limitations and are not given patentable weight for prior art analysis).
With regards to claim 11, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the water harvesting device is powered from a grid, one or more solar photovoltaic cells, or a combination thereof (noting a grid directed to electrical power).
With regards to claim 12, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the desiccant wheel comprises an adsorbent matrix comprising one or more adsorbents is adhered to a substrate (para 0073 of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) stating “the medium in the rotor 1 includes a carrier matrix containing a desiccant material with a strong affinity for water”).
With regards to claim 13, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the one or more adsorbents are selected from the group consisting of metal organic frameworks (MOFs), covalent organic frameworks (COFs), zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs), alone or in combination thereof, with or without an inorganic adsorbent (para 0004 of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) stating “adsorption-based treatments use solid desiccants such as silica gel, activated alumina, and molecular sieves” ).
With regards to claim 14, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the one or more adsorbents are selected from the group consisting of silica gel, zeolites, aluminas, reactive oxygen species (ROS), functionalized adsorbent, alone or in combination thereof(para 0004 of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) stating “adsorption-based treatments use solid desiccants such as silica gel, activated alumina, and molecular sieves” ).
With regards to claim 15, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the adsorbent matrix comprises one or more smaller passages disposed axially, such that the smaller passages are formed by alternating layers of flat and corrugated substrate material carrying the one or more adsorbents (para 0073 of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) stating “the medium in the rotor 1 includes a carrier matrix containing a desiccant material with a strong affinity for water”).
With regards to claim 16, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the adsorbent matrix is in the form of a honeycomb.
With regards to claim 17, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the water harvesting device comprises one or more fans (blower 16, exhaust fan 17 of Chinese reference(CN102261703A)) adapted for generating a flow of the reactivation air and/or the process air.
Claims 19,20, 23-25,27, 29-35 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A).
Chinese reference(CN102261703A) in figure 1 teaches a method of dehumidifying water from a process air flow comprising installing a rotary desiccant unit having a desiccant wheel (dehumidifying rotor 1) comprising at least a process sector and a reactivation sector, such that the rotary desiccant unit defines, a reactivation air inlet (regenerating air inlet duct 13) and a reactivation air outlet(regenerating air outlet duct 12) allowing the reactivation air to pass therethrough, and a process air inlet(air inlet duct 15) and a process air outlet(connected to blower 16) allowing the process air to pass therethrough; installing a heat pump unit functioning in relation with the rotary desiccant unit, such that the heat pump unit comprises: at least one compressor(compressor 3), an expansion valve(throttle valve 5) , an evaporator(first evaporator 6), a main condenser(condenser 4), and a refrigerant fluid is flown sequentially within the compressor, the main condenser, the expansion valve, and the evaporator; wherein: the main condenser receives the reactivation air from the reactivation air inlet(shown in figure 1), before supplying the same to the reactivation sector; a second heat pipe evaporator end(10) receives reactivation air from the dehumidifying rotor; the compressor is a capacity controlled compressor. Chinese reference(CN102261703A) is silent as to the evaporator receives the reactivation air from the reactivation air outlet after the same exits the reactivation sector, causing condensation of water from the reactivation air passing therethrough. Examiner respectfully submits Chinese reference(CN102261703A) teaches providing a second heat pipe evaporation end to provide cooling to the regeneration air on a downstream end of the dehumidifying rotor, therefore examiner respectfully submits it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the first evaporator(6) onto the regenerating air outlet duct in order to provide an equivalent cooling of the regeneration air.
Chinese reference(CN102261703A) is silent as to the reactivation air in the reactivation air outlet is mixed with process air in the process air inlet, whenever higher in moisture content than the outside ambient moisture content. Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in figure 5 teaches a dehumidification unit including a rotary desiccant wheel(dehumidifying wheel 1), a reactivation air inlet(inlet conduit into regeneration area(3), a reactivation air outlet(outlet through blower 15), a process air inlet(outside air OA into adsorption area 2), a process air outlet, and wherein the reactivation air in the reactivation air outlet is mixed with process air in the process air inlet(noting damper 25; also noting para 0075 stating “by setting a circulation path from the exhaust gas EA to the external gas OA, dampers 25 and 26 are used to return part or all of the exhaust gas EA to before the first cooler 7”). It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide reactivation air of Chinese reference(CN102261703A) to mix with process air in order to provide partial recycling of the regeneration air into the process air.
Chinese reference(CN102261703A) is silent as to installing a control unit, the control unit is adapted to receive one or more input parameters from the group consisting of an ambient temperature, an ambient humidity, a reactivation air inlet temperature, an operating mode; and control one or more of compressor capacity, react-to-process air, react run-around, auxiliary condenser, evaporator temperature, based on the received input parameters. Chinese reference(CN104169653A) in figure 12 teaches a dehumidification unit including a rotary desiccant wheel(rotor 1), a reactivation air inlet(7), a reactivation air outlet(8), a process air inlet(4), a process air outlet(5), and an control unit(controller 12), the control unit is adapted to receive one or more input parameters from the group consisting of an ambient temperature, an ambient humidity, a reactivation air inlet temperature(paras 0090-0095 stating “the sensed variables include any combination of one or more of the following: temperature of the reactivation air entering rotor”) , an operating mode(para 0089 stating “the reactivation process can be optimized to achieve one or more of several objectives”); and control one or more of compressor capacity, reactivation air outlet process air inlet react-to-process air, react run-around, auxiliary condenser, evaporator temperature, based on the received input parameters(para 0096 – 0099 stating “controlled variables may include any combination of one or more of the following: … reactivate air heat input”. It would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the dehumidification unit of Chinese reference(CN102261703A) with a control unit so that a control unit is adapted to receive one or more input parameters and provide control to one or more process variables. Examiner respectfully submits that the control unit of the prior art is only required to be capable of performing the claimed functional process of claim 19, wherein anticipation is based on mapping a control unit of the prior art to the claimed control unit. Examiner also notes the limitations “of harvesting water from ambient air” in the preamble are directed to an intended use, wherein the rotary desiccant unit and heat pump unit of the claim provide for a dehumidification structure which may provide purpose as a water harvesting device.
