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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 11/19/2024 is being considered by the examiner. A machine translation of DE 4443427 has been provided herewith.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
Para [0058] line 1 recites “subconductors 6.” Elsewhere, subconductors are refnum 81.
Para [0059] lines 3-4 recites “inverter modules 10”. Elsewhere, inverter modules are refnum 6.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claims 15-18 and 22-25 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over DAJAKU (US 20170047804; previously cited) in view of MEMMINGER (US 20130076168).
Regarding claim 15, DAJAKU discloses a dynamo-electric rotary machine (para [000219]) with a rated power > 0.5MW (col. 1 lines 15-22; see MPEP 2111.02.II; during examination, statements in the preamble reciting the purpose or intended use of the claimed invention must be evaluated to determine whether or not the recited purpose or intended use results in a structural difference (or, in the case of process claims, manipulative difference) between the claimed invention and the prior art. If so, the recitation serves to limit the claim. See, e.g., In re Otto, 312 F.2d 937, 938, 136 USPQ 458, 459 (CCPA 1963)), the dynamo-electric rotary machine comprising:
a stator 1 including a hollow-cylindrical magnetically conductive body having grooves 2 in a region of an inner casing surface of the hollow-cylindrical magnetically conductive body (Fig. 1);
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electrical conductors 3 received in the grooves 2, with each of the electrical conductors 3 being embodied as a conductor bar constructed from subconductors (para [0116]);
a short-circuit ring 4 designed to electrically contact the electrical conductors 3 on an end side of the magnetically conductive body of the stator;
a plurality of inverter modules 9 designed to electrically contact the electrical conductors 3 on another end side of the magnetically conductive body (Fig. 7);
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a rotor 21 embodied as a squirrel-cage rotor (para [0131]) in spaced-apart relation to the stator 1 to define an air gap (para [0129]) there between;
a closed internal cooling circuit or primary circuit having no flow contact with an outside and designed as Z or X ventilation (para [0140]);
wherein a member selected from the group consisting of the electrical conductors 3, the inverter modules 9, the rotor 21, and the short-circuit ring 4 of the stator 1 has at least one section which is coolable by a gaseous medium (para [0140]).
However, DAJAKU does not disclose short-circuit rings on end sides of the rotor; or a secondary circuit designed as a tubular cooler or plate cooler with air or water as a cooling medium; or a heat exchanger arranged between the closed internal cooling circuit or primary circuit and the secondary circuit and designed as a top-mounted cooler to provide a heat exchange of the closed internal cooling circuit or primary circuit with the secondary circuit.
MEMMINGER discloses a dynamo-electric rotary machine with short-circuit rings 5 on end sides of a rotor 3; a secondary circuit designed as a tubular cooler or plate cooler 12 with air or water as a cooling medium (para [0016]); and a heat exchanger 11 arranged between the closed internal cooling circuit or primary circuit and the secondary circuit and designed as a top-mounted cooler to provide a heat exchange of the closed internal cooling circuit or primary circuit with the secondary circuit (para [0032], Fig. 1).
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It 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 to provide the dynamo-electric rotary machine of DAJAKU with short-circuit rings on end sides of the rotor; or a secondary circuit designed as a tubular cooler or plate cooler with air or water as a cooling medium; or a heat exchanger arranged between the closed internal cooling circuit or primary circuit and the secondary circuit and designed as a top-mounted cooler to provide a heat exchange of the closed internal cooling circuit or primary circuit with the secondary circuit, similar to MEMMINGER.
A person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains would have been motivated to make such modification, substantially increasing the cooling efficiency as taught by MEMMINGER (para [0016]).
Regarding claim 16, DAJAKU in view of MEMMINGER teaches the dynamo-electric rotary machine of claim 15, wherein MEMMINGER teaches the hollow-cylindrical magnetically conductive body is an axially layered lamination stack [0026].
Regarding claim 17, DAJAKU in view of MEMMINGER teaches the dynamo-electric rotary machine of claim 15, wherein MEMMINGER teaches the gaseous medium is air.
Regarding claim 18, DAJAKU in view of MEMMINGER teaches the dynamo-electric rotary machine of claim 15, wherein DAJAKU at least one of the short-circuit ring 4 of the stator 1 and the short-circuit rings of the rotor 21 is constructed from axially spaced-apart individual rings and/or from ring segments (i.e. the cooling fins are ring segments as broadly claimed; see para [0144-0145]).
Regarding claim 22, DAJAKU in view of MEMMINGER teaches the dynamo-electric rotary machine of claim 15, wherein MEMMINGER teaches the magnetically conductive body and the rotor are each designed as an axially layered lamination stack [para [0026] and [0028]], wherein the axially layered lamination stack of at least one of the stator and the rotor is axially subdivided to form a partial lamination stack in spaced-apart relation from one another (para [0028] and Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 23, DAJAKU in view of MEMMINGER teaches the dynamo-electric rotary machine of claim 15, MEMMINGER teaches at least one of an integral fan 14 and one external fan for generating an air flow.
