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 .
Response to Amendment
The amendment filed May 21, 2026 has been entered. Claims 1-8 remain pending in the application. The previous 35 USC 112 rejections of claims 2, 5 and 7 are withdrawn in light of the Applicant’s amendment to claims 2, 5 and 7.
Claim Objections
Claim 6 is objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 6 line 7, “a backup” would be clearer if written as --the backup--.
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 1-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Japanese Patent Publication JP2012117393(A) to Nakamichi in view of U. S. Patent Publication 2017/0335965 to Fujimura, as evidenced by U. S. Patent Publication 2021/0156371 to Kanei.
All citations to Nakamichi herein refer to the English language translation submitted by the Applicant.
Referring to claim 1, Nakamichi teaches a pressure boosting pump comprising:
a cylinder (5) having a compression chamber (space inside cylinder below the piston in Fig. 8) (Figures 1 and 8; paragraphs [0019]-[0026]);
a suction valve (9a) configured to cause a low-temperature fluid (cryogenic fluid) to be sucked into the compression chamber (space inside cylinder below the piston in Fig. 8) (Figures 1 and 8; paragraphs [0019]-[0026]);
a piston (2) having an annular groove (7) on an outer peripheral face thereof along a circumferential direction and movably supported on the cylinder (5) and configured to compress the low-temperature fluid in the compression chamber (space inside cylinder below the piston in Fig. 8) (Figures 1 and 8; paragraphs [0019]-[0026]);
a discharge valve (9b) configured to cause the low-temperature fluid in the compression chamber (space inside cylinder below the piston in Fig. 8) to be discharged (Figures 1 and 8; paragraphs [0019]-[0026]); and
a piston ring (10A) provided in the annular groove (7) of the piston (2), wherein the piston ring (2) has (Figures 1 and 8; paragraphs [0019]-[0026])
a piston ring main body (11, 20, 21) positioned closer to an inner peripheral face of the cylinder (5) (Figures 1 and 8, Fig. 1 annotated below; paragraphs [0019]-[0026]), and
an inner ring (portion of 13 between 14 and the piston ring main body) positioned closer to a center of the piston (2) than the piston ring main body (11, 20, 21) is (Figures 1 and 8, Fig. 1 annotated below; paragraphs [0019]-[0026]); and
a backup ring (14) formed of metal and positioned toward the center of the piston (2) relative to the inner ring (Figures 1 and 8, Fig. 1 annotated below; paragraphs [0019]-[0026]);
the inner ring (portion of 13 between 14 and the piston ring main body) is configured to deform under an action of the piston ring main body (11, 20, 21) and to transmit a pressure acting on an inner peripheral face of the backup ring (14) to the piston ring main body (11, 20, 21) (Figures 1 and 8, Fig. 1 annotated below; paragraphs [0019]-[0026], wherein the resin inner ring is capable of deforming by pressure from either of the piston ring main body and the metal backup ring, and in so doing to transmit such pressure therethrough, and therefore is configured as claimed).
[AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (Backup Ring)][AltContent: textbox (Piston Ring Main Body)][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: arrow][AltContent: textbox (Inner Ring)]
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Annotation of Nakamichi Figure 1.
Nakamichi teaches the use of resins having different hardnesses for the piston ring main body (portions 11, 20) and the inner ring (13), such as PTFE and PEEK (at least in paragraph [0024]) (wherein PEEK has a greater hardness than PTFE, see below), but while Figure 1 seems to indicate by different crosshatching that they are different materials, Nakamichi does not specify which arrangement of those resins is preferred, if any. Fujimura teaches a piston ring wherein:
an inner ring (2) has a hardness lower than a hardness of a piston ring main body (3) (Figures 1A-C; paragraphs [0041]-[0055], claim 1).
It would have been obvious before the invention was effectively filed, to a person having ordinary skill in the art, to make the pump taught by Nakamichi with an inner ring having a hardness lower than a hardness of the piston ring main body, as taught by Fujimura (by choosing an arrangement of the resins specified by Nakamichi that provides a harder material for the piston main body than the material used for the inner ring) in order to use a material on the cylinder contacting surface that is wear resistant, to provide for better sealing (paragraph [0043], wherein it is taught that making the inner ring with a lower hardness provides for better sealing, while making the piston ring main body with a higher hardness provides for wear resistance), and since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice. MPEP 2144.07; In re Leshin, 125 USPQ 416.
The Examiner notes that Nakamichi teaches the use of PTFE and PEEK resins for the piston ring main body (portions 11, 20) and the inner ring (13) (paragraph [0024]), and as evidenced by Kanei paragraph [0053], PTFE has a lower hardness than PEEK. As taught by Fujimura above, it would have been obvious to use the PTFE and PEEK resins taught by Nakamichi such that inner ring has a hardness lower than a hardness of a piston ring main body as claimed.
