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 05/26/26 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Regarding claim 1, Applicant states that the prior art references of Miyajima, Kanno, Ikeda and Nireki fail to disclose after the conveyor is controlled to stop conveyance of the medium, the controller determines a transition from a first state to second state. In the first state, the output of the first sensor is the detection state, and the conveyor is stopped. In the second state, the conveyor remains stopped and the output of the first sensor is the non-detection state (Applicants Remarks pages 7-9). Examiner disagrees with Applicant. Nireki 531 teaches when the first paper money detection sensor 24 detects the leading end of paper money, the conveyance motor 53 is driven backward and the paper money is ejected from the insertion slot 2 (paragraph 0321). Note: when the paper money is initially detected (detection state), the conveyance motor would obviously have to stop to drive the paper money backwards to be ejected. Therefore, once the paper money has been detected, the conveyance motor stops. While the conveyance motor is stopped, the paper money detection sensor would then be in a non-detection state, since the paper money is no longer moving and thus the paper detection sensor would not be detecting the paper money (non-detection state). The conveyance motor 53 then reverses direction and ejects the paper money out of the insertion slot 2. Therefore, the detection state of the money detection sensor 24 would obviously go from a detection state to a non-detection state when the conveyance motor has stopped. This reads on after the conveyor is controlled to stop conveyance of the medium, the controller determines a transition from a first state to second state. In the first state, the output of the first sensor is the detection state and the conveyor is stopped. In the second state, the conveyor remains stopped and the output of the first sensor is the non-detection state.
Examiner agrees that Miyajima does not teach the amended limitation (Applicants Remarks page 8). Miyajima is not relied on to teach the amended limitation but does teach of moving a medium in a conveying direction when detected (paragraph 0035-0036)
Examiner agrees that Kanno does not teach the amended limitation (Applicants Remarks page 8). Kanno teaches When receiving the instruction for starting printing operation, the sheet feeding conveyance control unit 215 starts a sheet feeding operation. The sheet of paper P is fed from the cassette 16. The sheet feeding conveyance control unit 215 stops conveying the sheet of paper P in a temporary manner at the time when the leading edge of the sheet of paper P reaches the temporary stop position 36 in accordance with e time when the registration sensor 35 detects the leading edge of the sheet of paper P that is fed (paragraph 0030). In other words, when the printing operation begins, a sheet is fed and the conveyance is stopped as soon as the leading edge is detected, based on the detection of the registration sensor 35.
Examiner agrees that Miyajima does not teach the amended limitation (Applicants Remarks page 8). Ikeda teaches determining that the medium detection sensor 16 no longer detects the medium P (changing detection state to non-detection state), the control device 19 (controller) waits until a predetermined period of time has passed, from the time point at which the medium detection sensor 16 no longer detects the medium P (the controller determines a transition from a first state to second state, the first state, the output of the first sensor is the detection state and the conveyor is stopped). Note: the medium P is not being conveyed while the image pickup unit is scanning the medium P. When the predetermined period of time has passed, The control device 19 then performs paper ejection control of the medium P, upon generation of the picked-up image data (Step S8). More specifically, the control device 19 supplies power (starting the convey process after it has been stopped) to the drive motor to rotate the drive roller 112a, thereby conveying the medium P in the conveyance direction and ejecting at least a part of the medium P (paragraph 0069). In other words, when the medium detection sensor 16 no longer detects the medium, the conveyor is stopped, so that an image of the back of the medium is scanned. Once that the scan process (image pickup unit 12) is the controller 19 supplies power to the drive motor to eject the medium. Thereby initiating ejection of the medium based on a sensor state change during a stopped condition, since the medium is ejected after the sensor 16 stops detecting the medium and power is restored to perform the ejection. Note: when the state of the paper ejection control is changed, that would require the conveyor to stop and then change direction. Therefore, Ikeda would read on after the conveyor is controlled to stop conveyance of the medium, the controller determines a transition from a first state to second state. In the first state, the output of the first sensor is the detection state and the conveyor is stopped. In the second state, the conveyor remains stopped and the output of the first sensor is the non-detection state.
The rejection is maintained.
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.
