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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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 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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1, 2, 5, 7, 8, 9, 12, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 24, and 25 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being Anticipated by Schwaiger (WO 2019010509 A1).
Regarding Claim 1, Schwaiger discloses:
A carrying device (1), configured to carry a pallet (2) [0111 & 0113 & 0114], the carrying device comprising:
a vehicle body (3), which is configured to move autonomously [0009 & 0025 & 0042 & 0061 & 0087 & 0111];
a mounting bracket (11), which is horizontally slidably disposed on the vehicle body (Fig. 6 & Fig. 7 & Fig. 8) [0003 & 0112 & 0114 & 0115 & 0116 & 0120 & 0123]; and
a fork arm (5 & 24), wherein a first end of the fork arm is connected to the mounting bracket (Fig. 6 & Fig. 7 & Fig. 8 & Fig. 9 & Fig. 10 & Fig. 11) [0112 & 0114 & 0115 & 0116 & 0120 & 0123];
the fork arm is configured to protrude horizontally along with movement of the mounting bracket (Fig. 6 & Fig. 7) [0111 & 0118] to be inserted into a fork hole of the pallet, and raise or lower relative to the mounting bracket to lift the pallet (Fig. 8 & Fig. 9 & Fig. 10 & Fig. 11) [0118 & 0119 & 0120 & 0121 & 0122]; and
the vehicle body and the mounting bracket are configured to, when the fork arm lifts the pallet, enable the pallet to be located above the vehicle body by relative movement between the vehicle body and the mounting bracket (Fig. 8 & Fig. 9 & Fig. 10 & Fig. 11) [0118 & 0119 & 0120 & 0121 & 0122];
the fork arm is configured to switch between being supported on ground and off the ground so that the fork arm crosses over a bottom beam of the pallet in a case of being off the ground, and after the fork arm is partially inserted into the fork hole, part of the fork arm located inside the fork hole is supported on the ground (Fig. 9 & Fig. 10) [0003 & 0112 & 0115 & 0116 & 0117 & 0120 & 0121 & 0122 & 0123];
the fork arm comprises:
an arm body (5), wherein an end of the arm body is connected to the mounting bracket (Fig. 6 & Fig. 7 & Fig. 8 & Fig. 9 & Fig. 10 & Fig. 11) [0112 & 0114 & 0115 & 0116 & 0120 & 0123]; and
a support (6), which is disposed on the arm body and spaced from the mounting bracket (Fig. 3), and is configured to protrude downwards relative to the arm body to support the fork arm and configured to retract upwards to enable the fork arm to be off the ground to enable the fork arm to cross over the bottom beam of the pallet (Fig. 9 & Fig. 10) [0003 & 0112 & 0115 & 0116 & 0117 & 0120 & 0121 & 0122 & 0123].
Regarding Claim 2, Schwaiger discloses:
a horizontal driving unit, which is disposed on the mounting bracket and is configured to drive the mounting bracket to move horizontally relative to the vehicle body [0112 & 0114 & 0115 & 0121 & 0123].
Regarding Claim 5, Schwaiger discloses:
an upper surface of the vehicle body is provided with an accommodation groove (22 & 22a), and the fork arm is accommodated in the accommodation groove [0112 & 0114]; and
wherein the mounting bracket is configured to move along a groove wall of the accommodation groove (Fig. 6 & Fig. 7 & Fig. 8) [0003 & 0112 & 0114 & 0115 & 0116 & 0120 & 0123].
Regarding Claim 7, Schwaiger discloses:
a bearing surface (14 & 14a) configured to bear the pallet is formed on an upper surface of the vehicle body, and when the pallet moves directly above the vehicle body, the bearing surface is configured to support the pallet (Fig. 11 & Fig. 12 & Fig. 13 & Fig. 14) [0113 & 0122 & 0123].
Regarding Claim 8, Schwaiger discloses:
when the fork arm protrudes relative to the vehicle body and lifts the pallet, the vehicle body is configured to autonomously move to a bottom of the pallet relative to the fork arm on a premise that the mounting bracket is stationary (Fig. 11) [0111 & 0112 & 0115 & 0118].
Regarding Claim 9, Schwaiger discloses:
two fork arms are arranged at an interval in a width direction of the two fork arms (Fig. 5 & Fig. 6), the vehicle body is provided with at least one pair of driving wheels (4 & 4a & 4b & 4c) arranged symmetrically in the width direction (Fig. 5), and the two fork arms are arranged symmetrically relative to a symmetry axis (A) of the at least one pair of driving wheels (Fig. 3 & Fig. 5).
