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 Objections
Claims 1-12 and 14-15 are objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 1, line 6 should read in part “and the two wastegate”. Appropriate correction is required.
In claim 7, line 3 should read in part “safeguard of the two wastegate”. Appropriate correction is required.
In claim 10, line 2 should read in part “wherein the corresponding curved”. Appropriate correction is required.
In claim 14, line 1 should read in part “turbocharger with [[a]] the double wastegate”. Appropriate correction is required.
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 (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 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) 1-5, 7-8, 10, and 14-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Purdey (US 2021/0054779).
In Reference to Claim 1
(See Purdey, Figures 1 and 4-5)
Purdey discloses:
A double wastegate valve arrangement (See Purdey, Figure 5), comprising:
- two wastegate valves (250) which are movable along a valve longitudinal axis (251), wherein each of the two wastegate valves (250) has a rotationally symmetrically designed projecting upper side portion (255) configured around the valve longitudinal axis (251) (See Purdey, Paragraphs [0062]-[0063]),
- a valve arm (280) which is connected to an actuating shaft (See Purdey, Paragraph [0064]), and
- an intermediate plate (260) which is arranged loosely between the valve arm (280) and the wastegate valves (250), wherein the intermediate plate (260) is pivotable about the valve arm (280) in a direction perpendicularly with respect to the valve longitudinal axis (251), and is supported via rotationally symmetrical projecting lower side portions (263) of the intermediate plate (260) on the rotationally symmetrical projecting upper side portions (255) of the two wastegate valves (250). (See Purdey, Paragraphs [0061]-[0064]).
In Reference to Claim 2
(See Purdey, Figures 1 and 4-5)
Purdey discloses:
wherein the rotationally symmetrically designed projecting lower side portions (263) of the intermediate plate (260) and the rotationally symmetrically designed projecting upper side portions (255) of the wastegate valves (250) are conical or chamfered. (See Purdey, Paragraph [0059]).
In Reference to Claim 3
(See Purdey, Figures 1 and 4-5)
Purdey discloses:
wherein the rotationally symmetrical projecting lower side portions (263) of the intermediate plate (260) and the rotationally symmetrical projecting upper side portions (255) of the wastegate valves (250) are spherical. (See Purdey, Paragraphs [0062]-[0064]).
In Reference to Claim 4
(See Purdey, Figures 1 and 4-5)
Purdey discloses:
wherein a radius of the concave lower side portion (263) on the intermediate plate (260) is greater than or equal to a radius of the convex upper side portion (255) on the two wastegate valves (250). (See Purdey, Paragraphs [0062]-[0064]).
In Reference to Claim 5
Purdey discloses:
Wherein the actuating arm is connected to the valve arm in a symmetrical position in the middle between the two wastegate valves. (See Purdey, Paragraph [0064] w/respect to curved regions and 280 constituting part of the valve arm).
The Examiner notes that the actuating arm of Purdey includes part 280 which includes a pin connection and is symmetrically centered.
In Reference to Claim 7
(See Purdey, Figures 1 and 4-5)
Purdey discloses:
wherein projecting elements (156,256), which act in conjunction with the intermediate plate (260) as an anti-rotation safeguard of the wastegate valves (250), are formed on the two wastegate valves (250). (See Purdey, Paragraphs [0054]-[0056] & [0062]-[0063]).
In Reference to Claim 8
(See Purdey, Figures 1 and 4-5)
Purdey discloses:
Wherein the intermediate plate (260) pivots about the valve arm (280) through corresponding curved regions (291,292) which are formed on the intermediate plate (260) and the valve arm (280). (See Purdey, Paragraph [0064] w/respect to curved regions and 280 constituting part of the valve arm).
In Reference to Claim 10
(See Purdey, Figures 1 and 4-5)
Purdey discloses:
Wherein the curved regions are of cylindrical design, and a radius of the cylindrical region on the intermediate plate is smaller than or equal to a radius of the cylindrical region on the valve arm. (See Purdey, Paragraph [0064] w/respect to curved regions and 280 constituting part of the valve arm).