Claim(s) 1-3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ikeda US 2011/0181925 in view of Kanno US 2020/0002115 further in view of Nireki US 20160075531
Regarding claim 1, Ikeda teaches A medium conveyance device (image reading apparatus 1 (paragraph 0024) comprising:
a conveyor configured to convey a medium along a conveyance path (conveyor roller 11 conveys the medium P (paragraph 0026);
a first sensor configured to detect whether or not the medium is disposed in a detection region in the conveyance path (the imaging sensor 122 in the conveyance direction. imaging sensor 122 picks up the image of the medium P according to reflected light from the medium P conveyed toward the imaging position by the conveyor roller 11 (paragraph 0043-0045); and
a controller configured to control the conveyor to convey the medium in an ejection direction opposite to a feed direction (control device 19 determines whether the medium detection sensor 16 has stopped detection of the medium P, based on the medium detection signal output from the medium detection sensor 16 (Step S5). When determining that the medium detection sensor 16 no longer detects the medium P (YES at Step S5), The control device 19 then performs paper ejection control of the medium P, upon generation of the picked-up image data (Step S8). More specifically, the control device 19 conveys the medium P in the conveyance direction and ejecting at least a part of the medium P from the housing 10 (paragraph 0069) and
when the first sensor no longer detects the medium, wherein the controller controls the conveyor to convey the medium in the ejection direction when the conveyor keeps the medium stopped and when the first sensor no longer detects the medium (control device 19 determines whether the medium detection sensor 16 has stopped detection of the medium P, based on the medium detection signal output from the medium detection sensor 16. The control device 19 then performs paper ejection control of the medium P. More specifically, the control device 19 conveys the medium P in the conveyance direction and ejecting at least a part of the medium P from the housing 10 (paragraph 0069) Note: when the state of the paper ejection control is changed, that would require the conveyor to stop and then change direction,
eject the medium from the opening when an output of the first sensor changes from a detection state in which the first sensor detects the medium to a non-detection state in which the first sensor does not detect the medium while the conveyor is conveying the medium in the feed direction (control device 19 determines whether the medium detection sensor 16 has stopped detection of the medium P, based on the medium detection signal output from the medium detection sensor 16 (Step S5). When determining that the medium detection sensor 16 no longer detects the medium P (YES at Step S5), The control device 19 then performs paper ejection control of the medium P, upon generation of the picked-up image data (Step S8). More specifically, the control device 19 conveys the medium P in the conveyance direction and ejecting at least a part of the medium P from the housing 10 (paragraph 0069), wherein
the controller is further configured to control the conveyor to convey the medium in the ejection direction and eject the medium from the opening when the output of the first sensor changes from the detection state to the non-detection state while the conveying of the medium by the conveyor is stopped (the control device 19 determines whether the housing 10 is in the stationary state or in the non-stationary state, and changes the paper ejection control of the medium P according to a determination result thereof. the control device 19 first determines when determining that the housing 10 is in the non-stationary state at Step S21, the control device 19 determines that the housing 10 is in the non-stationary state as well at Step S81 (paragraph 0071). When determining that the housing 10 is in the stationary state (YES at Step S81), the medium P is ejected from the housing 10 (Step S82) (paragraph 0072) Note: when the state of the paper ejection control is changed, that would require the conveyor to stop and then change direction
Ikeda fails to teach when the first sensor no longer detects the medium, wherein the controller controls the conveyor to convey the medium in the ejection direction when the conveyor keeps the medium stopped and when the first sensor no longer detects the medium
Kanno teaches when the first sensor no longer detects the medium, wherein the controller controls the conveyor to convey the medium in the ejection direction when the conveyor keeps the medium stopped and when the first sensor no longer detects the medium (When the registration sensor 35 does not detect the leading edge of the sheet of paper P for a period from when the sheet feeding operation is started by the pickup roller 17 to when a predetermined period elapses since, the sheet feeding conveyance control unit 215 determines that a sheet feeding failure (paragraph 0031) Note: the conveyance control unit 215 suspends the conveyance of sheet because of a failure, thereby stopping the medium when the registration sensor 35 does not detect the paper)
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the art to have modified Ikeda to include: when the first sensor no longer detects the medium, wherein the controller controls the conveyor to convey the medium in the ejection direction when the conveyor keeps the medium stopped and when the first sensor no longer detects the medium
The reason of doing so would be to accurately detecting any issues with conveying and processing a sheet
Ikeda in view of Kanno fails to teach an opening through which a medium is inserted into a conveyance path;
upon detection of the medium by the first sensor immediately after insertion of the medium through the opening, control the conveyor to stop conveyance of the medium;
upon determining, after the conveyor is controlled to stop conveyance of the medium that a transition occurs from a first state in which the output of the first sensor is the detection state and the conveyor is stopped to a second state in which the conveyor remains stopped and the output of the first sensor is the non-detection state, control the conveyor to convey the medium in the ejection direction along the conveyance path;
