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 .
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 14 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.
Claim 14 recites the limitation “the chamber of the housing” in line 1 of subsection b. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claims 15-20 are rejected as depending from a rejected base claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1, 2 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Seyfi et al. (US 2024/0268342 henceforth Seyfi) in view of Freeman (US 5782094).
Regarding claim 1, Seyfi discloses a temperature-controlled bowl comprising: a) a housing assembly comprising a housing defining a chamber (plastic shell, para. fig. 5), a bowl insert supported by the housing (rotating tray, fig. 7), and insulation positioned with the chamber of the housing and adjacent to the bowl insert (insulation, para. 0030, fig. 5), wherein the housing comprises a wall defining a plurality of vents (cooling fan airflow holes, fig. 1); b) a cooling system positioned in the chamber of the housing, the cooling system comprising a heat sink (fig. 5), a thermoelectric module thermally coupled on a first side to the heat sink and thermally coupled on a second side to the bowl insert (thermoelectric element, para. 0040, fig. 5), and a fan positioned adjacent to the heat sink (fig. 5), wherein the fan is in fluid communication with the plurality of vents defined by the housing wall (airflow holes are in fluid communication with the fan, fig. 1 and 6) and a controller (a controller that enables the tray para. 0033) but fails to teach c) a control system comprising a switch in electrically communication with the thermoelectric module and the fan of the cooling system. However, Freeman teaches a housing assembly (main body 12) comprising a control system comprising a switch (control element 38, col. 3, ll. 55-56) in electrically communication with the thermoelectric module (thermoelectric element 20) and the fan of the cooling system (fan 24, col. 3, ll. 5-12). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Seyfi’s systems with the system as taught by Freeman to allow the feeder to be selectively controlled to maintain a particular temperature.
Regarding claim 2, Seyfi in view of Freeman teaches the invention substantially as claimed and Freeman further teaches wherein the housing assembly (main body 12) further comprises a conductive liner (thermally conductive liner 18) positioned between, and thermally coupled to, the bowl insert of the housing assembly and the second side of the thermoelectric module of the cooling system (thermally conductive liner 18 would be in contact with an insert placed within the chamber of main body 12, col. 2, ll. 57-61). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Seyfi’s housing with a conductive liner as taught by Freeman to increase the efficiency of the system to maintain the system at a particular temperature during use.
Regarding claim 10, Seyfi in view of Freeman teaches the invention substantially as claimed and Seyfi further teaches
Claims 3-7 and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Seyfi in view of Freeman, as applied to claim 2 above, further in view of Li et al. (US 2024/0415094 henceforth Li).
Regarding claim 3, Seyfi in view of Freeman teaches the invention substantially as claimed but fails to teach wherein the cooling system further comprises a conductive block positioned between, and thermally coupled to, the second side of the thermoelectric module of the cooling system and the conductive liner of the housing assembly. However, Li teaches a conductive block (heat conduction block 16) positioned between, and thermally coupled to, the second side of the thermoelectric module of the cooling system and the conductive liner of the housing assembly (para. 0051, fig. 7). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Seyfi’s system with a conductive block as taught by Li to increase the speed of heat transfer and cool the heat conduction element to increase the efficiency of the system.
Regarding claim 4, Seyfi in view of Freeman and Li teaches the invention substantially as claimed and Seyfi further teaches wherein the housing further defines first and second sub-chambers (fig. 5), the insulation of the housing assembly being positioned in the first sub-chamber of the housing (insulation is positioned in an upper chamber, fig. 5), and the heat sink and fan of the cooling system being position in the second sub-chamber of the housing (heat sink and the fan are positioned in a lower chamber, fig. 5).
Regarding claim 5, Seyfi in view of Freeman and Li teaches the invention substantially as claimed and Freeman further teaches wherein the housing further defines a third sub-chamber (lowermost chamber of main body 12, fig. 2), the fan of the cooling system being in fluid communication with the third sub-chamber of the housing (fan 24 is in fluid communication with the lower most chamber, fig. 2). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Seyfi system with a third sub-chamber as taught by Freeman to increase the efficiency of the system by increasing air flow to break down stagnant boundary air layers around the heat sink.
Regarding claim 6, Seyfi in view of Freeman and Li teaches the invention substantially as claimed and Seyfi teaches wherein a first housing partition separates the first sub-chamber of the housing from the second sub-chamber of the housing (plastic shell separates a first sub-chamber comprising the insulation from a second sub-chamber comprising the heatsink and fan, fig. 5), and Freeman teaches wherein a second housing partition separates the second sub-chamber of the housing from the third sub-chamber of the housing (a second sub-chamber separated from a third sub-chamber, fig. 2), wherein the thermoelectric module of the cooling system is positioned in an opening defined by the first housing partition (fig. 2), and wherein the fan is in fluid communication with the third sub-chamber of the housing through an opening defined by the second housing partition (fig. 2).
