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 .
Specification
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
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.
Claims 1 and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as anticipated by KR20240117950.
Regarding claim 1, KR20240117950 discloses a grille shutter device to be applied to a vehicle that introduces air into a vehicle body through an opening extending in a vehicle width direction at a vehicle front portion, the grille shutter device comprising:
a rotator disposed in an introduction passage for the air and rotatable about an axis extending in the vehicle width direction (At least “active air flap” installed “between the radiator grille and the radiator” of a vehicle, See Par. [0002] and “formed on the front of the vehicle,” see Par. [0023], about a rotation axis along the grille), wherein the rotator includes:
a closing plate extending in the vehicle width direction; a counter plate provided to face the closing plate (At least blocking plate 110, see Fig. 3);
a pair of side plates connecting both ends of the closing plate and the counter plate in the vehicle width direction (At least extension part 120, see annotated Fig. 5 below); and
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a plurality of grille plates connecting the closing plate and the counter plate with intervals in the vehicle width direction between the side plates (At least third connecting part 150 and central member 51, see annotated Fig. 5 below), and the rotator is configured to take, by being rotated about the axis by an actuator (At least “The rotation shaft connecting part (300) is connected to an actuator that operates the active air flap,” See Par. [0031]): a falling posture in which the closing plate closes the opening (At least “The blocking plate (110) serves to close the area of the air inlet when the door (100) closes the air inlet”, See Par. [0027]); and a raised posture in which the grille plates appear behind the opening in a front view of the vehicle (At least where “the door is rotated so that the blocking plate opens the air duct,” See Par. [0016]).
Regarding claim 5, KR20240117950 discloses that the rotator includes a pair of rods having the axis and extending outward in the vehicle width direction from the side plates (At least first shaft 210 and second shaft 220 “connected to the surfaces of the two extensions (120),” see Par. [0028]); and at least one of the rods is rotated by the actuator (At least first shaft 210 and second shaft 220 connected to “rotation shaft connecting part 300” which “is connected to an actuator that operates the active air flap,” see Par. [0031]).
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, 4, and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over KR20240117950 in view of DE102015221003.
Regarding claim 1, KR20240117950 discloses a grille shutter device to be applied to a vehicle that introduces air into a vehicle body through an opening extending in a vehicle width direction at a vehicle front portion, the grille shutter device comprising:
a rotator disposed in an introduction passage for the air and rotatable about an axis extending in the vehicle width direction (At least “active air flap” installed “between the radiator grille and the radiator” of a vehicle, See Par. [0002] and “formed on the front of the vehicle,” see Par. [0023], about a rotation axis along the grille), wherein the rotator includes:
a closing plate extending in the vehicle width direction; a counter plate provided to face the closing plate (At least blocking plate 110, see Fig. 3);
a pair of side plates connecting both ends of the closing plate and the counter plate in the vehicle width direction (At least extension part 120, see annotated Fig. 5 below); and a plurality of grille plates connecting the closing plate and the counter plate with intervals in the vehicle width direction between the side plates (At least third connecting part 150 and central member 51, see annotated Fig. 5 below), and the rotator is configured to take, by being rotated about the axis by an actuator (At least “The rotation shaft connecting part (300) is connected to an actuator that operates the active air flap,” See Par. [0031]): a falling posture in which the closing plate closes the opening (At least “The blocking plate (110) serves to close the area of the air inlet when the door (100) closes the air inlet”, See Par. [0027]); and a raised posture in which the grille plates appear behind the opening in a front view of the vehicle (At least where “the door is rotated so that the blocking plate opens the air duct,” See Par. [0016]).
While KR20240117950 clearly discloses an air inlet as an opening (At least where a blocking plate is disclosed as being rotated to open an air duct to allow airflow, wherein air flows through an air inlet; Par. [0016] as cited supra), for purposes of compact prosecution, the Examiner relies upon the teaching of DE102015221003 to show a rotating blocking member that includes an air inlet wherein the rotational element of KR20240117950 could reasonably be used.
DE102015221003 teaches a grille shutter device to be applied to a vehicle that introduces air into a vehicle body through an opening extending in a vehicle width direction at a vehicle front portion, the grille shutter device comprising:
a rotator disposed in an introduction passage for the air and rotatable about an axis extending in the vehicle width direction (At least via opening and closing of flap, 7 in Fig. 2 and 4), wherein the rotator includes:
a falling posture in which the closing plate closes the opening (At least the flap, 7 as shown in Fig. 4); and a raised posture in which the grille plates appear behind the opening in a front view of the vehicle (At least the flap, 7 as shown in Fig. 2).
Thus, it would have been obvious to a PHOSITA at the time of effective filing to have modified the system of KR20240117950 to have an air inlet blocked via rotation of a blocking component, as taught by DE102015221003, to selectively draw air to provide heat exchange cooling during driving for improved performance and reduced fuel consumption.
Further, while an air inlet is explicitly disclosed but does not appear to be shown in the Figures, the system of KR20240117950 is described as having an air inlet for moving airflow to the radiator with a blocking apparatus to close off and open airflow as is common with front end airflow inlets for vehicles using a radiator for cooling thus meeting the limitations of the claim as currently recited.
Regarding claim 4, KR20240117950 discloses that: the axis of the rotator is located between the closing plate and the counter plate (At least the rotation axis connecting part 300 located between blocking plate 110 and counter plate) but does not appear to expressly depict the air passage.
Nevertheless, teaches a front end of the counter plate in the raised posture of the rotator approaches a lower surface of the introduction passage for the air when the rotator makes transition from the falling posture to the raised posture (By virtue of the bodily incorporation of the rotator of KR20240117950 into the air inlet structure in the same position as the flap of DE102015221003 to accomplish the same airflow blocking/permitting functions).
Thus, it would have been obvious to a PHOSITA at the time of effective filing to have modified the system of KR20240117950 to have an air inlet blocked via rotation of a blocking component, as taught by DE102015221003, to selectively draw air to provide heat exchange cooling during driving for improved performance and reduced fuel consumption.
Further, while an air inlet is explicitly disclosed but does not appear to be shown in the Figures, the system of KR20240117950 is described as having an air inlet for moving airflow to the radiator with a blocking apparatus to close off and open airflow as is common with front end airflow inlets for vehicles using a radiator for cooling thus meeting the limitations of the claim as currently recited.
Regarding claim 5, the primary reference, KR20240117950, discloses that the rotator includes a pair of rods having the axis and extending outward in the vehicle width direction from the side plates (At least first shaft 210 and second shaft 220 “connected to the surfaces of the two extensions (120),” see Par. [0028]); and at least one of the rods is rotated by the actuator (At least first shaft 210 and second shaft 220 connected to “rotation shaft connecting part 300” which “is connected to an actuator that operates the active air flap,” see Par. [0031]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2 and 3 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: The prior art of record does not fairly disclose the orientation of the claimed plates of the rotator with respect to the other structural components/locations within each claim and claim 1.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
U.S. Pat. 12,409,724 to Park et al. discloses an air flap that serves as a door to permit/block airflow to a vehicle heat exchanger.
U.S. PG Pub. 2024/0300319 to Kim discloses a flap that open/shuts to allow/disallow airflow to a vehicle heat exchanger.
U.S. PG Pub. 2023/0182563 to Jeong et al. discloses a flap that open/shuts to allow/disallow airflow to a vehicle heat exchanger.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Brodie Follman whose telephone number is (571)270-1169. The examiner can normally be reached 8am-4:30pm EST M-F.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Erin Piateski can be reached at (571)270-7429. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BRODIE J FOLLMAN/Primary Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3669
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