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 06/25/2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Examiner wants to point out that arrangement/position of the sensors and electronics is just a matter of design choice and can be readily accomplished by anyone ordinary skills 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.
Claim(s) 1 and claims bellow are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over D1 US 20210124035 A1.
Regarding claim 1 D1 teaches
1. Assembly unit arranged at a vehicle roof of a vehicle, comprising:
a radio antenna unit (34) arranged above the vehicle roof [0009] and having at least one radio antenna which is set up for transmitting and receiving radio signals[0068],
a lidar sensor (33) arranged near the radio antenna unit (34) and above the vehicle roof ([0009]) and adapted to detect objects around the vehicle, and
a control unit (ADAS for example ) arranged vertically below the first cooling unit and below the vehicle roof(usually placed in the vehicle but of course can be any other electric components and position is jus obvious design choice ),
wherein the first cooling unit (40) is configured to provide cooling to the sensor [0055] and to the electronics[0055]
a first cooling unit
but does not explicitly teach
360 degree lidar
a lidar sensor arranged below the radio antenna unit
a first cooling unit arranged below the lidar sensor
Arrangement/positioning of the individual elements is just a matter of design choice well understood in the art. And therefore It would be obvious to one of ordinary skills in the art at the time of filing to modify teachings by D1 to place Lidar bellow the radar unit and cooler bellow lidar in order to create stack of the sensors.
Also using multiple transmitter/receivers arranged around the tube to cover 360 degree its just obvious modification well known by the one skilled in the art in order to cover desired FOV.
2. The assembly unit (100) according to claim 1, which is set up to process sensor signals detected with the lidar sensor and/or radio signals received with the radio antenna unit .[0003-0008] (implicit)
3. The assembly unit (100) according to claim 1, wherein the control unit comprises a radio module , which is adapted for modulating radio signals to be transmitted with the radio antenna unit and/or processing radio signals received with the radio antenna unit .(obviously as radar is somesing is modulating the signal and transmitting to antenna and include that module into adas is just a matter of design choice )
4. The assembly unit (100) according to claim 1, wherein the control unit comprises an interface to a control system of the vehicle.(implicit jus simplest example is a key which turns on the car and all systems of the car)
5. The assembly unit (100) according to claim 1, wherein the control unit comprises at least one further radio antenna for transmitting and receiving radio signals.(placing communication antenna is also well known in the art )
7. The assembly unit (100) according to claim 1, wherein the first cooling unit (103) comprises a heat-emitting surface(fig. 3 heatsink) and/or a thermal contact surface to the vehicle roof .
8, 14 The assembly unit (100) according to claim 1, wherein the first cooling unit(obvious well known cooling device for better heat removal) comprises a liquid cooling circuit and/or at least one fan(fig. 3) and/or at least one Peltier element for active cooling.
9. The assembly (100) according to claim 8, wherein the liquid cooling circuit and/or the at least one fan and/or the at least one Peltier element are temperature controlled.(obvious performance increasing modifications well known in the art)
10. The assembly (100) according to claim 1, wherein the lidar sensor is arranged to detect objects in a plane perpendicular to a vertical axis of the vehicle.(fig. 3+ fig. 1 implicit)
11. The assembly unit (100) according to claim 1, comprising a second cooling unit arranged between the radio antenna unit and the lidar sensor and adapted to cool the lidar sensor and/or the radio antenna unit .(obvious design choice to cool each part separately from each other and therefore imporove coolinf)
12. The assembly unit (100) according to claim 1, wherein the second cooling unit comprises a liquid cooling circuit and/or at least one fan(40 obvious) and/or at least one Peltier element for active cooling.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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 HOVHANNES BAGHDASARYAN whose telephone number is (571)272-7845. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 7am - 5 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Isam Alsomiri can be reached at 5712726970. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/HOVHANNES BAGHDASARYAN/Examiner, Art Unit 3645