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 .
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.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim 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.
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.
Claim 9 is 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 9 recites: “a connecting pipe” which is a double inclusion. It is unclear whether this is the same “a connecting pipe” recited in claim 1. The metes and bound of the claim are unclear. Applicant’s may amend to “the connecting pipe”.
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) 1-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chen et al. (US 2016/0032604 A1) hereinafter Chen in view of JP 2007-530264 A hereinafter JP.
Regarding claim 1, Chen teaches an underwater vacuum cleaner impeller, comprising: a vacuum cleaner body (Figs. 1-2); and an improved impeller (200, 30, 90) mounted inside the vacuum cleaner body (paras. 0031-0034; Figs. 1-6), wherein the improved impeller includes
a mounting base (23, 24) mounted inside the vacuum cleaner body (Fig. 4, para. 0032), a rotary head (90) mounted inside the mounting base) (Fig. 1, para. 0031),
an arc-shaped vortex blade (91) (Fig. 6, para. 0034) disposed on a back surface of the rotary head (241), and configured to rotate with the rotary head (241) to directionally push a fluid. Chen further teaches a connecting pipe (301) connected to impeller (200) (Fig. 1, para. 0029).
Chen fails to teach a guide nozzle mounted on an end of the arc-shaped vortex blade by a bolt; the guide nozzle is rotatably connected to the connecting pipe.
However, JP teaches an apparatus comprising an impeller having a blade (510) and a guide nozzle (518) connected to an end of the blade by a bolt (JP, Fig. 14B). Here is the teaching that having a nozzle connected to an end of a blade via a bolt is known in the art.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to provide a nozzle at the end of the arch shape blade as taught by JP in order to expel the fluid out of the impeller. Because the impeller is rotatably connected to the connecting pipe, connecting the nozzle to the blade would make the nozzle rotatably connected to the connecting pipe.
Regarding claim 2, Chen as modified by JP teaches all the claimed limitations as stated above in claim 1. Chen as modified by JP further teaches a machine head ( 44) mounted with the improved impeller (24) inside, and a feed nozzle (10) and a discharge pipe (outlet of the feed nozzle 10) on an outer surface thereof, an upper housing (22) and a lower housing (21) respectively mounted on upper and lower sides of a tip end of the machine head, and a drive motor (41) mounted between the upper housing (21) and the lower housing (23) and configured to drive the rotary head to rotate (Chen, Figs. 1-5).
Regarding claim 3, Chen as modified by JP teaches all the claimed limitations as stated above in claim 1. Chen as modified by JP further teaches the machine head includes a circular cover (Fig. 4) mounted on an outer surface of the mounting base, a feed connector disposed on an outer peripheral wall of the circular cover (2 and connected to the feed nozzle (1), and a discharge connector (12) disposed on a tip end of the circular cover and connected to the discharge pipe (Chen, Figs. 4-6).
Regarding claim 4, Chen as modified by JP teaches all the claimed limitations as stated above in claim 3. Chen as modified by JP further teaches the feed connector includes a flange seat integrally formed on an outer side of the circular cover (Fig. 4) a connecting sleeve (31) mounted on an outer surface of the flange seat, and a guide connector mounted on the feed nozzle and movably engaged with the connecting sleeve (Chen, Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 5, Chen as modified by JP teaches all the claimed limitations as stated above in claim 4. Chen as modified by JP further teaches an outer wall of the flange seat is provided with a connecting groove (see groove at 12), an end of the connecting sleeve is provided with a screw-in clamping member (42), the screw-in clamping member penetrates through the connecting groove, the outer surface of the flange seat (2531) is provided with a limiting column (41), and the limiting column is movably engaged with one side of the screw-in clamping member (Chen, Fig. 5).
Regarding claim 6, Chen as modified by JP teaches all the claimed limitations as stated above in claim 4. Chen as modified by JP further teaches an end of the guide connector is provided with an elastic clamping member (42), and the elastic clamping member is movably engaged in an inner side wall of the connecting sleeve (Chen, Figs. 4-6).
Regarding claim 7, Chen as modified by JP teaches all the claimed limitations as stated above in claim 2. Chen as modified by JP further teaches the rotary head (is provided with a clamping groove (at 12, Fig. 4) inside, an output end of the drive motor is mounted with a transmission clamping member (42), and the transmission clamping member is movably inserted into the clamping groove (Fig. 4).
Regarding claim 8, Chen as modified by JP teaches all the claimed limitations as stated above in claim 7. Chen as modified by JP further teaches a rotary plate is fixedly connected to the back surface of the rotary head, and the arc-shaped vortex blade (246) is integrally formed on an outer surface of the rotary plate (Chen, Figs. 4-6).
Regarding claim 9, Chen as modified by JP teaches all the claimed limitations as stated above in claim 3. Chen as modified by JP further teaches the connecting pipe fixedly mounted inside the discharge connector (Chen, Figs. 4-6 and JP, Fig. 14B).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MAXIME M ADJAGBE whose telephone number is (571)272-4920. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 8-6.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, NATHANIEL E WIEHE can be reached at 571-272-8648. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MAXIME M ADJAGBE/Examiner, Art Unit 3745
/NATHANIEL E WIEHE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3745