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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 11/04/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. First of all, applicant alleges that the Office equates Topliss’s gyroscope (27) of as being the recited magnetic sensor for sensing a position or orientation of the whole moveable component relative to the static component, however said allegation is erroneous. In the office action, the Examiner states that Topliss’s discloses a gyroscope as a means for sensing the orientation/position of the movable element (para. 82, ll. 1-2), however the Examiner does not rely on Topliss to teach the magnetic sensor as recited in the claim. Instead, the Examiner relies on the reference Im to disclose the magnetic sensor (1141c) for sensing a position or orientation of the whole moveable component relative to the static component (para. 125). Secondly, in response to applicant’s argument that there is no teaching, suggestion, or motivation to combine the references, the examiner recognizes that obviousness may be established by combining or modifying the teachings of the prior art to produce the claimed invention where there is some teaching, suggestion, or motivation to do so found either in the references themselves or in the knowledge generally available to one of ordinary skill in the art. See In re Fine, 837 F.2d 1071, 5 USPQ2d 1596 (Fed. Cir. 1988), In re Jones, 958 F.2d 347, 21 USPQ2d 1941 (Fed. Cir. 1992), and KSR International Co. v. Teleflex, Inc., 550 U.S. 398, 82 USPQ2d 1385 (2007). In this case, Im teaches a well-known the magnetic sensor. i.e. a Hall sensor (1141c), for sensing a position or orientation of the whole moveable component relative to the static component (para. 125), and one of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to incorporate the Hall sensor within Topliss’s actuator to improve the accuracy in position and/or orientation detection of the movable component. Therefore, the incorporation of a well-known position sensor would have been within the knowledge generally available to one of ordinary skill in the art.
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.
Claims 1, 4, 10-11, 24-28, 34, 44-45 and 47-48 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Topliss (US Pub. No. 2013/0002933) in view of Im et al. (US Pub. No. 2018/0224665).
Regarding claims 1, 4, 10-11, 24-28, 44-45 and 47-48, Topliss teaches an actuator comprising:
a moveable component (11) and a static component (12), where the moveable component is moveable relative to the static component;
a first shape memory alloy (SMA) actuator wire having a first portion coupled to the moveable component and a second portion coupled to the static component, wherein the contraction of the first SME actuator caused the moveable component to move;
a second shape memory alloy (SMA) actuator wire having a first portion coupled to the moveable component and a second portion coupled to the static component, wherein contraction of the second SME actuator wire causes the moveable component to move, and wherein contraction of the first SME actuator wire causes expansion of the second SME actuator wire and contraction of the second SMA actuator wire causes expansion of the first SME actuator wire (Fig. 3, para. 34-35);
at least one sensor (27) for sensing a position or orientation of the moveable component (para. 82-83);
at least one resistance measurement circuit for measuring a resistance of the first SMA actuator wire and the second SMA actuator wire to determine a position or orientation of the moveable component relative to the static component (para. 65-70);
a control module for: receiving data from the at least one sensor; and generating control signal to control power delivered to the first SMA actuator wire and the second SMA actuator wire based on the received data, to adjust the position of the moveable component relative to the static component (para. 69) [claims 10];
wherein the control module receives additional data from the at least one resistance measurement circuit, and generates the control signal using the additional data (para. 69) [claim 11];
where the moveable component moves at least one optical element of an image capturing device (para. 3) [claim 24];
where the movement of the moveable component provides auto-focusing for the image capture device (para. 86) [claim 25];
where the movement of the moveable component provides optical image stabilization for the image capture device (para. 85) [claim 26];
wherein the actuator comprises a further six SMA actuator wires (Fig. 3) [claims 27-28].
Topliss does not specifically teach at least one magnetic sensor for sensing a position or orientation of the whole movable component relative to the static component; and at least one magnetic field source [claim 4]; wherein at least one magnetic sensor comprises at least one Hall effect sensor [claim 44]; wherein the at least one magnetic sensor does not measure a resistance of the first and the second SMA wires [claim 45]; wherein the at least one sensor is configured to directly sense the position or orientation of the movable component relative to the static component [claim 47]; and wherein that least one magnetic sensor comprises three magnetic sensors for sensing the position or orientation of the movable component relative to the static component in three dimension [claim 48].
Im teaches an actuator comprising: at least one magnetic sensor (1141c) for sensing a position or orientation of the whole movable component relative to the static component and at least one magnetic field source; wherein at least one magnetic sensor comprises at least one Hall effect sensor (para. 125) [claim 44]; wherein the at least one magnetic sensor does not measure a resistance of the first and the second SMA wires [claim 45]; wherein the at least one sensor is configured to directly sense the position or orientation of the movable component relative to the static component [claim 47]; and wherein that least one magnetic sensor comprises three magnetic sensors for sensing the position or orientation of the movable component relative to the static component in three dimension (the position sensors 1141c, 1143c, 1243c are configured to sense a position in three dimensions) [claim 48].
