DETAILED ACTION
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 5 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.
As to claim 5, the “second end” in this claim is contradictory to the “first end” which moves below/above the first mold surface in claim 1, lines 5-7. In the combination of claim 5 and claim 1, both ends would be above the first mold surface, which does not seem possible. The drawings for this case also do not depict any embodiment with the first end which moves below/above the first mold surface as recited in instant claim 1, lines 5-7, but then also has a second end which also displaces the second end above a layup segment.
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.
Claims 1-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Moll (US 5,727,488) alone or in view of Salimi (US 20200384708).
As to claim 1, Moll teaches a method of manufacturing an article comprising providing a mold/carrier body (4) with a first mold/carrier body surface (8) and forming/providing an aperture (10) within the first mold surface. Moll provides a pin/needle (27) inherently having two ends (28 and opposing end), aligned with the aperture, and movable between a retracted position (as depicted in Fig. 3) with the first end positioned below the first mold/carrier body surface (4:31-43, resting position) and an extended position where the pin/needle is disposed above the first mold surface (4:31-43, contact position). The Moll device has a bushing/sleeve (24) within the aperture and a gasket (seal between 24 and 27) within the aperture forming a seal with the pin/needle (27). The Moll device has a pin driver (spring 30 and pressure medium feed line 15) which actuate movement between the retracted position (4:31-43, resting position) and extended position (4:31-43, contact position). Moll provides a layer (6) interpreted to be a layup segment disposed on the first mold/carrier body surface (8) and displacing the pin from the retracted position (4:31-43, resting position) to the extended position (4:31-43, contact position) to pierce the layer of layup segments.
Moll does not specifically teach a wind turbine blade.
Salimi teaches forming a wind turbine blade by providing layup segments (300) on a first mold surface of a wind turbine blade mold.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to filing to incorporate these features from Salimi into Moll because Moll teaches/suggests a device for holding blanks on a surface during manufacture of a casing, and Salimi provides a mold that forms a casing (Fig. 1C, item 12a) in the shape of a wind turbine blade within the scope of the Moll teaching/suggestion.
As to claims 2-4, the Moll pin/needle (27) is actuated by linear movement (spring 30 and pressure medium feed line 15) in order to pierce (4:31-43, transition from resting position to contact position) the Moll layer segment (6) on the first mold/carrier body surface (8). Salimi also provides layup segments interchangeable for those of Moll on a mold surface. Moll displaces the pin from the retracted position (4:31-43, resting position) to the extended position (4:31-43, contact position) to pierce the layer of layup segments without depicting any wrinkles formed. Additionally, in light of the fact that the Moll pins/needles point outward (Fig. 2), wrinkles would likely be eliminated by outward actuation of the pins/needles.
As to claim 5, while Moll does not specifically teach the pin end displaced above the layup segment, Salimi shows a configuration where the first (and second) end of pin (Fig. 6C-6D) are depicted above a layup segment (3000). It would have been prima facie obvious to incorporate this feature from Salimi into Moll as an obvious improvement in order to allow positioning of subsequent parts (see Fig. 6i).
As to claims 6 and 7, Moll holds a layup segment/structural component (6) on a mold/carrier body (4) using pins/needles (27) during a manufacturing process. Although Moll does not specifically teach that the manufacturing process is a resin infusion process, Salimi also teaches performing a resin infusion process ([0048]) on a component while a pin positions the components (Fig. 3H)
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8 and 9 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: While the combination of Salimi with Moll would obviously be expected to form a retracted pin cavity prior to a demold process by the retraction of the Moll pins/needles, there is no teaching or suggestion to provide the pin at a location “between adjacent structural components” such that a cavity would be formed between adjacent structural components, interpreted in light of the instant specification. The Examiner does not consider (and specification does not suggest) individual fibers in a fiber layer to be “structural components” such that a cavity between fibers in a fiber layer would meet a cavity “between adjacent structural components” as claimed.
Claim 9 is indicated allowable by dependence on claim 8.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MATTHEW J DANIELS whose telephone number is (313)446-4826. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 8:30-5:00 pm.
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/MATTHEW J DANIELS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1742
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