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 .
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
Paragraph 0036, lines 1-2, the phrase “that rotationally lower support rotary shafts 34” should likely be changed to --that rotationallylower rotary shafts 34--.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Harvey (US 4,753,288).
With regard to claim 1, Harvey teaches a grille shutter device configured to open or close an opening provided at a front section of a vehicle (Abstract, “vehicle engine shutter assembly”), the grille shutter device comprising:
a frame body (12) having an inlet through which air flows (see annotated Fig. below); and
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airfoil-shaped flaps (18), each having a rotary shaft (18a) that is rotationally supported by the frame body (see Fig. below), the flaps being configured to open or close the inlet by rotating in forward and reverse directions around the respective rotary shafts (compare Figs. 3 and 4, see also Fig. 11), wherein
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an edge of each of the flaps on an upstream side and an edge of each of the flaps on a downstream side in a flow direction of the air when the flaps are located in an open position, at which the flaps open the inlet, are referred to as an upstream edge and a downstream edge (see annotated Fig. above),
a section of each of the flaps between the upstream edge and the downstream edge is referred to as a first section and a section of each of the flaps between the first section and the downstream edge is referred to as a second section (see annotated Fig. above),
each of the flaps includes a symmetrical airfoil portion that forms a portion of the flap between the upstream edge and the second section (the airfoil 18 is completely symmetrical),
the symmetrical airfoil portion is shaped to be symmetrical with respect to a chord line that connects the upstream edge to the downstream edge (i.e. the horizontal line in Fig. 10), and
a thickness of the symmetrical airfoil portion in a direction that is orthogonal to a direction in which the chord line extends and a direction in which the rotary shaft extends, gradually increases from the upstream edge toward the first section and gradually decreases from the first section toward the second section (this is visible in Fig. 10).
Claim(s) 1, 3, and 4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Pastrick et al. (US 2013/0223980, hereinafter Pastrick).
With regard to claim 1, Pastrick discloses a grille shutter device configured to open or close an opening provided at a front section of a vehicle (note that the phrase “to open or close an opening provided at a front section of a vehicle” is being interpreted to refer merely to the intended use of the grille device. The vehicle is not positively recited in the claims), the grille shutter device comprising:
a frame body having an inlet through which air flows (see annotated Fig. provided below); and
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airfoil-shaped flaps (140), each having a rotary shaft (160) that is rotationally supported by the frame body (“the pivot pin 160 snaps into a mating socket in the associated side wall of the frame section 112,” see paragraph 0032), the flaps being configured to open or close the inlet by rotating in forward and reverse directions around the respective rotary shafts (compare Figs. 3 and 4), wherein
an edge of each of the flaps on an upstream side and an edge of each of the flaps on a downstream side in a flow direction of the air when the flaps are located in an open position, at which the flaps open the inlet, are referred to as an upstream edge and a downstream edge (see annotated Fig. provided below—note that the upstream and downstream edges do not correspond to the actual airflow arrow 138. However, because claim 1 is only directed to the grille itself, and does not positively recite the vehicle, the orientation of the flaps can be arbitrarily defined),
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a section of each of the flaps between the upstream edge and the downstream edge is referred to as a first section and a section of each of the flaps between the first section and the downstream edge is referred to as a second section (see annotated Fig. above),
each of the flaps includes a symmetrical airfoil portion that forms a portion of the flap between the upstream edge and the second section (see Fig. above, which illustrates that the airfoil is symmetrical starting at the upstream edge and moving toward the second section),
the symmetrical airfoil portion is shaped to be symmetrical with respect to a chord line that connects the upstream edge to the downstream edge (i.e. a horizontal line intersecting axis 146 in the Fig. above), and
a thickness of the symmetrical airfoil portion in a direction that is orthogonal to a direction in which the chord line extends and a direction in which the rotary shaft extends, gradually increases from the upstream edge toward the first section and gradually decreases from the first section toward the second section (this change in thickness is visible in the Fig. above).
With regard to claim 3, Pastrick teaches that the flaps each include an asymmetrical airfoil portion (153, Fig. 7) that is continuously formed downstream of the symmetrical airfoil portion and is asymmetrical in shape relative to the chord line (Fig. 7 shows this asymmetry clearly), and the asymmetrical airfoil portion includes a contact surface (142), wherein, when the flaps are in the closed position to close the inlet, the contact surface of each of the flaps is in contact with an outer surface of the symmetrical airfoil portion of an other one of the flaps (see Fig. 3, which shows the surfaces in contact in the closed position).
With regard to claim 4, Pastrick teaches that two curved surfaces protruding in a direction away from the chord line are respectively provided on opposite sides of the symmetrical airfoil portion in a thickness direction of the symmetrical airfoil portion (see annotated Fig. below), and the contact surface of each of the flaps is curved along the curved surface of the other one of the flaps (“a concavity 142 for matably engaging the thinned tip on an adjacent vane when in the closed position (FIG. 3). The engagement of the thinned tip into the concavity 142 causes a good air seal,” see Paragraph 0029).
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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.
Claim(s) 2 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Harvey in view of Wolf et al. (US 2017/0248066, hereinafter Wolf).
With regard to claim 2, Harvey fails to teach that the downstream edge has a planar downstream end face that is orthogonal to the chord line.
Wolf teaches an active grille similar to that of Harvey, where the vanes have seal portions (283) at both of the leading and trailing ends, where the seal portions have planar end faces (see Fig. 12).
It would have been considered obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to have modified Harvey by providing the vanes with the seal portions of Wolf at the leading and trailing ends, in order to limit airflow when the vanes are closed, and also to “dampen, minimize, or otherwise reduce noise (for example, ‘rattling’) during operation” (Wolf, paragraph 0061).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. The cited references provide further examples of active grille shutter assemblies.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ROBERT E FULLER whose telephone number is (571)272-6300. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:30AM - 5:30PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Tara Schimpf can be reached at 571-270-7741. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ROBERT E FULLER/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3676
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