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 § 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, 3, 4 and 6 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 limitation "the condensation end wall" and “the condensation sidewall” in last two lines. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
For examination purposes, "the condensation end wall" is construed as --a condensation end wall—and a first occurrence of “the condensation sidewall” is construed as --a condensation sidewall--.
Claims 3, 4 and 6 are also rejected because they are all dependent on claim 1.
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) 1, 3 and 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen (CN 201122067 Y) in view of Ogushi (JP 2005-114179 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Chen discloses a heat pipe (1, Fig. 4), comprising:
a pipe body (cylindrical tube body of the heat pipe 1, Figs. 2 and 3), having an evaporation portion (heating end 12) and a condensation portion (cooling end 11), the evaporation portion extends in a first direction (the heating end 12 extends in a horizontal direction), the condensation portion extends in a second direction (the cooling end 11 extends in a vertical direction), and a bent portion connects the condensation portion and the evaporation portion (L shaped elbow between the heating end 12 and cooling end 11); and
a first wick (capillary tissue 3), disposed in the evaporation portion (disposed in the heating end 12) and spaced apart from the condensation portion (the capillary tissue 3 spaced apart from the cooling end 11) and the bent portion (Fig. 4 shows that the capillary tissue 3 is only provided at the heating end 12).
Chen fails to disclose a second wick disclosed in the condensation portion, one end of the second wick being fixed to a condensation end wall, the second wick being spaced apart from a condensation sidewall and forming a gap between the second wick and the condensation sidewall.
Ogushi discloses a second wick (second capillary body 1, Fig. 1) that is disposed in the condensation portion (105), one end of the second wick being fixed to a condensation end wall (right end of the second capillary body fixed to a condensation end wall 108, Fig. 2), the second wick being spaced apart from a condensation sidewall (the capillary body 1 spaced apart from cylindrical wall of the heat pipe, see a cross-section in Fig. 2b) and forming a gap between the second wick and the condensation sidewall (a gap between the capillary body 1 and the cylindrical wall).
Ogushi further discloses that providing the second capillary body 1 with the first capillary body 102 absorbs liquid slag 107 to allow vapor of the working fluid to occupy the vapor space. As a result, condensation of the working fluid is improved by removing the liquid slag 107 in the condensation portion 105 (paragraph 0011-0012 of the translation).
Therefore, the capillary body 1 may be provided and fixed at the cooling end 11. An end of the capillary body 1 may be fixed to an upper cap within the cooling end 11 of the heat pipe 1 shown in Fig. 4 of Chen.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have provided a second wick disclosed in the condensation portion, one end of the second wick being fixed to a condensation end wall, the second wick being spaced apart from a condensation sidewall and forming a gap between the second wick and the condensation sidewall in Chen as taught by Ogushi in order to improve condensation of the working fluid (paragraph 0011-0012 of the translation of Ogushi).
Regarding claim 3, Chen as modified in claim 1 further discloses wherein an end (an end of the modified capillary body 1 away from the condensation end wall) of the second wick (1) adjacent to the evaporation portion (the end is closest to capillary tissue 3. “adjacent to” is understood as closest to) is located on an end of the bent portion (the end is located on a vertical end of the L shaped elbow).
Regarding claim 6, Chen as modified in claim 1 further discloses a third wick (first capillary tissue 2), wherein the third wick is stacked on the first wick (stacked at outer periphery of the second capillary tissue 3, Fig. 3) and is not in direct contact with the second wick (the first capillary tissue 2 is not in direct contact with the modified the capillary body 1 taught by Ogushi, which is attached on the upper cap of the heat pipe 1).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 4 is 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 following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Claim 4 requires “wherein there is not another wick between the second wick and the first wick”. Chen in view of Ogushi fails to disclose or make obvious the requirement in claim 4 because a first capillary tissue 2 is another wick between the second capillary tissue 3 and the capillary body 1 taught by Ogushi.
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.
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/JIANYING C ATKISSON/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3763
/F.K.L/Examiner, Art Unit 3763
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