DETAILED ACTION
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a) because they fail to show a controller as described in the specification. Any structural detail that is essential for a proper understanding of the disclosed invention should be shown in the drawing. MPEP § 608.02(d). Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
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.
Claims 1-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b), as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor, regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 1, applicant recites “an EGR valve control apparatus” (100) and “a controller”. It is unclear what the controller is. Specifications and drawings do not designate an element for an additional control and it is unclear what the applicant has intended to 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.
Claim(s) 1, 2 and 4-8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Yokoyama et al. (WO 2008/032472 A1), hereafter Yokoyama.
Regarding claim 1, Yokoyama discloses an EGR valve control apparatus (50), comprising: an EGR valve (30) configured to adjust an exhaust gas recirculation amount of an internal combustion engine (1) mounted on a vehicle [0045]; a detector configured to detect a caught state in which foreign matter is caught in the EGR valve [0023]; and a controller configured to control the EGR valve, wherein the controller controls the EGR valve to perform an opening and closing operation [0012], in which the EGR valve opens and closes a predetermined number of times, on condition that the caught state is detected by the detector when rotation of the internal combustion engine is stopped in a state where an ignition switch of the vehicle is on ([0045], [0056]).
Regarding claim 2, Yokoyama discloses the EGR valve control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller further controls the EGR valve to perform the opening and closing operation on condition that the internal combustion engine is not started against a start request of the internal combustion engine when the rotation of the internal combustion engine is stopped in the state where the ignition switch is on [0031-0034].
Regarding claim 4, Yokoyama discloses the EGR valve control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller further controls the EGR valve to stop the opening and closing operation and close the EGR valve when there is a start request of the internal combustion engine during the opening and closing operation ([0039]; claim 6).
Regarding claim 5, Yokoyama discloses EGR valve control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller further controls the EGR valve to continue the opening and closing operation even when the ignition switch is turned off during the opening and closing operation [0033].
Regarding claim 6, Yokoyama discloses EGR valve control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller further controls the EGR valve to perform the opening and closing operation on condition that the EGR valve operates during operation of the internal combustion engine after the ignition switch is turned on [0042].
Regarding claim 7, Yokoyama discloses the EGR valve control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the detector includes a sensor configured to detect an opening degree of the EGR valve [0024].
Regarding claim 8, Yokoyama discloses the EGR valve control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, the detector detects the caught state when the opening degree detected by the sensor is equal to or greater than a predetermined value when closing of the EGR valve is commanded (Fig. 8).
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 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yokoyama et al. (WO 2008/032472 A1), in view of Wang (US 2006/0272625 A1).
Regarding claim 3, Yokoyama discloses a method wherein “it is possible to repeat the cleaning mode with the key ON, engine OFF or key OFF, that is, the opening and closing of the valve body 39 of the EGR valve 30, thereby remarkably improving the possibility of removing foreign matters in the cleaning mode.” (Paragraph [0033]). However, Yokoyama is silent to the controller performing the opening and closing operation of the EGR valve when the ignition switch is turned off. Wang discloses a method of controlling the EGR valve to operate in a cleaning mode when the ignition switch is turned off [0033]. It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the method of Wang to the method of Yokoyama in order to clean the EGR valve while its functionality is not required.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
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/TEUTA HOLBROOK/
Examiner
Art Unit 3747
/GEORGE C JIN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3747