control the conveyor to eject the medium through the opening through which the medium is inserted;
Nireki teaches an opening through which a medium is inserted into a conveyance path (the insertion slot 2 (fig 1A and paragraph 0321);
upon detection of the medium by the first sensor immediately after insertion of the medium through the opening, control the conveyor to stop conveyance of the medium (when the first paper money detection sensor 24 detects the leading end of paper money, the conveyance motor 53 is driven backward and the paper money is ejected from the insertion slot 2 (paragraph 0321). Note: when the paper money is initially detected, the conveyance motor reverses direction, which obviously means that the conveyance motor was driving forward and once the paper money is detected, the motor would have to stop and then move backward);
upon determining, after the conveyor is controlled to stop conveyance of the medium that a transition occurs from a first state in which the output of the first sensor is the detection state and the conveyor is stopped to a second state in which the conveyor remains stopped and the output of the first sensor is the non-detection state, control the conveyor to convey the medium in the ejection direction along the conveyance path (when the first paper money detection sensor 24 detects the leading end of paper money, the conveyance motor 53 is driven backward and the paper money is ejected from the insertion slot 2 (paragraph 0321). Note: when the paper money is initially detected (detection state), the conveyance motor would obviously have to stop in order to drive the paper money backwards to be ejected. Therefore, once the paper money has been detected, the conveyance motor stops. While the conveyance motor is stopped, the paper money detection sensor would then be in a non-detection state, since the paper money is no longer moving and thus the paper detection sensor would not be detecting the paper money (non-detection state). The conveyance motor 53 then reverses direction and ejects the paper money out of the insertion slot 2. Therefore, the detection state of the money detection sensor 24 would obviously go from a detection state to a non-detection state when the conveyance motor has stopped.
control the conveyor to eject the medium through the opening through which the medium is inserted (the paper money is conveyed to return to the insertion slot 2. the paper money is ejected and the ejection is stopped when the motor is driven for 38 mm after the detection of the paper money (fig 1a and paragraph 0321).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the art to have modified Ikeda in view of Kanno to include: upon detection of the medium by the first sensor immediately after insertion of the medium through the opening, control the conveyor to stop conveyance of the medium; eject the medium through the opening through which the medium is inserted
The reason of doing so would be able to remove the sheet easily and save time
Regarding claim 2, Ikeda in view of Kanno further in view of Nireki teaches wherein the controller controls the conveyor to stop conveying the medium when the output of the first sensor changes from the non-detection state to the detection state while the conveyor is conveying the medium in the feed direction and when the first sensor detects the medium is disposed in the detection region (Ikeda: control device 19 determines whether the medium detection sensor 16 has stopped detection of the medium P, based on the medium detection signal output from the medium detection sensor 16 (Step S5). When determining that the medium detection sensor 16 no longer detects the medium P (YES at Step S5), The control device 19 then performs paper ejection control of the medium P, upon generation of the picked-up image data (Step S8). More specifically, the control device 19 conveys the medium P in the conveyance direction and ejecting at least a part of the medium P from the housing 10 (paragraph 0069)
Regarding claim 3, Ikeda in view of Kanno further in view of Ikeda further in view of Nireki teaches comprising an input unit that detects a conveyance start instruction (Ikeda: the control device 19 determines whether the scan button 18 has been turned on by determining whether a scanning start signal from the scan button 18 has been input (paragraph 0068), wherein the controller controls the conveyor to convey the medium in the feed direction when the conveyor keeps the medium stopped and when the input unit detects the conveyance start instruction (Ikeda: When determining that the housing 10 is in the stationary state (YES at Step S81), the medium P is ejected from the housing 10 (Step S82), to finish the paper ejection control of the medium P (END). When determining that the housing is in the stationary state based on the detection result of the switch 151, the control device 19 causes the drive roller 112a and the driven roller 112b to eject the medium P from the housing 10. More specifically, in the present embodiment, when determining that a rear end of the medium P in the conveyance direction is detected based on a detection result of the medium detection sensor 16, the control device 19 controls, for example, the number of pulses to be supplied to the drive unit, thereby rotating the drive roller 112a by the number of rotations for paper ejection (paragraph 0072)
Claim(s) 4-5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ikeda US 2011/0181925 in view of Kanno US 2020/0002115 further in view of Nireki US 20160075531 further in view of Sakai US 2022/0033210
Regarding claim 4, Ikeda in view of Kanno further in view of Nireki teaches all of the limitations of claim 1,
Ikeda in view of Kanno further in view of Nireki fails to teach wherein the conveyor includes: a pair of feed-side rollers that supports a portion of the medium, the portion being disposed in a feed-side region; and a pair of ejection-side rollers that supports a portion of the medium, the portion being disposed in an ejection-side region, the feed-side region is disposed downstream of the detection region in the feed direction in the conveyance path, and the ejection-side region is disposed upstream of the detection region in the feed direction in the conveyance path.
