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 Claims
This action is reply to the Application Number 17/787,679 filed on 08/11/2025
Claims 1, 7, 9, 10 and 24 – 42 are currently pending and have been examined. Claims 1, 9, 25 – 27, 30 – 38 have been amended. Claims 39 – 42 are new.
This action is made NON-FINAL
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 08/11/2025 has been entered.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements filed 05/19/2025 have been received and considered.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 31 – 42 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Specifically, there is no support in the original disclosure for claim 31 stating: “planning at least two candidate trajectories of vehicle-body motion along the path, wherein, for each of the at least two candidate trajectories, the planning comprises generating that trajectory by filtering the road-profile data with a filter having a distinct filter-frequency parameter; from among the at least two candidate trajectories, selecting a trajectory that minimizes the negative effect of traveling along the path”. The specification states that the trajectory is identified through filtering of the road profile. An improved trajectory from a prior road profile is determined for the host vehicle to implement as it drives over the same road way. The specification and drawings do not disclose or show determining multiple improved trajectories. Furthermore, there is no disclosure of a comparison between the multiple candidate trajectories since multiple candidate trajectories are not disclosed.
To overcome this rejection, applicant may attempt to demonstrate (by means of argument or evidence) that the original disclosure establishes that the inventor had possession of the amended claim.
Dependent claims 32 – 42 are also rejected as being dependent upon claim 31.
Claims 31 – 42 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the enablement requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to enable one skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and/or use the invention. Regarding claim 31, lines 7 – 12: “planning at least two candidate trajectories of vehicle-body motion along the path, wherein, for each of the at least two candidate trajectories, the planning comprises generating that trajectory by filtering the road-profile data with a filter having a distinct filter-frequency parameter; from among the at least two candidate trajectories, selecting a trajectory that minimizes the negative effect of traveling along the path”, the specification does not teach two candidate trajectories as it is only determining a single improved trajectory (Page 17, lines 21 – 30). The trajectory is based on prior roadway profiles in which through filtering of vibrations, an improved trajectory is determined through optimization (Page 1, lines 12 – 27; Page 12, lines 9 – 12). One of ordinary skill in the art would not be able to anticipate from the specification that multiple candidate trajectories are being determined and then compared to provide this improved trajectory. Similarly, one of ordinary skill in the art cannot anticipate creating multiple candidate trajectories for the same reasons. The specification teaches creating two trajectories, one of which being less aggressive and more aggressive (Page 18, line 20 – page 19, line 2). These trajectories however are not compared or even represent an improved trajectory, as stated in specification, these trajectories are for merely showing a difference between these two types of trajectories. There is no direction provided by the inventor which states two candidate trajectories are determined and then selected based on which one minimized the negative effects of the roadway.
Dependent claims 32 – 42 are also rejected as being dependent upon claim 31.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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, 9, 10, 24 – 30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Aikin et al. (US 20180079272 A1) in view of Nauderer et al. (DE102015202405A1), hereinafter Nauderer.
Regarding claim 1, Aikin teaches a method comprising:
obtaining information associated with a road-profile of an upcoming travel surface ahead of a vehicle; and (Aikin: Abstract: “A method includes receiving, at a control system of a vehicle, a road profile for a road at a particular location, the road profile indicating a road condition of the road at the particular location. The method also includes determining that the vehicle is approaching the road at the particular location.”)
