64DeeDETAILED 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 .
Responsive to correspondence
This office action is in response to correspondence filed on 12/11/2024.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement filed 12/11/2024 was filed before the first action on the merits. This submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97.
Accordingly, the IDS has been fully considered by the Office.
Abstract
The abstract filed 12/11/2024 appears to be acceptable.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
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 set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied 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 non-obviousness.
Claim(s) 1, 2, 4, 6-11, are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over GB 2575987 A to SIVABALAN (SIVABALAN) in view of WO 2020229163 A1 to OLIVIER (OLIVIER).
Re: Claim 1:
SIVABALAN discloses:
A sealing gasket (See Fig.1: sealing gasket 20) for a pump (See Fig.1: vacuum pump 10), the sealing gasket (See Fig.1: sealing gasket 20) comprising:
a first sealing member (See Fig.1: a first sealing member 26) defining a closed shape, comprising:
a first surface (See Fig.1: a radial inner surface of 26);
a second surface (See Fig.1: a radial outer surface of 26) opposite the first surface (See Fig.1: a radial inner surface of 26);
a first inner surface (See Fig.1: axial end surface of 26 facing towards sealing member 28); and
a first outer surface (See Fig.1: axial end of surface 26 away from sealing member 28) opposite to the first inner surface, wherein the first inner surface and the first outer surface are disposed between the first surface and the second surface (See Fig.1: as shown);
a second sealing member (See Fig.1: a second sealing member 28) defining a closed shape, comprising:
a third surface (See Fig.1: a radial inner surface of 28);
a fourth surface (See Fig.1: a radial outer surface of 28) opposite the third annular surface;
a second inner surface (See Fig.1: axial end surface of 28 facing towards sealing member 26); and
a second outer surface (See Fig.1: an axial end surface of 28 facing away from sealing member 26) opposite to the second inner surface, wherein the second inner surface and the second outer surface are disposed between the third surface and the fourth surface;
a first longitudinal sealing member (See Fig.1: a first longitudinal sealing member 22) connected between the first outer surface (See Fig.1: axial end of surface 26 away from sealing member 28) and the second outer surface (See Fig.1: axial end of surface 26 away from sealing member 26) ; and
a second longitudinal sealing member (See Fig.1: a second longitudinal sealing member 24) connected between the first outer surface (See Fig.1: axial end of surface 26 away from sealing member 28) and the second outer surface (See Fig.1: an axial end surface of 28 facing away from sealing member 26).
SIVABALAN is silent regarding vacuum pump, however WO 2020229163 A1 to OLIVIER (OLIVIER) teaches a vacuum pump (SIVABALAN : See Fig.1: discloses similar seal configured to be used in a vacuum pump 1, as explained in ¶ 0105).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to employ the discloses sealing gasket of SIVABALAN in a vacuum pump which would have yielded predictable results.
Re: Claims 2 and 4:
SIVABALAN modified by OLIVIER discloses:
The sealing gasket of claim 1, modified SIVABALAN discloses all the limitations of claim 1, and wherein:
the first sealing member defines a rounded square or rounded rectangle;
the first surface is a rounded square or rounded rectangle shaped surface; and
the second surface is a rounded square or rounded rectangle shaped surface (SIVABALAN : See Fig.1: discloses all the limitations of claim 2, which discloses the first sealing member defines a rounded square or rounded rectangle and the first surface is a rounded square or rounded rectangle shaped surface; and the second surface is a rounded square or rounded rectangle shaped surface as recited in claim 2), and (See Fig.1: the second sealing member defines a rounded square or rounded rectangle; the third surface is a rounded square or rounded rectangle shaped surface; and the fourth surface is a rounded square or rounded rectangle shaped surface as recited in claim 4)
Re: Claims 6-10:
SIVABALAN modified by OLIVIER discloses:
The sealing gasket of claim 1, SIVABALAN discloses all the limitations of claim 1, SIVABALAN is silent regarding:
wherein the sealing gasket is a one-piece gasket.
However, it is well known in the art that sealing gaskets of the type disclosed by SIVABALAN are produced in one piece by molding process as claimed in claims 6-7, (OLIVIER: See Fig.1: gasket 20 as described in ¶0105 and ¶ 0108 produced in one piece and by molding process),
modified SIVABALAN further discloses wherein some or all of the sealing gasket has square or rectangular cross-section as claimed in claim 8 (SIVABALAN : See Fig.2), wherein the sealing gasket is deformable as claimed in claim 9 (OLIVIER: See Fig.1: ¶0106), wherein the sealing gasket is an elastomer as claimed in claim 10 (OLIVIER: See Fig.1: ¶0106),
Re: Claim 11:
SIVABALAN modified by OLIVIER discloses:
All the limitations of claim 11 (See rejection of claim 1 above) including:
shell stators (OLIVIER: ¶0095: 10,11,12);
end pieces (OLIVIER: See Fog.1: 13, 14); and
the sealing gasket (OLIVIER: See Fig.1: 20) as described in claim 1 above.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3, 5, 12 and 13 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.
The combination of the features of dependent claims 3 and 5 appears neither known from, nor rendered obvious by, the closest prior art of record, since none of the available prior art documents neither discloses nor suggests, in specific a sealing gasket, wherein a first or second sealing member comprises four curved sections and four substantially straight sections arranged as claimed, and wherein the first longitudinal sealing member is connected to the first curved section and the second longitudinal sealing member is connected to the third curved section. The combination of features of claims 1 and 3, and the combination of claims 1 and 5 therefore appears allowable. Claims 12 and 13 depend on at least one of claims 3 and 5 and their subject-matter therefore also allowable in combination with the limitations of base claim and intervening claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SHAFIQ A MIAN whose telephone number is (571)272-4925. The examiner can normally be reached 8:30 am to 6:30 pm (Monday thru Thursday).
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/SHAFIQ MIAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3746
December 31, 2025