Regarding Claim 12, Schwaiger discloses:
the fork arm further comprises a lifting driving mechanism (13 & 13a) configured to drive the support to raise or lower relative to the arm body, and drive the arm body to raise or lower relative to the mounting bracket [0112 & 116].
Regarding Claim 18, Schwaiger discloses:
a warehousing logistics system, comprising:
a carrying device (1);
wherein the carrying device is configured to carry a pallet (2) [0111 & 0113 & 0114] and comprises:
a vehicle body (3), which is configured to move autonomously [0009 & 0025 & 0042 & 0061 & 0087 & 0111];
a mounting bracket (11), which is horizontally slidably disposed on the vehicle body (Fig. 6 & Fig. 7 & Fig. 8) [0003 & 0112 & 0114 & 0115 & 0116 & 0120 & 0123]; and
a fork arm (5 & 24), wherein a first end of the fork arm is connected to the mounting bracket (Fig. 6 & Fig. 7 & Fig. 8 & Fig. 9 & Fig. 10 & Fig. 11) [0112 & 0114 & 0115 & 0116 & 0120 & 0123];
the fork arm is configured to protrude horizontally along with movement of the mounting bracket (Fig. 6 & Fig. 7) [0111 & 0118] to be inserted into a fork hole of the pallet, and raise or lower relative to the mounting bracket to lift the pallet (Fig. 8 & Fig. 9 & Fig. 10 & Fig. 11) [0118 & 0119 & 0120 & 0121 & 0122]; and
the vehicle body and the mounting bracket are configured to, when the fork arm lifts the pallet, enable the pallet to be located above the vehicle body by relative movement between the vehicle body and the mounting bracket (Fig. 8 & Fig. 9 & Fig. 10 & Fig. 11) [0118 & 0119 & 0120 & 0121 & 0122];
wherein the fork arm is configured to switch between being supported on ground and off the ground so that the fork arm crosses over a bottom beam of the pallet in a case of being off the ground, and after the fork arm is partially inserted into the fork hole, part of the fork arm located inside the fork hole is supported on the ground (Fig. 9 & Fig. 10) [0003 & 0112 & 0115 & 0116 & 0117 & 0120 & 0121 & 0122 & 0123];
wherein the fork arm comprises:
an arm body (5), wherein an end of the arm body is connected to the mounting bracket (Fig. 6 & Fig. 7 & Fig. 8 & Fig. 9 & Fig. 10 & Fig. 11) [0112 & 0114 & 0115 & 0116 & 0120 & 0123]; and
a support (6), which is disposed on the arm body and spaced from the mounting bracket (Fig. 3), and is configured to protrude downwards relative to the arm body to support the fork arm and configured to retract upwards to enable the fork arm to be off the ground to enable the fork arm to cross over the bottom beam of the pallet (Fig. 9 & Fig. 10) [0003 & 0112 & 0115 & 0116 & 0117 & 0120 & 0121 & 0122 & 0123].
Regarding Claim 19, Schwaiger discloses:
A pallet carrying method, applying a carrying device (1) wherein the carrying device is configured to carry a pallet (2) [0111 & 0113 & 0114] and comprises:
a vehicle body (3), which is configured to move autonomously [0009 & 0025 & 0042 & 0061 & 0087 & 0111];
a mounting bracket (11), which is horizontally slidably disposed on the vehicle body (Fig. 6 & Fig. 7 & Fig. 8) [0003 & 0112 & 0114 & 0115 & 0116 & 0120 & 0123]; and
a fork arm (5 & 24), wherein a first end of the fork arm is connected to the mounting bracket (Fig. 6 & Fig. 7 & Fig. 8 & Fig. 9 & Fig. 10 & Fig. 11) [0112 & 0114 & 0115 & 0116 & 0120 & 0123];
the fork arm is configured to protrude horizontally along with movement of the mounting bracket (Fig. 6 & Fig. 7) [0111 & 0118] to be inserted into a fork hole of the pallet, and raise or lower relative to the vehicle body to lift the pallet (Fig. 8 & Fig. 9 & Fig. 10 & Fig. 11) [0118 & 0119 & 0120 & 0121 & 0122]; and
the vehicle body and the mounting bracket are configured to, when the fork arm lifts the pallet, enable the pallet to be located above the vehicle body by relative movement between the vehicle body and the mounting bracket (Fig. 8 & Fig. 9 & Fig. 10 & Fig. 11) [0118 & 0119 & 0120 & 0121 & 0122], wherein the fork arm comprises an arm body (5) connected to the mounting bracket (Fig. 6 & Fig. 7 & Fig. 8 & Fig. 9 & Fig. 10 & Fig. 11) [0112 & 0114 & 0115 & 0116 & 0120 & 0123], and a support (6) configured to vertically raise or lower relative to the arm body (Fig. 9 & Fig. 10) [0003 & 0112 & 0115 & 0116 & 0117 & 0120 & 0121 & 0122 & 0123], and the support is spaced from the mounting bracket (Fig. 6 & Fig. 9 & Fig. 10); and