With regards to claim 20, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the operation mode is configured to either maximize water extraction in terms of liters/day or reduce energy consumption in terms of liters/kW (Examiner notes the stated limitations are functional limitations and are not given patentable weight for prior art analysis).
With regards to claim 23, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the main condenser of the heat pump unit facilitates heat transfer from the inflowing refrigerant fluid to the reactivation air flowing therethrough.
With regards to claim 24, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the evaporator of the heat pump unit facilitates heat transfer from the reactivation air flowing therethrough to the inflowing refrigerant fluid, to cause condensation of water from the reactivation air.
With regards to claim 25, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) is silent as to comprising a storage unit for receiving the condensed water from the evaporator unit. Chinese reference(CN102261703A) teaches a dehumidifier to remove moisture from an inlet airflow and regenerating a dehumidifying rotor to remove stored moisture from a desiccant, and examiner noting storage containers for dehumidification are common structures, therefore it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide a storage unit for receiving the condensed water from the dehumidifier of Chinese reference(CN102261703A) in order to provide a mechanism for holding condensed water.
With regards to claim 27, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the compressor is a capacity controlled compressor wherein the compressor capacity is varied by varying either through speed or electronic control or hot gas bypass, based on the input parameters received by the control unit, in order to achieve a desired water extraction capacity or energy minimizing (Examiner notes the stated limitations are functional limitations and are not given patentable weight for prior art analysis).
With regards to claim 29, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the method comprises powering the water harvesting device from a grid, one or more solar photovoltaic cells, or a combination thereof(noting a grid directed to electrical power).
With regards to claim 30, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the desiccant wheel comprises an adsorbent matrix comprising one or more adsorbents adhered to a substrate (para 0073 of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) stating “the medium in the rotor 1 includes a carrier matrix containing a desiccant material with a strong affinity for water”).
With regards to claim 31, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the one or more adsorbents are selected from the group consisting of metal organic frameworks (MOFs), covalent organic frameworks (COFs), zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs), alone or in combination thereof, with or without an inorganic adsorbent (para 0004 of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) stating “adsorption-based treatments use solid desiccants such as silica gel, activated alumina, and molecular sieves” ).
With regards to claim 32, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the one or more adsorbents are selected from the group consisting of silica gel, zeolites, aluminas, reactive oxygen species (ROS), functionalized adsorbent (para 0004 of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) stating “adsorption-based treatments use solid desiccants such as silica gel, activated alumina, and molecular sieves” ).
With regards to claim 33, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the adsorbent matrix comprises one or more smaller passages disposed axially, such that the smaller passages are formed by alternating layers of flat and corrugated substrate material carrying the one or more adsorbents (para 0073 of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) stating “the medium in the rotor 1 includes a carrier matrix containing a desiccant material with a strong affinity for water”).
With regards to claim 34, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the adsorbent matrix is in the form of a honeycomb.
With regards to claim 35, Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) further teaches wherein the method comprises installing one or more fans(blower 16, exhaust fan 17 of Chinese reference(CN102261703A)) adapted for generating a flow of one or more of the reactivation air, and/or the process air.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3,4,8,10 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.
Claim 3 recites “wherein the heat pump unit comprises an auxiliary condenser, such that refrigerant fluid is flown sequentially to the main condenser , then the auxiliary condenser, expansion valve, the evaporator, and back to the compressor.”. Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) teaches a heat pump including a condenser, expansion valve, the evaporator, and compressor, however Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) does not teach or suggest wherein the heat pump unit comprises an auxiliary condenser, such that refrigerant fluid is flown sequentially to the main condenser , then the auxiliary condenser, expansion valve, the evaporator, and back to the compressor. Claims 4 and 8 depends on claim 3 and hence is also allowable upon incorporation of claim 3 into claim 1.
Claim 10 recites “wherein a portion of reactivation air from the reactivation air outlet is recirculated to the reactivation air inlet.”. Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) teaches a reactivation air outlet, however Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) does not teach or suggest wherein a portion of reactivation air from the reactivation air outlet is recirculated to the reactivation air inlet.
Claim 21 recites “wherein the method comprises receiving the reactivation air from the evaporator or an ambient air in an auxiliary condenser of the heat pump unit to transfer heat from the refrigerant fluid to the inflowing reactivation air or ambient air.”. Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) teaches a heat pump including a condenser, expansion valve, the evaporator, and compressor, however Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) does not teach or suggest wherein the method comprises receiving the reactivation air from the evaporator or an ambient air in an auxiliary condenser of the heat pump unit to transfer heat from the refrigerant fluid to the inflowing reactivation air or ambient air. Claims 22 and 26 depends on claim 21 and hence would also be allowable upon incorporation of claim 21 into claim 19.
Claim 28 recites “wherein a portion of reactivation air from the reactivation air outlet is recirculated to the reactivation air inlet.”. Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) teaches a reactivation air outlet, however Chinese reference(CN102261703A) taken together with Chinese reference(CN106091175A) in view of Chinese reference(CN104169653A) does not teach or suggest wherein a portion of reactivation air from the reactivation air outlet is recirculated to the reactivation air inlet.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ROBERT A HOPKINS whose telephone number is (571)272-1159. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Thurs 6am-4pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jennifer Dieterle can be reached at 5712707872. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ROBERT A HOPKINS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1776
August 11, 2026
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