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 AJA.
As requested in many of assignee’s application, best 10 references that pertain to the current application should be provided to the office from the references listed on form 1449. Applicants should also provide any application applicant considered closely related so examiner can determine any non-statutory double patenting.
It is noted that applicant has provided definition of groove but applicant is claiming groove portion which provides no definite limiting structure of a groove.
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.
Claim(s) 1-2, 8 and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Tokunaga (US.20150115537A1).
Tokunaga discloses a rotating machine (e.g. figure 1 and abstract) comprising a pair of sliding components having sliding surfaces (e.g. see figures and the entire document, assignees’ are common) which are configured to rotate and slide relatively to each other (e.g. see figure 1, sliding components 3 and 5), wherein one of an outer dimeter side space and an inner diameter side space of the sliding components is a sealed fluid side space (e.g. see figure 19, high pressure fluid side), and remaining one of the outer diameter side space and the inner diameter side space is a leakage side (e.g. see figure 19, low pressure fluid side), wherein the sliding surface of one of the sliding components is provided with a dynamic pressure generation groove (e.g. 17) having a starting end portion (e.g. 1stSEP) disposed on an upstream side in a relative rotation direction of the sliding surfaces and a terminating end portion (e.g. 2ndTEP, figure below) disposed on a downstream side in the relative rotation direction (e.g. figure below), wherein the dynamic pressure generation groove includes a first groove portion (e.g. 1stGP, figure below) extending circumferentially on a starting end portion side (e.g. side of the starting end portion) and a second groove portion (e.g. 2ndGP, figure below) extending circumferentially on a terminating end portion side (e.g. side of the terminating end portion), the first groove portion and the second groove portion being arranged to be displaced in the circumferential direction and a radial direction (e.g. figure below show this), and wherein the dynamic pressure generation groove further includes an inclined groove portion (e.g. IGP, figure below) having a first communication end portion (e.g. 1st end portion of IGP communicating with 1stGP) which is configured to communicate with the first groove portion and a second communication end portion (e.g. 2nd end portion of IGP communicating with 2ndGP) which is configured to communicate with the second groove portion, and wherein the inclined groove portion extends from the first communication end portion to the second communication end portion while inclining toward the downstream side in the relative rotation direction (e.g. figure 19 and figure below show this, see down side shown by the rotational arrow in solid). Regarding other claims, the dynamic pressure generation groove having other grooves (e.g. 28 and 28’). The second groove portion is configured to communicate with a side wall surface (e.g. side wall having an outer circumferential incline surface which is opposite 17a) of a downstream end portion of the incline groove portion and an end wall surface (e.g. end wall having an inner circumferential incline surface 17a) of the downstream end portion of the incline groove portion (e.g. circumferential wall of the incline groove)
Regarding claim 2: Wherein a relative rotation downstream end portion of the first groove portion and a relative rotation upstream end portion of the second groove portion communicate with each other through the incline groove portion (e.g. the 1stGP and 2ndGP groove portion communicate with each other through the incline groove portion).
Regarding claims 8 and 14: Wherein a plurality of the dynamic pressure generation grooves are provided, the first groove portion of each of the dynamic pressure generation grooves is disposed to radially overlap on a leakage space side of the terminating end portion of adjacent dynamic pressure generation groove on an upstream side in the relative rotation direction (the dynamic pressure generation groove having other grooves 28 and 28, which provide overlap).
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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.
Claim(s) 3-7, 9-13 and 15-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tokunaga in view of Examiners Official Notice and/or applicant own art.
Tokunaga discloses the invention as claimed above but fails to disclose the incline groove portion is deeper than the second groove portion, a fluid introduction groove which is configured to cause the second groove portion and a sealed fluid space to communicate with each other, the fluid introduction groove portion communicates with the end wall surface of the downstream end portion of the incline groove portion and the fluid introduction groove portion is inclined toward the downstream side in the relative rotation direction. Examiner takes official notice that the introduction groove in conjunction with another groove portion is inclined from open side to closed side and the depth at the open side is larger than at the closed side (see applicants’ own applications and/or patents). It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to configure the incline groove to have an introduction groove and a bottom surface of incline groove in conjunction with the introduction groove to have incline bottom surface from outer diameter to inner diameter as taught by Examiners official notice and/or applicants own prior inventions with reasonable expectation of success to provide pressure buildup at a sliding surface away from the outer diameter to provided separation of sliding surface to reduce wear (inherent to groove size change along the radial direction). See reference US6189896 teaches introduction groove (end of 20 in figure 3) open to a side of a ring that communicates with other grooves on face 11 or WO2016035860 teaches in figure 6 introduction groove 10 connected to other grooves or US20130209011 teaches introduction groove portion 7 open to the outer diameter side that communicates with 1st grooves 4-1 and other circumferentially opposite 4-1 that is connected to 7 (see figure 10 below) and figure 7 showing that the introduction groove portion is deeper than G1 and G2 or US20140217676 teaches introduction groove 20a or 20a in figure 3a-3b being deeper than other groove portions 10 or US 20180128377 teaches introduction groove 11a connected to another groove portion 10 or JP05-0322050 in figure 2 teaches introduction groove 5 communicating with other grooves 6 or other assignees patents and/or applications. Many of references are listed on form 1449.
The combination above teaches that the fluid introduction groove portion communicates with the end wall surface of the downstream end portion of the incline groove portion.
The combination above teaches that the fluid introduction groove is deeper than the incline groove portion (e.g. this is the case since the entrance of the fluid introduction groove is the deepest, see evidence by references listed above).
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It is further noted that assignees own patent US.20130209011 above teaches all limitation except for the introduction portion to be inclined, the reference of WO95/06212 (reference provided in application US18288369) teaches in figures to have introduction groove 34 to be inclined (see figure 2-5).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to VISHAL A PATEL whose telephone number is (571)272-7060. The examiner can normally be reached 7:00 am to 4:00pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Christine Mills can be reached at 571-272-8322. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/VISHAL A PATEL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3675
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