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 1-3 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Regarding Claim 1
Line 7 recites the language “the support casing”. To maintain consistency and clarity within the claims, the claim language should be amended such that it reads –the tubular support casing—
Regarding Claim 2
Line 3 recites the language “the support casing”. To maintain consistency and clarity within the claims, the claim language should be amended such that it reads –the tubular support casing—
Regarding Claim 3
Line 4 recites the language “the support casing”. To maintain consistency and clarity within the claims, the claim language should be amended such that it reads –the tubular support casing—
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 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being clearly anticipated by Watson et al., US 2020/0025133.
Regarding Claim 1
Watson discloses a gas turbine engine comprising:
a tail cone (35, converging end portion) (Watson, [0067], Figures 1-2);
an exhaust nozzle (26, exhaust hood) covering the tail cone (35) from outside in a radial direction, with an exhaust gas passage (24) defined between the exhaust nozzle (26) and the tail cone (35) (Watson, [0061]-[0062], Figures 1-2);
a tubular support casing (21, nacelle) that is located upstream of the exhaust nozzle (26) and that supports the exhaust nozzle (26) movably in a forward/rearward direction (Watson, [0062], Figures 1-2); and
an actuator [actuator] that is mounted on the exhaust nozzle (26) or the support casing (21) and that moves the exhaust nozzle (26) relative to the tail cone (35) in the forward/rearward direction to change a cross-sectional area of the exhaust gas passage (Watson, [0077], Figures 1-2).
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) 2-4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Watson et al., US 2020/0025133, in view of Kuroki, JP 2003314209 A.
Regarding Claim 2
Watson discloses the gas turbine engine according to claim 1. However, Watson does not explicitly disclose an extendable/retractable seal, extendable and retractable in the forward/rearward direction, the extendable/retractable seal having an upstream end fixed to the support casing and a downstream end fixed to the exhaust nozzle.
Kuroki teaches a gas turbine engine with a casing (12) that is supported to move in a frontward/rearward direction [axial direction] via an actuator (14, casing drive device) (Kuroki, [0018]-[0020], Figure 1), and that an extendable/retractable seal (18, flexible seal) is provided in a movable portion (Kuroki, [0019], Figure 1).
At the time the claimed invention was filed it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide an extendable/retractable seal at the annular mounting portion (25) of Watson, such that an upstream end of the seal is fixed to the support casing and the downstream end is fixed to the exhaust nozzle, in order to prevent leakage of fluids to due the movement of the casing as is taught by Kuroki (Kuroki, [0013])
Regarding Claim 3
Watson and Kuroki teach the gas turbine engine according to claim 2. Kuroki further teaches that the extendable retractable seal (18) is fixed at a first fixing portion (A, annotated Figure 1 of Kuroki below), and a second fixing portion (B, annotated Figure 1 of Kuroki below). Kuroki further teaches that the actuator (14) is also fixed to the second fixing portion (B) (Kuroki, annotated Figure 1 below), and a variable nozzle structure including the actuator (14), the extendable/retractable seal (18), the first fixing portion (A), and the second fixing portion (B) is located outside the exhaust gas passage in the radial direction (Kuroki, annotated Figure 1 below).
Therefore, in the combination of Watson and Kuroki, the exhaust nozzle includes the first fixing portion and the support casing includes the second fixing portion such that the actuator, extendable/retractable seal, first fixing portion, and second fixing portion are located outside the exhaust gas passage in the radial direction in order to prevent leakage of fluids to due the movement of the casing as is taught by Kuroki (Kuroki, [0013])
PNG
media_image1.png
367
615
media_image1.png
Greyscale
Figure 1: Annotated Figure 1 of Kuroki
Regarding Claim 4
Watson and Kuroki teach the gas turbine engine according to claim 3. In the combination of Watson and Kuroki, Watson discloses that in a front view of the gas turbine engine (10), the variable nozzle structure (actuator, seal, first/second fixing portions as taught by Kuroki) is located inside an outer edge (at the annular mounting portion (25)) of the gas turbine engine (10) excluding the variable nozzle structure (Watson, Figures 1-2).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KELSEY L STANEK whose telephone number is (571)272-3565. The examiner can normally be reached Mon - Fri 8:30am-3:00pm.
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, DEVON KRAMER can be reached at (571) 272-7118. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/K.L.S/Examiner, Art Unit 3741
/PHUTTHIWAT WONGWIAN/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3741
Prosecution Insights