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 .
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 allowance or after an Office action under Ex Parte Quayle, 25 USPQ 74, 453 O.G. 213 (Comm'r Pat. 1935). 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, prosecution in this application has been reopened pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 11/10/2025 has been entered.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 5/29/2023 have been reconsidered by the examiner.
Response to Amendments
Applicant’s amendment filed on 11/10/2025 has been entered. Claims 1 and 11 have been amended, and claims 4-10 and 14-15 have been canceled, and claims 17-23 have been added.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s remarks concerning the interpretation of under 35 USC 102(a)(1) have been fully considered. The Applicant asserts the following: Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim 1 has been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
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.
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1-3, 11-13, 16-17, 19-20 and 22-23 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tuttle (US 20160363662 A1) in view of Nitzan et al (US 20060001528), hereinafter Nitzan.
Regarding claim 1, Tuttle discloses:
a signal processing method performed by a target apparatus, comprising (Tuttle, para [0037], In FIG. 1, the RFID tags (e.g., 16A, 16B, . . . , 16C) include their individual tag antennas (e.g., 17A, 17B, . . . , 17C) to receive the interrogating electromagnetic wave, and corresponding RFID circuits (e.g., 15A, 15B, . . . , 15C) to process the commands received from the RFID reader. Based on the commands, the RFID tags (e.g., 16A, 16B, . . . , 16C) can be selectively silenced (e.g., being placed in a mode to reduce interrogating electromagnetic wave backscattered from the tag, or not to actively transmit any signals using its internal power source), or be instructed to produce a response (e.g., via backscattering or actively transmitting) and (para [0039], In one embodiment, one of the RFID tagged objects is instructed to be responsive to the reader and radar circuit (19) while other RFID tagged objects are silenced (or being out of range). For example, the interrogation signal from the antenna (18) is received by the tag antenna (17A) and passed to the RFID circuit (15A) for processing. If the interrogation signal triggers a response, the RFID circuit (15A) uses its tag antenna (17A) to send to the reader and radar circuit (19) a response, such as tag identification information or other data stored in the memory of the tag (16A)) Examiner notes that the RFID tag/transponder is the target apparatus:
receiving a first transmit signal from a detection apparatus (Tuttle, (paras [0037] and [0039]) –Examiner notes that the RFID reader is the detection apparatus;
and emitting a first echo signal of the first transmit signal to the detection apparatus for determining a distance between the detection apparatus and the target apparatus (Tuttle, para [0060], In FIG. 4, the RFID tag modulates data on the reflected radar signal via backscattering using the antenna of the RFID tag. For example, the different portions (e.g., 64 and 66) of the reflected radar signal can be amplitude modulated to transmit the tag data and/or other data (e.g., the location, amplitude, fuel level, speed, heading, etc., obtained from an onboard computer of a vehicle), when the corresponding portions of the transmitted portions (e.g., 60 and 62) have the same amplitude.
[0061] The radar system can also use the continuous wave radar signal as interrogating electromagnetic wave to send commands and/or data to the RFID tag (not shown in FIG. 4).
[0062] In one embodiment, the continuous wave radar signal is not frequency or phase modulated. The frequency shift in the reflected continuous wave radar signal is used to detect the Doppler shift and to compute the speed of the RFID tag) Examiner notes backscatter as the echo signal,
thereby causing a first Doppler shift between the first echo signal and the first transmit signal (Tuttle, paras [0060-0062]),
Nitzan discloses:
wherein the first echo signal is formed by reflecting the first transmit signal at modulated reflection amplitudes to cause through changing periodically impedance values of more or more impedances of an antenna of the target apparatus (Nitzan, para [0020], In yet another embodiment, the at least one antenna includes a feed-point, the radiation characteristic includes a radar cross-section (RCS) of the at least one antenna, and the IC is arranged to vary a load impedance at the feed-point of the at least one antenna so as to vary the RCS of the at least one antenna between two or more different RCS values. In still another embodiment, the IC includes a solid-state switch operatively coupled to the feed-point of the at least one antenna, which is arranged to switch the load impedance between a first impedance and a second impedance, responsively to a binary representation of the code) Examiner notes the varying impedance of different values,
wherein in each period, a first impedance value of the impedance values stays for a first duration (Nitzan, paras [0020] and [0166]),
a second impedance value of the impedance values stays for a second duration (Nitzan, paras [0020] and [0166]),
and the first impedance value is different from the second impedance value (Nitzan, paras [0020] and [0166]).