Sakai teaches wherein the conveyor includes: a pair of feed-side rollers that supports a portion of the medium, the portion being disposed in a feed-side region (conveyance rollers 419d to 419g (feed-side rollers ) (paragraph 0174 and fig 18); and
a pair of ejection-side rollers that supports a portion of the medium, the portion being disposed in an ejection-side region (the discharge rollers 422 (ejection-side rollers ) (paragraph 0174 and fig 18),
the feed-side region is disposed downstream of the detection region in the feed direction in the conveyance path (conveyance rollers 419d to 419g rotating downstream, see A27 in fig 18), and the ejection-side region is disposed upstream of the detection region in the feed direction in the conveyance path (the discharge rollers 422 (ejection-side rollers), see rotating upstream A34 in fig 18)
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the art to have modified Ikeda in view of Kanno further in view of Nireki to include: wherein the conveyor includes: a pair of feed-side rollers that supports a portion of the medium, the portion being disposed in a feed-side region; and a pair of ejection-side rollers that supports a portion of the medium, the portion being disposed in an ejection-side region, the feed-side region is disposed downstream of the detection region in the feed direction in the conveyance path, and the ejection-side region is disposed upstream of the detection region in the feed direction in the conveyance path
The reason of doing so would be to efficiently process a sheet
Regarding claim 5, Ikeda in view of Kanno further in view of Nireki teaches the limitations of claim 1 and 4,
Ikeda in view of Kanno further in view of Nireki fails to teach a second sensor configured to detect whether or not the medium is disposed in another detection region upstream of the ejection-side region in the feed direction in the conveyance path, wherein the controller controls the conveyor to convey the medium in the feed direction when the conveyor does not convey the medium and when the second sensor detects the medium.
Sakai teaches a second sensor configured to detect whether or not the medium is disposed in another detection region upstream of the ejection-side region in the feed direction in the conveyance path, wherein the controller controls the conveyor to convey the medium in the feed direction when the conveyor does not convey the medium and when the second sensor detects the medium (second medium detection sensor 117 is located on the downstream side of the feed roller 115 and the brake roller 116 and the upstream side of the first conveyance roller 119 and the second conveyance roller 120, i.e., on the upstream side of the imaging device 121, to detect whether or not the medium exists at the position (paragraph 0064) control module 151 determines that the front end of the medium has passed through the position of the second medium detection sensor 117 when the signal value of the second medium detection signal changes from a value indicating that the medium is not present to a value indicating that the medium is present (paragraph 0097)
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the art to have modified Ikeda in view of Kanno further in view of Nireki to include: a second sensor configured to detect whether or not the medium is disposed in another detection region upstream of the ejection-side region in the feed direction in the conveyance path, wherein the controller controls the conveyor to convey the medium in the feed direction when the conveyor does not convey the medium and when the second sensor detects the medium
The reason of doing so would be to efficiently process a sheet
Claim(s) 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ikeda US 2011/0181925 in view of Kanno US 2020/0002115 further in view of Nireki US 20160075531 further in view of Sakai US 2022/0033210 further in view of Suzuki et al US 2019/0056683
Regarding claim 6, Ikeda in view of Kanno further in view of Nireki further in view of Sakai teaches all of the limitations of claim 4
Ikeda in view of Kanno further in view of Nireki further in view of Sakai fails to teach a motor that rotates the pair of ejection-side rollers and the pair of feed-side rollers and ,
wherein the controller stops the motor at a motor stop timing corresponding to a rear-end passage timing at which the sensor no longer detects the medium when the conveyor conveys the medium in the ejection direction.