based on the information, before traversing the travel surface, (Aikin: Paragraph 0006: “a method to minimize motion of a vehicle is disclosed. The method includes receiving, at a control system of a vehicle, a road profile for a road at a particular location, the road profile indicating a road condition of the road at the particular location. The method also includes determining that the vehicle is approaching the road at the particular location. The method further includes adjusting an active suspension system of the vehicle in response to a determination that the vehicle is approaching the road at the particular location.”; Paragraph 0041: “ In some embodiments, the control system 312 may prepare for the road hazard 342 by reading data from the road profile 314 that may indicate previous adjustments to the active suspension system of the vehicle 310. For example, the road profile 314 may indicate that in a previous drive over the road hazard 342 that the vehicle 310 was raised a particular height to minimize vertical motion of the vehicle 310. The road profile 314 may indicate a particular location corresponding to the road hazard 342 such that the control system 312 may anticipate the road hazard 342 prior to the road hazard 342 entering the field of view 320 of the one or more sensors 316.”; Paragraphs 0051 – 0052: “The profile library 450 may be configured to receive and refine suspension adjustment profiles or force profiles in addition to or instead of the road profile. The vehicle 402 may be configured to send a suspension adjustment profile to the profile library 450 via the network 440 using the one or more communication interfaces 406. The suspension adjustment profile may include information identifying a type of vehicle, a particular location and one or more particular adjustments, as described herein. The profile library 450 may store the suspension adjustment profile to the profile database 454. The profile library 450 may aggregate multiple suspension adjustment profiles from multiple vehicles, including the vehicle 402, in the profile database 454. The vehicle 402 may request a suspension adjustment profile corresponding to a particular road segment from the profile library 450, such as when the vehicle 402 has not traveled over the particular road segment. The profile library 450 may send the suspension adjustment profile from the profile database 454 to the vehicle 402 via the network 440 using the one or more communication interfaces 452. In some embodiments, the profile library 450 may restrict the vehicle 402 from receiving the suspension adjustment profile from a particular vehicle make or model when the vehicle 402 has a different vehicle make or model. In other embodiments, the profile library 450 may send the suspension adjustment profile, and the vehicle 402 may be configured to modify the suspension adjustment profile based on known differences between the make or model of the vehicle 402 and a different make or model associated with the received suspension adjustment profile.”,
Supplemental Note: a road profile is saved in a profile library and can be received by the control system of the vehicle, therefore interpreted as gathering the profile before traversing the roadway)
selecting an improved trajectory to reduce or minimize a negative effect of an event associated with the road-profile,
…and implementing the improved trajectory when the vehicle traverses the travel surface. (Aikin: Paragraph 0034: “In some embodiments, the road profile may be used to generate or determine a suspension adjustment profile that may be used by the control system 112 to adjust the suspension actuators 130A-B. The suspension adjustment profile may also be referred to as a force profile. For example, the suspension adjustment profile may cause the control system 112 to increase actuation of the suspension actuator 130A and decrease actuation of the suspension actuator 130B based on a road hazard (e.g., a pothole) or road configuration (e.g., a turn in the road). In some embodiments, the suspension adjustment profile may correlate or associate a particular force adjustment with particular high-bandwidth accelerations of the unsprung mass 120 and a particular location indicated by the road profile. The force adjustment may indicate that a force is to be applied to a particular control element, such as a suspension actuator or a wheel assembly, to minimize the high-bandwidth accelerations applied to the vehicle 100. For example, the vehicle 100 may have a wheel assembly that is controlled based on the force profile such that movement of the wheel assembly is not controlled by the driver. In some embodiments, the vehicle 100 may be location-aware by the external sensors 114, such as a global positioning system (GPS) providing location data to the vehicle 100. Based on location and the force profile, the control system 112 may cause one or more forces to be applied to the suspension actuators 130A-B or the wheel assemblies 122A-B.”,
Supplemental Note: the received road profile can be used to improve the suspension of the vehicle. Location aware data from external sensors are also used to improve the force profile of the suspension from the received road profile. The trajectory is interpreted as the suspension as it adjusts the vehicle vertical trajectory as they traverse the road profile)
In sum, Aikin teaches a method comprising: obtaining information associated with a road-profile of an upcoming travel surface ahead of a vehicle; and based on the information, before traversing the travel surface, selecting an improved trajectory to reduce or minimize a negative effect of an event associated with the road-profile, and implementing the improved trajectory when the vehicle traverses the travel surface. Aikin however does not teach wherein the selecting comprises identifying a filter-frequency parameter of a filter that a proactive controller applies to the information whereas Nauderer does.
Nauderer teaches wherein the selecting comprises identifying a filter-frequency parameter of a filter that a proactive controller applies to the information; (Nauderer: Paragraph 0003: “The obtained road profile is typically filtered with a bandpass filter to isolate unevenness in the road surface that stimulates the body of the vehicle. Such irregularities lie in the frequency range from 0.5 Hz to approx. 2 Hz.”; Paragraph 0004: “In particular, high-frequency components in a frequency range of approx. 5 Hz to approx. 15 Hz largely eliminated from the road profile. Irregularities in this frequency range typically cause wheel vibrations. The high-frequency components of the road profile can cause a damper in the chassis to tremble or vibrate, particularly in active chassis”)
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the invention disclosed by Aikin with the teachings of Nauderer with a reasonable expectation of success. Aikin and Nauderer both teach a vehicle system able to acquire roadway surface data to be used to adjust the suspension of a vehicle for a smooth ride. One of ordinary skill in the art would find it obvious to try to implement the filter frequencies of the road profile with a bandpass filter as taught by Nauderer with the vehicle of Aikin as applying a bandpass filter aids in isolating the unevenness of the roadway applied to the body of the vehicle. This information can be applied to calculate how much suspension force to apply when an a roadway surface is isolated per the filter.