It would have been obvious to someone in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Tuttle with Nitzan to incorporate the features of: wherein the first echo signal is formed by reflecting the first transmit signal at modulated reflection amplitudes to cause through changing periodically impedance values of more or more impedances of an antenna of the target apparatus , wherein in each period, a first impedance value of the impedance values stays for a first duration, a second impedance value of the impedance values stays for a second duration, and the first impedance value is different from the second impedance value . Both arts disclose a detection apparatus and target apparatus that comprise backscatter (noted as echo signals). The modification would render the predictable results of improved target recognition, improved time varying Radar Cross Section (RCS), and improved signal discrimination.
Regarding claim 2, Tuttle discloses:
the method according to claim 1 (Tuttle, paras [0037] and [0039]),
wherein a difference between a second Doppler frequency corresponding to the first echo signal and the first Doppler shift is less than or equal to a first threshold corresponding to a preset speed limitation (Tuttle, (paras [0037] and [0039]) and (para [0038], In one embodiment, the antenna (18) is used not only to transmit radar signals to detect and measure as in a radar system, but also to identify the reflecting object to which the RFID tag is attached and to communicate with the RFID tag. For example, in one embodiment, the reader and radar circuit (19) can be used in a radar mode to measure distance (or direction or speed) between an RFID tag (e.g., 16A, or 16B, or 16C) and the reader antenna (18) and in a reader mode to send commands to the RFID tag and/or receive data from the RFID tag. For example, in another embodiment, the reader and radar circuit (19) can be used to detect and measure and to interrogate concurrently using the same electromagnetic wave),
and the second Doppler frequency corresponds to the distance between the detection apparatus and the target apparatus (Tuttle, paras [0037-0039]).
Regarding claim 3, Tuttle discloses:
the method according to claim 1 (Tuttle, paras [0037-0039]),
wherein a speed of the target apparatus is within a preset first speed range (Tuttle, para [0015], In some continuous-wave radar systems, the electromagnetic wave is modulated in frequency or phase such that the frequency or phase modulation pattern in the received wave can be compared to determine the time delay in the received wave. Thus, such a continuous-wave radar system can also determine both the range and the speed of the object along the line between the object and the radar antenna).
Claim 11 is rejected under the same analysis as claim 1.
Claim 12 is rejected under the same analysis as claim 2.
`Claim 13 is rejected under the same analysis as claim 3.
Regarding claim 16, Tuttle discloses:
the method according to claim 1 (Tuttle, paras [0037-0039]),
Nitzan discloses:
where the target apparatus comprises a switch coupled to multiple impedances of the one or more impedances (Nitzan, para [0172], Switch 82 may comprise a field-effect transistor (FET), a Gallium-Arsenide switch, a PIN-diode switch, or a switch produced using any other suitable switching technology. The switching time of the switch is typically below 50 ns. In some cases, a high RCS can be produced by making the input impedance of the IC a low real load (i.e., a low resistance). A low RCS can typically be obtained by loading the antenna with a real (resistive) load that is matched to the impedance of the antenna. It should be noted, however, that the physical size of the antenna has a major effect on the achievable RCS values. Exemplary impedance values for switch 82 are as follows: TABLE-US-00001 RCS high RCS low Resistance .ltoreq.10 .OMEGA. .gtoreq.1000 .OMEGA. Parallel capacitance .ltoreq.1 pF .ltoreq.0.25 pF),
the impedance values are changed by controlling the switch periodically (Nitzan, para [0172] and [0173], Assuming a half-wavelength antenna, such impedance values cause "RCS high" and "RCS low" values of approximately -1 dB and approximately -20 dB, respectively. Alternatively, any other suitable impedance values can be used),
such that in each period, the switch is connected to a first impedance with the first impedance value for the first duration (Nitzan, para [0172]) Examiner notes switching time,
and the switch is connected to a second impedance with the second impedance for the second duration (Nitzan, para [0172]).
It would have been obvious to someone in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Tuttle with Nitzan to incorporate the features of: where the target apparatus comprises a switch coupled to multiple impedances of the one or more impedances, the impedance values are changed by controlling the switch periodically, such that in each period, the switch is connected to a first impedance with the first impedance value for the first duration, and the switch is connected to a second impedance with the second impedance for the second duration. Both arts disclose a detection apparatus and target apparatus that comprise backscatter (noted as echo signals). The modification would render the predictable results of controlled change in backscatter response and clearly distinguish multiple tag states; few missed reads and improved reliability.
Regarding claim 17, Tuttle discloses:
the method according to claim 1 (Tuttle, paras [0037-0039]),
Nitzan discloses:
wherein the first duration is different from the second duration (Nitzan, para [0185], After entering the semi-active mode, the transponder can activate read memory section 67 in memory 66, at a read activation step 123. The read memory is activated to allow the transponder to read its code from memory 66. The transponder can read the code from memory 66 and can transmit it to the reader using backscatter modulation, at a code transmission step 124. Typically, the transponder repeats transmitting the code at random or pseudo random intervals, to avoid collision with transmissions from other transponders. Alternatively, any other suitable anti-collision protocol may be adopted by the transponder. Module 70 comprises a code transmission timeout counter that determines the maximum time interval or the maximum number of repetitions for transmitting the code. Once the code transmission timeout expires, the transponder can return to sleep mode at step 120).