Regarding claim 7, Seyfi in view of Freeman and Li teaches the invention substantially as claimed and Freeman further teaches wherein the housing assembly further comprises first and second pluralities of vents defined by the housing wall (pattern of openings 12B and 12C serve as air outlet and intake vents, col. 2, ll. 54-56), wherein the first plurality of vents is in fluid communication with the second sub-chamber of the housing (plurality of openings 12B, fig. 2) and the second plurality of vents is in fluid communication with the third sub- chamber of the housing (plurality of openings 12C, fig. 2).
Regarding claim 13, Seyfi in view of Freeman and Li teaches the invention substantially as claimed but fails to teach wherein the cooling system comprises stacked first and second thermoelectric modules. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to have a plurality of thermoelectric modules, since it has been held that mere duplication of the essential working parts of a device involves only routine skill in the art. St. Regis Paper Co. v. Bemis Co., 193 USPQ 8.
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Seyfi in view of Freeman and Li, as applied to claim 3 above, further in view of Liff (US 4561384).
Regarding claim 8, Seyfi in view of Freeman and Li teaches the invention substantially as claimed and Freeman further teaches wherein the control system further comprises: a) a controller in electrical communication with the thermoelectric module and the fan of the cooling system (controller element 38 is in electrical communication with the thermoelectric module and fan, fig. 3); and b) a sensor positioned in the first sub-chamber of the housing and adjacent to the conductive liner of the housing assembly (temperature-sensing control element 28, col. 3, ll. 20-21) but is silent on wherein the sensor is in electrical communication with the controller. However, Liff teaches a sensor in electrical communication with a controller (controller 40 receives temperature input data from sensor 41, col. 3, ll. 29-31). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Seyfi’s system with the sensor connection as taught by Liff to allow the system to accurately determine the temperature within the housing to further increase the efficiency of the system.
Claims 11 and 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Seyfi in view of Freeman and Li, as applied to claim 3 above, further in view of Borey (US 2007/0227456).
Regarding claim 11, Seyfi in view of Freeman and Li teaches the invention substantially as claimed but fails to teach wherein the control system further controls a temperature selection switch. However, Borey teaches a temperature selection switch (claim 6). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Seyfi’s system with a switch as taught by Borey to allow a user to manually activate or deactivate the system.
Regarding claim 12, Seyfi in view of Freeman and Li teaches the invention substantially as claimed but fails to teach wherein the control system further comprises a polarity reversal switch in electrical communication with the thermoelectric module of the cooling assembly. However, Borey teaches a polarity reversal switch (claim 4). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Seyfi’s system with a switch as taught by Borey to allow a user to manually activate or deactivate the system.
Claims 14, 16, 19 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Freeman in view of Holz (DE 20116085) in view of Li.
Regarding claim 14, Freeman teaches a temperature-controlled bowl comprising: a) a housing assembly (container 10, fig. 2) comprising: i) a housing defining a first sub-chamber (uppermost chamber housing insulation 16, fig. 2), a second sub-chamber (middle chamber housing heat sink 22, fig. 2), and a third sub-chamber (lowermost chamber housing fan 24, fig. 2), wherein the housing comprises a first partition that separates the first sub-chamber from the second sub-chamber (see figure 2 below), a second partition that separates the second sub-chamber from the third sub-chamber (see figure 2 below), and a perimeter wall that defines a plurality of exhaust vents in fluid communication with the second sub-chamber (openings 12B, fig. 2) and a plurality of intake vents in fluid communication with the third sub- chamber (openings 12C, fig. 2); ii) a conductive liner (18, fig. 2) supported by the housing, the conductive liner comprising a liner wall (vertical portions of liner 18, fig. 2) connected to a liner base (horizontal portion of liner 18, fig. 2), wherein the conductive liner is positioned in the first sub-chamber of the housing (fig. 2); iii) insulation positioned within the first sub-chamber of the housing (insulation material 16, col. 2, ll. 57-61, fig. 2), wherein the insulation comprises an insulation wall that surrounds an outer perimeter of the liner wall of the conductive liner (vertical portions of insulation material 16) and an insulation base that sits adjacent to the liner base of the conductive liner (horizontal portion of insulation material 16), the insulation base defining a insulation opening (opening comprising thermoelectric element 20 and heat sink 22); b) a cooling system positioned in the chamber of the housing, the cooling system comprising: ii) a heat sink positioned in the second sub-chamber of the housing assembly housing (heat sink 22, fig. 2); iii) a thermoelectric module positioned in a first partition opening defined by the first partition of the housing