Regarding claim 9, Aikin, as modified, teaches further comprising at least one component of a system of the vehicle based on at least one setpoint, wherein the at least one setpoint is based on at least one of frequency, gain, or calibration factor. (Aikin: Paragraph 0028: “The suspension position 190 may be adjusted for each of the suspension actuators 130A-B. As referred to herein, low-frequency refers to a frequency which is less than the primary ride frequency, and high-frequency refers to a frequency which is at least equal to (i.e., greater than or equal to) the primary ride frequency, where the primary ride frequency refers to a natural frequency of the sprung mass.”)
Regarding claim 10, Aikin, as modified, teaches at least one computer readable storage medium having encoded thereon executable instructions that, when executed by at least one controller, cause the at least one controller to carry out the method of claim 1. (Aikin: Paragraph 0008: “a computer-readable storage medium is disclosed. The computer-readable storage medium stores instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations. The operations include receiving a road profile indicating a road condition at a particular location. The operations also include receiving, from one or more sensors of a vehicle, a road input based on a current road condition at the particular location. The operations further include updating the road profile based at least in part on the road input.”; Paragraph 0006: “The method includes receiving, at a control system of a vehicle, a road profile for a road at a particular location, the road profile indicating a road condition of the road at the particular location. The method also includes determining that the vehicle is approaching the road at the particular location. The method further includes adjusting an active suspension system of the vehicle in response to a determination that the vehicle is approaching the road at the particular location.”,
Supplementary Note: a control system of a vehicle stores the instructions to perform the tasks stated for claim 1)
Regarding claim 24, Aikin, as modified, teaches wherein the improved trajectory increases a comfort of a vehicle occupant. (Aikin: Paragraph 0003: “Comfort of a passenger in a vehicle is generally managed with passive hardware elements, such as seats, dampers, bushing, springs, jounce bumpers, etc. The passive hardware elements are configured to attenuate lateral, longitudinal or vertical accelerations resulting from the vehicle driving over a road.”; Paragraph 0025: “The control system 112 may be communicatively coupled to the internal sensors 116 and the external sensors 114 via communication links 111. In some embodiments, the control elements may include suspension actuators 130A-B of an active suspension system that is configured to reduce movement of the sprung mass 110 (e.g., a body of the vehicle or a vehicle interior) during operation of the vehicle 100. Accordingly, the control system 112 may control the suspension actuators 130A-B based at least in part on the data received from the external sensors 114, the internal sensors 116, or both.”,
Supplemental Note: the prior art teaches the ability of the suspension to adjust per the roadway profile)
Regarding claim 25, Aikin, as modified, teaches wherein minimizing negative effects increases the comfort of the vehicle occupant. (Aikin: Paragraph 0003: “Comfort of a passenger in a vehicle is generally managed with passive hardware elements, such as seats, dampers, bushing, springs, jounce bumpers, etc. The passive hardware elements are configured to attenuate lateral, longitudinal or vertical accelerations resulting from the vehicle driving over a road.”; Paragraph 0025: “The control system 112 may be communicatively coupled to the internal sensors 116 and the external sensors 114 via communication links 111. In some embodiments, the control elements may include suspension actuators 130A-B of an active suspension system that is configured to reduce movement of the sprung mass 110 (e.g., a body of the vehicle or a vehicle interior) during operation of the vehicle 100. Accordingly, the control system 112 may control the suspension actuators 130A-B based at least in part on the data received from the external sensors 114, the internal sensors 116, or both.”,
Supplemental Note: the suspension of a vehicle provides comfort to the passengers. The prior art teaches the adjustments of the suspension to increase the comfort of the passengers in the vehicle)
Regarding claim 26, Aikin, as modified, teaches wherein based on the event, the improved trajectory causes a suspension of the vehicle to start moving a body of the vehicle before traversing the event. (Aikin: Paragraph 0041: “the control system 312 may anticipate the road hazard 342 prior to the road hazard 342 entering the field of view 320 of the one or more sensors 316. In another example, the road profile 314 may indicate that the road hazard 342 is limited to a particular portion of the road 340. The control system 312 may be configured to adjust only portions of the active suspension system based on the particular portion of the road 340 relative to the vehicle 310. For example, the road hazard 342 may be a small pothole on a passenger side of the vehicle 310. Based on the road profile 314 indicating the size and location of the road hazard 342, the control system 312 may adjust only portions of the active suspension system corresponding to the passenger side of the vehicle 310.”,
Supplemental Note: the road profile states data of a pothole, which a vehicle with this suspension system as it anticipates the pothole and only adjusts the active suspension for that particular portion)
Regarding claim 27, Aikin, as modified, teaches wherein the event is a disturbance associated with the road-profile that causes the vehicle to violate one or more constraints. (Aikin: Paragraph 0041: “the control system 312 may anticipate the road hazard 342 prior to the road hazard 342 entering the field of view 320 of the one or more sensors 316. In another example, the road profile 314 may indicate that the road hazard 342 is limited to a particular portion of the road 340. The control system 312 may be configured to adjust only portions of the active suspension system based on the particular portion of the road 340 relative to the vehicle 310. For example, the road hazard 342 may be a small pothole on a passenger side of the vehicle 310. Based on the road profile 314 indicating the size and location of the road hazard 342, the control system 312 may adjust only portions of the active suspension system corresponding to the passenger side of the vehicle 310.”,
Supplemental Note: in this example, a pothole is a constraint event)
Regarding claim 28, Aikin, as modified, does not teach wherein the selecting comprises applying a zero-phase filter to the information whereas Nauderer does.