Referring to claim 2, Nakamichi and Fujimura, as evidenced by Kanei, teaches a pressure boosting pump comprising all the limitations of claim 1, as detailed above, and Nakamichi further teaches a pump wherein:
the piston ring main body (11, 20, 21) is formed of a PEEK-based material having polyetheretherketone as a most abundant component, and the inner ring is formed of a PTFE material having polytetrafluoroethylene as a most abundant component (Figures 1 and 8; paragraphs [0019]-[0026]).
Furthermore, Nakamichi teaches the use of resins such as PTFE and PEEK for the piston ring main body and the inner ring (paragraph [0024]), but while Figure 1 seems to indicate by different crosshatching that they are different materials, Nakamichi does not specify which arrangement of those resins is preferred, if any. However, it would have been obvious before the invention was effectively filed, to a person having ordinary skill in the art to make the piston ring main body from of a PEEK-based material having polyetheretherketone and the inner ring from PTFE material having polytetrafluoroethylene, since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice. MPEP 2144.07; In re Leshin, 125 USPQ 416.
Referring to claim 3, Nakamichi and Fujimura, as evidenced by Kanei, teaches a pressure boosting pump comprising all the limitations of claim 1, as detailed above, and Nakamichi further teaches a pump wherein:
the piston ring main body (11, 20, 21) has a high-pressure piston ring main body (20, 21) positioned closer to the compression chamber (space inside cylinder below the piston in Fig. 8) and a low-pressure piston ring main body (11) positioned on an opposite side of the high-pressure piston ring main body (20, 21) from the compression chamber (space inside cylinder below the piston in Fig. 8) (Figures 1 and 8; paragraphs [0019]-[0026]).
Nakamichi teaches that the low-pressure piston ring main body and the high- pressure piston ring main body are made from materials such as PTFE and PEEK (paragraph [0024]), wherein PEEK has a greater hardness than PTFE (see above citation to Kanei), and as such teaches an arrangement wherein the low-pressure piston ring main body (11) has a hardness lower than the high-pressure piston ring main body (20, 21) when the low-pressure piston ring main body is made from PTFE and the high-pressure piston ring main body is made from PEEK as taught by Nakamichi (Figures 1 and 8; paragraphs [0019]-[0026]).
Furthermore, it would have been obvious before the invention was effectively filed, to a person having ordinary skill in the art, to make the pump taught by Nakamichi such that the low-pressure piston ring main body is made from a material having a lower hardness than a material of the high-pressure piston ring main body, since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice. MPEP 2144.07; In re Leshin, 125 USPQ 416.
Referring to claim 4, Nakamichi and Fujimura, as evidenced by Kanei, teaches a pressure boosting pump comprising all the limitations of claim 3, as detailed above, including Nakamichi teaches that the piston ring main body (11, 20, 21) has a high-pressure piston ring main body (20, 21) and a low-pressure piston ring main body (11) (Figures 1 and 8; paragraphs [0019]-[0026]), and Nakamichi teaches the use of materials having different hardnesses for the piston ring main body and the inner ring, such as PTFE and PEEK (wherein PEEK has a greater hardness than PTFE, as detailed above), but does not specify a preference therefor. Fujimura teaches a piston ring wherein:
the hardness of the inner ring (2) is less than or equal to the hardness of the low-pressure piston ring main body (3) (Figures 1A-C; paragraphs [0041]-[0055], claim 1).
In the combination of Fujimura with Nakamichi, the hardness of the inner ring (13) is less than all of the piston ring main body (11, 20, 21), where the piston ring main body (11, 20, 21) includes the high-pressure piston ring main body (20, 21) and the low-pressure piston ring main body (11) and as such the combination teaches that the hardness of the inner ring is less than or equal to the hardness of the low-pressure piston ring main body as claimed.
Furthermore, since Nakamichi teaches that the of the inner ring and the low-pressure piston ring main body can be made from PEEK and PTFE, Nakamichi teaches an arrangement wherein the hardness of the inner ring is less than or equal to the hardness of the low-pressure piston ring main body as claimed.
Referring to claim 5, Nakamichi and Fujimura, as evidenced by Kanei, teaches a pressure boosting pump comprising all the limitations of claim 3, as detailed above, and Nakamichi further teaches a pump wherein:
the high-pressure piston ring main body (20, 21) is formed of a PEEK-based material having polyetheretherketone as a most abundant component, and the low-pressure piston ring main body (11) is formed of a PTFE material having polytetrafluoroethylene as a most abundant component (Figures 1 and 8; paragraphs [0019]-[0026], wherein resins such as PTFE and PEEK are used for the piston ring main body).