Suzuki et al teaches a motor that rotates the pair of ejection-side rollers and the pair of feed-side rollers (return rollers 420 are configured to rotate in the forward direction by the drive force of the motor 300 (paragraph 0051). motor 300 is a motor configured to drive the rollers R (paragraph 0053) and ,
wherein the controller stops the motor at a motor stop timing corresponding to a rear-end passage timing at which the sensor no longer detects the medium when the conveyor conveys the medium in the ejection direction (controller 200 stops the motor 300 after the developer image on the sheet S is fixed by the fixing device 170, specifically, when a part adjacent to a rear end portion of the sheet S is supported by the rollers R (S7, time t3 in FIG. 3). In the meantime, the stop timing of the motor 300 may be set on the basis of elapse time after the second sheet sensor 102 becomes OFF (paragraph 0069)
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the art to have modified Ikeda in view of Kanno further in view of Nireki further in view of Sakai to include: a motor that rotates the pair of ejection-side rollers and the pair of feed-side rollers and wherein the controller stops the motor at a motor stop timing corresponding to a rear-end passage timing at which the sensor no longer detects the medium when the conveyor conveys the medium in the ejection direction
The reason of doing so would be to efficiently process a sheet
Claim(s) 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ikeda US 2011/0181925 in view of Kanno US 2020/0002115 further in view of Nireki US 20160075531 further in view of Sakai US 2022/0033210 further in view of Suzuki US 2017/0158448.
Regarding claim 7, Ikeda in view of Kanno further in view of Nireki further in view of Sakai teaches all of the limitations of claims 1 and 4
Ikeda in view of Kanno further in view of Nireki further in view of Sakai fails to teach a reader configured to perform reading to read an image on a portion of the medium, the portion being disposed in a reading region, wherein the reading region is disposed between the detection region and the ejection-side region in the conveyance path, and
the controller controls the reader to start the reading at a reading start timing corresponding to a front-end passage timing at which the first sensor detects the medium when the conveyor conveys the medium in the ejection direction, and
controls the reader to terminate the reading at a reading termination timing corresponding to a rear-end passage timing at which the sensor no longer detects the medium when the conveyor conveys the medium in the ejection direction.
Suzuki teaches a reader configured to perform reading to read an image on a portion of the medium, the portion being disposed in a reading region, wherein the reading region is disposed between the detection region and the ejection-side region in the conveyance path (the scanner sensor 36 (reader) detects the document 33, and the paired front rollers 32 and convey the document 33 in the conveyance direction 35. when the document 33 is stopped once on the contact glass 38, the user presses a reading start button on the control panel 4 to further convey the document 33 (paragraph 0054), and
the controller controls the reader to start the reading at a reading start timing corresponding to a front-end passage timing at which the first sensor detects the medium when the conveyor conveys the medium in the ejection direction (the paired front rollers 32 and the paired back rollers 41 are driven to convey the document 33 in the conveyance direction 35 while the document 33 is read by the image sensor 39 (paragraph 0054), and
controls the reader to terminate the reading at a reading termination timing corresponding to a rear-end passage timing at which the sensor no longer detects the medium when the conveyor conveys the medium in the ejection direction (after a specific time has elapsed since the trail edge of the document 33 passes through the scanner registration sensor 37, for example, after passage of the rear edge of the document 33 through the image sensor 39, the image sensor 39 terminates the reading; and (5) subsequently, the document 33 is still conveyed, and after the passage of the rear edge of the document 33 through the document ejection sensor 40 (paragraph 0054).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the art to have modified Ikeda in view of Kanno further in view of Nireki further in view of Sakai to include: a reader configured to perform reading to read an image on a portion of the medium, the portion being disposed in a reading region, wherein the reading region is disposed between the detection region and the ejection-side region in the conveyance path, and the controller controls the reader to start the reading at a reading start timing corresponding to a front-end passage timing at which the first sensor detects the medium when the conveyor conveys the medium in the ejection direction, and controls the reader to terminate the reading at a reading termination timing corresponding to a rear-end passage timing at which the sensor no longer detects the medium when the conveyor conveys the medium in the ejection direction.