Nauderer teaches wherein the selecting comprises applying a zero-phase filter to the information. (Nauderer: Paragraph 0032: “Fig. 1a shows an exemplary vertical dynamics model of a vehicle 100. The vehicle travels in a horizontal direction 111 (i.e. along an x-axis 151) over the roadway 120. The road surface 120 has unevennesses 121, which cause movements of the vehicle 100 in the vertical direction 112 (i.e. perpendicular to the road surface 120 or along a z-axis 152). The vehicle 100 typically includes devices 102, 104 (e.g. suspension/damping units) to cushion and/or dampen the impulses in the vertical direction 112 caused by the bumps 121.”; Paragraph 0047: “The road profile 301 has different amplitudes of vertical deflections on the z-axis 152 at different locations on the x-axis 151. The amplitudes of the vertical deflections of the road profile 301 can be evaluated via threshold values S1 311 and S2 312 (in positive direction) and S3 321 and S4 322 (in negative direction). The threshold values 311, 312, 321, 322 can be parameterized. In particular, the amplitudes of the vertical deflections can be divided into ranges, e.g. B. in the following areas: • Range I: S3 < amplitude < S1; • Range II: S1 < amplitude < S2 or S4 < amplitude < S3; • Range III: Amplitude > S2 or amplitude < S4.”,
Supplemental Note: based on the deflections of the roadway as captured on the roadway profile, the suspension system analyzes the correct force to alleviate the bumps. This is interpreted as zero-phase filtering as the suspension systems are acting as an opposite force to the acquired roadway profile)
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Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the invention disclosed by Aikin with the teachings of Nauderer with a reasonable expectation of success. As discussed in claim 1, Aikin and Nauderer both teach a vehicle system able to acquire roadway surface data to be used to adjust the suspension of a vehicle for a smooth ride. One of ordinary skill in the art would find it obvious to try to implement the filter frequencies of the road profile with a bandpass filter as taught by Nauderer with the vehicle of Aikin as applying a bandpass filter aids in isolating the unevenness of the roadway applied to the body of the vehicle. This information can be applied to calculate how much suspension force, a opposite force to apply to cancel an uneven road surface (i.e. potholes, rutting, etc.), when an a roadway surface is isolated per the filter.
Regarding claim 29, Aikin, as modified, teaches wherein the information is obtained from one or more data stores of travel surface information. (Aikin: Paragraph 0049: “the vehicle 402 may acquire or download the road profile from the profile library 450 that includes aggregated road profiles from a plurality of other vehicles.”)
Regarding claim 30, Aikin, as modified, teaches wherein the one or more data stores are based on data from a crowd-sourced road mapping system. (Aikin: Paragraph 0049: “the vehicle 402 may acquire or download the road profile from the profile library 450 that includes aggregated road profiles from a plurality of other vehicles.”)
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Aikin et al. (US 20180079272 A1) in view of Nauderer et al. (DE102015202405A1) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Munzinger et al. (US 20170138752 A1).
Regarding claim 7, Aikin, as modified, does not teach wherein the information comprises a topography of a road surface whereas as Munzinger does.