assembly housing (thermoelectric element 20, fig. 2), wherein the thermoelectric module is thermally coupled on a first side to the heat sink (fig. 2); and iv) a fan positioned in the second sub-chamber of the housing assembly housing adjacent to the heat sink (fan 24, fig. 2), wherein the fan (fan 24) is in fluid communication with the plurality of exhaust vents (pattern of openings 12B) defined by the housing wall of the housing assembly housing (fig. 2) and the third sub-chamber (lowermost chamber, fig. 2) through a second partition opening defined by the second partition of the housing assembly housing (opening comprising fan 24, fig. 2); and c) a control system comprising a switch in electrical communication with the thermoelectric module and the fan of the cooling system to the power source (col. 3, ll. 55-58, fig. 3) but fails to teach a bowl insert configured to sit at least partly on the conductive liner and a conduction block positioned in the insulation opening of the insulation of the housing assembly, wherein the conduction block is thermally coupled to the conductive liner of the housing assembly; and wherein the thermoelectric module is thermally coupled on a second side to the conduction block. However, Holz’s teaches a bowl insert configured to sit at least partly on the conductive liner (insert part 2 is configured to sit flatly on a surface, Description, fig. 1). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Freeman’s system with an insert to allow the system to be easily cleaned. And Li teaches a conductive block (heat conduction block 16) positioned in an insulation opening (hole 1520) of the insulation (insulating member 152) of the housing assembly, wherein the conduction block is thermally coupled to a conductive liner of the housing assembly (conduction block 16 is arranged between the thermoelectric cooling member 121 and the heat conduction member 11, para. 0051, fig.7 and 8). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Freeman’s system with a conductive block as taught by Li to increase the speed of heat transfer and cool the heat conduction element to increase the efficiency of the system.
Regarding claim 16, Freeman as modified by Holz and Li teaches the invention substantially as claimed and Holz further teaches wherein the bowl insert of the housing assembly is capable of being removed from the housing assembly (Description).
Regarding claim 19, Freeman as modified by Holz and Li teaches the invention substantially as claimed but fails to teach wherein the cooling system comprises stacked first and second thermoelectric modules. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to have a plurality of thermoelectric modules, since it has been held that mere duplication of the essential working parts of a device involves only routine skill in the art. St. Regis Paper Co. v. Bemis Co., 193 USPQ 8.
Regarding claim 20, Freeman as modified by Holz and Li teaches the invention substantially as claimed but fails to teach wherein the cooling system comprises a plurality of fans positioned adjacent to the heat sink. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to have a plurality of thermoelectric modules, since it has been held that mere duplication of the essential working parts of a device involves only routine skill in the art. St. Regis Paper Co. v. Bemis Co., 193 USPQ 8.
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Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Freeman in view of Holz and Li, as applied to claim 14 above, further in view of Liff (US 4561384).
Regarding claim 15, Freeman as modified by Li teaches the invention substantially as claimed and Freeman further teaches wherein the control system further comprises: a) a controller in electrical communication with the thermoelectric module and the fan of the cooling system (controller element 38 is in electrical communication with the thermoelectric module and fan, fig. 3); and b) a sensor positioned in the first sub-chamber of the housing and adjacent to the conductive liner of the housing assembly (temperature-sensing control element 28, col. 3, ll. 20-21) but is silent on wherein the sensor is in electrical communication with the controller. However, Liff teaches a sensor in electrical communication with a controller (controller 40 receives temperature input data from sensor 41, col. 3, ll. 29-31). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Freeman’s system with a sensor connection as taught by Liff to allow the system to accurately determine the temperature within the housing to further increase the efficiency of the system.
Claim 17 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Freeman in view of Holz and Li, as applied to claim 14 above, further in view of Borey.
Regarding claim 17, Freeman as modified by Holz and Li teaches the invention substantially as claimed but fails to teach wherein the control system further comprises a polarity reversal switch in electrical communication with the thermoelectric module of the cooling assembly. However, Borey teaches a polarity reversal switch (claim 4). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to modify Seyfi’s system with a switch as taught by Borey to allow a user to manually activate or deactivate the system.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 9 and 10 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.
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/EBONY E EVANS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3647