It would have been obvious to someone in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Tuttle with Nitzan to incorporate the features of: wherein the first duration is different from the second duration. Both arts disclose a detection apparatus and target apparatus that comprise backscatter (noted as echo signals). The modification would render the predictable results of improved identification and authentication of the target apparatus and improved discrimination between multiple target apparatuses.
Claim 19 is rejected under the same analysis as claim 16.
Claim 20 is rejected under the same analysis as claim 17.
Claim 22 is rejected under the same analysis as claim 1.
Claim 23 is rejected under the same analysis as claim 16.
Claims 18 and 21are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Tuttle (US 20160363662 A1) in view of Nitzan et al (US 20060001528), hereinafter Nitzan in further view of Sha et al (CN 110261830 A), hereinafter Sha.
Regarding claim 18, Tuttle discloses:
the method according to claim 1 (Nitzan, paras [0113-0114]) (Tuttle, paras [0037-0039]),
Tuttle, paras [0060-0062]) Examiner notes Doppler shift corresponding to speed of the target apparatus.
Nitzan discloses:
(Nitzan, para [0020]) Examiner notes impedance values of the antenna of the target apparatus
It would have been obvious to someone in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Tuttle with Nitzan to incorporate the features of: wherein the first Doppler shift corresponds to a simulated movement speed of the target apparatus obtained by changing the impedance values of the antenna. Both arts discloses the system and method of the target and detection apparatus. Tuttle discloses the first Doppler corresponds to a speed of the target apparatus; however, fails to disclose the impedance values of the antennas of the target apparatus as discloses by Nitzan. The modification would render the predictable results of improved ability to emulate (mimic) a moving target with a deterministic velocity signature for the improved target identification, and improved separation from clutter and noise. However, The combination of Tuttle and Nitzan fails to disclose the first Doppler shift corresponds to a simulated movement of the target apparatus obtained by changing the impedance values of the antenna.
Sha discloses:
wherein the first Doppler shift corresponds to a simulated movement speed of the target apparatus obtained by changing the impedance values of the antenna (Sha, para [0002], Radar echo simulator for generating a radar target echo signal is the special device of radar semi-physical simulation test verification. Radar echo simulator superposition Doppler frequency to the received radar signal, and modulating and then transmitting back adding delay to simulate the speed and distance parameter of the target. With the development of large scale digital integrated circuit, radar echo simulator is accuracy of Doppler-frequency radar signal superposition has been generally accurate to ten hertz magnitude, the accuracy of delay modulation has been generally accurate to ten nano seconds. then when the radar echo simulator to measurement and calibration, the measuring precision of the Doppler frequency can achieve Hz magnitude, measuring precision can reach nanosecond of delay modulation, using general-purpose equipment such as an oscillograph and a frequency spectrograph is difficult to reach the measuring precision requirement of these parameters. Therefore, it is necessary to design a radar echo simulator for specific performance calibrator, for accurately measuring these parameters)
It would have been obvious to someone in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the combination of Tuttle with Nitzan with Sha to incorporate the features of: wherein the first Doppler shift corresponds to a simulated movement speed of the target apparatus obtained by changing the impedance values of the antenna. Both arts discloses the system and method of the target and detection apparatus. Tuttle discloses the first Doppler corresponds to a speed of the target apparatus; however, fails to disclose the impedance values of the antennas of the target apparatus as discloses by Nitzan. However, The combination of Tuttle and Nitzan fails to disclose the first Doppler shift corresponds to a simulated movement speed of the target apparatus obtained by changing the impedance values of the antenna wherein Sha discloses the simulated movement speed of the target apparatus. The modification would render the predictable results of improved ability to emulate (mimic) a moving target with a deterministic velocity signature for the improved target identification, and improved separation from clutter and noise.
Claim 21 is rejected under the same analysis as claim 18.
References Cited But Not Relied Upon
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure as thus:
Breed US 7147246 B2 discloses an embodiment that uses RFID technology with echo signals between the detection and target apparatuses, and further discloses impedance of the antenna
Zhang et al CN 105403870 A discloses a radar target monitoring universal signal generator wherein the Doppler shift corresponds with a simulated speed
Ma et al CN 104267384 A discloses a pulse radar speed processor debugging device simulation speed processor and pulse Doppler signal synthesizing device
Conclusion
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/KIMBERLY JENKINS/Examiner, Art Unit 3648
/VLADIMIR MAGLOIRE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3648