Munzinger teaches wherein the information comprises a topography of a road surface (Munzinger: Abstract: “A system for updating location-based data available to a network of user includes a network of users connected to a server; a database comprising location-based information on the server accessible to the network of users, the location-based information including global positioning system (GPS) coordinates of environmental conditions including traffic conditions, topographical information, weather information, road surface condition information, roadside object information, on-road object information, and combinations thereof;”)
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the invention disclosed by Aikin with the teachings of Munzinger with a reasonable expectation of success. Aikin teaches the ability to gather a roadway profile of the roadway surface, one with knowledge in the art would find the ability to acquire a topography of the road surface as taught by Munzinger to be obvious to try to combine with the vehicle of Aikin. Aikin teaches: (Paragraph 0030: “The road profile may be used by the control system 112 to adjust the control elements. In a particular embodiment, the road profile may indicate to the control system 112 that the vehicle is approaching a particular road condition in the surface 140 (e.g., a pothole) that was previously determined and stored to the road profile. Based on information from the road profile, the control system 112 may adjust the control elements proactively in anticipation of the pothole. For example, the control system 112 may cause the control elements to adjust only a driver-side set of suspension actuators 130A-B in response to the pothole being on the driver-side of the surface 140. In some embodiments, the road profile may serve as a map of commonly traveled routes and corresponding road conditions. In other embodiments, the road profile may indicate a road type at the particular location. The control system 112 may adjust the control elements based on the road type. For example, the road profile may indicate that the road type of the surface 140 at the particular location as being a part of a highway.“) , thus already teaching the ability of the road profile to serve as a map of routes and roadway conditions. The addition of topography information allows the vehicle to have elevations of all parts of the roadway, therefore more effectively able to control its suspension system for a smoother ride than it currently stands.
Claims 31 – 39, 41 and 42 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Aikin et al. (US 20180079272 A1) in view of Nauderer et al. (DE102015202405A1) and further in view of Kobilarov et al. (US 10671075 B1).
Regarding claim 31, Aikin teaches a method for minimizing a negative effect of travel with a vehicle along an upcoming path of travel on a road, the method comprising: (Aikin: Paragraph 0006: “In one embodiment, a method to minimize motion of a vehicle is disclosed. The method includes receiving, at a control system of a vehicle, a road profile for a road at a particular location, the road profile indicating a road condition of the road at the particular location. The method also includes determining that the vehicle is approaching the road at the particular location. The method further includes adjusting an active suspension system of the vehicle in response to a determination that the vehicle is approaching the road at the particular location.”)
obtaining road-profile data for the path of travel (Aikin: Abstract: “A method includes receiving, at a control system of a vehicle, a road profile for a road at a particular location, the road profile indicating a road condition of the road at the particular location. The method also includes determining that the vehicle is approaching the road at the particular location.”)
before traveling along the path, planning at least two candidate trajectories of vehicle-body motion along the path, wherein, for each of the at least two candidate trajectories, the planning comprises generating that trajectory (Aikin: Paragraphs 0051 – 0052: “The profile library 450 may be configured to receive and refine suspension adjustment profiles or force profiles in addition to or instead of the road profile. The vehicle 402 may be configured to send a suspension adjustment profile to the profile library 450 via the network 440 using the one or more communication interfaces 406. The suspension adjustment profile may include information identifying a type of vehicle, a particular location and one or more particular adjustments, as described herein. The profile library 450 may store the suspension adjustment profile to the profile database 454. The profile library 450 may aggregate multiple suspension adjustment profiles from multiple vehicles, including the vehicle 402, in the profile database 454. The vehicle 402 may request a suspension adjustment profile corresponding to a particular road segment from the profile library 450, such as when the vehicle 402 has not traveled over the particular road segment. The profile library 450 may send the suspension adjustment profile from the profile database 454 to the vehicle 402 via the network 440 using the one or more communication interfaces 452. In some embodiments, the profile library 450 may restrict the vehicle 402 from receiving the suspension adjustment profile from a particular vehicle make or model when the vehicle 402 has a different vehicle make or model. In other embodiments, the profile library 450 may send the suspension adjustment profile, and the vehicle 402 may be configured to modify the suspension adjustment profile based on known differences between the make or model of the vehicle 402 and a different make or model associated with the received suspension adjustment profile.”,
