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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 15-29 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention. Limitation “gapless field of view area” is unclear. If one has laser illumination source which generates spot by spot illumination is it considered field of view with gaps? If not then if in two different regions it has different resolution and regions are connecting to each other is it gapless?
Also if we have two sensors one oriented in 0 degree relative to x axis and second one at 180 degree, both of them are scanning the same region but at different time is it gapless?
Also limitation “sensor devices being disposed at different circumferential positions of the rotor” is unclear. Two sensors inherently cannot be positioned at the same circumferential position, they are always positioned at different positions. Does Applicant mean that they are positioned at different radial distances from the axis or at different angular positions?(if we have an array of detectors can we consider it as sensor devices being disposed at different circumferential positions of the rotor)
Claims 17, 20-23 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
It is unclear what Applicant mean by term “scanning direction”, is it instantaneous direction of the beam or it is associated with beam pattern(direction in where beam moves at next moment of time.) Or scanning direction is rotation direction of the rotor as beam is moving in that pattern. It looks like Applicant means orientation of the sensor device as scanning direction but it is not clearly described. Examiner interpreted as scanning direction beam pattern movement.
Limitation “herein each of the sensor ranges extends along a scanning direction, and the scanning directions being parallel to one another” is unclear.
Simple example is bellow
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Two beams with cones , as one can see side of triangles are not parallel but one can say scanning directions are parallel as FOV’s are continuation each other. It is unclear what Applicant means by limitation.
Claims 18-23 and dependents rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Limitation “wherein all of the sensor devices are situated in the same axial region of the rotor” is unclear.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 15 and claims bellow are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by D1 US 20180329061 A1.
Regarding claim 15 D1 teaches
15. (New) A lidar assembly, comprising:
a rotor(600) situated so as to rotate about an axis of rotation(fig. 6A), the rotor having at least two sensor devices(608 and 609 are arrays as presented in fig. 10), each of the sensor devices having at least one laser and detector pair[0096](emitter sensor pairs fig. 8), and each of the sensor devices being configured to acquire a separate sensor range of a gapless field of view area situated parallel to the axis of rotation, (fig. 10)and the sensor devices being disposed at different circumferential positions of the rotor.(inherent sensors cannot occupy same position)
16. (New) The lidar assembly as recited in claim 15, wherein the sensor devices are situated at an offset in an axial direction.(implicit fig. 6 with fig. 8 and 10)
17. (New) The lidar assembly as recited in claim 16, wherein each of the sensor ranges extends along a scanning direction, and the scanning directions being parallel to one another.(fig. 10 with fig. 6)
18. (New) The lidar assembly as recited in claim 15, wherein all of the sensor devices are situated in the same axial region of the rotor.(fig. 8 with fig. 6)
19. (New) The lidar assembly as recited in claim 18, wherein center points of all sensor devices are situated in a common plane perpendicular to the axis of rotation.(fig. 8 and fig. 6)
26. (New) The lidar assembly as recited in claim 15, wherein each sensor device has a multitude of laser and detector pairs, which are situated next to one another in a direction parallel to the axis of rotation.(fig. 8 and 10 with fig. 6)
27. (New) The lidar assembly as recited in claim 26, wherein each laser and detector pair is configured to acquire a separate detector region of the sensor range.(fig. 8)
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 24, 25, 28, 29 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over D1.
Although D1 does not explicitly say
24. (New) The lidar assembly as recited in claim 15, wherein the sensor devices are fastened on the rotor using a screw connection and/or with the aid of a snap-in connection.
It is two very well known methods of attaching different components and therefore It would be obvious to one of ordinary skills in the art at the time of filing to modify teachings by D1 to use scre connection onrder to securely position the device on the rotation platform.
Although D1 does not explicitly say
25. (New) The lidar assembly as recited in claim 15, wherein the sensor devices are evenly distributed about a circumference of the rotor.
This is just a matter of placement of the devices which is well know in the art (see for example US 7969558 B2)
And therefore It would be obvious to one of ordinary skills in the art at the time of filing to modify teachings by D1 in order to scan simultaneously 360 degree with high point cloud refresh rate.
Although D1 does not explicitly teach
28. (New) The lidar assembly as recited in claim 15, further comprising:
a stator having an optics system.
Placing the system into the dome with window to protect electronics from the dust , moisture and dirt is well known in the art (evidenced by US 20190361092 A1 [0085]) and therefore It would be obvious to one of ordinary skills in the art at the time of filing to modify teachings by D1 in order to protect device from damaging elements.
Although D1 does not explicitly teach
29. (New) The lidar assembly as recited in claim 28, wherein the optics system has a separate optics unit for each of the sensor devices.
Using separate lenses for each sensor and laser is also well known in the art (see for example US 7969558 B2) and therefore It would be obvious to one of ordinary skills in the art at the time of filing to modify teachings by D1 in order to provide focusing (on sensor) or spreading the beam on FOV.
Conclusion
Dependent claims which are not addressed in the rejection have clarity issues and depending on the Applicant clarification may require the additional search and consideration.
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/HOVHANNES BAGHDASARYAN/Examiner, Art Unit 3645