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
Claims 4, 8, and 11-12 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Invention/Species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 7/6/2026.
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 structure of claim 3 must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
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 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.
Claim(s) 1,3, 5-7, 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Stenberg US 8708665 in view of Yokomizo US 20060281398.
Stenberg discloses:
1. A vibration cooling pump 1, comprising: a housing 2 having an accommodation space (inside 2); a pump diaphragm (see annotated Fig herein) disposed within the accommodation space and dividing the accommodation space into a relatively sealed pump chamber (side of diaphragm on which valves 6 and 8 are located) and a vibration chamber (side of diaphragm on which 9 is located), the pump chamber having a water inlet 5 and a water outlet 7; control valves (6, 8) disposed at the water inlet and the water outlet correspondingly; and a vibration assembly disposed within the vibration chamber, wherein the vibration assembly comprises a magnetic circuit system (10, 11, 12) and a drive coil 9 arranged opposite to each other, wherein one of the magnetic circuit system and the drive coil serves as a vibrator and the other serves as a stator (see the Figure); the magnetic circuit system is provided with a magnetic gap (gap between 12 and 9), the vibrator is connected to the pump diaphragm (see Figure), the stator is fixedly connected to the housing (see Figure), and the drive coil cooperates with the magnetic circuit system to drive the pump diaphragm to vibrate, so as to control an open/closed state of the control valve (see Figure).
Stenberg does not disclose the drive coil is inserted into the magnetic gap.
Yokomizo discloses the drive coil 17 is inserted into the magnetic gap (gap between 14 and 8).
A simple substitution of one vibration assembly for another with the predictable result of vibrating a diaphragm has been held obvious as per MPEP 2143 I (B).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to utilize the vibration assembly of Yokomizo as a simple substitution for the vibration assembly of Stenberg to gain the benefit of utilizing a known vibration assembly for vibrating a diaphragm which can lessen the potential for collisions between the vibration assembly and the drive coil/stator.
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Regarding claim 2, Stenberg as modified above discloses the vibration assembly and the pump diaphragm are arranged sequentially along an axial direction of the housing (see the figure of Stenberg and e.g. Fig 2 of Yokomizo); and the magnetic gap is formed on a side of the magnetic circuit system facing a top wall of the housing (see the figure of Stenberg wherein the pump is capable of being operated in any orientation including an orientation with 5 and 7 up or down, and see e.g. Fig 2 of Yokomizo); and the other side of the drive coil is inserted into the magnetic gap (see e.g. Fig 2 of Yokomizo).
Stenberg as modified above does not disclose one side of the drive coil is fixed to the top wall of the housing. However, this arrangement is merely a reversal of parts of the vibration assembly of Yokomizo which has the coil attached to the diaphragm and the magnetic assembly attached to the housing which has been held obvious as per MPEP 2144.04 VI. A. Additionally, there are only two options: the coil as the stator and the magnetic circuit as the vibration assembly, or vice versa. Therefore, given there are only two choices for a person of ordinary skill in the art, the claimed arrangement is also obvious as per MPEP 2143 I (E). Additionally, it is noted that the arrangement of claim 3 has not been shown in the drawings which the examiner takes as evidence that applicant considers the reversal of parts as a simple common sense capability of one of ordinary skill in the art. It is noted that skill, not the converse, is presumed on the part of those practicing in the art (In re Sovish, 226 USPQ 771) and a conclusion of obviousness can be made from "common sense" of the person of ordinary skill in the art without any specific hint or suggestion in a particular reference. (In re Bozek, 163 USPQ 545, 549 (CCPA 1969).
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to utilize the coil as the stator and the magnetic circuit as the vibration assembly in the system of Stenberg as modified above to gain the benefit of facilitating electrical connection to the coil.
Stenberg does not specify the shape of the housing and thus does not disclose wherein the housing is cylindrical. Applicant has not provided any evidence of any significant function or benefit provided by the cylindrical shape of the housing and thus the cylindrical shape is considered a simple matter of design choice as per MPEP 2144.04 IV. B.
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to utilize a cylindrical housing in the system of Stenberg as modified above to gain the benefit of using circular coils which facilitate symmetrical flux distribution.
Regarding claim 3, Stenberg as modified above discloses the vibrating assembly and the pump diaphragm are arranged sequentially along an axial direction of the housing (see the figure of Stenberg and e.g. Fig 2 of Yokomizo); and the magnetic gap is formed on a side of the magnetic circuit system facing a bottom wall of the housing (see the figure of Stenberg wherein the pump is capable of being operated in any orientation including an orientation with 5 and 7 up or down, and see e.g. Fig 2 of Yokomizo); one side of the drive coil is fixed to the pump diaphragm, and the other side of the drive coil is inserted into the magnetic gap (see e.g. Fig 2 of Yokomizo).
Stenberg does not specify the shape of the housing and thus does not disclose wherein the housing is cylindrical. Applicant has not provided any evidence of any significant function or benefit provided by the cylindrical shape of the housing and thus the cylindrical shape is considered a simple matter of design choice. See MPEP 2144.04 IV. B.
Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to utilize a cylindrical housing in the system of Stenberg as modified above to gain the benefit of using circular coils which facilitate symmetrical flux distribution.
5. The vibration cooling pump of claim 1, further comprising a connecting member, which is disposed within the vibration chamber and elastically connects the vibrator and the pump diaphragm (see annotated Figure herein).
6. The vibration cooling pump of claim 2, further comprising an elastic member 10, which is disposed within the vibration chamber and elastically connects the vibrator and the housing.
7. The vibration cooling pump of claim 3, further comprising an elastic member 10, which is disposed within the vibration chamber and elastically connects the vibrator and the housing.
9. The vibration cooling pump of claim 6, wherein the housing comprises an upper housing and a lower housing connected to each other, and the elastic member is sandwiched between the upper housing and the lower housing and fixedly connected to the vibrator (see annotated Figure herein).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 10 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.
Conclusion
See form PTO-892 for additional prior art made of record but not relied upon that is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure including:
Toulmin US 2930324 discloses a diaphragm pump driven by a linear motor.
Richer US 5201641 discloses a diaphragm pump having leaf springs.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THOMAS ANDREW FINK whose telephone number is (571) 270-3373. The examiner can normally be reached on M-Th 9-7.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Mark Laurenzi can be reached on (571) 270-7878. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-270-4373.
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/Thomas Fink/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3746
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