Supplemental Note: multiple profiles can be made for the same roadway section)
… while traveling along the path, operating a suspension system of the vehicle to implement the selected trajectory of vehicle-body motion. (Aikin: Paragraph 0034: “In some embodiments, the road profile may be used to generate or determine a suspension adjustment profile that may be used by the control system 112 to adjust the suspension actuators 130A-B. The suspension adjustment profile may also be referred to as a force profile. For example, the suspension adjustment profile may cause the control system 112 to increase actuation of the suspension actuator 130A and decrease actuation of the suspension actuator 130B based on a road hazard (e.g., a pothole) or road configuration (e.g., a turn in the road). In some embodiments, the suspension adjustment profile may correlate or associate a particular force adjustment with particular high-bandwidth accelerations of the unsprung mass 120 and a particular location indicated by the road profile. The force adjustment may indicate that a force is to be applied to a particular control element, such as a suspension actuator or a wheel assembly, to minimize the high-bandwidth accelerations applied to the vehicle 100. For example, the vehicle 100 may have a wheel assembly that is controlled based on the force profile such that movement of the wheel assembly is not controlled by the driver. In some embodiments, the vehicle 100 may be location-aware by the external sensors 114, such as a global positioning system (GPS) providing location data to the vehicle 100. Based on location and the force profile, the control system 112 may cause one or more forces to be applied to the suspension actuators 130A-B or the wheel assemblies 122A-B.”,
Supplemental Note: the received road profile can be used to improve the suspension of the vehicle. Location aware data from external sensors are also used to improve the force profile of the suspension from the received road profile. The trajectory is interpreted as the suspension as it adjusts the vehicle vertical trajectory as they traverse the road profile)
In sum, Aikin teaches A method for minimizing a negative effect of travel with a vehicle along an upcoming path of travel on a road, the method comprising: obtaining road-profile data for the path of travel before traveling along the path, planning at least two candidate trajectories of vehicle-body motion along the path, wherein, for each of the at least two candidate trajectories, the planning comprises generating that trajectory while traveling along the path, operating a suspension system of the vehicle to implement the selected trajectory of vehicle-body motion. Aikin however does not teach filtering the road-profile data with a filter having a distinct filter-frequency parameter whereas Nauderer does.
Nauderer teaches by filtering the road-profile data with a filter having a distinct filter-frequency parameter; (Nauderer: Paragraph 0003: “The obtained road profile is typically filtered with a bandpass filter to isolate unevenness in the road surface that stimulates the body of the vehicle. Such irregularities lie in the frequency range from 0.5 Hz to approx. 2 Hz.”; Paragraph 0004: “In particular, high-frequency components in a frequency range of approx. 5 Hz to approx. 15 Hz largely eliminated from the road profile. Irregularities in this frequency range typically cause wheel vibrations. The high-frequency components of the road profile can cause a damper in the chassis to tremble or vibrate, particularly in active chassis”)
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the invention disclosed by Aikin with the teachings of Nauderer with a reasonable expectation of success. Please refer to claim 1 as both state the same function and therefore rejected under the same pretenses. Aikin in view of Nauderer however still do not teach from among the at least two candidate trajectories, selecting a trajectory that minimizes the negative effect of traveling along the path whereas Kobilarov does.
Kobilarov teaches from among the at least two candidate trajectories, selecting a trajectory that minimizes the negative effect of traveling along the path; and (Kobilarov: Col. 18, lines 9 – 27: “At operation 702, the process can include receiving a candidate trajectory. In some instances, the candidate trajectory received in the operation 702 can include an optimized trajectory that is to be implemented by components of an autonomous vehicle. For example, the candidate trajectory of the operation 702 may have been selected as an action to be performed and optimized to minimize one or more costs while respecting motion dynamics, safety, performance, mission requirements, and the like. In some instances, the candidate trajectory can be received by the decision planner component 512, the trajectory tracker component 514, and/or the execution component 516. In some instances, the operation 702 can include simulating the vehicle dynamics with respect to the candidate trajectory and/or simulating various fallback or stopping operations with respect to the candidate trajectory or obstacles that may be present in an environment with respect to the candidate trajectory.”; Col. 17, lines 57 – 67 :“At operation 610, the process can include outputting the candidate trajectory. In some instances, the candidate trajectory can be output to another selection step whereby a candidate trajectory can be selected from a plurality of optimized candidate trajectories corresponding to various actions (e.g., optimal trajectories for merging left, merging right, stopping, continuing straight, etc.). In some instances, the candidate trajectory can be output to the trajectory tracker component 514 and/or the execution component 516 to control an autonomous vehicle to follow the candidate trajectory.”)