wherein the method comprises:
operating the mounting bracket of the carrying device to move horizontally relative to the vehicle body of the carrying device to enable the fork arm of the carrying device to protrude into the fork hole of the pallet (Fig. 8 & Fig. 9) [0111 & 0118];
operating the fork arm to move vertically (13b) relative to the vehicle body to lift the pallet (Fig. 9 & Fig. 10) [0112 & 0116]; and
operating the mounting bracket to move horizontally relative to the vehicle body to enable the pallet to be located right above the vehicle body (Fig. 11) [0111 & 0112 & 0115 & 0118];
wherein the pallet carrying method further comprises:
after the fork arm protrudes into the fork hole to a set depth, operating the support to move downwards relative to the arm body to be supported on ground (Fig. 10) [0112 & 0120].
Regarding Claim 20, Schwaiger discloses:
operating the mounting bracket to move horizontally relative to the vehicle body comprises:
operating the mounting bracket to remain stationary, and operating the vehicle body to move to a bottom of the pallet (Fig. 11) [0111 & 0112 & 0115 & 0118].
Regarding Claim 22, Schwaiger discloses:
when the support protrudes downwards relative to the arm body, operating the fork arm to continue to move deep into the fork hole [0116 & 0117 & 0120 & 0121 & 0122 & 0123].
Regarding Claim 23, Schwaiger discloses:
the fork arm further comprises a lifting driving mechanism (13 & 13a); and
wherein the pallet carrying method further comprises:
after the fork arm is inserted into the fork hole in place, operating the lifting driving mechanism to drive the arm body to raise relative to the mounting bracket to lift the pallet and to synchronously drive the support to protrude downwards relative to the arm body to continuously press against ground (Fig. 10 & Fig. 11) [0112 & 116].
Regarding Claim 24, Schwaiger discloses:
when the pallet is located above the vehicle body, operating the fork arm to lower relative to the vehicle body so that the pallet and the vehicle body contact (Fig. 12 & Fig. 13) [0121 & 0122]; and
operating the support to retract upwards to be off ground (Fig. 13) [0122].
Regarding Claim 25, Schwaiger discloses:
operating the carrying device to carry the pallet to a target point [0004 & 0005 & 0043 & 0061 & 0123];
operating the fork arm to raise relative to the vehicle body and operating the pallet to be out of contact with the vehicle body [0123];
operating the vehicle body to move horizontally relative to the mounting bracket to enable the vehicle body to exit a bottom of the pallet [0123];
operating the fork arm to lower relative to the vehicle body to put down the pallet [0123]; and
operating the mounting bracket to carry the fork arm to retract relative to the vehicle body to enable the fork arm to exit the fork hole and enable the carrying device to reset [0123].
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 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 of this title, 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) 3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schwaiger (WO 2019010509 A1) in view of Magens (US 4998858 A).
Regarding Claim 3, Schwaiger does not teach:
the horizontal driving unit comprises:
a rolling member, which is rotatably disposed on the mounting bracket and is in rolling contact with an upper surface of the vehicle body; and
a horizontal driving motor, which is configured to drive the rolling member to rotate;
wherein the mounting bracket is further provided with an elastic member, and the elastic member is configured to elastically press the rolling member on the upper surface of the vehicle body.
