DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
This action is in response to the claims filed 12/15/2025.
Claims 1-11 are presented for examination. Preliminary amendment is acknowledged.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 12/15/2025 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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, 7-8, and 10-11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Di Paola et al. in US Patent 11414993 (hereinafter “Di Paola”).
Regarding claim 1, Di Paola discloses (column 5, line 3 - column 10, line 16; figures 1-8) a coupling device (50) for coupling between a first part (26) of a turbine rotor (22) and a second part (36) of a turbine rotor (22) extending along a longitudinal axis (11), said first rotor part (26) being provided with a first thread (60), said coupling device (50) comprising a nut (80) which is provided with a nut thread that is intended to engage with said first thread (60), said nut (80) being intended to lock said second rotor part (36) onto said first rotor part (26) along said longitudinal axis, said coupling device (50) further comprises a brake (90) which comprises a first rotational coupling member (95) which is intended to engage with a first complementary rotational coupling member (86) provided on said nut (80) in a first rotational coupling position, said brake (90) being free to move in longitudinal translation relative to said nut (90) in said first rotational coupling position, and which comprises a second rotational coupling member (97) which is intended to engage with a second complementary rotational coupling member (73, 74) provided on said second rotor part (36) in a second rotational coupling position during the first rotational coupling position, said coupling device (80) further comprising a longitudinal locking element (100) which is intended to engage with said brake (90) and with said nut (80) in order to longitudinally lock said brake onto said nut in said second rotational coupling position.
Regarding claim 7, Di Paola discloses the coupling device according to claim 1, wherein said longitudinal locking (100) element is a split O-ring which is housed in a recess (87) of said nut (see Fig. 3B and 8).
Regarding claim 8, Di Paola discloses the coupling device according to claim 1, wherein said first rotor part is a rotor shaft (26) and said second part is a sleeve which is capable of sliding on said first part (see Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 10, Di Paola discloses an aircraft engine (column 4 line 8).
Regarding claim 11, assembly of the coupling device of Di Paola as applied above against claim 1 necessarily contains all of the method steps required of claim 11. The rejection will not be repeated verbatim so as to not unnecessarily belabor the record.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-6 and 9 are 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.
Regarding claim 2, Di Paola, applied above and considered the closest art of record, is silent to the coupling device according to claim 1, wherein said first rotational coupling member is a set of N teeth distributed evenly around the circumference of said brake and said first complementary rotational coupling member is a set of N notches distributed evenly around the circumference of said nut, such that in said first rotational coupling position each of said teeth is housed in one of said notches. Instead, the equivalent notches of Di Paola are distributed around the first complementary rotational coupling member, not the nut. Claims 3-4 depend on claim 2.
Regarding claims 5-6 and 9, the art of record is silent to the particular positional interactions of components required of any of these claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
US8491267 discloses a retaining ring arrangement for a gas turbine engine with complementary engaging teeth and recesses.
US2013/0156589 discloses a rotor retaining system with a split ring coupling shaft components.
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/ELDON T BROCKMAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3799