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the invention disclosed by Aikin with the teachings of Kobilarov with a reasonable expectation of success. Aikin and Kobilarov both teach gathering roadway information and adjusting its vehicle components to increase the comfort of the user while traversing that section. Kobilarov further teaches the ability to select an candidate trajectory for a vehicle to from multiple optimized trajectories. One with knowledge in the art would find this obvious to try to implement with the vehicle of Aikin to increase the comfort for the passenger. Aikin teaches storing roadway profiles in an online database which can be acquired by any vehicle also planning to traverse that section (Aikin: Paragraphs 0051 – 0052). The profiles however may not fully match the vehicle therefore the selected profile may not be the most effective. The ability to compare the different profiles would allow the ability to select the best profile for the vehicle that has the highest user comfort.
Regarding claim 32, Aikin, as modified, does not teach wherein selecting the trajectory comprises comparing at least two of the at least two candidate trajectories generated by filtering the road-profile data whereas Kobilarov does.
Kobilarov teaches wherein selecting the trajectory comprises comparing at least two of the at least two candidate trajectories generated by filtering the road-profile data (Kobilarov: Col. 18, lines 9 – 27: “At operation 702, the process can include receiving a candidate trajectory. In some instances, the candidate trajectory received in the operation 702 can include an optimized trajectory that is to be implemented by components of an autonomous vehicle. For example, the candidate trajectory of the operation 702 may have been selected as an action to be performed and optimized to minimize one or more costs while respecting motion dynamics, safety, performance, mission requirements, and the like. In some instances, the candidate trajectory can be received by the decision planner component 512, the trajectory tracker component 514, and/or the execution component 516. In some instances, the operation 702 can include simulating the vehicle dynamics with respect to the candidate trajectory and/or simulating various fallback or stopping operations with respect to the candidate trajectory or obstacles that may be present in an environment with respect to the candidate trajectory.”; Col. 17, lines 57 – 67 :“At operation 610, the process can include outputting the candidate trajectory. In some instances, the candidate trajectory can be output to another selection step whereby a candidate trajectory can be selected from a plurality of optimized candidate trajectories corresponding to various actions (e.g., optimal trajectories for merging left, merging right, stopping, continuing straight, etc.). In some instances, the candidate trajectory can be output to the trajectory tracker component 514 and/or the execution component 516 to control an autonomous vehicle to follow the candidate trajectory.”)
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the invention disclosed by Aikin with the teachings of Kobilarov with a reasonable expectation of success. Please refer to claim 1 as both state the same function and therefore rejected under the same pretenses. Aikin in view of Kobilarov however still do not teach filtering with filters having distinct filter-frequency parameters whereas Nauderer does.
Nauderer teaches with filters having distinct filter-frequency parameters (Nauderer: Paragraph 0002: “The elevation profile data can e.g. For example, the course of the road ahead in the vertical direction at a given point in time can be described as a sequence of points in the longitudinal and vertical directions. The height profile data from each bump sensor can be overlaid to determine a road profile relative to a contact point of the vehicle's tires.”; Paragraph 0003: “The obtained road profile is typically filtered with a bandpass filter to isolate unevenness in the road surface that stimulates the body of the vehicle. Such irregularities lie in the frequency range from 0.5 Hz to approx. 2 Hz For low-pass filtering of the road profile, for example, For example, a “moving average” method can be used, which leads to a smoothing of the road profile. In the “moving average” method, average values are calculated over a section of the road profile. The window used is moved overlapping over the course of the road profile.”; Paragraph 0064: “Furthermore, the described procedure does not consider a low-pass filtered road profile, which e.g. B. is limited to a frequency range of less than 5 Hz. Through such low-pass filtering, individual events/unevenness of the road surface 120 are detected with a higher frequency (e.g. B. up to 15 Hz) is lost, so that the chassis of the vehicle 100 cannot react to such individual events/bumps. The filter described in this document makes it possible to react individually to higher frequencies when the threshold values 311, 312, 321, 322 are exceeded. In other words, the described procedure enables a chassis to react even to significant high frequency individual events/bumps. In addition, by increasing the number of threshold values 311, 312, 321, 322, continuous control according to an increased number of different profile classes 341, 342, 343 can be implemented.”,
Supplemental Note: One filter is used for frequencies from 5 Hz to 15 Hz. Higher frequencies are also filtered above these values as shown in Fig. 3a.)
