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 .
Status of the Claims
Claims 1 – 10 remain as originally presented prior to initial examination.
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.
Claim(s) 1 – 6, 9, and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by US 2007/0163840, “Sekiya.”
Regarding Claim 1: Sekiya discloses a multiphase pump (1) (At least Figures 1 – 6) of the screw spindle pump type ([Abstract], “oil refrigeration screw compressor being applied to a refrigeration system”), comprising a spindle housing (1) (The housing is generally indicated via element 1 in at least Figures 2 and 4) with a spindle packet (2), received therein, comprising a drive spindle and at least one idler spindle meshing therewith (At least [0053], “a screw rotor of a pair of male and female screw rotors supported rotatably in the rotor casing of the compressor”), via which spindle packet a fluid to be delivered is able to be delivered from a suction side (1a), at which the fluid is under a suction pressure, to a pressure side (1b), at which the fluid is under an increased outlet pressure (At least [0054], “fluid f to be compressed is sucked from the suction port 1a into the compressor 1 and compressed as the rotors 2 rotate to be discharged in a pressurized state together with lube oil mixed in it”), wherein the drive spindle and the idler spindle are each mounted rotatably in the spindle housing via bearing means (42), wherein the bearing means are hydrodynamic plain bearings (At least [0058], “a pair of male and female rotors, each of the rotors 2 is supported by journal bearings 42 at its shaft parts 2a extending from both ends thereof”) in which the drive spindle and the idler spindle are received via a bearing gap (45, 56), wherein a feed device ([0055], “the oil reserved in the oil supply tank 7 is supplied by means of an oil supply pump 8 to rotor bearing parts of the compressor via an oil cooler and a filter 10”) for feeding a fluid lubricating medium at a higher pressure than the suction pressure is provided in each bearing gap (At least [0058], The gap being interpreted as the bearing space formed by the oil film between the bearing casing and the shaft in the manner well known to journal bearings disclosed by at least [0058], “each of the rotors 2 is supported by journal bearings 42 at its shaft parts 2a extending from both ends thereof”).
Regarding Claim 2: Sekiya discloses the multiphase pump according to claim 1; Sekiya further discloses wherein the lubricating medium is formed by the delivered fluid, which is withdrawn at the pressure side and fed to the plain bearings (At least [0061], “lube oil supplied via the temperature control oil supply line I and via the bearing lubricating oil supply line II inevitably mix with each other, so preferably lube oil of the same kind is used for the lines I and II;” Lube oil is withdrawn from the pressure side through the connection at least at the oil separator 4 as further discussed in at least [0064]).
Regarding Claim 3: Sekiya discloses the multiphase pump according to claim 1; Sekiya further discloses wherein a channel structure is provided, via which the fluid is conducted from the pressure side to the bearing gaps (Interpreted as the oil supply passages II shown in at least Figures 2 – 4 passing into the housing and as the oil supply passages shown in the bearings themselves in at least Figures 3B and 3C; It is noted that the recited “channel structure” has been provides its broadest reasonable interpretation such that the disclosed passages read over a channel and that the claim is broadly written insofar as it does not recite specific structure of the claimed channel).
Regarding Claim 4: Sekiya discloses the multiphase pump according to claim 1; Sekiya further discloses wherein the lubricating medium is formed by the delivered fluid (At least [0054], “fluid f to be compressed is sucked from the suction port 1a into the compressor 1 and compressed as the rotors 2 rotate to be discharged in a pressurized state together with lube oil mixed in it”), which is fed via an external feed line (Any of the feed lines as shown external to the rotor casing shown in at least Figures 2 and 4) that is connected to the multiphase pump and comes from a separation device (4).
Regarding Claim 5: Sekiya discloses the multiphase pump according to claim 1; Sekiya further discloses wherein the lubricating medium is a lubricant, in particular an oil (At least [0055], “lube oil supplied to the rotor bearing parts is recovered to the oil supply tank 7”), which is conducted from a lubricant reservoir (4, 7) to the plain bearings (The volume of oil as shown in either separation device 4 or the oil supply tank 7 can broadly be interpreted as proving a lubricant reservoir).
Regarding Claim 6: Sekiya discloses the multiphase pump according to claim 5; Sekiya further discloses wherein the lubricant reservoir is connected via an external feed line that is connected to the multiphase pump (Any of the feed lines as shown external to the rotor casing shown in at least Figures 2 and 4).
Regarding Claim 9: Sekiya discloses the multiphase pump according to claim 1; Sekiya further discloses wherein it is a single flow (As single flow arrangement is disclosed in at least Figures 2 and 4 and further described in at least [0053]) or a dual flow pump, wherein the drive spindle and the idler spindle are each supported via two plain bearings (As shown in at least Figure 3; Each spindle is shown supported by two bearings).
