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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant's election with traverse of Group I (Claims 16-26) in the reply filed on 05/19/2026 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that the applicant either cancelled non-elected claims or made non-elected claims dependent upon claim 16. This is not found persuasive because the groups of inventions previously identified in the restriction dated 04/10/2026 do not relate to a single general inventive concept under PCT Rule 13.1.
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
Claims 27-34 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on 05/19/2026.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the following must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Fig. 20 Ln 2 states “a directional control valve” which is not depicted in any figure and is require for complete understanding of the claims.
The drawings are objected to because of the following:
The component(s) identified in Fig. 1-4 as (108) is described within the disclosure as a pump. The components depicted in Fig. 1-4 are valves.
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 Objections
Claims 16-26 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claims 16-26, please amend subsequent recitations of “hydraulic fluid” to --the hydraulic fluid--.
Claim 16 Ln 10, please amend to --with the pipeline;--.
Claim 16 Ln 14, please amend to --than [[the]] a total volume--.
Claim 16 Ln 18, please amend to --[[a]] the maximum--.
Claim 19 Ln 3, please amend to --and the pressurized fluid--.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
-(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, 19-21, 24 and 26 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1), 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by LeBlanc; William Kenneth et al. US 20160273561 A1, hereinafter LeBlanc
Regarding claim 16, LeBlanc discloses (Fig. 1-5) a fluid control system comprising:
an actuator (118) configured to move a valve (106) between open and closed positions [0014]; and
an energy storage system (22, 120, 124) in fluid communication with the actuator to drive the actuator, the energy storage system including:
a single accumulator (222) having a first chamber (232) and a second chamber (236), the first chamber in fluid communication with the actuator (via (132)) and the second chamber in fluid communication with a pipeline (235) to receive pressurized fluid from the pipeline (Fig. 3-4); [[and]]
a pump (120) arranged to pump hydraulic fluid into the first chamber of the single accumulator to charge the single accumulator against the pressure of the pressurized fluid in the second chamber when the second chamber is in fluid communication with the pipe (Fig. 5); and,
a sensor (130) configured to sense a fluid level of the hydraulic fluid within the single accumulator and signal whether the hydraulic fluid is at a maximum operational volume [0026], the maximum operational volume being less than the total volume of the first chamber of the single accumulator (due to the presence of the rod (260), the max operational volume of the first chamber is less than the total volume)
the energy storage system defining:
a fully charged state (Fig. 2) , in which the first chamber of the single accumulator includes a maximum operational volume of the hydraulic fluid [0027] and the second chamber includes a minimum operational volume of the pressurized fluid [0027], and
a fully discharged state (Fig. 4), in which the first chamber of the single accumulator includes a minimum operational volume of the hydraulic fluid [0034] and the second chamber includes a maximum operational volume of the pressurized fluid [0034].
Regarding claim 17, LeBlanc discloses (Fig. 1-5) the pump is in fluid communication with the actuator and a fluid reservoir (124), and wherein operation of the pump places the energy storage system in a charging state, in which the pump pumps hydraulic fluid from the fluid reservoir into the first chamber of the single accumulator [0034].
Regarding claim 19, LeBlanc discloses (Fig. 1-5) the energy storage defines a discharging state, in which the hydraulic fluid flows from the first chamber of the single accumulator to the actuator and pressurized fluid flows from the pipeline into the second chamber of the single accumulator (Fig. 3, [0032]).
Regarding claim 20, LeBlanc discloses (Fig. 1-5) the system further comprising a directional control valve (132) to direct hydraulic fluid from the first chamber of the single accumulator to the actuator to move the actuator in a first direction and to direct hydraulic fluid from the first chamber of the single accumulator to the actuator to move the actuator in a second direction [0019].
Regarding claim 21, LeBlanc discloses (Fig. 1-5) moving the actuator (118) in the first direction opens the valve (106) and moving the actuator in the second direction closes the valve [0033].
Regarding claim 24, LeBlanc discloses (Fig. 1-5) the hydraulic fluid is contained within a first flow system (240) and the pressurized fluid is contained in a second flow system (126) that is fluidically closed to the first flow system (they are depicted as fluidically separated).
Regarding claim 26, LeBlanc discloses (Fig. 1-5) the energy storage system permits the single accumulator to transition from the fully charged state to the fully discharged state without operation of the pump [0026].
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.
Claims 18 and 25 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over LeBlanc in view of Murata; Kiyoshi et al. US 5797583 A, hereinafter Murata. The references is/are considered analogous art to the claimed invention because the references is/are from the same field of endeavor as the claimed invention (fluid pipeline actuating devices actuated by fluid); or the references is/are reasonably pertinent to the problem faced by the inventor (providing pressurized fluid). MPEP2141.01(a) I.
Regarding claim 18, LeBlanc discloses the claimed invention substantially as claimed, as set forth above for Claim 17 except fails to explicitly state that the pump is a manual pump that is operatable by hand without electricity.
Murata discloses (Fig. 3) a fluid control system comprising:
an actuator (3) configured to move a valve (2) between open and closed positions (Col 5 Ln 2-5); and
an energy storage system (22, 120, 124) in fluid communication with the actuator to drive the actuator, the energy storage system including:
a single accumulator (4) having a first chamber (6a) and a second chamber (6b), the first chamber in fluid communication with the actuator (via (5)); [[and]]
a pump (7, 7a) arranged to pump hydraulic fluid into the first chamber of the single accumulator to charge the single accumulator against the pressure of the pressurized fluid in the second chamber when the second chamber is in fluid communication with the pipe (Col 5 Ln 43-53); and,
a sensor (30) configured to sense a fluid level of the hydraulic fluid within the single accumulator and signal whether the hydraulic fluid is at a maximum operational volume (Col 6 Ln 12-14),
wherein the pump is a manual pump (7a) that is operatable by hand without electricity (Col 5 Ln 43-53).
