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 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Objections
Claim 1 is objected to because of the following informalities: a period at the end of the claim is missing. Appropriate correction is required.
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 1-20 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 axial direction" in the 9th line of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Claims 2-15 are rejected as being dependent upon the rejected base claim.
Claim 16 recites the limitation “the feed roller” in the 10th line of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Claims 17-20 are rejected as being dependent upon the rejected base claim.
Claim 16 recites the limitation "the axial direction" in the 19th line of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
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.
Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by German Patent Document No. DE 3631077 A1 by Ruegger et al., hereinafter “Ruegger”.
Regarding claim 1, Ruegger discloses a feed device (feed device filling box 6 in Fig. 1; ¶[0015]) for a roller facility for foodstuff processing (roller mill facility housing 1 with crushing rollers 2 in Fig. 1; ¶[0015]), comprising a collection space (collection space mixing chamber 21 in Figs. 1-3; ¶[0018]) into which a processing material can be fed via an infeed (infeed pipe 26 in Fig. 1; ¶[0018]), and a feed roller with an axis (feed roller 11 in Fig. 1; ¶[0016]), wherein the feed roller is arranged on the collection space at the lower side (feed roller 11 is arranged at lower opening 27 of mixing chamber 21 in Fig. 1; ¶[0018]), and wherein processing material which is present in the collection space can be conveyed away out of the collection space by the feed roller (material is conveyed out of mixing chamber 21 by feed roller 11 into roller mill housing 1 in Fig. 1), wherein the feed device furthermore above the feed roller comprises a first conveying device for conveying the processing material in the collection space in the axial direction towards at least one end side (Fig. 4 shows a second embodiment with first conveying mixing device 130 which has wings 133 that pushes materially axially; ¶[0030] through [0032] and [0020]), characterized by a second conveying device for conveying processing material which is conveyed by the first conveying device, away from the end side (second conveying mixing device 230 in Fig. 4 may be rotated in the opposite direction from 130 such that wings 133 of 230, same as wings 33 in Fig. 3, pushes material axially in the opposite direction from wings 133 of 130).
Regarding claim 2, Ruegger anticipates the feed device according to claim 1 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses the second conveying device (230 in Fig. 4) is configured for conveying the processing material which is conveyed by the first conveying device (130 in Fig. 4), in a direction opposite to the axial direction (second conveying mixing device 230 in Fig. 4 may be rotated in the opposite direction from 130 such that wings 133 of 230 pushes material in the opposite axial direction from wings 133 of 130).
Regarding claim 3, Ruegger anticipates the feed device according to claim 1 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses the second conveying device (230 in Fig. 4) is arranged above the first conveying device (130 in Fig. 4). 230 is arranged above 130 in Fig. 4.
Regarding claim 4, Ruegger anticipates the feed device according to claim 1 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses the first conveying device is formed by a first conveying shaft (shaft rotor 131 of 130 in Fig. 4) and the second conveying device is formed by a second conveying shaft (shaft rotor 131 of 230 in Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 5, Ruegger anticipates the feed device according to claim 4 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses the first conveying shaft and/or the second conveying shaft comprises a shaft core (shaft cores 131 in Fig. 4) as well as paddles (paddle wings 133 in Fig. 4) which are fixedly connected to the shaft core.
Regarding claim 6, Ruegger anticipates the feed device according to claim 4 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses wherein the first conveying shaft and the second conveying shaft are coupled to one another and/or onto a common conveying shaft drive, such that they rotate with a fixed rotation speed ratio. Paragraph [0028] discloses drive wheel 43 in Figs. 2 and 3 drive shafts 131 of 130 and 230 at a fixed speed ratio.
Regarding claim 7, Ruegger anticipates the feed device according to claim 4 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses at least the second conveying shaft (shaft rotor 131 of 230 in Fig. 4) in a region below the infeed (25 in Fig. 4) is free of paddles (133 in Fig. 4) and other conveying structures. Paragraph [0019] discloses wings 33 and 133 are arranged in an interrupted screw pattern as shown in Fig. 3 such that portions of the shaft rotor 31 and 131 is free of conveying structure.
Regarding claim 8, Ruegger anticipates the feed device according to claim 4 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses the first conveying shaft (131 of 130 in Fig. 4) and the second conveying shaft (131 of 230 in Fig. 4) each comprise a first and a second outer region with conveying structures (130 and 230 in Fig. 4 have conveying structure mixing wings 133 at their outer regions as shown in Fig. 3), wherein the conveying structures of the first and second outer region convey in opposite directions (¶[0031] discloses 130 and 230 may be rotated in opposite directions which would convey material in opposite directions).
Regarding claim 9, Ruegger anticipates the feed device according to claim 4 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses the first conveying shaft and/or the second conveying shaft (131 of 130/230 in Fig. 4) in a region below the infeed (25 in Fig. 4) comprises mixing structures for the active intermixing of the processing material (mixing wings 131 on shafts 131 of 130 and 230 are arranged below infeed 25 and 26).
Regarding claim 10, Ruegger anticipates the feed device according to claim 1 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses the first and the second conveying device (130 and 230 in Fig. 4) comprise a conveying device drive which is independent of a drive of the feed roller (¶[0028] discloses a separate motor may drive 130 and 230 in Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 11, Ruegger anticipates the feed device according to claim 10 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses a delivery rate of at least the first conveying device can be adjusted. Paragraph [0031] discloses 130 and 230 may be rotated at different rotational speeds which would adjust the delivery rate.