Furthermore, it would have been obvious before the invention was effectively filed, to a person having ordinary skill in the art, to make the pump taught by Nakamichi such that the high-pressure piston ring main body is formed of a PEEK-based material having polyetheretherketone as a most abundant component, and the low-pressure piston ring main body is formed of a PTFE material having polytetrafluoroethylene as a most abundant component, since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice. MPEP 2144.07; In re Leshin, 125 USPQ 416.
Referring to claim 6, Nakamichi and Fujimura, as evidenced by Kanei, teaches a pressure boosting pump comprising all the limitations of claim 1, as detailed above, and Nakamichi further teaches a pump wherein:
the piston (2) is formed with an annular groove (7) on an outer periphery, the piston ring main body (11, 20, 21) is disposed at an outermost part of the annular ring in a radial direction, the inner ring (13) is disposed on an inner side of the piston ring main body (11, 20, 21) in the radial direction in the annular groove (7), a backup ring (14) is disposed on an inner side of the inner ring (13) in the radial direction in the annular groove (7), and the backup ring (14) is formed of stainless steel (Figures 1 and 8; paragraphs [0019]-[0026]).
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Japanese Patent Publication JP2012117393 to Nakamichi in view of U. S. Patent Publication 2017/0335965 to Fujimura, as evidenced by U. S. Patent Publication 2021/0156371 to Kanei, U. S. Patent 2020/0096106 to Feistel and U.S. Patent Publication 2020/0239985 to Mauser.
Referring to claim 7, Nakamichi and Fujimura, as evidenced by Kanei, teaches a pressure boosting pump comprising all the limitations of claim 1, as detailed above, and Nakamichi further teaches a pump wherein:
the piston ring (10A) includes a plurality of piston rings (10A) provided spaced apart from each other in a direction in which the piston (2) moves (Figures 1 and 8; paragraphs [0019]-[0026]).
Nakamichi and Fujimura, as evidenced by Kanei, do not teach a wear ring. Feistel teaches a pump comprising:
a wear ring (2, 5) each on one side and another side of piston rings (3, 4) in an axial direction (Fig. 1; paragraph [0039]).
It would have been obvious before the invention was effectively filed, to a person having ordinary skill in the art, to modify the pump taught by Nakamichi with the wear rings taught by Feistel in order to include rings that operate without clearance during operation (paragraph [0039]).
Feistel is silent as to material of the wear rings. Mauser teaches a piston wherein:
a wear ring is formed of a PTFE material having polytetrafluoroethylene as a most abundant component (paragraph [0002]).
It would have been obvious before the invention was effectively filed, to a person having ordinary skill in the art to make the wear ring from a PTFE material having polytetrafluoroethylene, since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice. MPEP 2144.07; In re Leshin, 125 USPQ 416.
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Japanese Patent Publication JP2012117393 to Nakamichi in view of U. S. Patent Publication 2017/0335965 to Fujimura, as evidenced by U. S. Patent Publication 2021/0156371 to Kanei and U. S. Patent Publication 2020/0158288 to Li.
Referring to claim 8, Nakamichi and Fujimura, as evidenced by Kanei, teaches a pressure boosting pump comprising all the limitations of claim 1, as detailed above, including the pressure boosting pump of claim 1, but do not teach a hydrogen supply system. Li is silent as to the details of the pump, but teaches a hydrogen supply system comprising:
a compression device (3) configured to compress liquid hydrogen as a low-temperature fluid; an evaporation device (6) configured to vaporize the liquid hydrogen compressed by the compression device (3); and a dispenser (8) configured to supply the hydrogen gas vaporized by the evaporation device (6) (Fig. 2; paragraphs [0063]-[0072]).
It would have been obvious before the invention was effectively filed, to a person having ordinary skill in the art, to use the pump taught by Nakamichi in the hydrogen supply system taught by Li in order to use the pump to dispense hydrogen (paragraph [0002]).
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed on May 21, 2026 have been considered but, unless otherwise addressed below, are moot in view of the new ground(s) of rejection. The Applicant argues that “Nakamichi is silent regarding and unrelated to the structural interrelationships among claimed elements which realize the above force transmission path.” Remarks 5. However, as explained above, the resin inner ring is capable of deforming by pressure from either of the piston ring main body and the metal backup ring, and in so doing to transmit such pressure therethrough, and therefore is configured as claimed.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRYAN MATTHEW LETTMAN whose telephone number is (571)270-7860. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8am-4pm.
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/BRYAN M LETTMAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3746
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