Regarding claim 24, DAJAKU in view of MEMMINGER teaches the dynamo-electric rotary machine of claim 23, MEMMINGER teaches a shaft for bearing the rotor, said integral fan 14 being connected to the shaft in a rotationally fixed manner and arranged radially inside the short-circuit ring of the stator (Fig. 1) and/or the short-circuit rings of the rotor.
Regarding claim 25, DAJAKU in view of MEMMINGER teaches the dynamo-electric rotary machine of claim 23, wherein MEMMINGER teaches at least one of the integral fan 14 and the external fan is arranged radially below the inverter modules (i.e. the fan is mounted on the shaft, which is radially at the center of the rotor, the lowest radial distance).
Claims 19-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over DAJAKU in view of MEMMINGER as applied to claim 15 above, and further in view of LUTZ (US 20150042188).
Regarding claim 19, DAJAKU in view of MEMMINGER teaches the dynamo-electric rotary machine of claim 15.
However, DAJAKU in view of MEMMINGER does not teach the short-circuit rings of the rotor include fan elements to generate a cooling air flow.
LUTZ teaches an electric machine with short-circuit rings 20 of a rotor 3 include fan elements to generate a cooling air flow (para [0030]).
It 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 to provide machine of DAJAKU in view of MEMMINGER with the short-circuit rings of the rotor include fan elements to generate a cooling air flow, similar to LUTZ.
A person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains would have been motivated to make such modification in order to significantly improve the heat dissipation from the hot-spots of the winding head, as taught by LUTZ (para [0012]).
Regarding claim 20, DAJAKU in view of MEMMINGER and further in view of LUTZ teaches the dynamo-electric rotary machine of claim 19, wherein LUTZ teaches the cooling air flow is a substantially radial cooling air flow (Fig. 1).
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Regarding claim 21, DAJAKU in view of MEMMINGER and further in view of LUTZ teaches the dynamo-electric rotary machine of claim 19, wherein LUTZ teaches the fan elements are arranged on the short-circuit rings of the rotor (para [0030]) and/or between axially subdivided individual rings of a corresponding one of the short-circuit rings of the rotor.
Claims 26-29 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over DAJAKU in view of XU (US 20150097450; previously cited).
Regarding claim 26, DAJAKU discloses a method for cooling a dynamo-electric rotary machine, the method comprising:
cooling with a gaseous medium a member selected from the group consisting of electrical conductors 3 received in grooves 2 of a hollow-cylindrical magnetically conductive body of a stator 1 of the dynamo-electric rotary machine, a short-circuit ring 4 on an end side of the magnetically conductive body of the stator 1, inverter modules 9 designed to electrically contact the electrical conductors 3 on another end side of the magnetically conductive body, and a rotor 21 in spaced- apart relation to the stator 1,
However, DAJAKU does not disclose thermally coupling the primary cooling circuit and a secondary cooling circuit to provide heat exchange there between; and cooling by detecting a temperature of partial air flows of the primary cooling circuit and/or the secondary cooling circuit to influence a course and/or the temperature of the partial air flows in both the primary cooling circuit and/or secondary cooling circuit.
XU discloses thermally coupling a primary cooling circuit 122 and a secondary cooling circuit 116 to provide heat exchange there between (para [0020]); and cooling by detecting a temperature of partial air flows of the primary cooling circuit and/or the secondary cooling circuit to influence a course and/or the temperature of the partial air flows in both the primary cooling circuit and/or secondary cooling circuit (para [0032]).
It 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 to provide the method of DAJAKU with thermally coupling the primary cooling circuit and a secondary cooling circuit to provide heat exchange there between; and cooling by detecting a temperature of partial air flows of the primary cooling circuit and/or the secondary cooling circuit to influence a course and/or the temperature of the partial air flows in both the primary cooling circuit and/or secondary cooling circuit, similar to XU.
A person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains would have been motivated to make such modification in order to provide liquid cooling and also air cooling to provide cooling without additional power consumption from an external power source, as taught by XU (para [0007-0008]).
Regarding claim 27, DAJAKU in view of XU teaches the method of claim 28, wherein XU teaches the gaseous medium is air.
Regarding claim 28, DAJAKU in view of XU teaches loses the method of claim 28, wherein XU teaches the temperature and/or a rate of coolant flow in the primary cooling circuit and/or secondary cooling circuit is ascertained by a sensor 136 and/or calculation (para [0032]).
Regarding claim 29, DAJAKU in view of XU teaches the method of claim 26, XU teaches actuating an external fan 126 which is switchable on by a higher-level controller and/or an actuating element which influences an air flow (para [0032]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US-20160028284-A1 DAJAKU discloses a short-circuit armature/rotor. A machine translation of previously-disclosed DE 4443427 has been provided.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JUSTIN STEFANON whose telephone number is (703)756-4648. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Thursday and alternate Fridays 8AM - 5PM EDT.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Oluseye 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.
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/JUSTIN STEFANON/Examiner, Art Unit 2834
/OLUSEYE IWARERE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2834
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