The reason of doing so would be to efficiently process a sheet
Claim(s) 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ikeda US 2011/0181925 in view of Nireki US 20160075531
Regarding claim 8, Ikeda teaches A medium conveyance device (image reading apparatus 1 (paragraph 0024) comprising:
a conveyor configured to convey a medium along a conveyance path (conveyor roller 11 conveys the medium P (paragraph 0026);;
a first sensor configured to detect the medium in a detection region in the conveyance path (the imaging sensor 122 in the conveyance direction. imaging sensor 122 picks up the image of the medium P according to reflected light from the medium P conveyed toward the imaging position by the conveyor roller 11 (paragraph 0043-0045); and
Ikeda fails to teach upon determining, after the conveyor is controlled to stop conveyance of the medium and while the conveyor is stopped, that the output of the first sensor changes from the detection state to the non-detection state while the conveyor is stopped, control the conveyor to convey the medium in the ejection direction along the conveyance path;
Ikeda fails to teach an opening through which a medium is inserted into a conveyance path
upon detection of the medium by the first sensor immediately after insertion of the medium through the opening, control the conveyor to stop;
upon determining, after the conveyor is controlled to stop conveyance of the medium that a transition occurs from a first state in which an output of the first sensor is a detection state in which the first sensor detects the medium and the conveyor is stopped to a second state in which the conveyor remains stopped and the output of the first sensor is a non-detection state in which the first sensor does not detect the medium, control the conveyor to convey the medium in the ejection direction along the conveyance path
control the conveyor to eject the medium through the opening through which the medium is inserted;
Nireki teaches an opening through which a medium is inserted into a conveyance path (the insertion slot 2 (fig 1A and paragraph 0321);
upon detection of the medium by the first sensor immediately after insertion of the medium through the opening, control the conveyor to stop (when the first paper money detection sensor 24 detects the leading end of paper money, the conveyance motor 53 is driven backward and the paper money is ejected from the insertion slot 2 (paragraph 0321). Note: when the paper money is initially detected, the conveyance motor reverses direction, which obviously means that the conveyance motor was driving forward and once the paper money is detected, the motor would have to stop and then move backward);
upon determining, after the conveyor is controlled to stop conveyance of the medium that a transition occurs from a first state in which an output of the first sensor is a detection state in which the first sensor detects the medium and the conveyor is stopped to a second state in which the conveyor remains stopped and the output of the first sensor is a non-detection state in which the first sensor does not detect the medium, control the conveyor to convey the medium in the ejection direction along the conveyance path (when the first paper money detection sensor 24 detects the leading end of paper money, the conveyance motor 53 is driven backward and the paper money is ejected from the insertion slot 2 (paragraph 0321). Note: when the paper money is initially detected (detection state), the conveyance motor would obviously have to stop in order to drive the paper money backwards to be ejected. Therefore, once the paper money has been detected, the conveyance motor stops. While the conveyance motor is stopped, the paper money detection sensor would then be in a non-detection state, since the paper money is no longer moving and thus the paper detection sensor would not be detecting the paper money (non-detection state). The conveyance motor 53 then reverses direction and ejects the paper money out of the insertion slot 2. Therefore, the detection state of the money detection sensor 24 would obviously go from a detection state to a non-detection state when the conveyance motor has stopped.
control the conveyor to eject the medium through the opening through which the medium is inserted (when a card is detected by the detect sensors 10, 13, 32 and the read unit (RFID antenna) 30, the drive motor is driven to convey the card towards the insertion port, and then the card detection process is executed again. This enables, for example, reliably grasping a situation where the card is not conveyed by the conveyor due to slippage or the like at the portion of the conveyance rollers. Since the remaining card is conveyed towards the card insertion port 2a, the card is reliably ejected when initializing the card processing device after the card processing device is shut down due to power outage or the like (paragraph 0105).
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the art to have modified Ikeda to include: an opening through which a medium is inserted into a conveyance path
upon detection of the medium by the first sensor immediately after insertion of the medium through the opening, control the conveyor to stop;
upon determining, after the conveyor is controlled to stop conveyance of the medium that a transition occurs from a first state in which an output of the first sensor is a detection state in which the first sensor detects the medium and the conveyor is stopped to a second state in which the conveyor remains stopped and the output of the first sensor is a non-detection state in which the first sensor does not detect the medium, control the conveyor to convey the medium in the ejection direction along the conveyance path
control the conveyor to eject the medium through the opening through which the medium is inserted;
The reason of doing so would be able to remove the sheet easily and save time
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 MICHAEL L BURLESON whose telephone number is (571)272-7460. The examiner can normally be reached 9am to 530pm.
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/MICHAEL L BURLESON/Examiner, Art Unit 2683
August 13, 2026
/AKWASI M SARPONG/SPE, Art Unit 2681 8/22/2026
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