Regarding Claim 10: Sekiya discloses the multiphase pump according to claim 1; Sekiya further discloses wherein the drive spindle leads out of the spindle housing with a shaft portion (As shown in at least Figures 2, 3, and 4) and is sealed off via a sealant (44) from the spindle housing or a cover placed on the spindle housing ([0058], “numeral 44 is a mechanical oil seal”).
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) 1, and 7, are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 2021/0381510, “Chiba,” in view of US 2011/0256008, “Hattori.”
Regarding Claim 1: Chiba discloses a multiphase pump (1) (At least Figures 1 – 9; The screw compressor of Chiba is capable of use as a compressor or pump of a multiphase system) of the screw spindle pump type ([0024], “a screw compressor 1 includes a pair of male rotor 2 (male screw rotor) and female rotor 3 (female screw rotor) that mesh with each other and a casing 4 that rotatably houses both the male and female rotors 2 and 3”), comprising a spindle housing (4, 41, 42, 43) with a spindle packet (2, 3), received therein, comprising a drive spindle (2) and at least one idler spindle meshing therewith (3) ([At least [0024]), via which spindle packet a fluid to be delivered is able to be delivered from a suction side (47), at which the fluid is under a suction pressure, to a pressure side (48), at which the fluid is under an increased outlet pressure (At least [0048]), wherein the drive spindle and the idler spindle are each mounted rotatably in the spindle housing via bearing means (6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13), in which the drive spindle and the idler spindle are received via a bearing gap (The bearing gap broadly interpreted as the inner radial space in which the drive and idler spindles are located as shown in at least Figures 1 – 8), wherein a feed device (100) for feeding a fluid lubricating medium at a higher pressure than the suction pressure is provided in each bearing gap (At least [0037], “external liquid feed system 100 is used as the liquid for lubrication also for the first suction-side bearing 6, the second suction-side bearing 11, the first discharge-side bearings 7 and 8, and the second discharge-side bearings 12 and 13 besides the working chambers C”); however, Chiba fails to explicitly disclose wherein the bearing means are hydrodynamic plain bearings.
Hattori teaches a screw compressor (Figures 1 – 10) ([0003], “a screw compressor having a lubricating oil system provided with a bearing part”), of similar construction to the apparatus of Chiba, and further teaches an arrangement wherein each of a drive spindle (2) and a idler spindle (3) of a spindle packet (2, 3) are mounted rotatable in a spindle housing (1A, 1B, 1C) via bearing means (5) and wherein the bearing means are hydrodynamic plain bearings ([0007], “the radial bearing of a plain bearing type” and as further shown in at least Figures 7A and B).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to have utilized the hydrodynamic plain bearings of Hattori as the bearing elements in the apparatus of Chiba as such a modification is viewed as a simple substitution of one known lubricant fed bearing element for that of another. Such a substitution would have been obvious since, an express suggestion to substitute one equivalent component or process for another is not necessary to render such substitution obvious (MPEP 2144.06).
Regarding Claim 7: Chiba, in view of Hattori, teaches the multiphase pump according to claim 1; once combined, Hattori further teaches wherein each plain bearing is formed via a bearing bushing (As shown in at least Figures 7A and B), Chiba further discloses wherein the lubricating medium is able to be fed either via a radial feed channel (82, 81), which runs through the spindle housing (At least lubrication passages 81 and 82 are shown providing lubrication supply to the bearings and are show as being radially arranged through the spindle housing with respect to each of the drive and idler spindles as shown in at least Figures 1 and 2) or a housing cover; and Hattori further teaches and leads out at a radial opening (23) in the bearing bushing (As shown in at least Figures 7A and B; [0085], “recesses 22 for accumulating lube oil is provided on the inner periphery surface 5a of the radial bearing and a lube oil passage 23 is bored so as to supply lube oil into each recess from the outer periphery surface of the radial bearing 5”), or is able to be fed axially out of a volume which is delimited between the spindle housing via a housing cover and in which the lubricating medium is present at the higher pressure (It is noted that the limitations following the coordinating conjunction “or” are interpreted as optional limitations which are not required by the claim).
Claim(s) 1, 7, and 8, are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 2021/0381510, “Chiba,” in view of US 2,827,342, “Roach.”
