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 § 102
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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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.
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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-8 and 11-14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Alford et al. (US PAT 10,197,538), hereinafter Alford.
With respect to claim 1, Alford does discloses a rotating electric machine inspection device (See [300] in figure 2 of Alford) which inspects an inspection target part (See inner surfaces disposed on both sides of the airgap shown in figure 2 of Alford) by being inserted into a gap between an inner circumferential surface of a stator and an outer circumferential surface of a rotor of a rotating electric machine (See the disposition of [300] within the airgap shown in figure 2 of Alford), the rotating electric machine inspection device comprising: a base frame (See [302] in figure 4 of Alford); a traveling body which is attached to the base frame and moves the base frame in an axial direction in the gap (See [312] in figure 4 of Alford); a probe which inspects the inspection target part and has an ultrasonic sensor (See [452] in figure 4 of Alford) of a phased-array type (See Col. 5, lines 47-49 of Alford) and a shoe provided at one surface of the ultrasonic sensor and formed by an elastic member (See Col. 4, lines 20-26 of Alford); a radial-movement portion which moves the probe in a radial direction perpendicular to the axial direction (See Col. 5, lines 40-49 of Alford) and a circumferential direction (See Col. 5, lines 40-49 of Alford); a circumferential-movement portion which moves the probe in the circumferential direction in the base frame (See Col. 6, lines 6-23 of Alford); and a roller provided at an end in the axial direction of the probe (See the “applicator” disclosed in Col. 5, lines 49-67 of Alford) and containing a contact medium (See the “tubes” disclosed in Col. 5, lines 49-67 of Alford), wherein the probe inspects the inspection target part along the axial direction in a state in which a side where the roller is provided is set as a front side (See Col. 5, line 49-Col. 6, line 5 of Alford).
(Figure 4 of Alford is provided with annotations below for the applicant’s convenience)
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With respect to claim 2, Alford discloses the rotating electric machine inspection device according to claim 1, further comprising retainers which are provided at positions opposite to each other in the axial direction across the probe and stabilize an orientation of the shoe (See the annotated [A] in figure 4 of Alford).
With respect to claim 3, Alford discloses the rotating electric machine inspection device according to claim 2, wherein the retainers are provided at four corners of the probe (See the annotated [A] in figure 4 of Alford).
With respect to claim 4, Alford discloses the rotating electric machine inspection device according to claim 1, wherein a width in the circumferential direction of the shoe (See the width of [416] in figure 6 of Alford) is equal to or greater than a width in the circumferential direction of the inspection target part (See the width of [416] is greater than the width of [24] in figure 6 of Alford).
With respect to claim 5, Alford discloses the rotating electric machine inspection device according to claim 1, wherein
the traveling body is attached to the base frame via a connection leg for connection (See [302] in figure 4 of Alford), and the connection leg is formed to be replaceable in accordance with a dimension of the gap (See the detachable nature of [312] in figure 5 of Alford).
With respect to claim 6, Alford discloses the rotating electric machine inspection device according to claim 1, wherein the radial-movement portion is configured to be able to move the probe in the radial direction and store the probe in the base frame (See the jack assembly [410] in figure 5 of Alford).
With respect to claim 7, Alford discloses the rotating electric machine inspection device according to claim 1, wherein the traveling body includes a crawler portion which, using a magnetic attraction force, moves along a ferromagnetic body at the inner circumferential surface of the stator or the outer circumferential surface of the rotor of the rotating electric machine, and a first motor which generates a driving force for the crawler portion (See Col. 4, lines 26-54 of Alford).
With respect to claim 8, Alford discloses the rotating electric machine inspection device according to claim 1, wherein the radial-movement portion controls a force for pressing the probe to the inspection target part (See Col. 4, lines 26-54 of Alford).
With respect to claim 11, Alford discloses a rotating electric machine inspection system comprising: the rotating electric machine inspection device according to claim 1; a control circuitry to control movement of the probe of the inspection device in at least one of the circumferential direction and the radial direction; and a display to display a state of the inspection device (See Col. 3, lines 46-57 of Alford).
With respect to claim 12, Alford discloses the rotating electric machine inspection system according to claim 11, wherein the control circuitry acquires, along the axial direction, a plurality of image data of cross-sections of the inspection target part at predetermined intervals (See Col. 1, lines 53-65 of Alford).
With respect to claim 13, Alford discloses a rotating electric machine inspection method in which, by the rotating electric machine inspection device according to claim 1, a plurality of inspection target parts at different locations in the circumferential direction (See elements [24] in figure 6 of Alford) are inspected in the axial direction in a state in which the rotor and the stator of the rotating electric machine are combined (See the inspection configuration shown in figure 6 of Alford), the rotating electric machine inspection method comprising the steps of: inserting the inspection device into the gap between the stator and the rotor (See figure 6 of Alford) and moving the inspection device to one of the inspection target parts (See Col. 5, line 49-Col. 6, line 5 of Alford); performing inspection at predetermined intervals in the axial direction from a start point of the one inspection target part (See Col. 5, line 49-Col. 6, line 5 of Alford), by the probe; performing movement along the axial direction to the start point, when an inspection finish point of the one inspection target part is reached (See Col. 6, lines 28-36 of Alford); and moving the probe so as to be opposed to another one, of the inspection target parts, that is different from the one inspection target part (See Col. 5, line 49-Col. 6, line 5 of Alford in view of Col. 6, lines 28-36 of Alford) and is included in a range where the probe is movable in the circumferential direction in the inspection device, and inspecting the other inspection target part (See Col. 5, line 49-Col. 6, line 5 of Alford in view of Col. 6, lines 28-36 of Alford).
With respect to claim 14, Alford discloses the rotating electric machine inspection method according to claim 13, wherein the step of performing inspection by the probe includes a step of moving the probe to a position opposed to the inspection target part (See Col. 5, line 49-Col. 6, line 5 of Alford in view of Col. 6, lines 28-36 of Alford), a step of moving the probe to a surface of the inspection target part (See the jack assembly [410] in figure 5 of Alford), and a step of performing movement in the axial direction in a state in which the shoe of the probe is in contact with the surface of the inspection target part (See Col. 5, lines 40-49 of Alford).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 9 and 10 are 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:
With respect to claim 9, the prior art of record neither shows nor suggests the combination of structural elements wherein the radial-movement portion includes a linear-motion portion which operates in the axial direction, and a link portion which moves in the radial direction while linking with operation of the linear-motion portion, and the linear-motion portion includes a ball screw and a second motor which generates a driving force for the ball screw.
With respect to claim 10, the prior art of record neither shows nor suggests the combination of structural elements wherein the circumferential-movement portion is formed by a rack-and-pinion mechanism having a rack and a pinion, and includes a third motor which generates a driving force for the pinion.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
US PUB 2018/0128879 discloses a robot device, has robot inserted into gap between outer peripheral surface of first element and second element, and station part including elevating mechanism for raising robot from outer peripheral surface of first element.
US PAT 4,709,582 discloses an inspection device for rotor binding defects in electrical machines.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TEMILADE S RHODES-VIVOUR whose telephone number is (571)270-5814. The examiner can normally be reached M-F (flex schedule).
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Huy Phan can be reached at 571-272-7924. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/TEMILADE S RHODES-VIVOUR/Examiner, Art Unit 2858
/HUY Q PHAN/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2858
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