DETAILED ACTION
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.
The following title is suggested: Oil Injection Under Pistons before Engine Shutdown.
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.
Claim(s) 1, 3, 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 as being anticipated by Oryoji (U.S. Pat. No. 12,535,021).
Regarding claim 1, Oryoji discloses a control device for an internal combustion engine (Title), the control device being applied to an internal combustion engine including an oil jet (101) configured to inject oil onto a back surface of a piston (abstract) or an inner wall of a cylinder (back option addressed), the control device comprising
a controller configured to control an intake pressure (col. 4, lines 25-32 discloses intake control) of the internal combustion engine and an oil injection amount of the oil jet and stop the internal combustion engine based on a command to stop the internal combustion engine,
wherein the controller is configured to execute, when the command to stop the internal combustion engine is issued, an intake pressure decrease process of decreasing the intake pressure of the internal combustion engine (col. 4, lines 25-32 discloses intake control based on operator demand which would be zero at engine stop) and an oil injection amount increase process of increasing the oil injection amount of the oil jet (col. 14, lines 45-55 controls oil based on temperature correlation which is effected by engine stop col. 12, lines 45- col. 13, line 25), under a condition that there is a possibility of condensed water freezing in a combustion chamber of the internal combustion engine after the internal combustion engine is stopped (engine off increases the possibility of water freezing), and
stop the internal combustion engine after the intake pressure decrease process and the oil injection amount increase process are ended (col. 13, lines 5-25 discloses stopping the engine after these two processes are used).
Regarding claim 3 which depends from claim 1, Oryoji discloses wherein the intake pressure decrease process is a process of adjusting a throttle valve of the internal combustion engine toward a closed position (the demand on the engine by the user is through throttle manipulation which would be zero at engine off).
Regarding claim 5 which depends from claim 1, Oryoji discloses the oil jet is configured to receive oil discharged from a mechanical oil pump driven by the internal combustion engine and inject the oil; and the oil injection amount increase process is a process of controlling the internal combustion engine such that an oil discharge amount of the mechanical oil pump is increased through an increase in an engine rotation speed (col. 6, lines 58-67 discloses a mechanical oil pump).
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) 4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Oryoji (U.S. Pat. No. 12,535,021).
Regarding claim 4 which depends from claim 1, Oryoji discloses the oil jet is configured to receive oil discharged from oil pump and inject the oil; and the oil injection amount increase process is a process of controlling the electric oil pump such that an oil discharge amount of the electric oil pump is increased (col. 5, lines 33-44).
Oryoji does not disclose that the pump is an electric oil pump.
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to use an electric pump, since it has been held that rearranging parts of an invention involves only routine skill in the art. See MPEP 2144.04 V C. Oryoji discloses the use of electric pumps in col. 5, lines 24-26 and could have used one for oil.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 2 is 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 claims specify what increases the chances of freezing water to cause the system to inject more oil which is generally used as a cooling system for pistons.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Please review when considering a response to this office action.
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GONZALO LAGUARDA
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3747 email: gonzalo.laguarda@uspto.gov
/GONZALO LAGUARDA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3747
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