Regarding Claim 1: Chiba discloses a multiphase pump (1) (At least Figures 1 – 9; The screw compressor of Chiba is capable of use as a compressor or pump of a multiphase system) of the screw spindle pump type ([0024], “a screw compressor 1 includes a pair of male rotor 2 (male screw rotor) and female rotor 3 (female screw rotor) that mesh with each other and a casing 4 that rotatably houses both the male and female rotors 2 and 3”), comprising a spindle housing (4, 41, 42, 43) with a spindle packet (2, 3), received therein, comprising a drive spindle (2) and at least one idler spindle meshing therewith (3) ([At least [0024]), via which spindle packet a fluid to be delivered is able to be delivered from a suction side (47), at which the fluid is under a suction pressure, to a pressure side (48), at which the fluid is under an increased outlet pressure (At least [0048]), wherein the drive spindle and the idler spindle are each mounted rotatably in the spindle housing via bearing means (6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13), in which the drive spindle and the idler spindle are received via a bearing gap (The bearing gap broadly interpreted as the inner radial space in which the drive and idler spindles are located as shown in at least Figures 1 – 8), wherein a feed device (100) for feeding a fluid lubricating medium at a higher pressure than the suction pressure is provided in each bearing gap (At least [0037], “external liquid feed system 100 is used as the liquid for lubrication also for the first suction-side bearing 6, the second suction-side bearing 11, the first discharge-side bearings 7 and 8, and the second discharge-side bearings 12 and 13 besides the working chambers C”); however, Chiba fails to explicitly disclose wherein the bearing means are hydrodynamic plain bearings.
Roach teaches a lubricated bearing arrangement (Figures 1 – 2), for use with a rotating shaft usable with a rotating shaft such as that of the spindles of Chiba, and further teaches the arrangement comprising a rotating shaft (14) rotatably supported via bearing means (12) and wherein the bearing means are hydrodynamic plain bearings (As shown in at least Figures 1 and 2; As further discussed in at least Cl. 2, ln. 17 – 41).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to have utilized the hydrodynamic plain bearings of Roach as the bearing elements in the apparatus of Chiba as such a modification is viewed as a simple substitution of one known lubricant fed bearing element for that of another. Such a substitution would have been obvious since, an express suggestion to substitute one equivalent component or process for another is not necessary to render such substitution obvious (MPEP 2144.06).
Regarding Claim 7: Chiba, in view of Roach, teaches the multiphase pump according to claim 1; once combined, Roach further teaches wherein each plain bearing is formed via a bearing bushing (12) (Cl. 2, ln. 12, “bearing sleeve 12”), Chiba further discloses wherein the lubricating medium is able to be fed either via a radial feed channel (82, 81), which runs through the spindle housing (At least lubrication passages 81 and 82 are shown providing lubrication supply to the bearings and are show as being radially arranged through the spindle housing with respect to each of the drive and idler spindles as shown in at least Figures 1 and 2) or a housing cover; and Roach further teaches and leads out at a radial opening (20) in the bearing bushing (As shown in at least Figures 1 and 2; Cl. 2, ln. 20, “opening or passage 20 extends radially from the base of the forward groove 18 through the bearing sleeve and communicates with a duct 22 in the wall 10 of the cylinder block”), or is able to be fed axially out of a volume which is delimited between the spindle housing via a housing cover and in which the lubricating medium is present at the higher pressure (It is noted that the limitations following the coordinating conjunction “or” are interpreted as optional limitations which are not required by the claim).
Regarding Claim 8: Chiba, in view of Roach, teaches the multiphase pump according to claim 7; once combined, Roach further teaches wherein at least the or each bearing bushing which supports the drive spindle or the idler spindle in the region of the pressure side has an annular groove (19) which is provided at the inner circumference (As shown in at least Figures 1 and 2; At least Cl. 2, ln. 17, “bearing sleeve 12 is provided with a pair of annular grooves 18 and 19 which circumscribe its inner working surface”), Chiba further discloses and leads into an axially extending outlet channel (83) (The recited “axially extending outlet channel” has been provided with its broadest reasonable interpretation such that the axially extending channel, tied to the bearing lubrication outlet, reads over the recited limitation. It is noted that the instant limitation does not provide a narrow recitation of the location of the recited channel such as that shown by at least Figure 2 of the originally filed specification) that communicates with a pump region in which there is a lower pressure than the outlet pressure ([0045], “second collection liquid passage 83 allows the first discharge-side bearing chamber 55 of the discharge-side casing 42 to communicate with the region in the suction process in the bore 45”).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
US 2022/0372982 – Lubricant fed bearings in a screw compressor
US 2018/0023571 – Lubricant fed bearings in a screw compressor
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/BENJAMIN DOYLE/Examiner, Art Unit 3746 2026.09.25
/MARK A LAURENZI/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3746 9/28/2026