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Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the invention disclosed by Aikin with the teachings of Nauderer with a reasonable expectation of success. As discussed in claim 1, Aikin and Nauderer both teach a vehicle system able to acquire roadway surface data to be used to adjust the suspension of a vehicle for a smooth ride. One of ordinary skill in the art would find it obvious to try to implement the filter frequencies of the road profile with a bandpass filter as taught by Nauderer with the vehicle of Aikin as applying a bandpass filter aids in isolating the unevenness of the roadway applied to the body of the vehicle. This information can be applied to calculate how much suspension force, an opposite force to apply to cancel an uneven road surface (i.e. potholes, rutting, etc.), when an a roadway surface is isolated per the filter.
Regarding claim 33, Aikin, as modified, does not teach wherein, for the selected trajectory, the distinct filter-frequency parameter is a cutoff frequency or a band-pass range chosen to avoid violating one or more constraints whereas Nauderer does.
Nauderer teaches wherein, for the selected trajectory, the distinct filter-frequency parameter is a cutoff frequency or a band-pass range chosen to avoid violating one or more constraints. (Nauderer: Paragraph 0003: “The obtained road profile is typically filtered with a bandpass filter to isolate unevenness in the road surface that stimulates the body of the vehicle. Such irregularities lie in the frequency range from 0.5 Hz to approx. 2 Hz For low-pass filtering of the road profile, for example, For example, a “moving average” method can be used, which leads to a smoothing of the road profile. In the “moving average” method, average values are calculated over a section of the road profile. The window used is moved overlapping over the course of the road profile.”; Paragraph 0004: “By low-pass filtering the road profile, high-frequency components of the road profile are eliminated. In particular, high-frequency components in a frequency range of approx. 4 Hz to approx. 15 Hz largely eliminated from the road profile. Irregularities in this frequency range typically cause wheel vibrations. The high-frequency components of the road profile can cause a damper in the chassis to tremble or vibrate, particularly in active chassis. This can be e.g. This can be caused, for example, by noise and inaccuracies in the elevation profile data provided by the cameras or by jumps in the composition of the road profile.”,
Supplemental Note: a frequency from 0.5 Hz to 2 Hz is filtered out as not violating any constraints as it does not impact stimulations onto the body of the vehicle. The low-pass filter is an example of a cutoff frequency )
Therefore, it would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the invention disclosed by Aikin with the teachings of Nauderer with a reasonable expectation of success. As discussed in claim 1, Aikin and Nauderer both teach a vehicle system able to acquire roadway surface data to be used to adjust the suspension of the vehicle for a smooth ride. One of ordinary skill in the art would find it obvious to try to implement the filter frequencies of the road profile with a bandpass filter as taught by Nauderer with the vehicle of Aikin as applying a bandpass filter aids in isolating the unevenness of the roadway applied to the body of the vehicle. This information can be applied to calculate how much suspension force, an opposite force to apply to cancel an uneven road surface (i.e. potholes, rutting, etc.), when an a roadway surface is isolated per the filter.
Regarding claim 34, Aikin, as modified, teaches wherein the one or more constraints comprise a suspension-travel constraint. (Aikin: Paragraph 0003: “Comfort of a passenger in a vehicle is generally managed with passive hardware elements, such as seats, dampers, bushing, springs, jounce bumpers, etc. The passive hardware elements are configured to attenuate lateral, longitudinal or vertical accelerations resulting from the vehicle driving over a road.”; Paragraph 0025: “The control system 112 may be communicatively coupled to the internal sensors 116 and the external sensors 114 via communication links 111. In some embodiments, the control elements may include suspension actuators 130A-B of an active suspension system that is configured to reduce movement of the sprung mass 110 (e.g., a body of the vehicle or a vehicle interior) during operation of the vehicle 100. Accordingly, the control system 112 may control the suspension actuators 130A-B based at least in part on the data received from the external sensors 114, the internal sensors 116, or both.”,
Supplemental Note: the suspension of a vehicle provides comfort to the passengers. The prior art teaches the adjustments of the suspension to increase the comfort of the passengers in the vehicle)
Regarding claim 35, Aikin, as modified, teaches wherein the suspension-travel constraint is based on a difference between a road-profile height along the path of travel and a height of the selected trajectory. (Aikin: Paragraph 0041: “the control system 312 may anticipate the road hazard 342 prior to the road hazard 342 entering the field of view 320 of the one or more sensors 316. In another example, the road profile 314 may indicate that the road hazard 342 is limited to a particular portion of the road 340. The control system 312 may be configured to adjust only portions of the active suspension system based on the particular portion of the road 340 relative to the vehicle 310. For example, the road hazard 342 may be a small pothole on a passenger side of the vehicle 310. Based on the road profile 314 indicating the size and location of the road