It would have been obvious to one having an ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate at least one magnetic sensor as taught by Im within said actuator in order to accurately detect a current position of the moveable component relative to the static component.
Regarding claim 34, Topliss teaches a method for controlling an actuator, the method comprising:
receiving a required position for a moveable component of the actuator, where the moveable component is moveable relative to a static component of the actuator by a first shape memory alloy (SMA) actuator wire and by a second shape memory alloy (SMA) actuator wire, wherein contraction of the first SMA actuator wire causes the moveable component to move and expansion of the second SMA actuator wire, and wherein contraction of the second SMA actuator wire causes the moveable component to move and expansion of the first SMA actuator wire (para. 34-35);
receiving data from at last one resistance measurement circuit for measuring a resistance of the first SMA wire and the second SMA actuator wire to determine a position or orientation of the moveable component relative to the static component (para. 65-70);
generating control signals to control power delivered to the first SMA actuator wire and the second SMA actuator wire base on the data received from the at least one resistance measurement circuit, to adjust the position of the moveable component relative to the static component. (para. 69).
Topliss does not specifically teach a step of receiving data from at least one magnetic sensors for sensing a current position or orientation of the whole moveable component relative to the static component.
Im teaches a method for controlling an actuator, the method comprising: receiving data from at least one magnetic sensors for sensing a current position or orientation of the whole moveable component relative to the static component (para. 122-125).
It would have been obvious to one having an ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate at least one magnetic sensor as taught by Im within said method for controlling an actuator in order to obtain a more accurate driving of the movable component relative to the static component.
Claim 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Topliss in view of Im, and further in view Chen et al. (US Pub. No. 2014/0176132).
Regarding claim 7, Topliss, as modified by Im, teaches all the claimed limitations except for the at least one magnetic sensor comprises a further magnetic sensor for compensating for the effect of external magnetic fields. Chen teaches a magnetic sensing unit comprises a magnetic sensor for compensating for the effect of external magnetic fields (para. 7). It would have been obvious to one having an ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate an additional external magnetic field sensor as taught in order to facilitate an accurate detection of a current position of the moveable component relative to the static component.
Claim 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Topliss in view of Im, and further in view Hu et al. (US Pub. No. 2009/0315551).
Regarding claim 8, Topliss, in view of Im, teaches all the claimed limitations except for the at least one sensor comprises at least one magnetic tunnel junction, however magnetic tunnel junction is a well-known magnetic sensor as evident by Hu (para. 4). It would have been obvious to one having an ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to substitute a magnetic tunnel junction for said magnetic sensor to detect a current position of the moveable component.
Claim 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Topliss in view Im, and further in view of Wang et al. (CN 106443949A and its English Translation).
Regarding claim 9, Topliss, as modified by Im, teaches all the claimed limitations except for the at least one sensor comprises a quadrupole magnet and at least one Hall effect element. Wang teaches a position sensor comprises a quadrupole magnet and at least one Hall effect element (pg. 5, 6th paragraph). It would have been obvious to one having an ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to substitute a sensor as taught by Wang for Topliss’s position sensor in order to accurately detect a current position of the moveable component.
Claims 14 and 16-17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Topliss in view of Im, and further in view of Okada (US Pub. No. 2018/0352167).
Regarding claims 14 and 16-17, Topliss, as modified by Im, teaches all the claimed limitations except for a storage for storing a look up table of a plurality of positions of the moveable component, for each position, at least one associated sensor value; where the look up table is populated using data collected during one or more of: an actuator manufacturing process, a calibration process, and an initialization process performed whenever the actuator is initialized [claim 16]; wherein the look up table is modified using data collected from the at least one magnetic sensor during use of the actuator [claim 17]. Okada teaches an actuator comprises a storage for storing a look up table of a plurality of positions of the moveable component, for each position, at least one associated sensor value (para. 61); where the look up table is populated using data collected during one or more of: an actuator manufacturing process, a calibration process, and an initialization process performed whenever the actuator is initialized; wherein the look up table is modified using data collected from the at least one sensor during use of the actuator (it’s implied that the look up table is populated during a calibration process/use process). It would have been obvious to one having an ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate a look up table as taught by Okada for said actuator in order to accurately detect the current position of the moveable component.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MINH Q PHAN whose telephone number is (571)270-3898. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 9am-5pm.
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MINH Q. PHAN
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2852
/MINH Q PHAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2852