One of ordinary skill in the art could have applied the known "improvement" technique (providing a manual pump and a powered pump) in the same way to the "base" device and the results (providing pressurized hydraulic fluid) would have been predictable to one of ordinary skill in the art. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide a manual pump and a powered pump in the device of LeBlanc to provide pressurized hydraulic fluid as taught by Murata as the is a known technique amongst similar devices ready for improvement.
Regarding claim 25, LeBlanc discloses the claimed invention substantially as claimed, as set forth above for Claim 16 except fails to explicitly state that the system further comprising a quick connect system configured to selectively connect a portable pump in parallel with the pump, to arrange the portable pump to pump hydraulic fluid into the first chamber of the single accumulator to charge the single accumulator against the pressure of the pressurized fluid in the second chamber.
Murata discloses (Fig. 3) a fluid control system comprising:
an actuator (3) configured to move a valve (2) between open and closed positions (Col 5 Ln 2-5); and
an energy storage system (22, 120, 124) in fluid communication with the actuator to drive the actuator, the energy storage system including:
a single accumulator (4) having a first chamber (6a) and a second chamber (6b), the first chamber in fluid communication with the actuator (via (5)); [[and]]
a pump (7, 7a) arranged to pump hydraulic fluid into the first chamber of the single accumulator to charge the single accumulator against the pressure of the pressurized fluid in the second chamber when the second chamber is in fluid communication with the pipe (Col 5 Ln 43-53); and,
a sensor (30) configured to sense a fluid level of the hydraulic fluid within the single accumulator and signal whether the hydraulic fluid is at a maximum operational volume (Col 6 Ln 12-14),
wherein the system further comprising a quick connect system configured to selectively connect a portable pump (7a) in parallel with the pump (7), to arrange the portable pump to pump hydraulic fluid into the first chamber of the single accumulator to charge the single accumulator against the pressure of the pressurized fluid in the second chamber (Col 5 Ln 43-53, fundamentally pumps are capable of connecting quickly due to their connectors)
One of ordinary skill in the art could have applied the known "improvement" technique (providing a manual pump and a powered pump in parallel) in the same way to the "base" device and the results (providing pressurized hydraulic fluid) would have been predictable to one of ordinary skill in the art. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide a manual pump and a powered pump in the device of LeBlanc to provide pressurized hydraulic fluid as taught by Murata as the is a known technique amongst similar devices ready for improvement.
Claims 22 and 23 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over LeBlanc.
Regarding claim 22, LeBlanc discloses the claimed invention substantially as claimed, as set forth above for Claim 20 except fails to explicitly state that each of (i) moving the actuator in the first direction to fully close the valve and (ii) moving the actuator in the second direction to open the valve from closed provides a respective valve event, and wherein the single accumulator (222) is configured to supply flow for fewer than two valve events before arriving at the fully discharged state.
Since applicant has not disclosed that having the single accumulator configured to supply flow for fewer than two valve events before arriving at the fully discharged state solves any stated problem or is for any particular purpose, and
it appears that the single accumulator configured to supply flow for an undisclosed quantity of valve events, of LeBlanc would perform equally well with being configured to supply flow for fewer than two valve events before arriving at the fully discharged state as claimed by applicant,
it would have been an obvious matter of design choice to further modify the single accumulator configured to supply flow for an undisclosed quantity of valve events of LeBlanc by utilizing the single accumulator configured to supply flow for fewer than two valve events before arriving at the fully discharged state as claimed for the purpose of providing sufficient fluid to operate/actuate the valve (106).
Regarding claim 23, LeBlanc discloses the claimed invention substantially as claimed, as set forth above for Claim 20 except fails to explicitly state that each of (i) moving the actuator in the first direction to fully close the valve and (ii) moving the actuator in the second direction to open the valve from closed provides a respective valve event, and wherein the single accumulator (222) is configured to provide at least three valve events before arriving at the fully discharged state.
Since applicant has not disclosed that having the single accumulator configured to provide at least three valve events before arriving at the fully discharged state solves any stated problem or is for any particular purpose, and
it appears that the single accumulator configured to supply flow for an undisclosed quantity of valve events, of LeBlanc would perform equally well with being configured to provide at least three valve events before arriving at the fully discharged state as claimed by applicant,
it would have been an obvious matter of design choice to further modify the single accumulator configured to supply flow for an undisclosed quantity of valve events of LeBlanc by utilizing the single accumulator configured to provide at least three valve events before arriving at the fully discharged state as claimed for the purpose of providing sufficient fluid to operate/actuate the valve (106).
Relevant Art
The following is a listing of relevant art:
US 20180066785 A1, US 20170075365 A1, US 20130207011 A1, US 4223531 A, US 4143851 A, US 3788341 A, US 3677001 A, US 3223114 A, US 3055345 A disclose fluid control systems for actuating a valve comprising an accumulator, some connected to the pipeline for providing additional pressure.
Contact Information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MATTHEW WIBLIN whose telephone number is (571)272-9836. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday 8:00 am - 4:00 pm.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, NATHANIEL WIEHE can be reached on 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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/MATTHEW WIBLIN/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3745
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