Magens teaches:
A carrying device (4), configured to carry a pallet (42 & 43 & 44 & 74), comprising:
a vehicle body (5), which is configured to move autonomously [Column 1 Lines 31-36];
a mounting bracket (11), which is horizontally slidably disposed on the vehicle body (Fig. 4 & Fig. 5 7 Fig. 6 & Fig. 7) [Column 10 Lines 67-68 & Column 11 Lines 1-18]; and
a fork arm (21 & 22), wherein a first end of the fork arm is connected to the mounting bracket (Fig. 2 & Fig. 3 & Fig. 14);
the fork arm is configured to protrude horizontally along with movement of the mounting bracket (Fig. 4 & Fig. 5 7 Fig. 6 & Fig. 7) [Column 10 Lines 67-68 & Column 11 Lines 1-18] to be inserted into a fork hole of the pallet, and raise or lower relative to the vehicle body to lift the pallet (Fig. 4 & Fig. 5 7 Fig. 6 & Fig. 7); and
the vehicle body and the mounting bracket are configured to, when the fork arm lifts the pallet, enable the pallet to be located above the vehicle body by relative movement between the vehicle body and the mounting bracket (Fig. 7 & Fig. 8);
a horizontal driving unit (67 & 68 & 69 & 70 & 71 & 72 & 80 & 81 & 83 & 86 & 87 & 99 & 101), which is disposed on the mounting bracket and is configured to drive the mounting bracket to move horizontally relative to the vehicle body [Column 8 Lines 63-68 & Column 9 Lines 1-7 & Column 10 Lines 67-68 & Column 11 Lines 1-18 & Column 11 Lines 67-68 & Column 12 Lines 1-7];
the horizontal driving unit comprises:
a rolling member (86 & 87), which is rotatably disposed on the mounting bracket and is in rolling contact with an upper surface of the vehicle body [Column 10 Lines 67-68 & Column 11 Lines 1-18 & Column 11 Lines 67-68 & Column 12 Lines 1-7]; and
a horizontal driving motor, which is configured to drive the rolling member to rotate [Column 8 Lines 63-68 & Column 9 Lines 1-7];
wherein the mounting bracket is further provided with an elastic member (101), and the elastic member is configured to elastically press the rolling member on the upper surface of the vehicle body [Column 11 Lines 67-68 & Column 12 Lines 1-7].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the pallet transfer system utilizing horizontally and vertically positioned pallet forks carried by an autonomous vehicle taught by Schwaiger with the pallet transfer system utilizing horizontally and vertically positioned pallet forks carried by an autonomous vehicle with a mounting bracket which is further provided with an elastic member, and the elastic member is configured to elastically press the rolling member on the upper surface of the vehicle body taught by Magens in order to provide a means of reinforcing the orientation of the forks when being guided for horizontal travel in order to prevent deflection of the forks in the system and accidental interference with the pallet.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 13 and 15 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance:
The art of record fails to render obvious the claimed combination of: “A carrying device, configured to carry a pallet, the carrying device comprising: a vehicle body, which is configured to move autonomously; a mounting bracket, which is horizontally slidably disposed on the vehicle body; and a fork arm, wherein a first end of the fork arm is connected to the mounting bracket; the fork arm is configured to protrude horizontally along with movement of the mounting bracket to be inserted into a fork hole of the pallet, and raise or lower relative to the mounting bracket to lift the pallet; and the vehicle body and the mounting bracket are configured to, when the fork arm lifts the pallet, enable the pallet to be located above the vehicle body by relative movement between the vehicle body and the mounting bracket a wherein the fork arm is configured to switch between being supported on ground and off the ground so that the fork arm crosses over a bottom beam of the pallet in a case of being off the ground, and after the fork arm is partially inserted into the fork hole, the fork arm partially located inside the fork hole is supported on the ground; wherein the fork arm comprises: an arm body, wherein an end of the arm body is connected to the mounting bracket; and a support, which is disposed on the arm body and spaced from the mounting bracket, and is configured to protrude downwards relative to the arm body to support the fork arm and configured to retract upwards to enable the fork arm to be off the ground to enable the fork arm to cross over the bottom beam of the pallet; wherein the fork arm further comprises a lifting driving mechanism configured to drive the support to raise or lower relative to the arm body, and drive the arm body to raise or lower relative to the mounting bracket; wherein the lifting driving mechanism comprises: two first connecting rods, wherein one end of each first connecting rod of the two first connecting rods is hinged to the support; and a first driving assembly, wherein another end of each first connecting rod is connected to the first driving assembly, and the first driving assembly is configured to drive other ends of the two first connecting rods to move towards each other or away from each other to raise or lower the support; and wherein the first driving assembly comprises: a screw rod comprising a first thread segment and a second thread segment in opposite thread directions; two first nut seats, which are sleeved on the first thread segment and the second thread segment, respectively, and the other ends of the two first connecting rods are respectively hinged to the two first nut seats; and a lifting driving motor, which is configured to drive the screw rod to rotate to drive the two first nut seats to move towards each other or away from each other along the screw rod.”, as recited in Claim 13 specifically:
the structural and operative relationship between the pallet, vehicle body, mounting bracket, fork arm, fork hole, bottom beam, arm body, support, lifting driving mechanism, first connecting rods, first driving assembly, screw rod, first thread segment, second thread segment, first nut seats, and lifting driving motor. especially as it relates to the relationship between the pallet, vehicle body, mounting bracket, fork arm, fork hole, bottom beam, arm body, support, lifting driving mechanism, first connecting rods, first driving assembly, screw rod, first thread segment, second thread segment, first nut seats, and lifting driving motor.
