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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements filed 09/08/2025, 03/02/2026, and 07/02/2026 are acknowledged by the Examiner.
Claim Objections
Claims 12-13 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 12, line 3, the recitation “a exhaust pressure sensor” should read –an exhaust pressure sensor--.
Claim 13, line 2, the recitation “using exhaust pressure sensor” should read –using an exhaust pressure sensor--.
Appropriate correction is required.
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 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)(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.
(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.
Claims 1-2, 6-7, and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Yok0gi (US 5727589).
Yokogi discloses:
1. A gas supply system (3; figs. 1-11) comprising: a supply line (A, A1) configured to connect a gas container (1) to a process object (2, fig. 6); a purge line (B) connected to a first point of the supply line (as seen in figs where B connects to line A) and connected to a purge gas supply portion configured to supply a purge gas (col. 2, ll. 8-18 states “As a method for introducing this purge gas, there are two methods, one (no shown) comprising placing a purge gas cylinder in the cylinder cabinet 3, reducing the pressure of a purge gas from this purge gas cylinder to a pressure to be used for purge by a reducing valve for purge gas and introducing the purge gas reduced in pressure, and the other…comprising reducing the pressure of a purge gas from a purge gas cylinder N separately placed outside of the cylinder cabinet 3 to a pressure to be used for purge and introducing the purge gas reduced in pressure.”); a first exhaust line (D) connected to a second point of the supply line (where D connects to A) and connecting the supply line to an exhaust portion (ejector vacuum 8, which can have various arrangements, one seen in fig. 2) configured to apply negative pressure (col. 3, ll. 10-11 states “an ejector type vacuum generator 8 is often attached on the vent line D”); and a second exhaust line (D2) connected to a third point of the purge line (at point leading to v8, fig. 2) and connecting the purge line to a fourth point of the first exhaust line (where D2 connects to D).
2. The gas supply system of claim 1, wherein the first point of the supply line is closer to the gas container than the second point is (where B connects to A is closer than where D connects to A, as seen in fig.2), and the supply line is connected to: a supply pressure sensor (12) configured to detect a pressure within the supply line (note, the limitation does not specify direct connection, and 12 is connected to B1 which is connected to A/A1); and a first supply valve (v7, v8 or v4) configured to control a flow of a fluid flowing through the supply line.
6. The gas supply system of claim 1, wherein the supply line is further connected to: a second regulator (reducing valve v2) configured to control a pressure of the supply line.
7. The gas supply system of claim 1, wherein the supply line is further connected to: a second supply valve (V1) configured to control a flow within the supply line.
9. The gas supply system of claim 1, wherein the first exhaust line is further connected to a first exhaust valve (V5) disposed between the second point and the fourth point.
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 of this title, 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 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yok0gi (US 5727589) in view of Jiyoo et al. (JP H08981).
Yok0gi discloses the invention as essentially claimed, except for wherein the supply line is further connected to a front end of a supply filter.
Jiyoo et al. discloses a related gas supply system, wherein the supply line is further connected to a front end of a supply filter (122), for the purpose of preventing stagnation of contaminants and defects of gas panel components, in a manner known in the art and which yields predictable results.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art to modify the invention of Yokogi, such that the supply line is further connected to a front end of a supply filter, as taught by Jiyoo et al. for the purpose of preventing stagnation of contaminants and defects of gas panel components, in a manner known in the art and which yields predictable results.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-5 and 10-17 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.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US 6536460 B1, US 20020152797 A1, US 6345642 B1, US 6305392 B1, US 5749389 A, US 4383547 A, and US 4169486 A each disclose related gas systems including purging means.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MARINA TIETJEN, whose telephone number is 571-270-5422. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday (10:30AM-7:00PM CST).
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisors can be reached by phone. Tom Barrett can be reached at 571-272-4746, Ken Rinehart can be reached at 571-272-4881, and Craig Schneider can be reached at 571-272-3607. Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/MARINA A TIETJEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3753
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