Regarding claim 12, Ruegger anticipates the feed device according to claim 1 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses the collection space comprises a lower part-collection-space (20 in Fig. 1) and an upper part-collection-space (21 in Fig. 1), wherein the upper part-collection-space is formed by a downwardly open chamber with a peripheral wall (walls 35 in Fig. 1) and at the lower side runs into the lower part-collection-space (21 runs into 20 in Fig. 1), wherein an extension of the chamber in the axial direction is smaller than an axial extension of the feed roller and of the conveying devices (Figs. 2 and 3 show the axial extension of 27 of 21 is smaller than the axial extension of 20 in Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 13, Ruegger anticipates the feed device according to claim 12 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses the collection space (collection space mixing chamber 21 in Fig. 1) comprises a viewing window which extends downwards at least to the lower part-collection-space (Fig. 1 shows a hatch on the left side wall of collection space mixing chamber 21 which may be used as a viewing window).
Regarding claim 14, Ruegger discloses a roller facility comprising at least one processing space (housing 1 in Fig. 1) with at least one pair of processing rollers (rollers 2 in Fig. 1), between which a processing material can be reduced in size and/or flaked (material is crushed between rollers 2 in Fig. 1), as well as a feed device according to claim 1 (see rejection of claim 1 above), which is arranged such that processing material which is conveyed by the feed roller gets into the processing space (material feed by feed roller 11 in Fig. 1 from box 6 is fed to housing 1).
Regarding claim 15, Ruegger anticipates the roller facility according to claim 14 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses a gas-leading aspiration channel (see “Channel” annotation to Fig. 1 of Ruegger reproduced below) between an upper region of the collection space (mixing chamber 21 in Fig. 1 ) and the processing space (housing 1 in Fig. 1).
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Regarding claim 16, Ruegger discloses a roller facility, comprising a feed device (feed device filling box 6 in Fig. 1; ¶[0015]) with a collection space (collection space mixing chamber 21 in Figs. 1-3; ¶[0018]) as well as a processing space (housing 1 in Fig. 1) with at least one pair of processing rollers (crushing rollers 2 in Fig. 1), between which a processing material can be reduced in size and/or flaked (material is crushed between roller 2 in Fig. 1), wherein the collection space comprises a lower part-collection-space (area 27 in Fig. 1) and an upper part-collection-space (area 25 in Fig. 1), wherein the upper part- collection-space is formed by a downwardly open chamber with a peripheral wall (walls 35 in Fig. 1) and at the lower side runs out into the lower part-collection-space (upper part area 25 runs out into lower part 21 in Fig. 1), wherein an extension of the upper part-collection-space in the axial direction is smaller than an axial extension of the feed roller (Figs. 2 and 3 show the axial extension of 27 of 21 is smaller than the axial extension of 20 in Fig. 2), wherein processing material can be fed to the upper part-collection-space via an infeed (infeed pipe 26 in Fig. 1; ¶[0018]), wherein the feed device further comprises a feed roller with an axis (feed roller 11 in Fig. 1; ¶[0016]), wherein the feed roller is arranged at the lower side on the lower part-collection-space (feed roller 11 is arranged at lower opening 27 of mixing chamber 21 in Fig. 1; ¶[0018]), wherein processing material which is present in the lower part-collection-space can be conveyed out of the lower collection space into the processing space by the feed roller (material is conveyed out of mixing chamber 21 by feed roller 11 into roller mill housing 1 in Fig. 1), and wherein the feed device further comprises a first conveying device for conveying the processing material in the lower part- collection-space in the axial direction (Fig. 4 shows a second embodiment with first conveying mixing device 130 which has wings 133 that pushes materially axially; ¶[0030] through [0032] and [0020]), characterized in that the roller facility further comprises at least one gas-leading aspiration channel between the upper part-collection-space and the processing space (Fig. 1 shows a gas-leading aspiration channel between mixing chamber 21 and housing 1 as shown in the annotated figure above).
Regarding claim 17, Ruegger anticipates the roller facility according to claim 16 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses a control (control metering sector 14 in Fig. 1; ¶[0016]) which is configured to operate the feed roller (11 in Fig. 1) and the at least one conveying device (30 in Fig. 1) such that the processing material constantly seals the infeed towards the lower part-collection-space (¶[0017] discloses material fills the entire area above feed roller 11 in Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 18, Ruegger anticipates the roller facility according to claim 17 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses a filling level monitoring for determining a filling level in the collection space (dosing sector 14 in Fig. 1 determines the filling level in mixing chamber 21; ¶[0016]), wherein the control is configured to take into account the determined filling level on setting a processing material quantity which gets through the infeed into the collection space and/or a rotation speed of the feed roller (14) and/or a delivery rate of the first conveying device (control cylinder 15 in Fig. 1 controls the fill level of mixing chamber 21 and feed rate of feed roller 11).
Regarding claim 19, Ruegger anticipates the roller facility according to claim 16 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses the collection space (mixing chamber 21 in Fig. 1) comprises a viewing window which extends downwards at least to the lower part-collection-space (Fig. 1 shows a hatch on the left side wall of collection space mixing chamber 21 which may be used as a viewing window).
Regarding claim 20, Ruegger anticipates the roller facility according to claim 16 as explained above. Ruegger further discloses the aspiration channel (see “Channel” annotation to Fig. 1 above) or at least one of the aspiration channels is led laterally or at the rear side along the upper part- collection-space and at the rear side along the lower part-collection-space and ends above the pair of processing rollers (the Channel is led at the rear side along mixing chamber 21 into housing 1 where crushing rollers 2 are located).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure: Korean Patent Document No. KR 2004-26878 Y1.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PAUL DEREK PRESSLEY whose telephone number is (313)446-6658. The examiner can normally be reached 7:30am to 3:30pm Eastern.
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/P DEREK PRESSLEY/Examiner, Art Unit 3725
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