In Reference to Claim 14
(See Purdey, Figures 1 and 4-5)
Purdey discloses:
A turbocharger with a double wastegate valve arrangement according to claim 1. (See Claim 1 rejection above and Paragraph [0078]).
In Reference to Claim 15
(See Purdey, Figures 1 and 4-5)
Purdey discloses:
The turbocharger according to claim 14 in an internal combustion engine operated with diesel, hydrogen, methane or compressed natural gas. (See Purdey, Paragraphs [0003]-[0004] & [0009]).
The Examiner notes that the turbocharger is used for an internal combustion engine which are well known to run on hydrocarbon fuels such as diesel, hydrogen, methane or compressed natural gas.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 6 and 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Purdey (US 2021/0054779) in view of Tadokoro et al. (US 4,730,456).
In Reference to Claim 6
Purdey discloses:
Wherein the actuating shaft is connected to the valve arm. (See Purdey, Paragraph [0064]).
Purdey discloses the claimed invention except:
Wherein the actuating shaft is connected to the valve arm at a position closer to one of the two wastegates.
Tadokoro et al. (Tada) discloses an exhaust wastegate with a dual port valve system. (See Tada, Figures 4-7, Column 4, Lines 42-59). Tada discloses connecting the actuating shaft to the valve arm at a position closer to one of the two wastegates. (See Tada, Column 5, Line 63 – Column 6, Line 20).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have used the connection of Tada, as both references are directed towards exhaust wastegates with a dual port valve systems. One of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the arm connection of Tada would have provided the necessary torque required for actuating the valve while shortening the length of the actuating arm reducing overall size and cost of the device while maintaining efficiency. (See Tada, Column 5, Line 63 – Column 6, Line 20).
In Reference to Claim 9
(See Purdey, Figures 1 and 4-5)
The Purdey-Tada combination discloses:
Wherein a positively curved region is formed on the intermediate plate (260), and a negatively curved region is formed on the valve arm (280). (See Purdey, Paragraph [0064] w/respect to 291,292).
The Examiner notes that “positively curved” and “negatively curved” are not referenced with respect to an origin to establish direction and accordingly the curved regions have corresponding curvatures and thus positively curved and negatively curved regions.
Claim(s) 11-12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Purdey (US 2021/0054779) in view of Lombard et al. (US 20120234002).
In Reference to Claim 11
Purdey discloses:
Wherein the valve arm (280) is connected to the intermediate plate (260) with a pivoting connection. (See Purdey, Paragraph [0064]).
Purdey discloses the claimed invention except:
Wherein the valve arm has a pin which engages into a hole on the intermediate plate and creates a pivoting connection.
Lombard et al. (Lomb) discloses a wastegate valve arm connection device. (See Lomb, Abstract). Lomb discloses a valve arm has a pin which engages into a hole on the intermediate plate and creates a pivoting connection. (See Lomb, Paragraphs [0061]-[0066]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have used the pivoting connection of Lomb to connect to the intermediate plate, as both references are directed towards wastegate valve arm connection devices. One of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the pivoting connection of Lomb would allow for a degree of rotation reducing exhaust leakage and creating a proper seal while maintaining reliability. (See Lomb, Paragraphs [0003]-[0004]).
In Reference to Claim 12
The Purdey-Lomb combination discloses:
Wherein the pivoting connection is limited by a stop element. (See Lomb, Paragraphs [0061]-[0065] w/respect to posts and/or limits to rotation).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Purdey’114, Cooley, Goeckelmann, Stilgenbauer, McEwan, Watkins, and Heddy show devices in the general state of the art of invention.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MATTHEW THOMAS LARGI whose telephone number is (571)270-3512. The examiner can normally be reached 8:00 - 4:00 M-F.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Essama Omgba can be reached at (469) 295-9278. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MATTHEW T LARGI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3746
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