The art of record fails to render obvious the claimed combination of: “A carrying device, configured to carry a pallet, the carrying device comprising: a vehicle body, which is configured to move autonomously; a mounting bracket, which is horizontally slidably disposed on the vehicle body; and a fork arm, wherein a first end of the fork arm is connected to the mounting bracket; the fork arm is configured to protrude horizontally along with movement of the mounting bracket to be inserted into a fork hole of the pallet, and raise or lower relative to the mounting bracket to lift the pallet; and the vehicle body and the mounting bracket are configured to, when the fork arm lifts the pallet, enable the pallet to be located above the vehicle body by relative movement between the vehicle body and the mounting bracket a wherein the fork arm is configured to switch between being supported on ground and off the ground so that the fork arm crosses over a bottom beam of the pallet in a case of being off the ground, and after the fork arm is partially inserted into the fork hole, the fork arm partially located inside the fork hole is supported on the ground; wherein the fork arm comprises: an arm body, wherein an end of the arm body is connected to the mounting bracket; and a support, which is disposed on the arm body and spaced from the mounting bracket, and is configured to protrude downwards relative to the arm body to support the fork arm and configured to retract upwards to enable the fork arm to be off the ground to enable the fork arm to cross over the bottom beam of the pallet; wherein the fork arm further comprises a lifting driving mechanism configured to drive the support to raise or lower relative to the arm body, and drive the arm body to raise or lower relative to the mounting bracket; wherein the lifting driving mechanism comprises: a second connecting rod, wherein a first end of the second connecting rod is hinged to the mounting bracket, and a second end of the second connecting rod is configured to support the arm body; and a second driving assembly, which is configured to drive the second connecting rod to rotate to raise or lower the arm body; wherein the second driving assembly comprises: a screw rod comprising a third thread segment; a second nut seat, which is rotatably sleeved on the third thread segment, and the second end of the second connecting rod is hinged to the second nut seat; and a lifting driving motor, which is configured to drive the screw rod to rotate to drive the second nut seat to move; and wherein the second nut seat comprises a thread sleeve part and a sliding seat part slidingly sleeved on the thread sleeve part, the thread sleeve part and the third thread segment are in transmission fit, the thread sleeve part is provided with two position-limiting seat parts configured to limit a sliding travel of the sliding seat part, and the second connecting rod is hinged to the sliding seat part.”, as recited in Claim 15 specifically:
the structural and operative relationship between the pallet, vehicle body, mounting bracket, fork arm, fork hole, bottom beam, arm body, support, lifting driving mechanism, second connecting rod, second driving assembly, screw rod, third thread segment, second nut seat, lifting driving motor, thread sleeve part, sliding seat part, and position-limiting seat parts. especially as it relates to the relationship between the pallet, vehicle body, mounting bracket, fork arm, fork hole, bottom beam, arm body, support, lifting driving mechanism, second connecting rod, second driving assembly, screw rod, third thread segment, second nut seat, lifting driving motor, thread sleeve part, sliding seat part, and position-limiting seat parts.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to Claims 1-3, 5, 7-9, 12, 13, 15, 18-20, and 22-25 have been considered but are moot because the arguments do not apply to the combination of references being used in the current rejection.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Patent publications US 20220204327 A1, US 20220242712 A1, WO 2022142668 A1, and CN 208963204 U have been cited by the examiner as pertinent to the applicant’s disclosure because they teach: low profile autonomous fork trucks for transporting pallets.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRENDAN P TIGHE whose telephone number is 571-272-4872. The Examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Thursday, 7:00-5:30 EST
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, SAUL RODRIGUEZ can be reached on 571-272-7097. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BRENDAN P TIGHE/Examiner, Art Unit 3652
/SAUL RODRIGUEZ/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3652