DETAILED ACTION
Claims 1-14 are pending.
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/Restriction
Claims 6-14 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 7/15/2026.
Applicant’s election without traverse of group I, species I in the reply filed on 7/15/2026 is acknowledged.
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d).
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 4/3/2025 and 4/23/2025 were filed prior to the mailing date of the mailing of this action. The submissions comply with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements have been considered by the examiner.
Drawings
The drawings were received on 4/3/2026. These drawings are accepted.
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.
Claim(s) 1 and 2 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 as being anticipated by Paradiso et al. (US 20220146016).
Regarding claim 1, Paradiso et al. disclose an actuator-(1) for a valve (see Fig. 1,6,7), the actuator being housed into a cylinder (15) comprising a lateral wall (100), a first end wall(15A) and a second end wall-(15B) , the actuator comprising: a first rod(8’) being slidably and partially housed inside the cylinder, the first rod having a first end (102) configured to be mechanically coupled to a spindle (5) of the valve; a first plate (16) being slidably housed in the cylinder, the first plate having a first side(104) and a second side (106) wherein the first side is mechanically coupled to a second end of the first rod and is configured to define a first variable volume chamber between the first side(104) and the first end wall(15A); an elastic element-(18) being housed in the cylinder and having a first end mechanically coupled to the second side(106) of the first plate (16) and a second end mechanically coupled to the second end wall(15B) of the cylinder, and a testing system (66,para.109) for measuring force, wherein the elastic element is configured to apply a first force on the first plate in order to move the first plate, and to apply a second force on the second end wall(15B), wherein the second force is equal and opposite to the first force, and wherein the testing system (66, para.109) is configured to measure the second force and a third force related to the second force.
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Regarding claim 2, Paradiso et al. disclose the testing system comprises a second plate (the un-numbered plate abutting the left ends of spring 18, see Fig 1) located between the elastic element and the second end wall.
Claim(s) 1 -5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 as being anticipated by Coura et al. (US 7032878).
Regarding claim 1, Coura et al. disclose an actuator-(105,105a-c,9-11) for a valve (see Fig. 1), the actuator being housed into a cylinder (15) comprising a lateral wall (the vertical outer wall of 105), a first end wall( the bottom wall of 105) and a second end wall-(the top wall of 105) , the actuator comprising: a first rod(101a) being slidably and partially housed inside the cylinder, the first rod having a first end (the upper smaller end of 101a) configured to be mechanically coupled to a spindle (the larger bottom end of 101a ) of the valve;
a first plate (105c) being slidably housed in the cylinder,
the first plate having a first side(the lower surface of 105c) and a second side (the upper surface of 105c) wherein the first side is mechanically coupled to a second end (all of the parts are connected together and therefore considered as being mechanically coupled) of the first rod and is configured to define a first variable volume chamber (the space between the lower surface of 105c and the first end wall) between the first side(104) and the first end wall(15A);
an elastic element (spring within 101b) being housed in the cylinder and having a first end mechanically coupled to the second side(the upper surface of 105c) of the first plate and a second end (the upper end of the spring within 101b) mechanically coupled to the second end wall of the cylinder (since all of the parts are connected together the second end of the elastic element is coupled to the second end wall of the cylinder), and a testing system (5,col.10,lns. 15-27) for measuring force, wherein the elastic element is configured to apply a first force on the first plate in order to move the first plate, and to apply a second force on the second end wall(through the upper connecting structure of 105a and the upper spring), wherein the second force is equal and opposite to the first force, and wherein the testing system is configured to measure the second force and a third force related to the second force (in a similar manner to applicants device).
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Regarding claim 2, Coura et al. disclose the testing system comprises a second plate (105a) located between the elastic element and the second end wall.
Regarding claim 3, Coura et al. disclose the testing system further comprises a second plate (105a) located between the elastic element and the second end wall, a first fluid circuit (connected to 106d), and a second variable volume chamber (the chamber above 105a and below the second wall) located between the second plate and the second end wall , wherein the first fluid circuit is configured to supply fluid in the second variable volume chamber, wherein the fluid supplied is configured to apply a fourth force on the second plate in order to move the second plate, and wherein the second plate is configured to move when the fourth force acting on the second plate due to the fluid is greater than the second or third force due to the elastic element.
Regarding claim 4, Coura et al. disclose wherein the testing system further comprises a second plate (105a) located between the elastic element and the second end wall, a first fluid circuit (connected to 106d), a second variable volume chamber (the chamber above 105a and below the second wall) located between the second plate and the second end wall, and a second rod (3) mechanically coupled to the second plate, wherein the second rod is slidably and partially housed inside the cylinder, and wherein the second rod is configured to partially protrude from the second end wall (as shown above in Fig. 1).
Regarding claim 5, Coura et al. disclose the portion of the second rod which protrudes from the second end wall is configured to vary depending on the fourth force acting on the second plate (col.9, lns 59-64).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Craig Price, whose telephone number is (571)272-2712 or via facsimile (571)273-2712. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday (8:00AM-4:30PM EST).
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Craig Schneider, can be reached at telephone number 571-272-3607, Kenneth Rinehart can be reached at 571-272-4881. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CRAIG J PRICE/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3753
